DIY Life

As the weather turns colder, our showers are turning hotter. Beat the morning mirror mist with this handy tip I learned from my aunt...

Buff a thin layer of shaving cream (not gel!) directly onto the mirror after a cleaning. Surprisingly, the mirror won't look any differently than before, but the steam from your super hot shower won't fog it up!

The effect should last about a week, and the trick is to use very little shaving cream and rub the cream into the mirror for over a minute. You'll be amazed at how much time this handy tip will save you in the morning -- and you'll never have to take an open-door shower again!

For more incredibly useful bathroom tips, check out a few of my favorite DIY Life bathroom reads:
-Daily DIY: Curtain Call
-$5 and 5 Minutes: Fix a Running Toilet
-Low Flush Toilet Hack

So your wedding day is near, and you still haven't made up your mind about table centerpieces.

Last year, I wrote a post with ideas for 8 do it yourself wedding centerpieces. It's been very popular since it was published, but I know that there are hundreds of additional impressive ways to go about making a beautiful visual feature for your guest's tables.

Let's face it: you want your wedding day to be perfect, and saving money on your centerpieces will give you a sigh of relief. Knowing that you and your wedding party made them yourselves will also give you great satisfaction. "Inexpensive" does not necessarily mean "cheap"; anything that you can do for your wedding day or even your day to day life to save money will make you happier in the long run.

Follow me after the break, as I try again to give you some inexpensive ideas for creating your own beautiful centerpieces.

My daughter loves to watch the cartoon "Lil Bill". Repeat episodes come on every day, so I have the theme "Spring is here, Spring is here, it's the best time of the year" stuck in my head. The episode reminds me that the snow is slowly melting and it's about time to go to the beach.

Maybe it is too early in the year to go to the beach yet, but somewhere in the world it is spring or even summer. That means it is time to think about decorating your home for breezy summer days. What better way to do that than with seashells? Kathy Peterson has excellent suggestions on exactly what and where we can decorate with seashells.

Using seashells as a table centerpiece is a marvelous idea. Decorating with seashells in a roomy bathroom is ingenious, especially is you use seashells to spruce up a mirror. You can use shells to pretty up your fireplace too, as well as your lampshades, pillows and curtain tie-backs, and to decorate a baby mobile.

You can decorate pretty much anything with seashells, but like Kathy recommends, keeping your theme simple is the key to a successfully and tastefully decorated abode.

Score points this Valentine's day with something truly romantic, original and best of all, homemade. Handmade gifts aren't always received with the excitement that we imagine. Sometimes they are a total flop. So, what differentiates the gift that she calls all her friends to brag about from the one that gets tucked away in the junk drawer?

I think that all romantic DIY gifts should pass a three-point check:

1. Is the gift personal?
   Even if beautiful, something that could have easily made it into a Secret Santa exchange probably isn't going to blow her away. It should be obvious that this gift was made just for your special someone. Personalizing it with a name or picture is the obvious choice. More subtle: try incorporating an inside joke, or choosing a theme using project elements that have significance for the two of you.
   
   
2. Did the gift take time to make?
   She said she'd like something homemade. You raided the kids craft cupboard and made a card. She's not impressed. Are you surprised? The more time and planning that goes into the gift the more you'll get out of it. People love knowing that they were thought of, and taking the time and energy to plan ahead for a handmade gift shows that you truly wanted it to be something special.
   
   
3. Is it really any good?
   We only make a big deal out of poorly painted, ceramic ashtrays when they come from our children. While some failed projects can still be appreciated for the romantic intention, there really isn't room for the ugly, the tasteless, and the poorly crafted ones. Don't knit him a toque out of leftover yarn in colors you know he'd find hideous and then expect him to wear it proudly because it was made with love. Think seriously about what your significant other would like. If you want it to go on display, consider how it would work with their current decorating scheme.

With these three guidelines, I've put together a list of romantic DIY Valentine's day gifts. Some are old favorites-- tried, tested, and true for generations of lovers. Others are new and inventive, but they are all incredibly romantic and sure to make him or her putty in your hands. Follow me through the break and I'll share them with you.

RSI Home Products and the U.S. Consumer Safety Product Commission have announced the recall of 8,600 medicine cabinets, due to the fact that the medicine cabinet's mirrors can separate and break, posing a serious laceration hazard. Although no injuries were reported, RSI received two reports of mirrors detaching and breaking.

Manufactured in the United States and sold by Lowe's and Home Depot from August 2007 to October 2007, there are three different styles of bathroom medicine cabinets being recalled. Check out the CPSC press release to see if you have the recalled medicine cabinet.

If you happen to have one of the recalled medicine cabinets, immediately and safely dispose of it. You may contact RSI toll-free at (888) 774-8062 between 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. ET Monday through Friday, or visit the firm's Web site at www.estatebath.com, www.insigniacabinets.com, www.masterbath.com to receive a free replacement mirror.

The most important advice that I think anyone can get when embarking on a new DIY project is: "Don't Panic!"

A perfect example was my creation of a custom framed mirror. My wife and I couldn't find one at a retail location that had all the right qualities. It had to be the right size, color, style, price, and lack of ugliness. We found many that had on or two of these factors, but never one with3 or more out of the 5. So I declared that I could easily make one. Visions of slapping a mirror to the wall with mastic and then gluing molding around it danced in my head. She agreed.

3 days later after intense negotiations and molding shopping I was left needing to create from scratch a framed mirror that had its own backing "in case we decide to move it later". So much for "slapping" it to the wall with glue!

We recently explored a couple cool uses for Altoid tins. First up was the open source hardware project, the Minty Boost iPod charger. Second was X-Entertainment's Sanity Saving Altoids Survival Kit. Want something more serious? Here's the original can't-live-without-it Field & Stream magazine Altoids Tin Survival Kit.

This kit is a survival kit of the old-fashioned kind, with the emphasis on survival in the outdoors. Nope, no crossword puzzles in this one. Says the author, everything you might need -- with the exception of shelter and a blanket to keep warm -- is packed into one little tin. Here are a few of the key items included: mini fire starting tools, waterproof matches, and fire-starting tabs, a tiny candle, an LED flashlight, water-purification gear and fishing tackle, tiny compass, and -- to attract help -- a wee signaling mirror. But wait! There's more. (Can you believe it?) There's also some teensie-weensie first aid supplies, blades, and a tiny wire saw, string, needles, glue, foil, and (naturally) a safety pin. That's one loaded little tin! Check out the wondrous F&S slide show to get started.

Curbly user erinloechner points us to this tutorial for an Etched Mirror Silhouette. All you need is an old mirror, contact paper, etching compound, a silhouette you like, and a well-ventilated space to work in.

This technique could also be used to add a border to a mirror or create a patterned mirror.

About.com has more detailed instructions for etching mirrors or glass.

Sigh. Summer's fading fast.

Which means it's time to start thinking fall and school. Before you get the chills, how can you hang onto summer for a little longer?

Seashells, naturally. Why not turn one of your old mirrors or pictures frames into a beautiful reminder of your warm weather days. There's nothing better to lift your spirits than the thoughts of fun in the sun.

Here's what you'll need:

• A framed mirror
  
• Craft glue or a hot glue gun
  
• A paint brush
• White paint
• Seashells of various kinds and sizes, make sure you have enough for the project.
  

Here's how:

Step 1. Paint the frame white and then let it dry.
Step 2. Place the larger shells on the frame first, then fill in with the smaller ones. Apply the shells with a hot glue gun, or the craft glue. Hint: Applying the craft glue to the shells with a paintbrush makes it easier to be precise on uneven contours.
Step 3. Let it dry.

You can hang the mirror using a basic picture hook or lean it on top of a dresser, on a table in a hallway, or anywhere else you would like to see a seascape.

This is the perfect antidote to the late-summer wilt you may be feeling.