Indoor furniture should be a reflection of your personal style, as well as maximize comfort in your available space. If you live in a small apartment, too much furniture can make your home feel cluttered, while furniture that is too large can overwhelm your space and make it seem out of proportion. You should feel like you are living in comfortable surroundings, so choose your furniture based on your lifestyle and how it fits you, not on the latest trends or what your friends believe is popular. Indoor furniture should make your home more livable, not make you feel like you are climbing over obstacles to get from one room to the next. If you buy furniture according to how it looks in the showroom or in a catalog, instead of going from personal taste, you can feel like you are not at home, but merely in a house. You should feel like your space can be lived in without worrying too much about messing it up. If you strive for every vase to be in the perfect place or every coaster to be in the proper position, you run the risk of feeling like you live in a museum instead of at home. Indoor furniture is meant to be enjoyed, to complement your lifestyle, and to help you enjoy your personal space.
Indoor Furniture Should Make Your House a Home
June 6th, 2009Storage Furniture for Comfort and Security
June 5th, 2009Storage units in the home are a must if you want to keep your clutter under control. Besides providing a room with a sense of presence, storage furniture also keeps special items secure, such as collectibles, personal items, and private letters or financial records. Fashionable storage units can complement any décor, but they are also a priceless investment if you have a lot of guests coming in and out of the home, or if you have several small children running around all the time. You can place dangerous items like scissors and cleaning products in a reliable storage unit to keep them from curious toddlers and protect them from harm. If you are throwing an impromptu party, you can not only clean up in a hurry by tossing stray items into storage units, but you can also use the storage furniture to protect any valuables you may not feel comfortable displaying or leaving unsecured. When you leave your home during a long weekend or for a family vacation, you can store valuables in them if you have invested in furniture with any type of locking mechanism. Not only is some storage furniture a beautiful addition to your home, but it can also provide security and peace of mind when your valuables are concerned.
The Timeless Beauty of the Sundial
May 22nd, 2008Sundials have always had an intriguing look. A garden sundial is an impressive focal point in a garden and the most important factor to consider before you choose the one you want is to decide where to locate it. Some people choose to place their garden sundial in their backyard near convenient seating arrangements or at the end of a prominent garden path. Pedestal sundials are instantly noticeable and attractive, drawing those who see it like a magnet.
Garden Sundials go as far back as the Babylonians, Greeks and Romans. To this day there are some antique sundials preserved for posterity. A majority of garden sundials are made of metal or stone and they can be as simple or as complex as you want. The dial faces are usually made out of white marble so that you can see it prominently no matter what time of day it is.
You will come across antique sundials made out of brass or copper. An important point to think about is how your sundial will withstand changes in season. Quite a few are also made of stainless steel, which is a durable material and also the charming terra cotta that has an ethnic look. Then there are the patio sundials that you can position vertically on the wall and if you choose these, you must make sure it receives adequate sunlight, whether your sundial is placed on a pedestal or inside a grassy patch.
There is something about garden sundials that make people very curious. So place it in the right direction, as well as in a spot where you spend the maximum time to give you the best view of it from your patio. You can literally spend hours gazing at it in peace.
There are fixed sundials like the polar sundials or the ceiling sundials, but these could be tough to read. Some people prefer portable sundials but you would have to keep moving them to the right spot depending on the intensity of the sun and that can be cumbersome.
As garden sundials go, most people prefer the horizontal or round sundial as they go well with the landscape. Sundials can be placed on the ground or on a pedestal, according to your choice. Pedestals can be made of stone, brass or a rock. In fact, you can even customize your sundial by offering to engrave whatever you want like a family monogram, crest, dates, or names.
Garden sundials are not very expensive. The antique sundials give your garden a touch of history. Preferably, sundials are best located on open, level ground where they can receive full sunlight. Sundials are a great accent for your garden or patio. In historical times, sundials were the sole means of telling the time, according to the universes rhythms.
Even though we do not use them as the basic timepieces in modern times, they nevertheless have an enchantingly decorative appeal as artistic accents for our gardens. There are exquisitely designed sundials that are totally weather resistant to summer or winter extremes. These are also painted attractively in complementary colors. Some garden sundials combine birdbaths with the sundials and these can look great in your garden.
Interestingly, the time on your sundial will match the time on your clock only on four days in a year. Since the earth has an elliptical orbit, you will also find that there is a difference of about fifteen minutes compared to your clock. There is no doubt that garden sundials are one of the best outdoor decorations for your home and garden and they certainly add character along with being lovely showpieces.
Picnic Tables - How To Make A Simple Lazy Susan For Your Picnic Table
May 22nd, 2008How big is your picnic table? Can you seat 16 people? The new popular octagonal and hexagonal picnic tables these days can be very large. This is fantastic because you can seat so many of your family and friends. And big is beautiful!
There is one small drawback however to large tables and that is you can’t reach the food or drinks in the centre or the other side of the table without having to stand up and stretch over everything else.
The solution: A Lazy Susan! The Chinese use them extensively in their banquet rooms where the tables are also large. It is a simple answer to a frustrating challenge.
They can be purchased but it may not match up with the table that you have, especially if you have made the table yourself. If you have made yourself a large octagonal picnic table with octagonal segments in the table top, it would be great to have a matching Lazy Susan.
The following is a plan to match an octagonal picnic table with a table top measuring around 6′8″ across to the parallel sides.
Materials required for a large octagonal picnic table
Lumber
1/2″ Plywood 50″*50″ square suitable for exterior use.
6*1 1/2 32′ dry pressure treated pine
2″*4″ 13′ 2*4″ dry treated pine
Nails / Screws
3″ gal nails 32
1 1/2″ screws 128
Turntable swivel A 12″ to 14″
Tools Required
1) A power compound miter saw.
2) A circular saw
3) A drill and hole saw to make the hole for the umbrella.
4) Hammer.
5) Tape measure. Small hand plane. Adjustable square. Pencil.
6) Battery drill to screw all the screws in.
Step by step construction
Step 1
Cut the 2*4 accurately in half with the circular saw. This now gives you 2 pieces 2″*2″.If you have an electric plane, smooth the saw cut. Now cut the 8 pieces to 19″ with 45 degree angles. This is the outside frame.
Make sure that the cut side is down so that the saw cutting is not visible.
Step 2
Arrange the pieces on a flat surface in an octagon shape and nail them together.
Step 3
Place the frame onto the plywood board and accurately measure corner to corner until you get the frame perfectly “square”. When you have it exactly right draw a pencil line right around the inside of the frame onto the plywood. (Note. If there are any gaps in the outside corners of your frame you may need to do some slight adjustments because this is what you are going to see.)
Step 4
Shift the plywood onto a bench and cut accurately along the line with the circular saw. Tidy up with the hand plane. You now have a perfect octagon to fit exactly inside the 2*2 frame. Place it inside the frame on a flat surface and rule lines between the opposite corners onto the plywood
Step 5
Now measure each board, cut and fit the outside row of 6*1 1/2. Plane the cut edge to give it a bevel. Don’t nail anything. When the outside row is complete start on the next row and then the next until all the centre is filled. You will need to be accurate with cuts to make sure it all fits with no gaps.
Step 6
Nail 2 nails through each section of frame into the outside row of 6*1 1/2. Now turn the Lazy Susan over. Draw lines between the corners. Take a piece of 6*1 1/2 to use as a guide and draw where the boards would be on the other side. Do each board in turn because this gives you a guide as to where to put the screws.
When you know where all the screws go, screw the plywood tightly to the Lazy Susan top. In this way there are no nails or screws showing on the Lazy Susan top.
Step 7
Turn it over so that it is right way up. You should clearly see where the centre of the umbrella hole goes. Use the hole saw to make the umbrella hole.
Step 8
Centre the turntable swivel accurately and screw into place.
You now have a Lazy Susan to transport your food and drinks effortlessly around your large octagonal table.
How To Make Your Own Wooden Bird Feeder
May 22nd, 2008You can make your wooden bird feeder as simple or extravagant as you desire, according to your level of expertise. Those who are more adept with the tools of woodworking, may want to try their hand at making a wooden castle bird feeder. The idea behind this is to have all the stools on each side of the castle manufactured so as to stick out for the birds to eat their food out of. Or maybe you consider yourself to be talented enough to make a tube that spirals around, having a trough for the birds to snack away at. However, if you are not so talented and have never built one before, you may want to start with a simple step-by-step design.
You could try starting with a simple wooden tray feeder, where you just glue and nail a few pieces of wood together. As you become more experienced in constructing your wooden bird feeders, you’ll be able to experiment a bit more until you feel confident enough to make the bigger feeders that call for a lot more talent and patience. As a child, perhaps you may have built your very first wooden tray feeders in wood shop. On the other hand, if you weren’t fortunate enough to take the class you may have built your own bird feeder at home using a soda bottle or a coffee can. I can remember, back when I was a child, taking the empty coffee can, filling it up with my dad’s sunflower seeds and hanging it from a tree just to watch the birds come to the yard Endless hours of pleasure!
Check out this quick and easy way to make a simple wooden tray feeder. Please keep in mind that if you are a child you will need adult supervision.
MAKING A WOODEN TRAY BIRD FEEDER
4 pieces of wood about 2 inches wide
1 square piece of wood
Nails
Use the square piece of wood as the base for your wooden tray feeder. Now take your four pieces of wood and prop them up on all sides of the square. Hammer each strip to the base until you have a small square dish with sides. Insert a newspaper into the base, making sure to flatten it down properly so it doesn’t fly out. Pour in the seeds and you are set to go. On top of a large post or table would be a great place to position your tray.
Children love building bird feeders as well. Once they spot you making one they’ll naturally want to do something to help. Try giving them a pine cone, butter knife and some peanut butter and have them spread it all over the pine cone. When finished, have them sprinkle seeds all over it. They’ll be happy that they got to make a bird feeder too.
Hopper feeders are little wooden bird feeders that look like houses; birds love these because they keep the wind and rain off them.
When caring for your wooden bird feeders always remember that you need to empty them of food every night, unless you can somehow cover them. Rain can ruin bird seeds and make birds extremely sick, and I’m sure that’s the last thing you want.
Bird watching has always been, and always will be, a fun hobby. By building your own wooden bird feeders, you can make this a time full of memories for you and your children.
Decide what type of feeder you’ll use and where in the yard it will go. Location is a key item when it comes to wooden bird feeders. If you don’t have it in the right place the birds may never find it.