DIY Life

Summer may be long gone, but I'm still allowed to dream of astroturf, right? Especially after seeing this lovely DIY AstroTurf couch in a recent ReadyMade mag issue. The perfect outdoor seating would look just as smashing on a front porch or sunroom, and I'm half tempted to strike a deal with the husband -- if he helps me build an AstroTurf couch, I'll let him use the leftovers for his very own backyard golf course. Good deal, right?

And you know what? Turns out I don't even need his help to build it! The instructions couldn't be easier:

1. Take removable cushions off of the sofa. Lay AstroTurf down on the sofa and cut into pieces just large enough to cover each area with a slight overlap.
2. Using the staple gun, attach AstroTurf, stretching as you go for a snug fit. You don't need to cover the bottom of the sofa, but try not to leave any gaps where water might seep in.
3. Cover removable cushions separately.

Super fun, right? So excited to try it!

Think you need to spend the big bucks for a Platner piece? Think again. In fact, a trash can could do the trick just fine. And yes, I'm being serious. Chiasso has a new garbage can that looks oddly Platner-inspired. Why not cut a circle of glass over the opening and call it what it is --- a designer side table!

Even better? You can get a circle of glass cut for a few bucks at your local glass or framing store, turn the table on its end and for around $30, you have a designer-inspired side table. Try finding that great of a deal at your favorite big box retailer.

Proof that to get an aesthetic of high design, you don't necessarily have to pay a high price tag. In fact, design is in the (sometimes trashy!) details.

Hearing the term "double-duty" is music to my ears. I've always loved re-arranging furniture in my room growing up, making a tiny coffee table into an end table and my dresser into a headboard (that one actually didn't work out so well...). Something tells me Jaime over at ShelterPop is on the same train of thought, as her Double-Duty Furniture post has me reeling for new ways to use and re-use my furniture.

My favorite find from Jaime's post? These double-duty bunk beds that transform into a sleek, modern sofa when not in use. Because my guest room was often used as an office in my former home, this is the perfect solution to space-saving (and space-aging!) furnishings. I'd love this in a kid's room; a piece that will grow with a child well into dorm room years.

Pretty cool, right? Proof that two is definitely better than one.

Anyone who has ever tried to outfit their bedroom knows that bedroom furniture is not cheap. So what do you do if you are short on cash, yet long for a stylish room? You do-it-yourself, of course.

There are a few things to consider before you begin. Think about your decorating style. Are you looking for something as a short term solution or are you looking to invest the time and energy into making a headboard that will last your for the long haul. How much time and energy do you really want to spend making a headboard? Do you want to make your headboard from items that you already own, then look around your house, garage, or attic at things that you have laying around that could be repurposed.

Here are some ideas to get you started.

Think beyond the metal scroll screen. There are many types of screens out there that can suit your own personal taste. You can even use vintage shutters hinged together.

When it comes to home décor, I've learned to get more for my money. If you're currently renting, chances are you're doing the same – shopping for Pottery Barn looks at bargain basement prices. Shop even smarter: Time your purchases to take advantage of clearance sales on seasonal product lines!

August is a great time to shop for outdoor supplies, especially furniture and décor for your patio or balcony. So start keeping an eye out for those hot late-summer deals! Need inspiration? Check out my slideshow of thrifty buys for balcony beautification. It's all about getting great looks at an affordable price.

Oh, and for sensible tips on making the most of your outdoor spaces, take a look at Oh My Apartment's balcony decorating ideas and also HGTV's guide to decorating a balcony.

It's summer: the season of sun, sand and surfing! So let's talk about how to incorporate a dash of beach flavor into your interior décor. Specifically, let's talk surfboards.

First up: Enter the DIY Life-Lunar Lounge Coffee Table Giveaway! A beautifully streamlined Eliptikal table is up for grabs. Inspired by 1950s interiors, the Eliptikal also evokes the world of surfing style. Want to win it? Just follow the link to Erin's post and tell us how you would put your own decorative stamp on this baby.

Now, I'll confess, I'm no surfer. However, I love the look of vintage long boards. Yes, they're kind of big and bulky, but they also possess elegant lines. They speak so powerfully of the ocean and outdoors living. Plus they effortlessly add an unexpected, fun twist to any room.

Your front yard doesn't have to be perfectly manicured or professionally landscaped to look good. It is, however, your public face -- of sorts. Plus, your neighbors are forced to look at whatever you put out there!

Be a good neighbor: banish the following items from your front yard.

1. Plastic foliage. I'm talking anything you got from a craft store. Like this, for example. Plastic ivy. Faux dried sunflowers. Silk chrysanthemums. Plastic wreaths. Fake autumn leaves strung into streamers. Shudder.

Plastic flowers are tacky in the garden. They're unnecessary. After all, you have Mother Nature at your disposal! Why choose fake flowers? Finally, they evoke the cemetery. Enough said.

In my humble opinion, upholstered furniture looks better without the anchoring wall of fabric known as the skirt. More often than not, skirts are cut and hemmed too short anyway. Unless the legs are downright hideous, their presence adds an element which becomes a part of the overall design, rather than something attached to it.

Complete removal of a skirt can get tricky, but ReadyMade happened across a chair update project on The Brick House blog that opens up all sorts of vintage chair possibilities.

The blogger transformed this unimpressive gold 1970s chair into a retro gem by altering the skirt in order to show off those modern legs. Find out more after the break.

Nothing perturbs me more than sitting in a chair and wobbling back and forth because the chair legs need fixing. I get perturbed because once again I spent my money on something cheap, or someone else did, and they just like to be annoying by rocking back and forth.

Over at the Indianapolis Star, our own extremely talented Shelly Leer learned how to fix annoying chair wobbles when a furniture builder showed her how to apply wood glue to the chair using a turkey basting syringe. Genius!

There's a little more to it: please join me after the break to learn how it's done.

I'm getting ready to re-paint the armoire in my son's room, to reflect his budding maturity at three-and-a-half years old. The stark white with the yellow star handles will become a taupe and navy masterpiece when the transformation is complete.

As I look around the house at all of the furniture I have painted, I notice one commonality: they all have newspaper stuck to the bottom, a casualty of the drying process.

Chica and Jo have a tip on how to keep painted items from sticking while drying, and I think it's a clever one. Simply use some push pins to elevate the drying item above the surface to act as "feet," eliminating the stick. Their example was for wooden letters to hang on a wall.

Now, I'm not sure if push pins would keep up a piece of furniture, but I bet a few narrow shims would do the trick. No more newspaper decorating the bottom of my masterpieces... it'll be a good look!

Do you have a piece of wood furniture or two that's got a few dings? Not quite enough to warrant the effort of stripping, puttying, sanding, and refinishing? Been there, done that. Well, there's an elegant solution that you can DIY in just a few moments (say, right before the company arrives)!

This little bit of touch-up magic comes in the form of a marker; it looks kind of like a magic marker and you can pick them up at most home improvement centers. I know, it sounds lame, but it really does work. The brand I'm familiar with is Mohawk, which is a company under the same corporate umbrella where RustOleum resides. That says quality to me.

The real trick is in matching the shade. I learned how to do this when I worked for a major hotel chain where guests seem to get a sardonic pleasure in abusing furniture the way they would never do at home. Anyhow, they only come in a certain number of shades. Here's the trick: swipe with a shade slightly darker than your finish and quickly wipe with a cloth. After wiping it'll be lighter than the marker says.

Repeat with the swipe 'n wipe until you've got a match. Each swipe will get you closer. Using the chisel edge of the marker, you can even match grain patterns with practice.

Back when I was writing about all the things you can do with one yard of fabric, I found that for many projects, a yard of material was actually too much. There are scads of things you can make using only fabric scraps, leftover from other projects.

This is good news for those of us who save everything, but really don't have a place for it all... so pull out those bags of fabric scraps and start sewing! Some of these projects make great gifts; you'll be customizing your gift for your recipient, and saving a lot of money, too.

Fabric flower cards: Maggie has written a previous post on how to make fabric flower cards. Using your fabric scraps, you can create a floral garden right on cardstock. What a beautiful gift.

Every time I move a piece of furniture, my carpet is left with indentations that I am not sure how to remove, especially if it happens to be a large piece of furniture. I try to fluff the carpet, but combing the area with my fingers or vacuuming doesn't always help.

When it comes time to move my heavy entertainment center, I will be left with a carpet indent that will have me shaking my head wondering how to fix it. Combing the carpet with my fingers sure won't work for that enormous piece of wood, but I bet using a steam iron or ice would work to remove the carpet dents.

The Frugal Life posted a question from Debbie, who asked how to remove carpet indents. The responses to her question varied, but the majority of answers were to (A) either use an ice cube on the dent, (B) wet a towel and use a steam iron to "iron" out the indents, or (C) use a blow dryer and a comb or brush to make the carpet appear new again.

I have tried the comb and brush method, and it doesn't work all that well for me. Using a hot iron with a wet towel makes the most sense to me, so I'll have to give that one a try. I will try the ice cube method too, but only on small indents. I don't want to be stuck with a gigantic indent in my carpet when I move that monstrous entertainment center, so feel free to leave a comment and tell me your best method for removing carpet indentations.

via: Craft

There are a lot of reasons why the lowly bean bag is still a popular piece of furniture, even after all these years. They're comfortable (ergonomic, even), easy to clean, and low maintenance. They're portable, which makes them perfect for college students. They're also versatile and can be easily stored, then pulled out for quick seating. Finally, they sit low on the ground, perfect for watching TV or playing video games.

Bean bags are also inexpensive to buy, but even more so to make. By making your own bean bags, you also can create custom seating that matches your decor perfectly. To make a bean bag, you'll need:

• a sewing machine
• 3.8 yards of fabric of your choice
• 3.8 yards of inexpensive fabric (for the inner bag)
• 50 cm zipper
• beanbag filling
• scissors
• thread
• pencil

Ready to get started? WikiHow will show you how. Before you know it, you'll be sitting back relaxing in your own, personalized bean bag chair.

When I look at a piece of unfinished Ikea furniture, I see yet another project to add to my list. But when an Ikea hacker looks at a piece, they see a blank canvas just waiting to be filled.

Ikea hackers view purchased pieces as "raw material" or the base of their creation. Ikea is known for its inexpensive furniture and boasts a simple style, perfect for modifying.

For instance, one artist used two Ikea snack boxes to make a rolling litter box, while others turn lamps into wall sconces. The whole idea, say Ikea hackers, is to "upcycle" or lift the piece out of its typical, mass-manufactured self and create something better.

If it sounds like fun to you, check out the Ikea Hackers blog and find yourself some inspiration.