Make it with Kate

Featured: DIY Home Decor

Game Room Makeover: Fall One Room Challenge 2021 (Week 1)

DIY Home Decor, DIY Woodworking, One Room Challenge

I’m so excited to participate in the Fall One Room Challenge for 2021! I’ll be doing a game room makeover (and it will be ready just in time for Christmas). Included will be some much needed storage and organization and a handful of fun DIY projects.

This game room makeover is part of the One Room Challenge. It will include DIY building projects, wall treatment, and more! #oneroomchallenge #BHGORC #gameroommakeover #diyprojects

What’s the One Room Challenge?

The One Room Challenge happens twice a year in the Spring and the Fall, and is an online event where design influencers makeover entire rooms and document their progress on their blogs or on Instagram.

I’ll be participating here on my blog with weekly updates and projects throughout the 8 weeks, as well as in posting on my Instagram account. (If you aren’t following me on IG, head over and follow because I post almost daily on stories with tutorial and walk throughs of various projects).

I encourage you to check out the One Room Challenge site and browse the blog there as well, you will find so much inspiration from fellow designers and DIYers!

Game Room Makeover Plan and Budget

I know you’re probably ready to know what the space currently looks like and what my plan is! I can’t wait to add some functionality to this space.

This room was actually the location of my very first DIY project in this house, I made DIY Built-in Shelving for board games and baskets of kids toys.

However, the other side of the room is the video game and art display area, and it’s a disaster. I’m ready to tackle it and make the whole room complete!

Game Room Before

I feel like I need a disclaimer for this picture, I didn’t clean up the space because I wanted to show you how it looks on a ‘normal’ day. This will give you a sense of why I’m building the space that I am planning.

When planning out a project I make a bulleted list of what the space is used for, exactly what is currently being stored there, etc. This way, in my planning I can incorporate all of these into the build.

I know, it’s bad.

In taking inventory of this space, I need:

  • sufficient counter space for easy charging of consoles and controllers for video games
  • bins for video games
  • seating
  • art storage
  • artwork display
  • desk seating

And here is the wall opposite this one where I did the built in shelving.

Let’s make these two walls match a bit better!

New Game Room Makeover Design

I’m so excited about this new game room makeover design, it will add storage and functionality and will be really streamlined (and cool).

My kids are currently 6, 8 and 10 and my hope is that the design will carry them through the next handful of years of entertaining friends and hanging out together.

Game Room Design Mockup

This game room makeover is part of the One Room Challenge. It will include DIY building projects, wall treatment, and more!

The new plan will include a wall to wall built in for desk space and storage, along with artwork display and a ‘brick’ wall.

There will be a handful of DIY projects to tackle here to make this space pretty on a budget. Included will be:

  • DIY built in media console and desk
  • faux brick wall
  • DIY picture frame shelving
  • DIY faux marble countertop
  • (possibly an interior french door makeover)

I hope you join along the next 8 weeks to see the transformation of this room!

Game Room Makeover Budget

I’ll be honest I don’t love talking about money, but, I do know that part of hoping to inspire you to try DIY projects in your own home is giving you an idea of what things cost (and showing you how you can make a big impact on a budget).

So, here is the rough breakdown, and yes, I almost always go over budget so I know budget for extras that I don’t know about yet, ha!

  • unfinished wall cabinets = $310
  • faux brick panels = $115
  • joint compound/liquid nails/etc = $30
  • hardware = $20
  • plywood = $60
  • paint/epoxy/supplies = $50

Total = $585 (rounding up to $600 for small extras)

I’ll be doing this project over 8 weeks as part of the one room challenge, so this helps me break down the budget to spread to out over time as well!

Considering that if I had to have a 12′ console built for this space it would cost much more than that alone, this will be a budget friendly way to renovate this space!

This game room makeover is part of the One Room Challenge. It will include DIY building projects, wall treatment, and more!

Check out all of the posts in this series for progress

DIY Stair Runner with Corner Turn

DIY Woodworking

This DIY stair runner tutorial will explain how to take two runner rugs and join a cut diagonal seam to make a corner turn for a landing.

This staircase makeover is almost done! The last step in the process is adding a DIY stair runner to the now wooden steps. I call this a DIY runner because this tutorial will show you how to join two runners together to make a mitered corner for a staircase landing. This really gives this a nice finished effect.

This DIY stair runner tutorial will explain how to take two runner rugs and join a cut diagonal seam to make a corner turn for a landing.

How to create a DIY Stair Runner

My staircase has a right turn with a small landing in the middle of it. I knew that once I had removed the carpet from these stairs and stained the pine treads I would want a runner rug down the middle of the staircase.

The turn was proving to be a problem when shopping for a runner. I could have put two separate runners on each section of the stairs and then a standalone rug on the landing, but I thought one cohesive runner would look better, and it turned out to be really easy. Here’s how:

Purchase two runner rugs

Measure your staircase length and width, then find a runner that you like. This was difficult for me because given my staircase width which was only 36″ at the narrowest point, I didn’t want a runner wider than 2′ so that the wood would still show on the sides of the runner.

I ended up finding this runner from Amazon and it’s perfect. I wanted a flatweave rug for a low profile, and wanted it to be washable so that I could easily use my carpet spot cleaner on it without issue.

Once you have all of your measurements and your carpets ordered, it’s time to cut and join the two runners together to make an l-turn.

Cut and join the runners to make a turn

Overlap the runner ends to create a 90 degree turn, or an L turn.

This DIY stair runner tutorial will explain how to take two runner rugs and join a cut diagonal seam to make a corner turn for a landing.

Mark where the runners overlap one another at the inside corner of the turn.

Cut diagonally from that inside overlap point to the outside top corner of the rug.

Now each runner will have a diagonal cut at the end, that when matched up create an L turn.

Using carpet joining tape, place a section of tape under the seam and press down so that the runners are now joined together. That’s it! Time to install your DIY stair runner onto your stairs now.

This DIY stair runner tutorial will explain how to take two runner rugs and join a cut diagonal seam to make a corner turn for a landing.

How to install carpet runner on stairs

Your DIY stair runner is ready to be attached to the staircase. I like to add carpet tape and a carpet pad under the runner on each tread.

I do this by cutting a runner pad to fit under the runner on each tread and then layering with carpet tape (this is different from the carpet joining tape we used to join the seams above).

This DIY stair runner tutorial will explain how to take two runner rugs and join a cut diagonal seam to make a corner turn for a landing.

The layering on each tread goes:

carpet tape > rug pad > carpet tape > runner

This DIY stair runner tutorial will explain how to take two runner rugs and join a cut diagonal seam to make a corner turn for a landing.

So, on each tread add a strip of carpet tape, then the section of rug pad, then another strip of carpet tape. Additionally I placed a strip of carpet tape on the riser above the tread as well.

This DIY stair runner tutorial will explain how to take two runner rugs and join a cut diagonal seam to make a corner turn for a landing.

Use a staple gun to install the DIY stair runner

Place the runner on the stairs and do a ‘dry run’ to make sure that all looks good, lines up, and is long enough before you begin stapling.

Tip: make spacer blocks out of scrap wood to place on each side of the runner, this will ensure your placement stays the same and lined up on each tread.

I started with the landing to make sure that was square and where I wanted it to sit on the landing. Staple along the edges with a staple gun.

Continue working up or down, stapling the runner under the bullnose overhang of the stair tread, and then along the back of the stair tread.

This DIY stair runner tutorial will explain how to take two runner rugs and join a cut diagonal seam to make a corner turn for a landing.
This DIY stair runner tutorial will explain how to take two runner rugs and join a cut diagonal seam to make a corner turn for a landing.

This placement of staples will ensure a nice secure fit of the runner, but there won’t be any staples right where foot traffic will be.

Continue stapling, pulling tight as you go. Once you get to the end of the staircase, simply cut the runner off at the end and staple in place. You can burn the end of the rug with a lighter to keep the ends from fraying.

This DIY stair runner tutorial will explain how to take two runner rugs and join a cut diagonal seam to make a corner turn for a landing.

Add any trim at the base of the staircase and your DIY stair runner with a turn is installed! This is a much more cost effective way to add a runner to a staircase with a turn than purchasing a custom stair runner.

Related Posts

How to remove carpet from stairs

Painting and Staining Pine Stair Treads

DIY Stair Risers on a Budget

DIY Stair Risers on a Budget

DIY Woodworking

These DIY stair risers made out of 1/8″ hardboard are a great budget-friendly option for a staircase makeover going from carpet to wood.

DIY stair risers is the third major step of this staircase makeover. I have removed the carpet from the stairs, stained the stair treads and am now making new risers to attach to the current pine staircase. While painting the existing risers white is an option, I wanted a clean non-wood grain look for the risers.

These DIY stair risers made out of 1/8" hardboard are a great budget-friendly option for a staircase makeover going from carpet to wood.

How to Make DIY Stair Risers

This entire staircase redesign has been a budget-friendly project so I wanted to keep these risers basic. If I was re-doing the entire staircase with new wood I would choose oak for the treads and the risers.

But, in keeping with the low budget, I made these risers out of hardboard. Hardboard is made of high density fiberboard and is an engineered wood project. I purchased these 2’x4′ hardboard panels for around $6 each making this a much cheaper alternative to oak.

The risers in this case are primarily decorative and won’t be walked on, and are covering a real wood so the hardboard is a fine choice here.

What you need to make the hardboard stair risers:

  • 1/8″ hardboard
  • primer
  • white paint (advanced or scuff proof)
  • paint rollers or brushes
  • circular saw or table saw
  • liquid nails or nail gun
  • caulk

Make the Stair Risers

Once your existing risers have been measured you will know how many hardboard panels to purchase, this amount will depend on the width of your stairs and the number of risers. I used (4) 2’x4′ panels for this project to make 11 stair risers.

Because hardboard is a dark color, this needs to be primed prior to paint. I find it easier to prime them before cutting the wood to size.

Once primed, cut your hardboard to the riser dimensions needed. I used a circular saw for this step however a table saw would be a great choice as well.

Once the pieces are primed and cut, you can paint them white. I like to use a foam roller for this and did two coats of white paint.

Attach the DIY Stair Risers

Your stair risers are made and now it’s time to attach them to the existing staircase. My stair treads have a bullnose overhang so the 1/8″ thickness didn’t take away from the overhang at all and fit nicely.

Ideally, the stair risers would be attached with liquid nails. My long term plan for this staircase is to add oak hardwood to the treads and risers when my budget allows. Removing these DIY stair risers after being glued on would be incredibly difficult and I didn’t want to create that challenge for myself.

To avoid this issue, I used a nail gun to attach the risers to the staircase and this option worked just fine. At this point you will just have nail holes that can be filled with wood filler and touched up with paint.

Once all of the stair risers are attached, caulk along all of the edges of the risers where they meet wood. Touch up any spots with paint and they should look great!

The cost of these risers (minus paint) was $24 for me. This was a worthwhile expense to get a nice clean look on the risers and I didn’t have to worry about any imperfections in the pine staircase risers that were existing.

These DIY stair risers made out of 1/8" hardboard are a great budget-friendly option for a staircase makeover going from carpet to wood.

Related Posts:

Check out the other posts in this series of a staircase makeover, going from carpet to wood.

How to remove carpet from stairs

Painting and Staining Pine Stair Treads

Featured: Woodworking

Painting and Staining Pine Stair Treads

Uncategorized

Staining pine stair treads can be tricky, this paint + stain combo will show you how you can make pine stairs beautiful on a budget.

The second step of this staircase makeover is staining pine stair treads. If you’ve successfully removed the carpet from your staircase and uncovered a pine staircase, you might feel discouraged as pine can be hard to work with when staining. This tutorial will give you an easy way to get the wood stain look you want even on a pine stair tread.

Read First: How to Remove Carpet from Stairs

Staining pine stair treads can be tricky, this paint + stain combo will show you how you can make pine stairs beautiful on a budget.

How to Prep a Pine Staircase for Staining

The first step to staining a pine staircase is prep. This is such an important one though quite annoying.

Do this by filling in any cracks or dents or staple holes with wood filler. Be sure to buy one that is paintable and stainable as you don’t want to wood filler to show through your work when finished.

Once all of the holes have been filled, get to work with the sander. Sanding this pine down is going to be essential to getting a nice, smooth finish on your stair treads.

When sanding, begin with a coarse grit sandpaper like 60 or 80 grit. Then, work up to 120 grit, and finally to 180 or 220 grit. This will take some time to go through the three levels of sanding but after each time you will see how nice and smooth the pine is. This will help with an even application of your paint and stain, and will also make the treads nice to walk on.

makeitwithkate

What you need for staining pine stair treads:

I add an extra step which is painting my staircase prior to adding the stain. This isn’t a necessary step but it’s how I completed my staircase so I’ll walk you through that process and explain why.

Paint the Pine Staircase Before Staining

Pine is a soft and porous wood that pulls very orange when stained. Before going with the paint and stain method, I tried a pre-stain wood conditioner with the gel stain over the top.

Even after two coats with this method, the wood still pulled very orange and didn’t have the exact walnut color that I was attempting to create.

Gel stain on pine stair tread even after treated with pre-stain wood conditioner

In order to get rid of the orange undertone, I first painted all of the treads in ‘brown tar’ by Benjamin Moore. Did you know you can use gel stain over paint like this? Only gel stain which is oil based will work over the paint, a water-based stain won’t have the same outcome.

Sampling different brown paints under the gel stain. ‘Brown Tar’ is in the middle.

Staining Pine Stair Treads

Once the pine stair treads are painted they are ready for gel stain.

*Gel stain has very strong fumes and is not good to breathe in. Use a face mask and properly ventilate the space, in addition to using fans.

Apply the gel stain across the stair tread in an even motion with the wood grain, creating lines with the brush. This will help mimic the look of the wood grain over the paint.

Let the stain sit for 5-10 minutes, then wipe with a rag in the direction of the brush strokes.

Gel stain takes quite a while to dry, let the tread dry completely overnight until it is no longer tacky, then decide if you want to do another coat or not. I only used one coat of gel stain as I was happy with the outcome of the color.

TIP: if doing this method on a staircase that you are currently using, do every other tread on the first day, this way you can still walk on the other unfinished treads. Once dry, do the remaining treads so that you can walk only on the dried treads. With three kids in my house this method worked well and I used blue painters tape on the wall next to the wet treads so they knew where to walk on which days.

Once all of the stairs have dried the treads are done! If you need to touch up any spots, do so with a small paintbrush and the same method as above.

Staining pine stair treads can be tricky, this paint + stain combo will show you how you can make pine stairs beautiful on a budget.

Next, your staircase makeover is ready for DIY risers!

Related Posts:

How to Remove Carpet from a Staircase

DIY Coffee Bar Ideas for Home Kitchens

DIY Woodworking

These DIY coffee bar ideas include cabinets and floating shelves, building plans, and ideas for transforming furniture into home coffee bars.

I love having a coffee bar in my kitchen at home. Not only is it my favorite part of my kitchen, but it also saves me money on takeout coffee (ahem, Starbucks). I added a DIY Corner Coffee Bar build that is great for everyday use or entertaining and here are ideas for inspiration for a coffee bar in your kitchen as well.

These DIY coffee bar ideas include cabinets and floating shelves, building plans, and ideas for transforming furniture into home coffee bars.

Coffee Bar Ideas for Your Kitchen

I love entertaining in my home, and so often I hear “it feels like I’m at a coffee shop!” when guests make a cappuccino or latte in my kitchen. It’s one of my favorite compliments, especially because this corner was completely bare when we moved in.

My corner coffee bar was a build from scratch. I built the base corner cabinet and added floating shelves and backsplash. But, there are so many fun ideas for coffee bars in your home.

You can build one from scratch, below I’ll link a few custom plans for these, or you can transform old furniture into a coffee cabinet. I hope you find some inspiration here so that you too can have that coffee shop feel without leaving your home.

Coffee Bars with Floating Shelves

I love the look of a cabinet base with floating shelves coffee bar. This is a really fun way to display a coffee mug collection or add some syrups and jars in an aesthetically pleasing style.

These DIY coffee bar ideas include cabinets and floating shelves, building plans, and ideas for transforming furniture into home coffee bars.

DIY Coffee Bar Build // Make it with Kate

DIY Rustic Farmhouse Beverage Bar // Repurposed & Upcycle

Modern DIY Coffee Station // Love Create Celebrate

DIY Coffee Bar Floating Shelves // Stay Home Style

Custom Coffee Cabinet Plans

Are you looking to build your own coffee cart or cabinet from scratch? Here are some fun tutorials to get started on building your own piece of furniture to house your coffee maker.

DIY Coffee Bar Table // Woodshop Diaries

DIY Coffee Bar Plans // Pine and Poplar

Coffee Bar Plans // Build Blueprint

Build a Wood Bar Cart for Entertaining and Storage // Remodaelholic

Coffee Bars Made from Carts

There are plenty of options for standalone and rolling carts that can be added to a home kitchen. These ideas will give you inspiration to give them a permanent space as a DIY coffee bar in your home.

How to Set Up a Small Coffee Station // Our Little Handmade Home

Coffee Cart at Home // Tell it to Your Neighbor

How to Turn an Armoire into a Coffee Bar // The Happy Farmhouse

Add a DIY Coffee Bar to Your Home

From DIY builds like cabinets and floating shelves to decorating a piece of furniture with coffee mugs, I hope these ideas inspire you to feel like you’re in a coffee shop in your own kitchen too!

These DIY coffee bar ideas include cabinets and floating shelves, building plans, and ideas for transforming furniture into home coffee bars.

How to remove carpet from stairs

DIY Woodworking

This tutorial will walk you through the tools and the process you need for how to remove carpet from stairs.

The first step of this staircase makeover was to get all of the carpet off of these stairs. I actually went in to this process not knowing exactly what my plan was going to be, but I knew that I wanted the carpet gone and that I wanted a DIY wooden looking finish at the end. So, how to remove carpet from stairs…it’s easier than you think!

How to remove carpet from stairs

Carpet removal from stairs can seem like a daunting task. There were a couple of things that I didn’t know to expect, such as how removal around the balusters would be and what all of the trim areas would look like once the carpet was removed.

The removal around the balusters was incredibly easy, that wasn’t an issue at all. The trim areas were the biggest challenge of this project but caulk and wood trim (and flexible vinyl trim) are almost always able to fix those areas and in this case it worked out just fine.

Related Post: DIY Mini Fridge Cabinet: Corner Coffee and Wine Bar

What’s under carpet on stairs?

Before carpet removal it’s important to know what kind of flooring is under the carpet. It’s pretty easy to take a peek under carpet on the stairs by pulling on a corner at the riser with a pair of pliers. Take a look at what kind of flooring is under the carpet and then just push the carpet back into place.

In my case, there was a pine staircase underneath the carpet which had some pros and cons.

The pros of having a pine staircase was that the treads were risers with the bullnose overhang and the wood was in pretty good shape. A pine staircase like this is a great candidate for a painted staircase. However, I wanted the look of a wood stain for this staircase which is difficult with pine.

Pine wood is soft and porous making it a less than ideal wood for a staircase. A more durable choice would be oak wood treads but pine is manageable, and you’ll see in the end how I was able to make this pine staircase look like stained wood.

What you need to remove carpet from stairs

A few tools and safety measures will make this an easier process:

*A face mask, safety goggles and gloves are highly recommended with this project.

Pull the carpet from the stairs

makeitwithkate

Begin at the top of the staircase and use pliers to start pulling the carpet at the top of the riser. The carpet should begin to come off quite easily. Continue pulling and ripping the carpet off using a utility knife or razor blade on any parts that get stuck.

Once all of the carpet is removed, the grunt work begins. On each tread under the carpet will be a piece of carpet foam stapled onto the tread. Using gloves, peel the carpet foam off of the treads.

After the foam is removed there will be a carpet tack strip and the top of each tread. The easy way to remove this is by using a pry bar and pulling these off.

Once the carpet and the foam is removed, there will be staples galore to remove. In my opinion, this is the absolute worst part of this entire project, but, after a little bit of grunt work the carpet will be gone and the stairs will be ready for refinishing.

Prepare the staircase for refinishing

Now that the staircase is completely bare, it’s time to get to the next step of this staircase makeover, painting and staining pine wood stairs!

how to remove carpet from stairs. staircase with carpet

Read Next:

Painting and Staining Pine Stair Treads

Staining pine stair treads can be tricky, this paint + stain combo will show you how you can make pine stairs beautiful on a budget.

How to Build a Refrigerator Surround Cabinet

Building Projects, DIY Woodworking, Uncategorized

This refrigerator surround cabinet makes this kitchen fridge look built-in, plus it serves as a family command center.

I have expanded my kitchen by adding a diy coffee corner and a breakfast bar, this refrigerator surround cabinet is the final addition here. Our kitchen was builder grade and had an overhead refrigerator cabinet with no other enclosure. This refrigerator surround cabinet makes the fridge look built in while serving as a command center for my family.

This refrigerator surround cabinet makes this kitchen fridge look built-in, plus it serves as a family command center.

How to Build a Refrigerator Surround Cabinet

Prior to building a fridge surround, it’s important to note what exactly you want to get out of your surround.

Are you looking for aesthetics? Do you need more cabinet space? In this case, I wanted the refrigerator to be built-in. Additionally, I decided that rather than building just an enclosure, I would add a cabinet to increase the storage space in my kitchen.

This kitchen enclosure is essentially a tall cabinet that is built in next to the refrigerator, as this particular fridge has a wall on the other side of it.

What you need to build a refrigerator surround cabinet:

  • 3/4″ sanded plywood (dimensions to fit cabinet box+face frame)
  • pocket hole tool
  • table saw or circular saw with jig
  • drill
  • 3/4″ MDF primed trim
  • 1/4″ sanded plywood (dimensions for door)
  • door hinge template
  • door hinges for 3/4″ overhang
  • base shoe moulding
  • wood glue
  • interior construction screws

Steps for building a tall cabinet

This tall cabinet will serve as a bulk of the refrigerator enclosure. To build a cabinet, make a basic box with a back, sides, top and bottom and then a face frame for the front.

Measure your space and how the cabinet will fit. When taking the measurements for your cabinet box, remember to take into account the thickness of the plywood you are using.

For example, if the cabinet is 80″ tall, the back will measure 80″ but with the top and bottom attached to the back (both at 3/4″ thickness) the sides will only be 78 1/2″ tall.

Measure your space and plan all of the cuts for the box. I like to sketch these out of graph paper.

Cabinet measurements you will need:

  • back
  • top
  • bottom
  • sides
  • face frame lengths (make this out of plywood or use 1×2 common board)

How to assemble the tall fridge surround cabinet

There are two options for assembling the cabinet box.

You can choose to use pocket holes or attach the pieces with construction screws through where the cabinet pieces meet up.

What are pocket holes?

Pocket holes are a type of joinery where a hole is drilled at an angle in one piece of the build. This is joined to another piece with a screw drilled in at that angle.

This can be achieved with a pocket hole tool. I like to use this one from Kreg which is a simple and straightforward tool to use. There are some instructions that are crucial to pay attention to such as the depth of the hole and the screw used. But, after getting the hang of pocket hole joinery I find this the easiest way to put a cabinet box together.

Tip: Pay attention to where the pocket holes are, though these holes can be filled, you will want to place the pocket hole on the wall side or back of the cabinet to keep everything looking clean.

Adding a face frame to a tall cabinet

A face frame isn’t a necessary component to a cabinet, I prefer using one when building a cabinet as it provides a more finished look when using plywood and gives more wiggle room in the cabinet door install.

A face frame is simply some trim that goes around the front of the cabinet box.

Cut the length of the entire side of the cabinet from a 1×2 common board or plywood and attach using wood glue and a nail gun.

Then cut the width remaining (total width minus face frame sides) and attach in the same way.

Your cabinet box should be complete!

This refrigerator surround cabinet makes this kitchen fridge look built-in, plus it serves as a family command center.

Build an Easy Shaker Cabinet Door

I feel bad calling this a shaker cabinet door because I definitely didn’t build it the “right” way. But, it is shaker style for sure, so I’ll show you how to build it the cheat way too.

Read the full tutorial and breakdown for building an easy shaker door here.

Essentially, I built a frame out of primed 1x4s using pocket holes so assemble the stiles and rails.

Then I glued the frame onto 1/4″ plywood. You could alternatively use hardboard or MDF for this for a smoother texture.

When making ‘real’ shaker cabinets, a groove or channel is cut out of the center of the stiles and rails and the middle slides into that. This creates a more seamless look.

I chose to build these the easy way for 2 reasons. One, my side pieces were almost 8′ tall and it felt unsafe to run that through a table saw the way I needed to to create a groove.

And 2, the thickness of the frame on the door the ‘easy’ way is now the same as the thickness on the trim on the side of the cabinet making the entire thing look uniform.

And, it was easier.

Adding hinges to a DIY cabinet door

Choosing hinges for a cabinet door can be overwhelming, but there are a couple of key things to look for when finding the right ones.

  • Does your cabinet have an overlay (face frame)?
  • How much swing or distance do you want your door to open to?

In this case, my doors had a 3/4″ overlay and I wanted a 90* open.

Using a hinge template, drill the holes on the inside of the cabinet doors and attach the hinges using provided screws.

Then, hang the door onto the cabinet by attaching the other side of the hinge to the face frame of the cabinet.

Tip: when hanging a door by yourself, prop the door up on the bottom with scrap wood to hold it in place while you attach the hinges to the cabinet.

DIY Command Center Fridge Surround

Once the DIY refrigerator cabinet is built it’s time to install. Do this by using construction screws on the inside of the cabinet into the wall (into a stud). Then use spacer blocks and a spacer board at the front to build the cabinet into the neighboring cabinets.

This can be a piece of scrap wood cut to the correct width and length of the gap in between cabinets.

Add trim at the base of the cabinet to match existing trim in the room.

Add hardware to the refrigerator surround

For a tall cabinet like this I like a longer bar handle so that the proportions look accurate.

On this cabinet I used the Kepler Knurled T-Bar Handle from Plank Hardware which has a really nice weight and texture to it.

This refrigerator surround cabinet makes this kitchen fridge look built-in, plus it serves as a family command center.

Additionally, I used their Levi Square Hooks in Brass on the inside of the cabinet.

When adding cabinet hardware, use a piece of painters tape to measure the distance between hardware holes, then place the tape on the door and drill through the holes in the tape.

This refrigerator surround cabinet makes this kitchen fridge look built-in, plus it serves as a family command center.

This is a quick and easy way to do this without measuring!

Additionally, when installing something like a hook by yourself, use painters tape to hold the hook in place while drilling pilot holes and attaching the hardware.

This refrigerator surround cabinet makes this kitchen fridge look built-in, plus it serves as a family command center.
This refrigerator surround cabinet makes this kitchen fridge look built-in, plus it serves as a family command center.

Built in Refrigerator Cabinet plus Command Center

That’s it! Now the refrigerator looks built in with an enclosure, plus this cabinet can serve many purposes. In our family, it’s a command center with cleaning supplies, a chore chart and all charging ports for all the things!

Amazon recommendations for a family command center:

If you have any other ideas for this family command center, let me know in the comments!

This refrigerator surround cabinet makes this kitchen fridge look built-in, plus it serves as a family command center.

Installing a Tile Backsplash: DIY Corner Coffee Bar

Building Projects, DIY Woodworking

Installing a tile backsplash is a great way to make your space look upgraded. Check out the tips on making this beginner friendly.

The base of the DIY corner coffee bar is complete with the blind corner cabinet and mini fridge cabinet builds complete. I opted to get a granite that matched the rest of my kitchen as a countertop, and now it’s time for installing a tile backsplash. This is turning into such a fun DIY Woodworking project.

Read these to see how we got here:

Convert a Base Cabinet to a Blind Corner Cabinet: DIY Corner Coffee Bar

DIY Mini Fridge Cabinet: Corner Coffee and Wine Bar

Installing a tile backsplash is a great way to make your space look upgraded. Check out the tips on making this beginner friendly.

Installing a Tile Backsplash

I’ll admit that installing a tile backsplash intimidated me. I set out to make this as straightforward as possible without buying a whole collection of new tools.

If this is your first time tiling a backsplash, choose a tile that doesn’t require an intricate layout or tricky cuts. Taking this into consideration, I decided to go with a basic subway tile that came on a mesh sheet.

This provided me with an easy to follow pattern that was mostly set with the spacing of the tiles per square foot. Additionally, they only required straight cuts which I could use a tile cutter for instead of a wet saw.

Lastly, grout color matters! White grout on white tile will hide a lot of imperfections in spacing or jagged cuts, whereas using a gray grout will show these imperfections more.

So, white subway tile + white grout = easy!

What you need to install a subway tile backsplash

  • Pre-mixed mortar or mastic
  • Notched trowel
  • White subway tile on mesh sheet
  • spacers that match the spacing on the mesh sheet
  • tile cutter
  • white grout
  • grout spreader
  • sponge
  • sanded caulk

How to tile the subway backsplash

Prior to placing the tile on the wall, do a dry layout on the counter below the backsplash. This will ensure that the spacing will look good, as far as where tile cuts till be etc.

I like to start in the middle and work out, that way the end cuts end up looking similar and the line of sight in the middle of the backsplash looks good. This can also help make sure you have enough tile to fit your space.

Add the mastic to the wall

I like to use pre-mixed mortar or mastic. Mortar can be used with almost all tiles, glass and stone tiles need mortar. Mastic is designed for use with ceramic tiles and works for some porcelain tiles. Because I was using ceramic tiles, I could use mortar or mastic. My stores had mastic available so that is what I used for this project.

Work in small sections because mastic will begin to dry so small sections will keep you from having to scrape off mastic that is beginning to dry.

Use a notched trowel to spread the mortar on the wall in the section you will be working in. The notches will allow for grooves in the mortar on the wall which will help the tile adhere better.

Place the tile on the wall

The tile in mesh sheets make this part easy. Grab a sheet of tile and place it on the wet mastic and triple check that the tile is level.

Because the tile should not be flush against the countertop, use spacers at the bottom of the tiles between the counter and the first tow of tile.

Continue to place sheets of tile across the backsplash. At the end of the row at the edge or the corner, tiles will need to be cut. I kept a sheet of mesh tile to the side for my cuts. The tiles peel off of the mesh sheets easily so that they can be cut and placed individually.

To cut a piece of tile, use an inexpensive tile cutter for straight cuts. Measure and mark the tile where you want to cut it, then score and snap with the cutter.

Place the individual cut tiles on the wall where need until all of the gaps are closed in. Use spacers where needed with cut tiles to keep them in place.

If you have outlets or light switches on the backsplash, cuts will need to be made around these areas as well.

Grout the backsplash

The mortar or mastic will take minimum 24 hours to dry. I like to give it a minimum of 48 hours to dry before grouting.

After the dry time is complete, remove the spacers and ensure that the tiles are set and not moving around.

Spread the grout on the tile using a grout float, ensuring the grout is being pressed in all of the crevices between the tile. Once spread, wipe with a large wet sponge.

This is a messy process, but the sponge will get most of the grout off of the tile easily. The sponge and bowl of water will need to be cleaned often.

Continue adding grout until all of the crevices are filled and let dry!

Add sanded caulk along the edges of the backsplash and in the groove between the tile and the countertop.

Once dry, seal the grout with a grout sealer and wipe the tiles down with watered down vinegar to remove the grout haze.

Installing a tile backsplash is a great way to make your space look upgraded. Check out the tips on making this beginner friendly.

Reacp how to make installing a tile backsplash beginner friendly

  • Use a tile on a mesh sheet with clean lines/cuts
  • Use premixed mortar/mastic and premixed grout
  • Use a light grout color to easily hide imperfections
  • Make straight cuts with a simple tile cutter

Enjoy your new, beautiful subway tile backsplash!

More in the DIY Corner Coffee Bar Series

Ikea Malm Hack: Flip a 2 Drawer Malm Nightstand

Furniture Flips

This Ikea Malm hack is so simple. By adding O’verlays to the drawer fronts and a wooden top, this nightstand gets a drastic makeover.

Flipping furniture is a great way to save an item from the landfill while breathing new life into a used piece. This Ikea Malm hack is such as easy way to turn a basic piece of furniture into something really custom and unique. Wait until you see how this furniture flip turned out!

*This post contains affiliate links.

This Ikea Malm hack is so simple. By adding O'verlays to the drawer fronts and a wooden top, this nightstand gets a drastic makeover.

Ikea Malm Hack

Flipping Ikea furniture is popular among DIYers because you can get an inexpensive piece of furniture and turn it into something really nice.

By shopping for used Ikea furniture, I can find pieces that are very affordable or free and can also find all of the information I need about them on the website. Almost all Ikea pieces have a sticker somewhere on the piece of furniture with the name on it. This gives the flipper the opportunity to do a search on the Ikea website to look up the materials used on that specific piece of furniture.

When I search for Malm 2 drawer dresser (their name for the nightstand) I can look under ‘materials and care’ and see that this nightstand is made out of particleboard and clear acrylic lacquer. This tells me that its particle board with a thin layer of veneer and laminate so it can’t be sanded and stained, rather it needs to be primed and painted.

There are a couple of fun hacks for doing both of these that I’ll share with you below.

This Ikea Malm hack is so simple. By adding O'verlays to the drawer fronts and a wooden top, this nightstand gets a drastic makeover.

What you need for the Ikea nightstand hack:

How to flip the Malm nightstand with this fun Ikea Malm Hack

The Ikea Malm hack I’m referencing here is the use of O’verlays to give these drawers an instant update! The Ikea Malm furniture has a flat front to it’s drawers without any dimension or hardware. It’s the perfect blank slate for a furniture flip.

The O’verlays are decorative fretwork overlay panels that come in several patterns and sizes. They are light weight, paint-able and easily attach to furniture. Plus, you can shop their site by furniture type which makes looking for Ikea flips super easy.

This Ikea Malm hack is so simple. By adding O'verlays to the drawer fronts and a wooden top, this nightstand gets a drastic makeover.

How to paint Ikea furniture

Before adding the O’verlays, prep the piece of furniture. For this flip, I want a white paint and a stained wooded top. There are a couple of steps that are essential here since we know this is made out of laminated particleboard and has a black veneer.

Because this is a dark veneer and made out of laminate, it’s essential to prime first. I like to use Bin primer and a foam brush to apply. You might go through a few foam brushes, but the primer will destroy a regular paintbrush so a foam brush is a cheaper way to go because it will need to be disposable.

When priming the furniture, don’t worry about full coverage as some of the black might show through. Think about the primer as just giving the paint something to stick to since it won’t adhere well to the laminate without primer.

Once primed, use a mini foam roller to add one coat of latex paint to the unit and the drawer fronts (not the top).

Create a wooden top on Ikea furniture

I wanted a wooden look without the laminate look for the top of this. Laminate looks too glossy and less wooden to me so I wanted to turn this top of this nightstand into something that looks like real wood.

Retique It liquid wood is a paintable layer of liquid wood, and it’s so cool! You paint a couple of layers on this liquid wood using a foam brush right on top of the laminate. Once dry, use a chip brush to add gel stain to the layer of wood.

Once dry, this looks like real wood! And gives it an upgrade from the laminate. This will need a coat of polyurethane to seal it once dry.

Add the O’verlays to the Ikea Malm nightstand

Once the unit has a wooden top, and has been primed and painted with one coat, it’s ready for its O’verlay. This Ikea Malm hack is my absolute favorite. Adding trim is always the extra that makes any project look professional in my opinion.

To attach the O’verlay, simply add wood glue to the O’verlay and place it on the drawer front. Once dry, give the unit another coat of paint, painting the O’verlay as well.

Once dry, add your cabinet hardware to the drawer fronts.

This Ikea Malm hack is the best upgrade to the Malm nightstand

I just can’t believe what a difference these couple of small additions to the Ikea Malm nightstand made. An incorrectly assembled Facebook Marketplace find to this finished product is just my favorite kind of flip. It’s such a dramatic end result!

This Ikea Malm hack is so simple. By adding O'verlays to the drawer fronts and a wooden top, this nightstand gets a drastic makeover.

More Furniture Flips to Check out:

Disclaimer: I received these O’verlays for free in exchange for the promotion of this product. All opinions expressed are my own.

DIY Indoor Climbing Wall: ORC Week 8

Building Projects, DIY Woodworking, One Room Challenge

It’s Week 8 of the One Room Challenge, which means this DIY indoor climbing wall is the final component of this room makeover. This room has seen such a transformation over 8 weeks, to see how the room turned out and tutorials for each component, check out the Game Room Makeover here.

This DIY indoor climbing wall is such a fun addition to a game room for kids. Plus, it's a very easy beginnier build with only a few tools needed.

Build a DIY Indoor Climbing Wall

Building a climbing wall is easy! This is a great beginner project and only requires a few tools. Plus, it’s one that kids *and adults* will love. I’ll admit that I’ve climbed to the ceiling a few times, to test it of course.

I wanted a climbing wall as the final touch to this room to give it that extra touch of fun. I had an empty piece of wall next to the DIY built in shelving that I made was tucked away from the rest of the room. It just begged for a fun feature like this!

What you need to build an indoor rock wall

  • 2×3 boards (cut to length of your rock wall)
  • 3/4″ plywood (cut to the size of your wall)
  • 3″ construction screws
  • drill
  • stud finder
  • level
  • climbing holds
  • miter saw/circular saw

How to make the rock wall

Determine the size of your rock wall. Mine was 2′ wide by 8′ tall, so I was able to buy two 2’x4′ plywood sheets to stack for this project.

Cut the 2″x3″ studs so that they can run across the width of the rock wall, and enough to space them 16″ apart for the entire height of the rock wall.

For this wall, I did six 2″x3″s spaced 16″ apart for the height of the rock wall.

Once cut to size, use 3″ construction screws to attach the 2″x3″s horizontally into the studs. This will look like a ladder when complete.

Assemble the rock wall by drilling holes where the climbing holds will be, and using the mounting hardware to attach the holds to the wall.

When determining the spacing of the climbing holds, do not place any holds where the plywood will meet the 2″x3″ brackets behind the wall.

Once the plywood wall is complete with the climbing holds, attach the rock wall to the 2″x 3″s on the wall with the construction screws.

The rock wall is complete!

I chose to spray paint the climbing holds with white spray paint and textured stone spray because I didn’t want the colorful climbing holds. I also painted the plywood, but you can choose to leave it natural or paint it whatever theme you like!

This DIY indoor climbing wall is one that my kids really enjoy, and it has provided the perfect final touch to this fun, kids game room.

CHECK OUT ALL OF THE POSTS IN THIS SERIES FOR PROGRESS

DIY Gaming Couch from Scrap Wood: Fall ORC Week 7

DIY Home Decor, DIY Woodworking, One Room Challenge

Week 7 of the fall one room challenge means the finishing touches! There is one week left until the final reveal of this game room makeover. One of the components I wanted to figure out most in this room was seating. I built this DIY gaming couch 100% from scrap wood in my garage, and it was easy!

This gaming couch is made out of scrap wood and is the perfect addition to a game room for kids, with seating for 5 in a small space

Build a DIY Gaming Couch

When we bought this house, the first thing we did was convert this media room off to the living room into a playroom.

This entailed ripping out existing built in media shelving and making my own built ins that could house board games and bins of kids toys. Luckily I saved the wood from those media shelves, because they made their way into a couch for that same space! I love a good repurposed project.

This room as a play room needed floor space that was open for play on the ground. It was filled with Magnatile towers (my very favorite kids toy) and marble runs and other works in progress all the time.

My kids have since gotten older and do less floor play, and more hanging out together playing board games and video games. So, with the transition of this room from a preschool playroom to an older gaming room, came the need for seating.

As is the case with most of my DIY woodworking projects here I like to do things on a budget, and use what I have.

How to Build the Gaming Couch

I scoured Pinterest looking for the perfect simplistic design that I could create that would not take up a lot of space and that would provide quite a bit of seating.

I landed on these plans for a Zig Zag Couch from Homemade Modern and it was perfect. It was low to the ground with a tilt up looking at the tv, perfect for gaming. BUT, it had a counter top back where 3 more bar stools can sit. This allows for 5 kids to hang out in this seating area that really doesn’t take up a lot of the room at all!

You can get the plans for the Zig Zag Couch here on their website, it has a detailed tutorial and cut list that is very easy to follow.

What scrap wood did I use?

When I tell you I used scrap wood, I mean I seriously used scrap wood. If you look through the plans, they use 2x4s, 2x10s and 3/4″ plywood. When pricing this out, it would have cost me close to $200 to build, which it why I turned to the leftovers that I had!

I used:

  • 3/4″ MDF board for the bottom braces
  • 2×6 for the back braces and the countertop braces
  • 3/4″ melamine for the bench seat
  • 1×2 common board for the back of the bench to make the seat a bit longer
  • 9″ media shelves for the seat back, counter top and the bottom front

That is a serious mash up of scrap wood. But, the measurements of the wood were consistent in their thickness which is what allowed for all the variation in type.

Plus, most of these boards are quite sturdy.

I followed the tutorial using just a circular saw to make most of the cuts, and my miter saw to make the 20° angle cuts on the back braces.

Then, I assembled the couch using 2.5″ construction screws and my drill and a brad nailer!

Finishing the DIY Couch

Once constructed, it was sturdy but looked rough.

I sanded the entire unit with 40 grit sandpaper which is very rough. Even the melamine board I sanded to help it take the paint.

Then, I used Kilz primer to prime the entire piece, and used my paint sprayer to paint the entire thing black.

It now looks like a cohesive unit, and not one that was pieced together out of scraps!

Making simple couch cushions

I like to save upholstery foam from various projects that I flip, and my friend graciously gave me the foam from outdoor cushions she was replacing.

So, guess what else got made out of scraps??

I’ll show you a very simple way to make a no-sew couch cushion.

What you need:

  • 2″ or 3″ upholstery foam
  • batting
  • spray adhesive
  • 1/4″ plywood (or hardboard if placing it on solid wood like this build)
  • staple gun
  • upholstery fabric

How to make the seat base cushion

Cut the piece of plywood to fit the seat base, slightly smaller than the base of the couch.

Use spray adhesive to attach the foam to the seat base.

Fill in any corners or empty spaces with poly fil.

Cover the foam and poly fil with batting to smooth out the foam top.

Wrap the entire thing with upholstery fabric and flip over.

Staple the fabric and batting to the underside of the plywood (now facing up) doing the sides first.

Once the sides are attached, trim excess batting and fabric at the corners and staple to the wood.

You should have a simple bench seat cushion that you can place right on the couch base!

I used velcro to keep the cushion from sliding around the base of the couch.

I made one of these for the seat and one for the back of the couch.

This gaming couch is made out of scrap wood and is the perfect addition to a game room for kids, with seating for 5 in a small space

This was the perfect addition to the game room makeover!

CHECK OUT ALL OF THE POSTS IN THIS SERIES FOR PROGRESS

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