When Removing Wallpaper Rips the Wallboard

 

I finally got to a project that I'd been meaning to tackle for some time—removing the wallpaper in the hall bathroom of my parent's home and preparing the walls for paint.

Mom has never been a fan of wallpaper in bathrooms. But this bathroom already had wallpaper when my parents purchased their home over a decade ago. They'd been putting off replacing it, because—been there, done that—they knew that if the walls had not been prepared properly before papering, they'd be dealing with a mess. And they were right. Here's what happened as the project got underway and how we fixed the problems.

 

Updating Kitchen Sink Fixtures

Has this ever happened to you? You start out with a simple project — to update a faucet fixture — and invariably end up replacing the trap and a whole slew of other pipes beneath the sink. What should be a 45-minute project snowballs into a whole day thing, with multiple trips to the hardware store for parts. Here's where conventional "advice" you get from sales assistants in the plumbing aisle is just *plumb* wrong and what I'll do differently next time I touch a kitchen sink.

 

Beveled Tile - The Problem With Finishing Corners

When we were renovating the bathroom, just as my marble-tub vision was starting to come to life we hit a snag with the tile that could have been a show stopper. I want to share some information that I wish I'd known then about beveled tile. Perhaps someone out there right now planning your bathroom reno will stumble across this in your planning phase, while you have all your options open. Or maybe you're right in the middle of dealing with this very issue right now, and this information might help.

Rudolf Reindeer Cookies

Matthew Cohen

I don't usually write about food at Renov8or, but these reindeer cookies are seriously cute.  I've been a longtime fan of the Reindeer Cupcakes over at Your Cup of Cake. What makes them stand out from the handful of other reindeer food crafts in my opinion are the cartoonish eyeballs, made from white M&Ms, and the vanilla cookie snouts. So I thought about how to adapt this idea to make a cookie. 

 

Christmas Craft: Tree in a Bottle

 

Years ago we started a tradition of ornament crafting with the kids at Grandma's house. When they were small, we painted simple glass globes. But as they became more adept at crafting, we've tried our hands at some trickier projects. 

This tree in a bottle ornament only looks difficult. It turned out to be one of the easiest crafts. Bigger kids are able to pull this off on their own, with little help.

The Least Expensive "True" Counter-Depth Refrigerator Solutions

A counter-depth refrigerator, via Bosch

You'll often hear it said that appliances come in standard sizes, but there's a great deal of variation in refrigerators. So-called "standard" 36-inch refrigerators vary in height and width, and more importantly, depth. This is immediately apparent to anyone shopping for a "counter-depth" fridge. What the industry calls a "counter-depth" fridge costs several thousand dollars more than a conventional refrigerator—and still protrudes past your countertops. If you're looking for a more streamlined look, here are the options.

Marble Maintenance: Sealing Marble Is No Big Deal

When I designed the bathroom in our 1940s home, I wanted it to look classic and timeless. It didn't have to be a slavish nod to 1940s era bathrooms, but I wanted it to fit the period of our building, to feel as if it had always been there. 

Why Were Galley Kitchens So Popular?

Historic galley kitchen, via The Victoria & Albert Museum

It's been almost a decade since we moved into our mid-century home in a historic neighborhood of New York City. Before we moved in, I had the floors refinished, walls skim-coated and painted, light fixtures updated, and the bathroom gut-renovated. But I didn't renovate the kitchen. I was grappling with a decision whether to leave the galley-kitchen footprint intact or to bring down some of the walls for an open concept kitchen and I wanted to live with it for a while.

The Artful Home: Artwork in Interior Design

The most important thing in making a house a home to me is artwork. Almost anything can be "art" if you find it beautiful. The piece over our dining table was painted by a Queens street preacher giving a sidewalk sermon on "grace and resurrection." The bright colors and energy set the tone for the decor in our house. Here's a look at more of the art that inspired our home renovation.

Kitchen Design: Think of Each Run as a Vignette

When I decided to open up some walls for our kitchen renovation, I knew I'd have to consider the design carefully from every angle. What would be the first impression when you entered our home? How much kitchen could you see from the entryway? Sitting on the sofa and gazing over at the kitchen, would I be looking at a sinkful of dishes? A hulking stainless steel appliance? On the wall of the sink elevation: Did I really need wall cabinets, which would block the line of sight to the window? It pays to consider every elevation as a vignette. These are the considerations that gave shape to my kitchen design.

This First 3D-Printed Home Took Just 10 Days to Build

via Zillow

Can a 3D printer that produces cement walls crack the code on affordable housing? Imagine a giant printer that squeezes out row after row of cement as it traces the footprint of the home, building out all the walls, both internal and external. A two-person crew is there to watch and troubleshoots errors as the skeleton of the structure goes up over a period of eight to nine days. Then the machine backfill walls, as the crew installs anchor bolts and assembles pre-built timber pieces for the roof. When the structure is complete, finishers come in to finish walls, paint, apply siding, and roof, while a third crew installs fixtures and appliances. The method is said to be stronger and more durable than wood-frame construction house at half the building cost.

Drab Kitchen Colors: A British Invasion

Bespoke craftsman kitchens of DeVol and Plain English, and the latter's off-the-shelf brand British Standard, have been gradually weaning us off our white open kitchens in favor of neatly milled and kitted-out snugs. Leading the sensory seduction has been color: golden ochres, muddy pinks, green-y grays, and moody blues. They are hues that would have looked right at home in Great-Great Grammy's Victorian farmhouse, though this time around they feel fresh and modern. Let's call them "the drabs."

Is the Pink Bathroom Back?

via Yellow Brick Home

Anyone who has ever renovated an old home has likely encountered "the pink bathroom." It's often the first thing you see hit the dumpster in home renovation shows. The once-ubiquitous fixtures are lined up like pastel tombstones in architectural salvage yards everywhere and can be had for a relative pittance. But not for long! Savvy renovators are snapping them up. Repurposed in a more modern context, pink console sinks look especially fresh and new. Could we be on the cusp of a return of the pink bathroom?

How to Fix Laminate on Furniture and Countertops

Our pedestal table has survived three moves and two renovations—and in the process experienced some hard knocks. It wasn't in perfect condition when I found it on Craigslist. I paid $175, if memory serves, and there were dings and scratches on the pedestal base, which I sanded and painted. In the last move, though, the laminate top was gouged in a very prominent spot. Strategically placed candles got me through. (I do love these colorful candles that I found at Designer's Guild in Chicago!) But was there a permanent fix for this chipped laminate? I did some research on how to repair laminate and found a product contractors use to fill seams on laminate countertops, called, fittingly, SeamFil. Here's how it works.

IKEA Hack: Desk for Two + Järsta Wall Cabinets

 

It's been awhile since my IKEA home office for two hack and though I've put the finishing touches on the desk for two, I'm not quite finished with the room. I've been exploring wall cabinets. I had some time last week between appointments in the IKEA area, so I popped in and as often happens I found the inspiration I was waiting for. I think you're going to *love* it!

Free Kitchen Design Apps to Make Your Designs, Floor Plans, and Mood Boards

An early SketchUp of my kitchen plan

As your kitchen plan comes together and you start speaking with vendors and interviewing contractors, it's helpful to have something to show that's more than a collection of inspirational photos saved to Houzz or Pinterest. Contractors can get overwhelmed by too many photos, so I boil it down to just one inspo photo, my room design (with measurements), and a moodboard—I keep mine on my phone at all times, just a click away in dropbox. It's not difficult to create them, and many of the apps you will need are free. 

Why It's Nearly Impossible to "Flip" in New York City

Photo: RedFin.com

Several years ago a listing for a 900 sq ft two-bedroom in our neighborhood caught my eye. Back in September of that year the same unit on another floor sold for $230k. Why the giant price differential? The latter was a wreck, indeed, as these side-by-side photos show. Fast-forward a few years and a relisting caused a flurry of speculation in the real estate community of the Jackson Heights Life forum. Did someone "flip" that wreck? It brought up a good question: Can you even "flip" in New York? The answer is no, at least, not in the conventional sense.

CottageCore: Hemp Sink Skirt (No-Sew)

I'm approaching the finish line on our cottage kitchen refresh. The new paint color—"craftsman" gray, as one of you so aptly described it—has added a warmth and dimension to this modest kitchen. Now that the cabinets and trim are all one color, from toe kick to backsplash, it feels more built-in and solid and so cottage-y good. How would it look if I went full "cottage core" and added a sink skirt to cover the washer dryer? I don't have my sewing machine with me at the cottage, but I do have some iron-on hem tape from some long-forgotten curtain project. So, I decided to give no-sew a try. 

CottageCore: Painting the Kitchen Cabinets Farrow & Ball "Pigeon"

You've heard of "pandemic baking"? Welcome to my version: pandemic painting. Rather than dwell on the sad prospect of a summer with no guests, I'm seizing this opportunity to spruce the place up. Most of the walls haven't seen a lick of paint since we bought the place and painted it top to bottom in 2007. The kitchen was in slightly better shape; we'd renovated 11 years ago using plain IKEA pine cabinets (no longer available), painted a nondescript off-white. I've been itching for a cabinet-color refresh for years, and now—with no guests underfoot—is the time.

Spray-Painted Kitchen-Sink Faucet One Year Later

Our kitchen renovation is a year old, and I'm still smitten! It is a pleasure to cook in. But more than this, I love that point on the backsplash where the arc of the veins in the bookended marble slabs seek each other out, like the reaching fingertips of Michelangelo's "Hands of God." You may recall that I took a risk in this renovation and spray-painted my drinking faucet to match the Delta Trinsic sink faucet in Champagne Bronze. (I did what?!) Wonder how that's holding up? No holds barred photos after the jump.