Archive for April, 2011
How Much Wood Could A Woodchuck Chuck?
What do I look like, a woodchuck expert? I have no idea. But I do know the answer to a related yet far lesser known riddle: how many pallet planks could a Petersik pry free if a Petersik could pry free pallet planks? You practice saying that five time fast while I walk you through the answer.
You know by now that the plan for our mondo 12′ long DIY console table (last shared here and here) was to build a rustic weathered-looking top out of some old pallets left in our yard by the previous owners (spotted in the background of this post).
So last week I lugged them into my basement lair workshop so they’d dry off (“lugged” is the operative word because after a few days of rain, the heavy soaked wood made it quite a back-breaker). But since rain this time of year is frequent and sometimes unpredictable, I wanted to get them inside so I didn’t have to worry about a sudden spring shower thwarting my plans and soaking them all over again.
There were five pallets in total. Considering how much wood is on each one, I quickly thought to myself “self, this is way more material than I need.” Somewhere in the distance the universe began laughing at me behind my back. Hold on, we’ll get to that.
After a few days of drying out, Clara went down for a nap and I took my cue to start breaking down the pallets so I could start building our giant 140″ long console table top. My tools included work gloves, a crowbar, a hammer, a hand saw, a flat head screw driver, and a mask (since pallet sawdust isn’t thought to be part of a healthy diet and my wife is a worry wart like that).
It didn’t take long to figure out this would be harder than I thought. Mostly because each plank was nailed (or stapled) in three spots, and each spot apparently required 3 – 5 nails or staples to keep it in place. I first attempted to cut boards off with a hand saw, but since they were stapled on each end and in the middle, it left me with dinky little unusable pieces, so prying was a better bet. But it took a lot of effort to pry off a piece – and the process frequently resulted in cracking the wood (which pretty quickly rendered the entire piece useless since we wanted long-ish boards to work with and not small slivers).
I’m no stranger to elbow grease so I stuck with it for the length of Clara’s nap (about 90 minutes). In that time, my nail and staple pile grew to look a little something like this:
And my pile of usable pieces of wood looked like this:
Fourteen usable pieces in 90 minutes wasn’t that discouraging at first… but then I looked closer at my definition of “usable.”
Notice how each piece of wood is a slightly different width? Since my tabletop would be comprised of 4 or 5 planks laid side-by-side, I realized that inconsistency would make achieving a consistent width across all 140 inches of tabletop very difficult – especially when I was looking for a very specific width (and don’t own a tablesaw to help me achieve that width artificially by cutting the boards lengthwise).
But I gave it a try and was able to find 5 pieces that gave me exactly what I was looking for (16 and 7/8″ of consistent width if you’re wondering):
But only 5 pieces of the 14 that I fought tooth and nail (literally) to free would work to create that width. Meaning that in one and a half hours I had only wrestled enough wood to make about two feet of tabletop. Wop wop. By my math, that means it’d take me about 9 hours to get all 12 feet of tabletop free. And that’s only if my 5 pallets actually contained enough “perfect” pieces to provide all of the wood I needed to get the exact same width all the way down the 140″ countertop (an unlikely scenario considering I had already stripped one palette entirely to get these 14 5 usable pieces).
So as much as I loved the whole “reclaimed pallet wood” idea, all signs were pointing to “give up on it already.” And when I told Sherry about my doubts – how much time it would require, how much wood was cracking and breaking, how difficult it was to achieve the right width (only around a 33% success rate), and how I was running out of material – she basically said the same thing: “oh well, you tried – give up on it already so we can figure out a plan B.” Plus she added that it might have been a sign from the universe since there are more and more health concerns over the sometimes-toxic chemicals found in pallet wood (some contain formaldehyde, which is a known carcinogen) so although we planned to seal the wood with an eco-safe poly (by Safecoat) to keep things baby-and-rest-of-the-family friendly, the whole leave-the-pallets-alone-and-move-on-to-Plan-B thing was probably for the best.
And happyily, Plan B is already underway. We’re hitting up a few local places in search of reclaimed wood and might even use store-bought white wood like we did for the entire console base if our search for something “recycled” backfires (hooray for consistent sizes and no prying necessary!). Heck, if we went with the same wood that we already used for the console base, we could even beat the heck out of it distress it ourselves (I’m not gonna lie, the idea of “testing” a number of techniques involving hammers, screws, and crowbars appeals to me). It’s not quite as cool – or as free – as the original plan, but at least we gave the pallets the ol’ college try. And who knows, I might end up using them for something else or giving them a second life thanks to freecycle or craigslist.
Update: We’ve made great distressed wood progress in lieu of pallets for the console top. Here’s a quick sneak peek. We’ll share waaaay more info/details/videos about that process when we put everything together and reveal the finished console. Hopefully before Christmas. Just kidding, hopefully by early next week (is it just me or is this project taaaaking forevvvvvver?).
In other news – we (and by we I mean Sherry) finished staining the exposed sides of each console. You know the ones that have little shelves for easy-access storage that were last seen here.
That picture above is a little dark just thanks to the angle. Here’s a more true to life shot. Yummy and warm, right? Wait, are grown men allowed to say type yummy?
The staining part of the project was 100% free since Sherry was able to use leftover materials that we already had on hand: Minwax stain in “Dark Walnut” and Safecoat Acrlacq (which is basically the water-based eco version of polyurethane).
Since most of the console will be hidden behind Karl or under the eventually-completed tabletop, the only thing that needed to be stained was the shelves on the two exposed ends (once it all gets put together all the other exposed parts will be stained as well). So Sherry parked herself in the sunroom – which is sealed off from the rest of the house so she doesn’t have to worry about Clara inhaling anything – and did two coats of stain (which she applied with a foam brush and wiped off five minutes later with an old rag). Find more how-to-stain details here.
Then the next day she added two “thin and even” (her favorite words to describe anything involving paint or stain – she stressed them like you wouldn’t believe because they can make or break things) coats of the Safecoat Acrlacq with a brush. This seals in all the gross stain fumes and creates a water-based low-VOC and non-toxic “shell” that protects the wood and blocks off-gassing (as opposed to high-VOC oil-based poly) so it’s nice and kid friendly. You might remember that we (Sherry) also used it to refinish Clara’s dresser here.
We’re glad that the wood grain shows through for a varied and rustic look. Since the living room is a bit more modern than we’d like, adding hefty pieces with “authenticity” like this will help balance things out.
So we’ll hopefully be back with a big the-console-is-fiiiiiiinally-finished post as soon as we make some headway on the top. In the meantime I can be found murmuring sweet nothings at those freshly stained shelves. Seriously, can my wife work some serious magic with a rag and some stain or what?
Pssst- Confused by the console? Learn how we built it here and here. And of course we’ll share even more details when we finally piece this thing together and call it done. Soon hopefully, because I am so ready to stick a fork in this baby.
Two Heartfelt Letters
Letter #1:
Dear Non-Pinterest Users,
Pinterest might just change your life. And I know what you’re thinking. You’re rolling your eyes and saying “Great, something else to keep up with.” “Something else I have to learn how to use.” “Some other time suck.” I know because I thought these things too. I gave myself every excuse in the book not to get involved (“I already spend enough time keeping up with Facebook”, “I keep inspiration in a binder and in a folder on my desktop – who needs another place?”). And then I talked to Katie B who held a gun to my head persuaded me to quit whining and just go over to pinterest.com and request an account. So I did. And then about two weeks later a verification email showed up in my inbox. And then the “ahhhhhhh” angel sound effect kicked in (you know the one when the clouds part and a ray of light shines down?) and I. Was. In. Love.
Seriously, you know how people say to find your happy place if you’re in a bad mood or feeling uninspired? Pinterest is my happy place. You think that’s enough gushing? I’m not sure it is. Let’s just say I have more ideas than ever. Thanks to all of the amazing inspiration that’s shared every second. I have more ideas for Clara’ birthday party, our house, future art projects, sewing projects with Clara’s weekly photo fabric.
Basically every piece of eye candy that speaks to you can be “pinned” (added to your board) with a note, so you can even remind yourself things like “I want to do this with green balloons for Clara’s party” or “I hope our console table has the same rustic and amazing finish as the stairs in this pic.” So there it is, my invitation into a world full of inspiration and excitement and eye candy as far as the eye can see. Hope to see ya on the flip side. And by the flip side, I mean Pinterest.
- xoxo, Sherry
Letter #2:
Dear Pinterest Users,
Oh my gosh. I know some of you told me about Pinterest months ago and I’m SO LATE on this bandwagon, but I can’t believe how much I love it.
So you were right. Picture me tipping my hat to you. Anyway, here’s a direct link in case you want a peek into my crazy decor/party/baby obsessed mind. Oh and I’m still learning my way around so please forgive me if I commit some giant Pinterest faux pas and don’t follow you back or write back if you write me. It took me way too long to get over there and it’ll probably take me a while to get my “sea legs” when it comes to anything other than pinning and repinning (which is my favorite thing ever!).
In fact I gotta go pin something right now. See ya.
- xoxo, Sherry
Psst- I know this whole post sounds like a big ad for Pinterest but we weren’t paid or perk’d for it. I am just DIE HARD OBSESSED. So pardon my in your face enthusiasm. I’ve had two Pinterest themed dreams since Sunday. It’s a sickness.
The Keys To My Heart
Remember when we mentioned snagging these old iron keys for $8 in an antique store in West Virginia while visiting John’s grandma? Well I finally got around to painting them and hanging them in our hallway frame gallery (see how we made that here). Where did we squeeze them in? Well, see that card stock placeholder key? That was, well, just a placeholder.
I could have easily spray painted them for a quick makeover but since I love to use no-VOC paint whenever I can (especially since I have a huge gallon of white paint around at all times), I opted just to brush on a few coats by hand. It’s the same semi-gloss Olympic Premium No-VOC paint that I always use for trim and doors in off-the-shelf white if you’re wondering.
Then I decided that the spot on the wall with my card stock placeholder key might not accommodate that big ring of keys as well as three separate keys hung in a row, so I used some lady power and a hack saw to cut the iron ring and free each key to hang on its own.
After touching up some of the white paint for a pristine finish I waited for them to dry and used twine from our junk drawer to string up each one at varying heights for a balanced but not perfectly symmetrical result.
In the words of my imaginary BFF Bethenny Frankel (I know she’s not for everyone, but I love her), thar she blows:
I love glancing over at them through the wide doorway in the kitchen…
… and gazing at them as I walk from the front of the house to the back (or vice versa)…
So that’s the newest addition to the big hallway frame gallery. If only we could get our act together and start on the other side of the wall. You can see that in it’s planning stage – all covered in newspaper – here. And in this video, still covered with newspaper. Maybe tomorrow…
Wow, is this post really only 354 words? That might be a record for a chatty kathy like me. I kind of feel like a slacker. But what more can I say about the keys? Painted them, sawed them, twined them, hung them, took a bunch of photos, professed my love for said keys. The end. Wait, I know what this post needs. An on-the-subject haiku:
Little iron keys
I painted you white (surprise)
Wait, no one’s surprised.
Ok, now we’re over 400 words and there’s some poetry going on. Sherry out.
“In A Minute, I Have To Hairdry The Chair”
So I did something crazy. Since we’d like to take our $25 hotel-ish dining chairs to a crisp not-patterned apple green (the curtains I want to make will be patterned, so I just want chairs in a fun color but without a pattern that I’ll tire of) I decided to paint them.
I know. Insane. But I didn’t think I had much to lose since the backup plan is to reupholster or slipcover them (both of which would still be entirely possible if I didn’t like how the whole painting thing turned out). I went into it as a hmm-this-experiment-should-be-interesting thing. Nothing was guaranteed and I felt like a crazy person the whole time. Yup, I was skeeeeered. I mean who paints a chair? Well besides a few amazing bloggers who have posted about how well it went for them. For example, this tutorial was up on my iPhone the entire time for reference and encouragement. Just look at Kristy’s amazing chair transformation. She did that with paint!
So here’s how it all went down. I pretty much just based my method on Kristy’s breakdown with a bit of flexibility since the directions on some of my supplies conflicted with a few steps. And speaking of supplies, here they are (that’s the Top Chef finale in the background BTW):
I got three tubes of “Fabric Painting Medium” and three tubes of acrylic paint in cheerful apple green from JoAnn Fabrics for under $10 total. I also picked up a quart of satin interior paint by Glidden in Granny Smith Apple (I thought it was meant to be since I’ve always talked about “apple green” chairs).
Then I just followed Kristy’s directions for the most part (admittedly not to the letter because I was also trying to adhere to the instructions on the back of my specific fabric medium, so I tried to walk the line between those and Kristy’s) and mixed one part latex paint and one part textile medium in a bowl. In order to get an even ratio I even got all type-A and dumped out the fabric painting medium into a measuring cup so I would know how much paint to add to keep the amounts equal. Here you can see that it was about a third of a cup:
Of course I accidentally dumped way too much paint into the measuring cup so I had to pour a good amount back into the can, but I was definitely happy that I wasn’t just trying to eye things (would’ve had way too much paint in the mix).
Eventually I got down to a third of a cup of latex paint and poured that into the third of a cup of fabric painting medium that I already had in the bowl.
And mixed that up with a brush that I had on hand. I was a little worried because the whole thing was looking pretty yellow but paint is always kind of an odd color until it dries and gets darker.
Then I added about a quarter of a cup of water to the bowl to thin things out a bit per Kristy’s suggestion. Next up was spraying down the chair with water (I reused an old cleaning bottle) so it was moist and ready for paint to glide over it evenly (instead of soaking up too much and getting all clumpy).
Here’s an in-progress painting shot that John grabbed over my shoulder as I went (I was too afraid of getting it wrong to stop and pose for a clear pic).
And here’s the after. Well actually I still had a few more steps left, hence the “wait a minute I have to hairdry the chair” title. John asked if I wanted to watch The Soup and I said, yup you guessed it: “wait a minute I have to hairdry the chair.” Which struck John as hilarious for some reason (I can’t imagine why) and he proclaimed that it had to be the title of this post.
The reason I was supposed to hairdry the chair was to set the textile medium (it needs heat, and when you can’t toss whatever you’re painting in the dryer, like a chair, you can apply heat with a hairdryer. But I reread the instructions on the textile medium tube and it said that I had to wait a day for the heat-setting step. So we watched The Soup and my crazy painted chair sat in the corner of the living room drying.
Here are a few first impressions:
- It’s way too neon and not as apple green as I’d like (my fault since I chose the color, but that could be fixed with different paint).
- Man, that took forever! Over an hour and a half to paint one chair (I applied a few even coats for better coverage). That factors out to 12 solid hours to do all eight chairs.
- It looks kinda cheap and those annoying swirls in the fabric still show through. See?
And here’s where we ended up after sleeping on it:
Slipcovering or reupholstering is a better solution for us since we’re not happy with the swirly texture that still shows through, the semi crunchy feeling (they’re not as smooth as vinyl, more like a rough burlap), and the odd look of painted seams (the flat parts of the chair don’t look as crazy, but the seams/folds in the corners just look gunky and unconvincing – as if they’ve very clearly been painted – since they have).
This method is obviously one of those it-depends-what-you’re-painting experiences. Because seriously, how amazing is that turquoise painted chair at the top of this post? I’ll save you the scrolling trouble. Here it is again (with a full tutorial here). So inspiring, right?
And although we didn’t have the same success, we’re glad that we tried this whole crazy process just to have it under our belts and share it with you guys (well, we didn’t end up applying the last coat of acrylic paint to finish things off because we decided to abort the mission, but I did later hairdry it to set it). And it’s definitely set for good, so for anyone wondering if a painted chair will rub off on the person who sits on it, nope. It’s just like how you can wear and even machine wash your painting clothes over and over again without worrying if they’ll smear. Once that paint is set into your shirt it’s hard and permanent (and the fabric medium is meant to help soften the paint so it’s less crunchy, in case you’re wondering about that additive).
So as of right now the green painted chair is living in the crazy cluttered playroom while the other seven unpainted chairs are still hanging out in the dining room waiting for reupholstering or cheerful apple green slipcovers.
We’ll keep you guys posted as this crazy chair adventure continues. Who knows where we’ll end up (our guess is slipcovers but you never know)…
Psst- We’re talking about how kids never fail to want the only non-toy items within their reach (the remote, your cell phone, the keys, your sunglasses) and we’re divulging Clara’s very favorite (and admittedly very weird) not-a-toy toys over on BabyCenter.
Fab Freebie: Give Peas A Chance
*** This giveaway is no longer accepting entries – scroll down to see who won! ***
According to the always impartial random.org, our winner is… LAUREN (who dreams of a world where it is easier and cheaper for everyone to eat good, real food). Congrats Lauren!
Trendy Peas is taking a spin behind the giveaway wheel this week to dish out 250 “pea” bucks to one lucky person. So if you haven’t checked out their modern kid-friendly and nursery-ready art, now’s a good time – especially if you’re already a parent, have one on the way, are invited to a baby shower, or just have a penchant for playful art, canvases, wall decals, and stationery.
- PRIZE: A $250 gift certificate towards Trendy Peas
- TO ENTER: Comment on this post with the words “PEA ME!” and…
- BONUS QUESTION: … share what you wish for the world that your children (or other children around you) will grow up in? Consider this your Ms. America moment. Do you dream of world
peaspeace? A pollution solution? Or something less lofty and more technical, like flying cars? - GIVEAWAY CLOSES: Wednesday, April 13th at 8pm EST
- NUMBER OF WINNERS: One
- PRIZE SHIPS: The Fifty Nifty United States
- USUAL STUFF: One entry per e-mail address is permitted. The winners will be selected using random.org and announced on Thursday as an update to this post. That’s right, come right back here on Thursday morning for the announcement of our winners. Good luck…
Note: We weren’t paid or perk’d for hosting this giveaway, we just like rewarding our lovely readers! See our Giveaway FAQs page for more info. Pics from Trendy Peas.
