Two It Yourself's 3 DIYs featured in SquareRooms Magazine

Just over a year ago we started Two It Yourself.  Never did I think that in such a short time we would have reached so many people...around the world.  A few weeks ago I was shocked, honored, and humbled to be contacted by a magazine writer for SquareRooms Magazine.  The magazine is a home interiors magazine based in Singapore!

I was asked if I would be interested in having three of my DIY projects featured in the June issue of the magazine.  Um...would I?! 

So without further ado here's Two It Yourself's big publishing debut in SquareRooms Magazine's Trash to Treasure article!

Two It Yourself's Dresser to Console and Dresser Drawer to raised storage are featured in the June 2014 issue of SquareRooms Magazine

Two It Yourself's upcycled curtain tie backs to towel hook is featured in the June 2014 issue of SquareRooms Magazine

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2IY is 1! Our {First Year's} Most Popular DIY projects, Crafts, and Tutorials are...

We're celebrating our first bloggy birthday with a look back at our top five most popular DIY, craft, and projects in our first year!  Thrifted Dresser to TV Stand/Buffet/Entryway Table
How to hem jeans with original hem without cutting
How to Print on Burlap {And Change Your Life Forever}
DIY Napkin Holder from a toilet paper roll
Re-use Yankee Candle Jars: How to Remove Wax from the holder

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Dresser Drawer to Storage Box {Easy DIY Project}

Oh boy I am so excited to share this one with you...it turned out way better than I could have anticipated and had I known what the end result would look like I wouldn't have dragged my feet on this project for so long.  It was literally months in the making...but really it took me all of about 2 (kid-free) hours to complete.

Furniture Painting Tips: Polycrylic vs Polyurethane

Let me start off by saying...I ain't no furniture painting expert.  I'm just a girl, a SAHM, a wife, and DIYer who can't sit still so I started painting furniture.  And then I started selling my painted furniture...and with each piece I paint, I learn more and more about painting furniture.

One of the biggest quandaries I had was about finishes and top coats.   People always say 'poly' and my question is always 'poly what??'  I think most people assume polyurethane, but there is a time and place for polycrylic, too!

I have found they are both essential in painting furniture - sometimes on the same piece.  It was
recently when I was selecting my finishes for a piece with a stained top and a painted base that I realized sometimes the two must have a play date.

And so since I think I have finally wrapped my head around many of the pros and cons of both, I thought I would share what I have learned and that way others may have an easier time deciding the answer to "Polyurethane vs Polycryclic?"

8 Tips for Cost Effective Home Decor {Guest Post}

I am so excited to welcome a Jessica to Two It Yourself today.  She's our guest blogger today from 4 Interior Design - a UK-based DIY and Home Decor blog.   You guys are gonna love all the tips and tricks she has up her sleeve for decorating on a budget!  (Who doesn't love that!?) So I'll hand it over to Jessica...

Finances are tight all round as the world slowly starts to recover from the global economic meltdown of 2009, and often, it seems as though there is nothing left over to make your house into a beautiful and comfortable home. However, with a little ingenuity and few pounds in your pocket you CAN make changes to your home, step by step transforming it into the elegant haven of your dreams. The following eight tips can help you get there.

Trend Hunter

1. Make Your Own: Raw materials are almost always cheaper than the finished product, and the satisfaction you gain from making something by yourself to use in the home is priceless. Buy fabric, wool, art suppliesand pieces of equipment as and when you see them on sale or as part of a good deal. If you wait until you have a project planned you are unlikely to serendipitously find the supplies you need for a low price. Keep your supplies securely locked away, protected equally from the elements and your children! You can even make your own furniture, if you so desire, by buying offcuts and odd lengths of wood from DIY stores.

9 Tips for Selling Painted & Re-finished Furniture

I'm no pro, but I have painted and sold enough refinished furniture to have learned a thing or two about what will sell and what will sit.  So here goes...

• Be Picky with your Pieces:  Pick pieces of furniture to refinish that are versatile.  Not everyone has room in an entryway for a table, but if you refinish a piece that could be used as an entryway table or a sofa table you double your chances of selling it.  The same thing goes for a buffet which could be also be used as an entryway table in one home or a TV console in another. 
• Accent Pieces Rule:  Certain pieces of furniture are going to be tougher to sell than others.  A dresser, for example, is a piece that many people already have because it's an essential piece of furniture. It will be tougher to sell a stand alone dresser - especially one that has been painted and doesn't "go" with their pre-existing bedroom decor.    But accent pieces are pieces that add character, charm, color, and storage to a home's decor.  They're non-essentials which means someone will have to fall in love with it to buy it - but since it's something they won't already have, they're not actually faced with replacing one piece for another. 

Thrifted Kitchen Chairs Makeover

A few weeks ago we shared with you all the details on Stephanie's $35 kitchen table makeover.  It went from drab to fab with the help of a stained top and a white painted legs.   Inspired by this $800 version, Steph's $35 table really was fabulous - if only you could sit at it.

Thankfully, she found a set of four matching chairs on the cheap at an area thrift store.

Thrifted TV Stand Makeover with Two-Tone Stain and Paint

My latest furniture flip was a look I've been wanting to try for a few months - a stained top and a painted white base.  But before I could get any stain or paint on this piece I had some reconfiguring to do.

I bought the TV console through a local Facebook group where people post things for sale.  The woman originally asked $60 for it - but it sat and sat and sat.  I took a stab and offered her $30.  She took the bait and I took home this heavy solid wood tv stand with the intention of converting it into an accent piece that could be used in an entryway, living room or even a bedroom.  She was in near perfect condition with no scratches, dents, or dings.

The first thing I did to start converting this piece was take off the back heavy cardboard piece that had cut outs for easy wire access.   I also removed the sliding drawer/shelf and converted it into a stable shelf.  The sliding shelf just screamed tv console.

Thrifted Dresser to TV Stand/Buffet/Entryway Table

Not gonna lie...I have been dying to share my latest furniture flip with you.   I typically like to keep my projects in the works as a big surprise, but this one I couldn't keep to myself.  If you following 2IY on Instagram, you know just how long I've been working on turning this thrifted dresser into a tv stand...or is it a buffet or is it an entryway table?  The great thing about this piece is it's sooooo versatile it can be used in almost any room in the house.  My house. 

I am just gonna say up front I love this piece.  I love the finish.  I love the color.  I love the uniqueness.   I love that it's functional and stylish at the same time.  I love it.  I love it so much that even though I bought it to flip and sell I just simply can't let it go.  So it's found a new home in my sunroom.

I bought this solid wood dresser at my favorite thrift store nearly a month ago.  When I grabbed the tag to claim it I didn't even realize that the $45 price table included a huge solid mirror in nearly perfect condition, too! I mean really? They sell mirrors just like that at PB for $299. 

Yard Sale Nightstands Flip and ReSTOREd Challenge Update #2

Well, here we are more than half way through October and my ReSTOREd Seed Money Challenge is going strong. I'm currently working on my biggest piece of painted furniture yet. I'm hoping to get it up for sale by the end of this week - that is if I can part with it. It's a beauty, if I do say so.

So far I've sold four pieces - well, technically five you if count the set of matching nightstands as two.  These babies really plumped up my Seed Money Challenge Fund.

I found them on a local Facebook page where individuals sell stuff.  They came complete with yard sale stickers, because they clearly hadn't sold at $10 a piece.  The seller was still asking $20 for the set, but I haggled her down to $15 and she was happy to just get rid of them.

$35 Kitchen Table Makeover

Well, hello, there gorgeous! If you follow us on Instagram (and you do, don't you?!) you've been seeing this table makeover.

Well now it's finally done.  Can we all just take a minute and admire her.  Can you believe some sandpaper, stain, and paint turned a thrifted table into that?!

Steph picked up this table for a mere $35.  It's a standard wooden table not in too bad of shape, but nothing too exciting either.  She didn't come with any chairs and she didn't come up much personality, either.

'Antique' painted table using stain over paint

If this table looks familiar, there's a good reason why.  She's been on the blog before looking quite a bit different.  I originally painted this 1960's vintage table from my local thrift store blue with a white drawer.  She came out nice, but honestly I was never thrilled with her. 

 

Well now...I'm in LOVE! 

I went at her with Fiesta Red (which I made into DIY chalk paint) and on the re-paint I skipped the two tone going for solid red.  I liked her well enough after I was finished with the red, but she just didn't seem totally authentic...this is a vintage piece and I wanted her to look it.   She needed some personality.  Some depth. 

Teal Furniture Makeover {Guest Post from Craft Dictator}

Happy Saturday, everyone! Today it truly is a happy Saturday at Two It Yourself.  We're so thrilled to welcome our first guest blogger, Cara from the Craft Dictator.  Let's give Cara a big warm 2IY welcome.  

*** 

Today I'm going to talk about a piece of furniture I recently redid!  I got this white piece of furniture from my mom a couple of years ago.  It has lived in a bathroom, a kitchen, and a living room.  Currently it is in my hallway.  It is a very versitile piece of furniture that is great for storage, but we never really painted it.  It was kind of painted white but it wasn't painted well.  Then I got polka dot knobs on it about a year ago but never repainted it!  For some reason last weekend I decided this was going to be the weekend this piece got painted! This is what it looked like before I started.

Vintage Table Makeover and ReSTOREd Update

So last week I made a sweep through my favorite furniture thrift store and took home two pieces. One was this little vintage table.  It immediately caught my eye as soon as I walked into the vintage room. The tag said 1960's vintage baby blue table. As I sanded her down it was obvious this table has not only been well loved, but also painted a few times.

I Spy DIY: 7 Master Bedroom Ideas

Last week on the blog I showed off my newly refinished/repainted nightstand and got some great feedback from readers on it.  One of the biggest compliments was from a reader who asked if the headboard in the photo was purchased or made.  I'll give you one guess...

That got me looking at the photo, which at first glance doesn't look like much other than the nightstand.  But actually when I look closer I realize just how much blood, sweat and tears  love I have poured into our master bedroom since I started transforming it in the spring.   In just this one photo I spy FIVE DIY projects that I have featured on the blog...can you see them?

Okay, okay I'll give you a few hints (and all the links to the tutorials)...

Let's start with the nightstand because it's the most obvious.  It was painted two-tone to match the walls and trim and new hardware was added.

Vintage drum table refinished with spray paint

Recently our mom and her siblings sold our late grandparents' beach house.  Of course, first came the challenge of emptying the place which had a lot of mis-matched, antique, and vintage furniture.   All of the kids and many of the grandkids - including both of us - took a few things which made for some really awesome refinishing and repurposing projects like my tool box to herb garden and nightstand to entry table. Stephanie scored this vintage two-tiered drum table.

Let's be honest, it's not much to look at.  In fact, even the bargain price at the estate sale didn't attract a buyer...but their loss was Steph's gain.  She took the table apart and gave it a fresh coat of paint - spray paint, to be exact! 

Refinished nightstand in DIY Chalk Paint (Before and After photos)

A few weeks ago I landed this table for the grand ol' price of FREE! She was in great shape and actually not too hard to look at - just not really my style or in line with my bedroom decor.  The best part (aside from the price) was I have been needing a nightstand as we only have one - and of course we have two sides of the bed.

You may remember from my master bedroom makeover that I was temporarily using my tiny childhood nightstand borrowed from my mom's house.   No more, people, no more!

DIY Doll Bed for American Girl from Scrapwood

Let me just start off by saying that after paying $130 for a doll...I wasn't about to spend just as much on her bed.  No ma'am. Sorry. Not gonna happy.  Not now. Not ever.  But if you've been following along on Instagram you know I have been working on a DIY doll bed for Miss Rebecca - my 5 year old's first American Girl.

I'm not really a furniture maker.  And by that I mean I don't really have any clue if what I made would actually hold a human if made to scale.  I mean I did make a shelf out of pallets for my bathroom so I guess I can cut and screw together a few pieces of scrap wood to make a doll bed for an 18" doll, right?  Here's to hoping....

This thing doesn't look like much..and that's because it's not really.  It's just a few pieces of wood I had lying around the garage put together enough that my 5 year old is satisfied that her dearest Rebecca doesn't have to sleep on the hardwood floor (gasp!) or even worse her bed. Can you imagine?!

Okay so there's not really a tutorial here so I'm gonna let the pictures do most of the talking....

Small Bathroom Storage: DIY Pallet Board hanging shelf

And here's another sneak peek into how my $100 powder room makeover is going.  The great thing about this guy is he cost me next to nothing!  I used all pallet wood and I had the screws and stain on hand.  I did have to purchase the rope and the hook at the top, but you can actually make this without either.  (My little secret is they're just for decoration, they're not actually keeping the shelf on the wall.)

The lovely ladies over at Shanty 2 Chic inspired me to make this shelf.  They built a similar one for that odd wasted space over the toilet.   The only difference is mine is pallet wood (free) and they paid for their boards (better quality).  I believe she said she still made it for about $10...which is still quite the steal.

Entertainment center to DIY storage bench

Hey guys Steph here...

We recently got a new entertainment center, but I had trouble selling my old one.  Instead of just throw it out I decided to re-purpose it into a DIY storage bench with storage slots underneath for baskets.  It's the perfect addition to our playroom and workout area.

The entertainment center was made of that really heavy - but not super great quality - fiberboard.  We actually disassembled it and then used some of the pieces to build a homemade storage bench.

The great thing about doing this is we could customize it to our liking - and all the pieces were already cut to size for us.