Watching home improvement or real estate shows with my boyfriend really irks me. He laughs when couples get excited over crown molding in a house. I finally had to ask him why it annoyed him so much - and he said that anyone can install crown molding in their home. In a weekend. For cheap! He's a woodworker and contractor so I asked for his opinion and tips and here's his advice for adding crown molding to your home.
1. Discuss the project
Get yourself to Home Depot or a hardware store and discuss the project with an employee. Have your room measurements with you so he or she can help pull molding and trim for you to put up.
2. Stain it first
Stain or paint molding. Let dry overnight. Repaint if necessary.
I share about 600 square feet and very little storage with my boyfriend. It's no wonder that I am on a constant quest for squeezing the most out of our small space.
This Old House did a great revamp of 1,500 square feet of space in Brooklyn (that occupies three kids) and offered these tips.
1. Install flooring, whether it's wood or tile, in a diagonal pattern to help make rooms appear wider than they are.
2. Keep compact rooms simple by using small-scale furniture instead of overstuffed pieces.
Who knew our President was such a designophile? The Oval Office has undergone an extreme makeover. Some of the updates include new carpeting, wallpaper and sofas. However, the resolute desk and painting of Washington over the fireplace stayed put.
Changes include:
* New and reupholstered furniture, new paint and wallpaper.
* New rug produced and donated by a Michigan-based business and paid for by the non-profit White House Historical Association through a contribution from the Presidential Inaugural Committee. (This fund is being used to pay for the design costs of numerous rooms at the White House including the Oval Office, Yellow Oval Room, Center Hall and West Sitting Hall.)
* The existing furniture in the Oval Office will remain the property of the White House and will be placed in a storage facility.
* Oval Office walls were covered with handmade striped wallpaper produced in Amagansett, N.Y. The trim around the Office was re-painted with American-made Benjamin Moore paint custom-mixed by Donald Kaufman Color.
* The new wheat, cream and blue colored oval-shaped rug is made of 25 percent recycled wool. The rug has the Presidential seal in the center and historical quotes of meaning to President Obama around the border. The rug was made and donated by the Scott Group, an American carpet manufacturer headquartered in Grand Rapids, Mich. The Scott Group previously made the Oval Office rug designed for former President Bill Clinton as well as rugs for the White House State Dining Room.
Whenever I am visiting my family at home, my mother has the same complaint about her house: the wood floors. She'd love to refinish them but with an elderly dog, other projects to tackle and a limited budget, it's not in the cards in the near future. I inquired about how one would approach a DIY floor refinishing from Tony Pastrana, who works in Installation Training & Services for Armstrong Floor Products. Surely he would know.
First, it might not be necessary to fully sand the floor to restore the finish unless there are visible dents, permanent cupping or excessive wear. A screen (a 120 grit placed on a floor buffer) and re-coat may work just fine.
Prior to sanding, remove all debris and clean the floor.
