jane's apron

plank wall and other sources

A plank wall.  Trendy yes, but also a good cover for an old plaster wall.  I kind of used this tutorial.  Except I used masonite (the guy at Home Depot cut all of the boards for me for free; for real).  And lots of liquid nails.  And lots of perseverance.  It is not perfect but it gives the room a nice texture and is way better than the chippy plaster wall (still needs some artwork or something).  

The sign over the TV is part of a vintage sign from our garage (I know the EV. 5 is Evergreen 5...an old-school phone number).  It fit the black and white theme and gave some interest to the back wall.  

The monster sectional was a Craig's List buy.  We drove to Chicago to pick it up and stopped at Ikea and bought the TV stand (Besta), side table (LACK), bar stools (GLEN) and pillows (Stockholm).  The other pillows and the ottomans (outdoor!) are from Target super clearance.  

It's not a total guy spot; I can clear out the room for myself when I start watching Downton Abbey.

the best red paint ever and thomas edison artwork

 

We live in a house built in 1929.  The basement foundation is epic; like a dungeon (you can see a little of the stone wall in the top photo).  The TV room has no natural light so I painted everything a light gray and painted one wall bright red.  Every time I look at the wall I think "that is the best red I have ever seen".  But I didn't start with the best paint.  

I bought a Martha Stewart color (from Home Depot) called Maine Lobster.  Three coats of paint later, I was back at Home Depot. This time I bought their Behr Premium Plus Ultra Paint and Primer in One. I matched Martha's Maine Lobster to Behr's Firecracker.  O.M.G.  That paint went on like whipped cream icing.  One coat.  Done.  I'm a color freak and this red is perfectly red; not too blue, not too orange (my photo skills don't really do it justice).

I blogged about the Thomas Edison patent drawings this summer.  I put them in black 24x36 frames from Micheal's.  On the same day I bought them.  You can see how I did it here.

Ok...only one more post about the basement; the plank wall, vintage sign, and source for some of the furniture.  

feats of strength and stupidity; my galvanized pipe table

 

The purpose of this post is not really a DIY for making a galvanized pipe table (although it is based very loosely on these excellent plans).  Its purpose is to serve as a warning for the things you may not know and how to avoid the same mistakes I made.  As an overview, let me just say that I spent about 4,000 hours in the pipe aisle at Home Depot and made many mistakes (in both design and in my calculations (including a mistake in my Pythagorean Theorem calculation when the design briefly did not have crossing bars (oh, the math teacher shame)).

• DO make a very detailed list of parts.
• DO wipe all of the parts with a de-greasing cleaner.
• DON'T mistake a "coupling" and a "union" for the same thing.  A union is VERY important if your design has any closed loops (no matter how strong your teenager is or how hard you hammer and try to close the loop)
• DON'T let the pipes get wet (like during an unexpected rain shower when you are at Home Depot again and can't get anyone to cover the table legs or move them into the garage)
• DO use a pumber's wrench to take pieces apart.
• DO understand that the table will possibly cost more than you expect.

We had a great piece of butcher block leftover from my mother-in-law's apartment and that's what started this DIY.  In the end, I've forgotten how hard it was to build and I really love it.  It's a perfect perch to watch TV, eat, or mess around on pinterest looking for the next DIY.  (And DO try to make your kids drink from a cup with a lid).

 

my industrial basement; the details

When we moved to our house in 1999, our basement had a home theatre in it.  It wasn't a deal-maker or anything but we used it.  Somehow, the projector was taken down and the room became a dumping spot for furniture and the influx of my mother-in-law's move.  

Ross is the one that pushed for turning it back to a TV room...and I'm so glad he did.  We cleared out the room, pulled up the nasty carpet, and got to work.  The room is nothing like the rest of our house.  It's very guy-ish but not in a goofy way (I didn't completely ignore everyone's input but sometimes you just have to say "no freakin' way" and "trust me" and "Ok, but only one red wall" and "really? an 80-inch TV?").

There's furniture, a plank wall, a lovely red paint color, a vintage sign, artwork, and a galvanized pipe bar table to share; plan to squeeze it all into two more posts this week.

accidental project

My son was looking for a sewing needle recently.  He was like a bear.  Like a bear looking for a sewing needle.  Everything went flying off the sewing cabinet and he just put it all in a pile.  The thing is, it turned out to be a chance to refresh the space.  A new pile of books, a new look.  Thanks Ross.

13

I have taken a ridiculous amount of pictures of our dogs and cats with my new camera.  They basically hold still and stare straight into the camera (or gaze passively into the distance); making it super easy to practice shots.  I got Penny mid-lick on this one.  

Ellen turns 13 this week.  I have 3 teenagers.  Help me.

undershare

We all know about overshare on the internet but there's also undershare (yes?).  There is no doubt that I've undershared this year.  I've got lots to share creatively but...it somehow feels like I'm repeating myself (been there, sewed that).  I've gotten really good at the instant share; from my phone to instagram and I LOVE it.  So...I've got a new camera (Ellen took the picture of my favorite yellow lights) and I've got my MacBook back from the depths of Ross's room.  

Plans may change but I'm thinking this will be a good home improvement year around my house and I know I love before-and-afters so I plan to share it all.  At my real life snail's pace...but, still. 

at home

Halloween off from school is a really good thing (and well-deserved after a 12-hour day yesterday that ended in parent-teacher conferences).  We've got a few teenage girls spending the night tonight and Ellen and I are getting ready.  Putting up spider webs, black crows, and candles everywhere.  And scoring the biggest pumpkin out of the $5 basket at the grocery store this morning.  

Happy Halloween!

the ax

I've been preparing for sending my oldest off to college from the day we started looking at schools.  I was well-prepared and held it (mostly) together until the morning we left and his younger brother came downstairs crying.  We all recovered and Jack and I drove off.  Until he realized he forgot something and we were back home 10 minutes later.  So much for dramatic exits.   

Jack and Ross and their cousin made a video the day before Jack left home.  It's pretty funny (if you like stupid boy humor).  

The second time I watched it I asked

"Did you guys just throw Jack an ax?".  

Yes they did.  But they practiced first.  

"Did you guys practice throwing Jack and ax?"

This video explains more about my day-to-day life than anything I can write here.  The weeds in the driveway, the 16-year old minivan that the boys drive inappropriately, the dead tree in the front yard, the goofy dog, and the dangerous ax throwing.  You can take a look here.

congraduations

Scenes from graduation; I just love the story that square instagrams tell.  

Jack's school graduates in black and white tuxes; I have always loved that combo. 

Which prompted me to find this torn and folded magazine page; my wedding tuxes and bridesmaid dresses.  From 1989 but still kind of timeless (well,  maybe not the big pink bows).