Search Results for: plank wall

Questions to ask before hiring an upholsterer.

December 9, 2015 by Michelle Hinckley

Over a year ago I scored a pair of these vintage Milo Baughman -esque lounge chairs.

My plan was to have them re-upholstered…but then life got in the way.
Every time I put money aside to have them done, a kid would need money for basketball camp or for breaking his leg and need an $800. boot. Oye.

If you’ve ever received an estimate to have a piece reupholstered, it ain’t cheap (neither is a boot for a broken foot).

You may remember this $15.00 yard sale wingback chair…

I had it re-upholstered and it turned out great in our master bedroom.

Just to have the re-upholstery done was $500. not including the fabric which I bought myself for about $75. For that amount of money you could buy a brand new chair. It’s a romantic notion to think you’re saving a piece of furniture from the land-fill but with those kind of costs it’s sometimes hard to be vigilant about that cause.

So when is reupholstering a piece worth it? Here’s a few of my tips:

First ask…is the structure of the chair good? Does it have good bones? That’s sometimes hard to know unless you look at what’s underneath the upholstery but there are some clues that will help you determine its quality. Furniture these days is built as light as possible to save money on construction costs and to minimize shipping fees. As a result the pieces aren’t as quality as they used to be. If you ever tried to lift a cute, trendy chair from your favorite big box store you may notice it’s quite light. And if you sit on it, it’s really not that comfortable either. You get what you pay for. Those might not be the best candidates for re-upholstery. Older pieces were typically built to last and will hold up well through a new upholstery job. If you determine your piece is a good option for upholstery AND you have the money to do it then the next step is finding a good upholsterer.

I have some good contacts in Tucson but not in Salt Lake City. I decided to try my luck and see if I could find any recommendations on my favorite online site for finding home improvement pros…HomeAdvisor.

If you’re not familiar with HomeAdvisor, it’s a free site that will match you to a home improvement pro based on your criteria and area. Plus they have really honest reviews you can read before you hire. I’ve used the site for typical home improvement tasks like carpentry and electrical needs but never for an upholsterer. I typed in my city and what I was looking for then out popped Laura, who was an interior designer who sub-subcontracts her upholsterer.

I was pleasantly surprised to see that HomeAdvisor had interior designers on the site who could help with design and upholstery.

After having gone through the process of hiring an upholsterer several times now here’s what I have learned about having a smooth experience.

The best advice is getting a good recommendation or read reviews thoroughly. When you find a potential match for an upholsterer there are some boxes to check before you hire them. I typically treat the interview process as if I’m hiring a sub-contractor.

#1. Can you afford them?

#2. Do they have references or a portfolio of past work?

#3. Do they insure their work and for how long? If their work falls apart down the road with normal wear, will they fix it?

#4. Make sure they are clear on your vision for the piece. I always give them pictures as examples of what I want AS WELL AS pictures of what I DON’T want.

#5. What is their turn-around time? What can be expected if they don’t finish the job by that date? Believe it or not, many upholsterers keep “contractor-standard-time” which means, they’ll get around to your job when they’re good and ready. I hate to lump them in to THAT category but in all honesty, many of the ones I’ve worked will make promises they just can’t keep and I end up changing my whole schedule around from them just to have them not show up.

#6. If the job doesn’t result in the expectations you and they agreed upon, what is their policy?

#7. DO NOT pay the full amount up front. 1/2 down is a fair expectation for them to get started and pay for the fabric but giving them anything more, there is suddenly no incentive or priority for them to get your job done.

#8. Ask them if they will be re-using your existing cushions or replacing them. Many upholsterers re-use your existing cushions and re-wrap them with Dacron (a polyester fiber that goes on the outside of the cushion). When I had my sofa reupholstered they reused my cushions but I thought they were going to replace them. When I questioned them about after the fact I was shocked to find out how much it would have cost to have them replaced (crazy expensive). Not only that, there are several options for cushions and fills. Morale of the story, make sure to inquire up front.

Back to Laura, who I found on HomeAdvisor. I was quite surprised by her price which was around $275. per chair. Because I provided my own fabric the price was lower.

Being as how these chairs are classics, I’ve seen them sell for upwards of $2500. per chair on sites like One Kings Lane. $275. felt like a deal.

Here’s the before and after:

When the chairs first came back they looked great. However…

The bottom cushion was much too thick and my feet barely touched the ground. The beauty of the these chairs is that they are for lounging. You should sink in to them and your arm should rest nicely on the rest. I tried hard to get used to it and hoped that over time our fannies would break the cushions in but after a few days I just couldn’t take it. I called Laura and she came over and got them right away. No guilt trip, no feeling of an over-the-phone eye roll. She was totally understanding.

She took them back and had a smaller cushion put in which fits the style of the chair much better.

I’m really pleased with the chairs now and even more pleased I was able to find a good fit on HomeAdvisor and didn’t have to pay a fortune.

To learn more about HomeAdvisor visit their site here.
They also have a fabulous YouTube channel that has a whole library of tutorials and quick tips (staring yours truly).
You can also keep updated through Facebook and Twitter.

Other projects I’ve done with the help of HomeAdvisor:

Floating Corner Shelves.

How to repair cracked grout.

How to install a plank wall.

A big thank you to HomeAdvisor for partnering with me and sponsoring this post.

Repairing cracked grout with HomeAdvisor.

October 28, 2015 by Michelle Hinckley

This is a sponsored post for HomeAdvisor written by myself. All thoughts and opinions are 100% my own.

Being a homeowner has its rewards but its also not for the faint of heart. You never know when your water heater is going to go out or your furnace will need a tune-up. You have to be ready for this little catastrophe’s mentally and financially.

This is one of those stories where I thought I had the end-all, fix-all solution to a home improvement problem and blogged about it. Turns out, I didn’t.
#fail
In my own defense, turns out there may not be an end-all, fix-all solution to this problem after having consulted with a few professionals. The past few months I’ve been noticing the silicone caulk around our main bathroom tub and and kitchen counter crack. 2 1/2 years ago I wrote this post about choosing the right grout. Fast forward to 2015 and it has cracked again.

Several professional tile people had told us that where ever tile butted up to an angle such as tile to tub, tile to window…then you’re supposed to use a silicone grout in a tube. In this day and age tubs are commonly manufactured out of materials that aren’t as durable as their old cast-iron counterparts. This tub is made of fiberglass and has just a little bit of give to it…especially when three boys are beating the heck out it. The theory behind using silicone grout is that it is supposed to have some give and flex when the tub moves.

Having lived with silicone grout seams I can tell you it’s not all it claims to be. Over time, silicone gets old and looses it’s elasticity. You can see I could stick my fingernail between the tub and the tile where the grout had separated. In similar fashion the grout was also cracking where the tile meets the window. It’s so important to repair your grout at first sign of break down because water can get through the cracks and be a potential mold and/or water damage issue down the road.

Instead of DIY’ing it myself this time I decided to call a professional.
Who did I call? (~~Ghostbusters~~).
I turned to my trusty HomeAdvisor.com site…

my favorite free online source to finding trusted home professionals. I called four people and settled on the Grout Doctor.

He had some good reviews on HomeAdvisor’s site plus gave me quite an education about grout when he made his first visit to inspect.

In a nutshell, he told me neither sanded/un-sanded grout or silicone were wrong answers. Fiberglass tubs just have a lot of give to them and grout separation is nearly impossible to avoid. He told me he has used both and neither have a 100% guarantee however he prefers sanded/un-sanded because it lasts longer and holds up better to silicone. Unfortunately it may be an on-going issue that we need to plan in to our home maintenance routine every so many years.

This is totally a doable DIY project. However, if you’d rather have a professional tackle it then I would recommend finding a good source on HomeAdvisor.

The first thing the Grout Doctor did was score and cut out all the cracked grout.

After all the old grout was removed not only did he clean up the mess but he deep cleaned all the tile and grout in the shower surround and backsplash. All the soap scum clad tiles…clean!

Next, he re-grouted all the places where he cut the old grout out. The couple hundred dollars I paid was WELL worth it after seeing all the quality work and time he spent on the areas.

Addition: Our grout started to get minor cracks again a couple months later. Nothing I fault with the install…it’s just going to happen over time. I let the grout dry then bought some silicone clear caulk and went over all the grout that meets a 90 degree angle. The Grout Doctor is not a fan of this because mold tend to grow over time (even with the stuff that says “mold resistant”) but I would rather deal with a little mold cleaning then having to replace the grout every 2 months.

Read my other reviews with HomeAdvisor:

-Installing a pendant light fixture with HomeAdvisor.

-Installing a wood plank wall with HomeAdvisor. (Part 1, Part 2).

–Corner floating shelves with the help of HomeAdvisor.

You also may remember I had the opportunity to fly out to Denver to help HomeAdvisor shoot 20 short DIY videos.

This one will teach you a quick and easy way to clean grout:

How to Paint Around Trim
4 Painting Home Hacks
How to Clean Grout https://youtu.be/5RJ4mm_WvsA
Difference Between Caulking and Weather Stripping
3 Natural Pesticides
How to Remove a Scratch from Wood Floors
How to Remove Stains from Carpet https://youtu.be/BByX7hfmUYI
3 Carpet Cleaning Tips
Easy Way to Hang a Picture
How to Hang a Gallery Wall
How to Spackle a Wall
5 Projects that Cost Less Than a TV
How to Paint Chevron Stripes
7 Ways to Use WD-40 https://youtu.be/g1aYNTTriXM
3 Ways to Cut Energy Costs https://youtu.be/JRST6OtbQcw
How to Hang a Wreath Without a Nail
5 Uses for Baking Soda
How to Refinish Cabinets

Boy Bedroom Reveal.

July 8, 2015 by Michelle Hinckley

It’s the oldest boy’s bedroom reveal day!
Let us all sigh a breath of relief.
I had this dream that my boys would grow up best of buddies, never fight, love sharing a room (obviously I have only-child-syndrome).
Ehem, I stand corrected.
Best to give them their own rooms.
Without further adieu…

I embarrassed to show that this is what we started with.
Kind of like that junk drawer everyone has but ours was a whole room. (Please tell me we’re not the only one who had one of these).

Mid-process looked like this:

I fell in love with the gorgeous reclaimed New York brick from Brick-It but once we put it up but it just felt like too much going on and made the room feel too dark. See previous post here.
So one coat of Silent White by Clark + Kensington later…

Today’s view:

(Yes that is the “BANE-OF-MY-EXISTENCE-METAL-DRESSER”…well sort of. I’m actually still working on it. I found another one that was slightly bigger and thought…”Meh, why not really try and kill myself and tackle another one?” That was a train wreck so I sent it off to a miracle worker named Amy of Distressed By Design who sanded it down BY HAND to reveal the beauty under the paint. I’m just about ready to send the first one off to her next. More about her soon).

The wall opposite had not been painted in at least 10 years.

Up went some planks, on went some paint and down came that 1970’s light.

Then there was the issue of this wall. The room is long and narrow. The boy wanted to whole room to be painted blue. I tried to explain to him about being too dark and lighting so in the end we compromised on just one wall.

After the wall was painted it was definitely blue…A LOT OF BLUE (Blue Fedora by Valspar).
In attempt to break things up and add some personality I was inspired by this room and decided to try out my hand at a similar treatment.

Now I have to admit I’m no artist. My ability is limited to stick figures and things I can draw with a ruler. No problem. I downloaded a ton of images from Etsy and my new favorite site for images and fonts called Creative Market (you can see the images on my Pinterest page). Next I pulled out my trusty overhead projector , shot them on to the wall and traced them with a paint pen.

After.

This nook was so akward. Putting corner shelves in was the best move ever.

I’m in love with the new bedding especially the wool blanket from Faribault Woolen Mills. My dad used to have several of these heavy wool blankets. When he moved I urged him to sell them at our garage sale. I now cringe that they’re gone. Oh the follies of youth.

Sources:

Bed: Vintage, painted two-tone Smoke Gray, Oil-based by Rustoleum from ACE Hardware.
Stripe sheets: West Elm.
Gray sheets: Ikea
Yellow and gray wool stripe blanket: Faribault Woolen Mills.
Pillow: Etsy.
White paint: Silent White, Clark + Kensington, ACE Hardware.
Blue wall: Blue Fedora, Valspar, ACE Hardware.
Bedside wall light: School House Electric.
Ceiling Light: School House Electric.
Brick Wall: Brick-It.
Pull down Map and Blue Stool: School auction on Public Surplus.
Radio on shelf: Dot&Bo.
Wall clock: Alice Lane.
Wall hooks: Pottery Barn.
Joshua tree art: Joss & Main.
Wall planks and shelves built and installed by Springer Builders found on HomeAdvisor.

Corner shelf tutorial here.
Plank wall post.
Brick wall post.