Ugly floor fix on a tight budget

Here is a cool new look for an ugly floor. The floor must be sound to do this!!! Tear (do not cut!!)craft or contractors paper into random shapes and glue to the floor with vinyl flooring adhesive. The more jagged the tears the better this looks. When the floor is completely covered and the glue is dried, stain the floor with wood stain of your color choice. There are many shades out there and you can even get custom colors such as blues, greens, and purple.
After the stain is dried, give the floor three or four coats of polyurethane to protect it.
The result looks like patchwork leather and it is pretty durable.
This is a great project on a budget!!!!

burnt table update

I have finally finished applying the Minwax Polyshades to the table. I used three coats on the legs and sides of the table and used six coats on the top. The result is a much darker top and it really gave the piece an interesting look. The top is also much more durable now and will stand up to the kids roughness very well. When you are using these products you must rub the piece down with extra fine steel wool (000) between coats to remove any air bubbles and fine debris. Go over the project with a tack cloth every time and give each coat ample drying time or you will get brush marks and streaks. My total time I spent on this table including stripping the burnt finish and sanding down to bare wood, then refinishing was one week.

Coming soon

I will be posting pictures of some of the projects soon. Having some problems with my camera.

Burnt table update

Today went very well. I was able to finish sanding down the table. There was lots of dust around so I cleaned everything up with my ShopVac when I was done sanding. After that, I went over the table very carefully with tack cloths to remove any further dust that the shopvac missed. It was very surprising to see how much dust was picked up even after I vacuumed the table. I was now ready to start applying the finish. I am using Minwax's Polyshades. These have the stain mixed right in with the polyurethane and are very easy to apply. I wanted a slighty reddish finish so I am using the Old Maple satin. I chose satin over gloss to retain the feeling of this being an old piece. I didn't feel that a gloss would do this as well. It is also easier to hide finger prints and smudges on a satin finish, great with kids in the house. The first coat is now applied to the entire table and I am waiting for it to dry. Tomorrow I will gently sand the piece down with steel wool (000) extra fine to remove any air bubbles and fine debris that is caught in the first coat, then recoat the whole table. The more coats applied, the more durable the finish and the darker the table's finish will be.
I will give you a progress report again tomorrow.

Update on burnt table

The table is more involved than I first thought. I first thought that I would be able to just refinish the top of the table. As I was sanding I discovered a scuff that was through the finish on one side of the table and fairly large, also the finish on one leg was bubbled from heat damage. I have now removed all of the finish from the whole table with a heat gun and begun the sanding process. I have used 80 grit sand paper and removed the slight charring on the table top. I then used 100 grit sand paper to begin the smoothing process. Today I will finish with 180 grit paper and then clean up the whole piece with a tack cloth to remove any dust and debris remaining on the table and legs. Barring any more complications I should be ready to apply the new finish to the table tomorrow.



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restoring a burnt table

Hi all, I am starting a new project today. I found an old oak table that the whole top of was scorched in a fire. The finish is totally blackened but there is little damage to the wood itself. I started today with a heat gun to remove all the finish that I can get off and the wood underneath is still in pretty good shape. This is an old red oak table that is definitely worth saving. It is a VERY heavy table that takes 2 people to move. After I get all of the finish off that I can I will be sanding it down with 80 grit sand paper to remove any charring. I will progress to finer and finer papers until I have a nice smooth finish. I will keep you posted on my progress.

Do you need help with a home repair

This site is all about women helping women to do the things around the house that may have been traditionally "the man's job". Are you thinking about trying a home repair but aren't sure how to go about it? Post a comment and I will try to help you with step by step instructions. If I don't have the answer, I know where to get it. I also welcome tricks and tips from my readers on how to do a repair safely and easily.

Spray paint rack

Don't throw away those old bent closet wire shelves!!!! I had a customer who wanted to use the front lip of two of them to make a spray paint rack for his garage. He had cut off the front lip from two of the racks and needed a way to join them together. We were trying to join together a bunch of joined L shaped prongs. After some major experimentation I discovered that the prongs fit perfectly in a piece of H shaped plastic paneling molding. I had him run a bead of liquid nails inside the H on both sides, then press the open prongs in to the adhesive. After it set for about 24 hours it was ready to be hung on his garage wall. For this we used Rubbermaids closet C clips every 16" on the wall and hung it at a slight downward slope so the cans would slide forward for him. We also bent the last two tips inward to use as a stop for the cans. It works perfectly! The rack is just wide enough for the cans and they slide easily down the smooth plastic center. My customer was thrilled! Another happy ending for thinking outside the box!

Biology Puzzle

I worked in a home improvement store and had a biology teacher ask me for help one day. She was trying to find hands on models of he different types of joints in the human body and was on a really limited budget. There a three types of joints, ball and socket, sliding, and hinged. The hinged one was easy. We simply found some clearanced hinges for about 50 cents each. Next on the agenda was the ball and socket joint. We eventually came up with grease fittings stuck inside the tip of a piece of rubber tubing. The hardest one is the sliding joint (wrist) which we found was best demonstrated by a sliding lid support hinge. I was able to come up with ten sets of "joints" for her classroom for about $25. Never thought I would need my biology classes working in home improvement stores!!!!!

unique clock

One of my favorite things to do is to turn trash in to treasure. I was helping a friend move in to a new house. I found an old piece of architectural metal that was horribly rusted. It had a round flat center and spokes with curliques coming off of the center. The piece was really interesting looking, so I asked if I could have it. I brought it home and removed all the rust with my Dremel tool. I drilled a small hole through the top and attached an eye bolt through it. I then used flat black spray paint to coat the whole piece. I was able to purchase a small battery operated clock kit that included gold numbers and hands from Walmart for about $5. I drilled another hole through the center of the circle and installed the clock following the inclosed instructions. It cost me $5 for a totally unique clock! The closest thing I have ever seen to it was in a designer home magazine for about $150!! It now hangs proudly in my dining room.