Check me out on The Old House Web!

February 3, 2010

Hi, strangers! After a long holiday hiatus, I’m back in the saddle and thrilled to announce that I’m a new contributing writer for The Old House Web! I’ll be posting about two articles per month, and perhaps more if time allows. I’m super psyched! A few people have asked if I’m going to continue with this [...]

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One blessed mess

December 8, 2009

Christmas arrived early at the DIY Mess. On Thursday, our kitchen renovation won Best Green Renovation in the Share Your Project Contest, reeling in a $100 Home Depot gift card. To boot, the good folks at repair-home.com moved us up to the next round: finalists for their $1,000 grand prize! (You can vote for us [...]

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Making my cupcake stand, and baking the cupcakes, too.

December 4, 2009
Thumbnail image for Making my cupcake stand, and baking the cupcakes, too.

Last month, we hosted a baby shower for some dear friends of ours, and I went all out on the dessert. After perusing the Interwebs for inspiration (many thanks to Two Kids and a Wedding, Craftynest, and Design*Sponge), I came up with my own spin on the DIY cupcake stand. I picked up a staircase [...]

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Big bucks! No whammies!

November 25, 2009
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Today, OldHouseWeb.com announced the finalists of their big blogger contest, and guess who made the list: yours truly! I’m tickled pink and totally honored. Dearest readers, please have a look at the six finalists’ excellent entries and vote for your favorite—or, better yet, vote for mine. Winner gets a $250 Lowe’s gift card AND an opportunity [...]

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Vote for us!

November 7, 2009
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We’ve entered our kitchen in the Share Your Project contest, a promotional event for a nifty home-improvement Website, repair-home.com. PLEASE vote for us. There’s a cash prize, and Momma needs a new pair of everything (e.g., lighting in place of that wire dangling from the ceiling).

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Dust to dust (and dust and dust and dust)

November 3, 2009
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They say Eskimos have 200 words for snow. Lately I’m feeling like there must be at least half as many occasions for dust. What would you add to this list? DUST STORM: A dense, orbital-sander-propelled cloud that spreads from room to room, fogging the air, choking your lungs, and coating everything you own. DUST DEVIL: [...]

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One room at a time? HA!

October 15, 2009
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Every once in a while, someone who hasn’t seen the house yet will ask me what our strategy is. “Are you doing one room at a time?” they say. And I just laugh and laugh and LAUGH. Take the upstairs bathroom and guest room, for instance. The plan was to do the guest room, then [...]

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Shiver me paint-stripped timbers

August 26, 2009

I’ve put my body through a lot slaving over the DIY Mess. I’ve wielded a heat gun while balancing atop an eight-foot ladder. I’ve narrowly escaped puncture wounds, nails lodging into the soles of my shoes and barely missing my toes. I’ve felt the sting of flesh-eating stripper chemicals on my forearms. I’ve found coal [...]

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