DIY Life

All homes have exterior surfaces that are designed to protect the home from the elements. There are many different types, but the two general ones are brick and siding. Some homes have a combination of the two.

If you're giving your home a face lift, you have choices. Let's talk about the many types of siding.

Cedar Siding for the Home

Western Red Cedar siding is the type most commonly used. It's a natural product, known for its beauty and durability. For energy efficiency, rigid foam sheathing may be applied prior to installing the siding. If this option is taken, kiln-dried cedar siding should be used, because of its stability.

My two local thrift stores are full of kids' games and adult board games. Most of the games are missing pieces, but that's OK with me, since I like to use them for craft projects.

Laura, otherwise known as The Scrabble Gal, is great at re-purposing materials some people would send to their local thrift store. She recently had her fingerprint mini-mosaic tutorial made from Scrabble tiles featured on Junk Creation, and sent us the link.

Laura took some old Scrabble tiles and painted them white. She arranged them in a pattern around the non-painted tiles. She then dipped her fingers in a non-toxic ink pad and transfered her prints onto the white tiles.

The possibilities of what you can create are endless. Magnets, scrapbook keepsakes, wall art: the list goes on. For more ideas on how to use Scrabble tiles, either as a kid project or made to give as a gift, check out M.E. Williams's post on making Scrabble tile coasters.

A set of ten boxes, nested one within the other. The largest is perhaps two feet square and a foot deep (60 cm x 60 cm x 30 cm), the smallest half those dimensions.

You can purchase the yummy unit shown at right through Seletti, or -- using instructions provided by those generous folk at Seletti -- you could make your own very personal unit, and save yourself a significant bundle of cash!

You'll need a collection of sturdy wooden boxes in various sizes, decorating materials, and two sections of heavy-duty strapping.

We've just moved into a new house, and my boys are excitedly adding personal touches to their room to make it their very own. These personalized door hangers are a perfect way for them to express their own taste and take ownership of their new room.

In this project, your child will decorate cutouts of their own initials and hang them on their bedroom door. For their decorations, they'll be reusing cardboard, greeting cards, magazines, and other treasures they find around the house.

Take some inspiration from the gallery, and see how ours turned out. I'll share full instructions and some useful tips after the break.

I realize it is only July, but it is never too early to think about Christmas, or at least to get a head start on your decorating this year. If you are into recycling items some people would rather just throw away, then release the artist in you, and paint yourself some one-of-a-kind ornaments.

Since you probably throw away your old burned out light bulbs, I invite you to recycle them into handpainted Christmas ornaments, courtesy of Kraftykristen over on Craftster. Kristen cleans the bulbs with rubbing alcohol, uses acrylic paint to make a snowman, gingerbread man, or a Santa onto the bulb, and finishes up with an acrylic sealer.

Starch and laundry get along really well, and you can also use corn starch to thicken up homemade gravy and other homemade delicacies, but did you know that you can use corn starch to "paint" fabric onto your walls?

Jessica at How About Orange made homemade starch, sketched out her plan, cut out fabric, then applied the homemade starch to the fabric. She then applied the fabric to her door, smoothing out any air bubbles she encountered along the way.

Jessica used double-stick tape to see how the fabric would first look arranged on her door. She advises that when taking the fabric off the wall, all you have to do is peel off the pieces and wipe off any leftover starch with a damp cloth.

I love the decals, as they are perfect for times when hammering nails into a wall just isn't appropriate, such as in dorm rooms. They can also cover up any nail holes left by previous tenants, or you can just simply have fun decorating your walls at your whim.

Do you remember those scented markers that were on the market during the 70s and 80s? Everything smelled great except the black licorice marker... that was utterly vile. While I'm sure there are still scented markers available for purchase, why not try painting with Kool-Aid?

Jacki wrote about this fun project over on That's Fit. Have your kids outline a picture with markers, but don't color it in. Mix different colors of Kool-Aid in different cups -- use only two tablespoons of water for each packet. Using paintbrushes, let your kids color in their masterpiece with the Kool-Aid "paint."

After about 20 minutes the paintings should be dry. Your kids can lightly scratch the surface of their painting and enjoy the scented colors. Fruit makes a great subject for the paintings because, as one young Kool-Aid artist exclaimed, "the oranges really smell like oranges!"

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!

Even if a piece of furniture was just made yesterday, it can be made to look vintage. I love shabby-chic, and thrift stores are fabulous places to find items that give a shabby-chic look to things like scrapbook albums.

One of my favorite crafts is scrapbooking. I like to take paper or cardstock, add embellishments, stickers, and buttons, and make my own Shabby Chic scrapbook album. CraftBits has a great description, complete with detailed pictures, telling us exactly how to make the album.

You can find the chipboard, as well as the crackle paint and other supplies, at your local craft or scrapbook supply store. If you don't happen to have all your necessary supplies on hand, then you can purchase an album at Michaels and just go to CraftBits to see the tutorial on how to paint and embellish the album.

Now you know what to do with all those extra embellishments and that last bit of pink paint. This would also be a great time to untangle your ribbon, so that your next craft project can be this awesome ribbon dispenser box.

Summer is here, and about this time, you should be sending the kids off to summer camp. That means free time to get the house spruced up without little tykes underfoot. That doesn't mean lazing around on a hammock all summer, though; it really means getting out the paint brush.

If your stairs are looking beat up from constant foot thrashings, you can give them a makeover by painting a stair runner in vibrant colors that will be sure to have the kids tiptoeing around for a time. Domino says this is a project that will take you a few days, so it would be great to get started on the project this weekend, so you have extra time to let the paint dry between coats.

Over on AOL Decorating, the readers thought this was a huge waste of time, but I disagree. I think that the stairs look much more modern and cheerful with the red and white paint, instead of the drab, dreary wood. I also think that the paint is much safer than a carpet runner. My favorite color is green, so of course I would pick Hunter Green instead of red. What colors would you pick for your painted stair runner?

Nothing says 'fresh' and 'modern' like graphic artwork. It's a perfect pick-me-up to a drab decor, or it can add a funky flair to a traditional decorating scheme. However you choose to use it, graphic is "in."

You could spend a fortune and buy some canvases from a trendy artist, or you can do it yourself. I vote for me!

Plaid has a very easy tutorial showing how to create your own graphic artwork: a set of three coordinating canvases that you can make, using stencils and four colors of paint.

After painting the base color on each of the canvases, just use stencils to paint on the designs. They will have your own personal touch, you can make them to match your own decor, and they will give your room an instant face lift. They'd also make a cherished housewarming gift for a special friend.

If you fear art, as some do, and this project is more than you can handle without an accompanying Margarita, you can try framing some handmade paper instead. A block print design will give you a similar look, and you can still say that you did it.

A Dad and his grill are not soon parted -- in my family, at least. There seems to be something about a Dad and his grill. Is it the scent of the briquettes, the power of the gas flame, the charbroiled goodness?

Perhaps the bond between a Dad and his grill is one of life's unsolvable mysteries, but we do know that anything BBQ would make a great gift for Dad this Father's Day. If you can make it yourself, you've just trumped the masses.

Custom-painting a BBQ apron, mitts, and grill tools is an easy way to tell Dad you love him -- and his hobby -- and it is something you can do with the kids. You'll need a canvas apron, solid-colored oven mitts, and wood-handled BBQ tools, like a long-handled fork or spatula. Some fabric and acrylic paints round out the list.

You can paint anything that says, "I love you Dad," and makes the keepsake gifts something special for him. Happy painting!

Shabby chic is an interesting home decorating style. It's almost as if you are trying to give your home a haphazard look, slightly worn out, a little bit mis-matched, traditional with a twist. Originally seen in European country homes that were expensive to keep up, shabby chic was borne out of the necessity to keep home decor costs to a minimum.

Certain design elements are associated with shabby chic: fringe and tassels, different types and patterns of fabric used in the same room, distressed surfaces, and flea market finds.

After the break, we'll reveal a few tips and tricks to help you get this look on your own.

If you are cut from the same indecisive cloth as I am, then you acquire a multitude of paint sample strips when you are choosing a new color to paint a room or a piece of furniture. Then, because you are also a packrat, you can't bear to throw them away.

Sure, you can give them to the toddler to play with, but isn't there a better use for these colorful strips? They are made from sturdy paper and the colors are true and deep. I know there is an art project in there somewhere.

Jackie of Jackie's Space agrees with me, because she has created some beautiful cards using old paint sample strips. I love that she has used the coordinated colors of the paint sample strips with three dimensional elements, like ribbon, gems, and a silk flower.

She's got me thinking, that Jackie: what if the paint sample strips were paired with a watercolor design in complimentary colors? Or maybe some copper wire and beads woven through the strips?

The possibilities are endless, and wasting the paint sample strips as mere trash is a thing of the past. What do you do with your old paint sample strips?

I love the look of outdoor terra cotta pots and planters: a little bit rustic with a European flair, yet simple to blend in with your landscaping and house style. Sometimes, though, I wonder about embellishing them a little with some paint, just for fun.

Can it be done in a way that the elements will not destroy all of my hard work? The Artistic Garden says yes, and it is simpler than I thought. All you need are water-based acrylic paints. Why didn't I think of that? Painting terra cotta pots with craft store acrylic paints is recommended, and the article suggests that you really do not need specially formulated patio paint at all.

I was delightfully surprised to see that no sealers or top coats are needed. Since the paints are about a dollar for a two-ounce bottle at craft stores and they dry in about an hour, I cannot think of an easier project. Now, to decide on my design....

If you are looking for other ideas on how to spruce up your outside pots and planters, try Diane's spray paint makeover for plastic pots and Francesca's flower pot fun with the kids, using stencils and sponges.