I found these chairs curbside with a “free” sign taped to them. They have a nice shape but suffer from two problems: a shoddy paint job and cracked seats. I knew I could fix both issues. I wasn’t settled on the how part until I saw what Melissa did to her tables at ikea hacker. [...]

I’m pleased to unveil my new blog design. The whole process started a year ago when I picked the name, designed the logo, and leased hosting space. After giving up my search for the perfect WordPress theme, I made do with Almost Spring theme—until now. This design is a hybrid of Almost Spring and Dilectio—an [...]

I admit these thrift-store plastic sconces look pretty good in the before photo. But trust me, they looked dated and icky on the wall. Plus they’re broken. Luckily the pieces were broken off symmetrically, so you can’t tell after a fresh coat of paint is applied. I’m tickled that the mirror and sconces look like [...]

I’m fed up with ugly tissue boxes. Even the semi-cool ones never match my decor. I used to buy the white tissue boxes from Target, but they discontinued them. So I took matters into my own hands. I found this wooden tissue box cover at a thrift store for a couple bucks. After removing the [...]

I saw this window frame at a salvage yard and coveted it for a few months before finally buying it. Instead of the opaque Plexiglass it came with, I inserted mirrors. I love mirrors because they can make a small space feel airy and bright. This one offers an added bonus: the illusion of an [...]

Closet cleaning isn’t a flashy subject, but I can’t help it: I’m in full organization mode. I blame the new year. I simplified this closet by chucking old clothes and sticking with just one type of hanger (padded hangers and skirt hangers are on the left side). The solution to the shoe mess: plastic shoe [...]

I noticed this stash of cupboard doors at my local salvage yard. The white one was the perfect size to make a serving tray. The old drawer pulls—also found at the salvage yard—made ideal handles. Their swirly shape gave me the inspiration for the pattern I painted. All it took was a little black paint. [...]

I picked up these drawers on Freecycle. They were salvaged from the kitchen of a 1940s house that was demolished. My original plan was to put the drawers on wheels and use them as under-bed storage. Turns out, no two drawers are the same height, which would look janky. So I tried stacking them vertically [...]

Kelly and Sarah, two former Sunset coworkers, planned to use this shabby bookshelf in Sunset’s Menlo Park Idea House last summer. After removing the doors, which were in a dire state of disrepair, they painted it. Paint: Benjamin Moore Aura Steam (AF-15) and Caliente (AF-290). Then they decided to kick it to the curb. Knowing [...]

This one was my friend Kristi’s idea. While window shopping one day last spring, we saw a glass cake stand in a jewelry store window. She said, “You could make one of those.” I spent the next couple weeks scouring thrift stores for plates, candlesticks, vases—anything I could find to make a cake stand. As [...]