A Room Divider with Storage

We have an "open concept" apartment which basically means we don't have enough walls. My husband needs an office area so we rigged up this fancy room divider so he can have an awesome little alcove which I totally use during the day (I'm on his computer right now :). This is not the cheapest DIY, there is an initial investment of about $60 for the skinny bookshelves and about $30 for the wallpaper but you can choose cheaper paper. We could have just purchased a room divider for $70 but then we would not have had the excess storage that this project brings. Gotta put DVD's, CD's, computer games, books and RC cars somewhere. It's pretty messy in the back but it is tucked away so I don't mind it.

Here's how to make your own...
1. Purchase and assemble some skinny bookshelves. We got ours at Canadian Tire. You could do this with any kind of book shelf , even thicker ones.
2. Buy some wallpaper that you like and a piece of foam board if you want a gap between the book cases (costs $1.00 at the dollar store).
3. Position your bookshelves where you like them and measure any gap between the two. Cut out your foam board to fit in between the book shelves.Tape in place.
4. Cut your wallpaper to fit. If you need two sheets, attach them where they meet in the centre on the back with some sturdy tape. I used electrical tape but there are better tapes out there. Then tape the paper to the back of your shelves. You could probably use a spray adhesive if you have some.

Classy on a Budget: Replacing Some Dingy Closet Knobs

We have doors to our kitchen which I think must have been put there to keep kids out as nothing in the kitchen is baby proof-able. On the doors are some old, dingy knobs that always look dirty and are partially painted. They really take away from the rest of the room.

I took a trip to Lows and found me some nice, new, shinny knobs and screwed those on instead. It took no time and looks a lot cleaner. When we eventually move again I will be taking these with me.

 

Tutorial: Customize a Tiny Chair

I am making a custom desk so I have a place to study in January (going to Naturopathic med. school and I'm super excited). I will have more on the desk later but to go with the desk I have a pretty generic folding seat.

Before...

This is of course too boring so I felt the need to customize it. It is really easy to do.

Unscrew the screws that hold the cushion on. 

Select a pretty fabric and cut a round piece that is about 10 cm bigger than the cushion all the way around.  

Attach the fabric to the cushion any way you like. I just used scotch tape. 

Make sure that the holes corresponding to the screws are accessible either by taping around them or cutting some holes in the fabric.

Then you just have to re-screw the cushion back on and your done :).  

Custom Under the Bed Storage Boxes

I made these boxes a while ago. I am not going to include a tutorial because these are pretty basic to make. I just measured the space under the bed and cut out each side of the box separately. I double layered the cardboard for extra strength which made the job a lot bigger but it was worth it. I glued the two plys together with a hot glue gun then taped the sides onto a cardboard base. I coated them with white paper and cut out some patters to pretty 'em up. Hopefully this is not confusing but if anyone were up to copying these I'm sure they would be resourceful enough to figure it out or ask me in the comments. I made three boxes that fit all on one side. I could have made three more for the other side but I already have a purchased storage solution there.

If I had hardwood floors, I would have opted for putting drawers (from an old dresser) on wheels that could fit under the bed. I don't know where I saw the idea but it is awesome and probably less work. You would have to find the right sized drawers though which could be tricky.

Quick, Cheap Coasters

This project is really easy. I wanted some basic, matching coasters that would fit well with the decor in the living room. I bought a pack of those adhesive tabs that are suppose to be affixed to cupboard doors to stop them from slamming when they close. You can buy a pack for a dollar at the dollar store. I had some left over tiles so I put a tab on each corner of the underside of the tile to make a quick and easy coaster. I repeated this until I had 4. I still have tabs and tiles left over
so if I needed to I could easily throw together another coaster or two if we have more guests. There is a lot of creative potential with these. I might try painting a few for special occasions or perhaps as gifts.