Category Archive

before and after

How to bring an old locker back to life

Inside our garage sat this locker. It was pretty neat by itself, but not quite what someone would want to put in their living room. So here’s what I did…

How to decorate and de-boring an above-ground pool

Remember my parent’s house in Maui? This summer their home improvement project was to install an above-ground pool — so very much more cost-effective than a below-ground pool, and just as refreshing. Though it may be just as refreshing, an above-ground pool is not just as attractive. So here’s how we made the outside of this pool as pleasant as the inside…

From ’80s fridge to a brightly coloured message station

Homie Cheryl Hellcat is just killing it with craftiness — Lord of the Rings table, driftwood key rack, and bird feeders and baths made from plates. Now let’s all oggle her fridge make-over…

Lord of the Rings cable reel table

Cheryl Hellcat’s grandpa turned a cable reel into a table. Then Cheryl turned the the cable reel table into a Lord of the Ring fan’s dream piece of furniture.

Before and after bathroom: Orange octopus-style

Ever since I talked about how octopodes make great towel holders, I’ve been wanting to see more tentacles in your bathrooms. Well, Homie Sara came through by uploading photos of her awesome octopus-themed bathroom makeover to our Flickr pool.

Use contact paper to snazzy-up your boring fridge

Not too long ago, I saw a picture of a normally boring white fridge with some nice zippy chevron stripes. I was so jealous, and knew that I had to do something to my fridge. This is how a dollar store bag and some contact paper helped me transform my once-boring fridge.

From hunk of wooden junk to chalkboard underwear dresser

Offbeat Homie, Shootdanielle (of gorgeous silk scarf curtains fame) uploaded this inspiring before and after into our Flickr pool. I begged to know more about the chalkboard “underwear dresser,” and she was kind enough to divulge…

Ottoman makeover from old and busted to new colorful hotness

Friend of the Empire, Joriel recently shared with us her awesome ottoman/toybox makeover. The top part of the ottoman bore the brunt of the problems. So she reupholstered the top and used fabric paint on the bottom.