cross medicine cabinet : diy

Medicine Cabinet DIY 6-1When we were designing The Little Barn, we always knew that one of the most important rooms would be the mudroom. The reason for its significance was the fact that it had to serve various roles, from an office space, to a boot room, to a greenhouse, to a laundry room, to a dog room. While we ended up removing two of those five functions, the three most important (laundry, boots, and dogs) stayed. Because this mudroom would serve as a bedroom, dining room, kitchen, laundry room, porch, and apothecary for our own animals, I wanted to make sure that it was well-equipped with everything that they could ever need and I could ever want for them. 

IMG_0134Holly has quite a few medical issues, all of which I have chronicled over the last year. This results in her having a number of medications. Rather than keeping her medicine with ours, I wanted to make her a whimsical storage unit. It was also my way of putting a positive spin on her medical issues. Plus, it looks damn delightful in their mudroom.

Medicine Cabinet DIY 1This is what you’ll need to make your own hand-painted Cross Medicine Cabinet:

Glass cabinet
Glass paint
Brushes
Q-tip
Painter’s tape
Measuring tape

Steps:

Medicine Cabinet DIY 21. Lay the medicine cabinet flat on the ground. Using the measuring and painter’s tape, measure and mark off a symmetrical cross that will be located in the centre of the cabinet.

Medicine Cabinet DIY 32. Take the base paint colour and brush. Fill in the cross. 

Medicine Cabinet DIY 43. Once the base coat is dry, take the border colour and outline the cross. I did mine using a freehand method, but you can also use the painter’s tape for cleaner lines.

Medicine Cabinet DIY 54. Once that coat is dry, it is ready to be installed and used!

Medicine Cabinet DIY 7Medicine Cabinet DIY 6<3

Emory

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make this: wood pallet dog bed

PalletDogBed5.jpgOne of my most popular DIY posts to date has to be a tutorial for a Burlap Dog Bed. Published almost eleven months ago to the day, this post continues to bring in dozens of visitors every week, from varying parts of the world. While I’m not sure if anyone has gone on to make a potato sack bed for their pet, I still consider the post a success based on stats alone.

I prefer not to talk incessantly about our animals, in fear that I will sound like a crazy lady who thinks that her fur babies are just the most special things to have ever walked the earth, but I do love them like mad. I also think that I love them the appropriate amount because I can definitely see their faults and know that they aren’t perfect. Far from it. However, if I have a few extra dollars or a few extra hours, my first thought is how can I spend it to make their lives better? See this Bicycle Trailer tutorial.

PalletDogBed12I have seen pallet dog beds on the internet before and I have always wanted one of my own. Well, for my dogs. I absolutely loved the look of them, and knew that they would fit in perfectly with our decor. About five months ago, I found someone online who claimed to make them for a ridiculously low price and who only lived about an hour away from us. After contacting her, we set up a future date and time to meet so that I could purchase one from her. Long story short, she completely fell off the face of the earth, deleting her photos, add, and even her email address. I think that it was a scam, since “her” photos were actually popular photos that can be found all over Pinterest. Thank goodness I didn’t pay her in advance!

Since that happened, I knew that our next pallet dog bed experience would be courtesy à la Kurysh. Do you what? The result was a success! I just know that yours will turn out perfectly as well. :-)))

PalletDogBed4Here is what you will need:

2 pallets
circular saw
drill
screws
tape measure
bar clamp

4 casters
stain
brushes
cushion

Steps:

PalletDogBed3The base.

1. Lay the first pallet down. Choose the one in the best shape. We’ll call it Pallet #1. Take its measurements, and decide what size you would like your bed to be. You may also do this before you start, either way will work!

2. Once you’ve decided on your measurements, you may need to cut Pallet #1. Try to salvage the excess wood if you decide to alter its size. 

PalletDogBed11The sides.

3. There are two ways that you can attach the sides to the bed. The first (a) is the easiest way. The second (b) is the way that we chose to make it.

(a) Measure the base length and width of Pallet #1. Using Pallet #2 and the saw, remove three of its boards. Now cut two of the boards to the width of the base, and one to the length of the base of Pallet #1. Once the sides are cut, using the drill and screws, attach them to Pallet #1 so that it looks as if the bed has a head board, side board, and foot board.  

PalletDogBed10(b) Measure the base length and width of Pallet #1. Using Pallet #2 and the saw, remove three of its boards. Now cut two of the boards to the width of the base, and one to the length of the base of Pallet #1. Remove also the four wood blocks that separate the top deckboard from the bottom deckboard on Pallet #2. You will need these to attach the sides to Pallet #1. Now screw the four blocks onto the four corners of Pallet #1. Once you have completed that, attach the sides by screwing them into the blocks.

PalletDogBed6The casters.

4. Turn the nearly completed Pallet #1 over. Mark a 2″ gap from the top and side of every corner. Screw one caster into each corner, just below the markings. Flip the pallet back over once they are secure.

PalletDogBed2Finishing touches.

5. Sanding the pallet is one of the most important steps in constructing a dog bed. There’s a good chance that these have been left outside to be at the mercy of all of the elements, bugs, dirt, and who knows what else? A light to moderate sanding will get rid of the pallet’s top layer of grime, while keeping the uniqueness of the stamps and other markings intact. 

PalletDogBed136. Once the bed has been sanded, stain it to your colour of choice. Or if you want to keep it natural looking, choose a clear coat of Varathane.

7. Depending on the size of the pallet, you may either be able to buy a fiber-filled dog bed that will fit the pallet dog bed perfectly, or you will have to buy a foam mattress and cut it to size. May I suggest covering the foam with burlap?

8. The last step is to grab your furry loved one and let them try out the bed for size! I already know that you will love it, so they are the last (and hardest) critics to please. Fingers and paws crossed!

<3

Emory

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wood cot diy.

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in the corner of little green’s living room lies about 5 feet x 3 feet of space. this space exists between a large window and a bedroom door, as well as a lovely little floor register which is perfectly located for those cold days and evenings. this space also happened to drive me nuts for an entire year.

not knowing what to do with the short and narrow corner, but wanting some sort of comfortable yet ample and, of course, different looking seating (i set high standards for little green), i was completely lost regarding how to furnish that area. for the longest time it looked like this. that is, until i came across this cot on hickory + juniper’s blog. not to sound like beyonce knowles’ character in goldmember, but shazam! i finally knew what to do with the space!

for two weeks we searched every store in our city for a 5 foot long cot. we had no luck. then we started considering childrens’ beds. they weren’t right. finally, i was so discouraged and saddened that i would not be able to have this unique seating, that i completely gave up. then suddenly, it hit me! when we bought little green, the previous owners had left a rickety storage unit in the basement that we weren’t using. without even measuring the space, i just knew that it would fit. and you know what? it did. :-)

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first, we needed to add extra wood so that we would be able to not only make the cot sturdier, but could lay down a mattress as well. it turns out we found reclaimed wood from another dismantled shelving unit in our house. little green is a home that just keeps on giving! 

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next we brought the cot inside and screwed on the wood. easy peasy.

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then we purchased a foam mattress and cut it to fit cot just so. after we finished, truman came along and chewed the corners of the mattress for us. they don’t look like this anymore. they are rounded. (i suggest leaving out this latter part in your own diy.)

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finally, we got to add our finishing touches! this was my favorite part of the entire construction. however, i love the way that it has turned out and it is now my blogging station. to each their own, right?

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reclaimed bedroom shelf.

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if anyone has been following hello scarlett from the very beginning, they will remember that our master bedroom in little green is up in a little loft. not only are we short on space, we are also short on ceiling height. for almost a year now, we have been sleeping on two double mattresses. and when i say mattresses i mean mattresses. no box spring, no frame. just two mattresses on the floor. and side tables? fo’get about it! eyeglasses, cellphones, and books have also found a home on the floor beside the bed.

now you may be wondering why we insist on living primitively, or like university students. (really both are strikingly similar.) why not just move into our nice big spare bedroom on the main floor, or new bedroom in the basement? the answer is simple. if you were to ascend our little staircase and stand in our little loft, you would notice the cross breeze that gently caresses your face and brings with it a heavenly scent of fresh air and old trees. the freshly painted white walls would immediately soothe you, while the dark beams above your head would draw your attention upward to our beautiful, and little, crystal chandelier. behind that is our equally stunning white chimney, which leads down to our dark and antique hardwood floors. we installed our own little closet space that hides behind a lace curtain and crystal tie-back. the closet resides next to the famous “we are living our adventure” decal. our bedroom, although imperfect in many ways, is also perfect in and upon itself.

so where does our latest diy fit in? read below!

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step 1. 

measure board to desired length. try not to look as confused as this guy.

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step 2.

cut the board.

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step 3.

install the board using brackets and a wife with a keen sense for eyeballing it.

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step 4.

decorate to acquired taste. i like scandinavian simplicity with a touch of ghost hunters.

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have a safe and wonderful day, readers. huzzah!!

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  • Hello! My name is Emory. I am a wife, mother of four (three on earth in heaven). This is our life on the Canadian prairies.
    email: helloscarlettblog@outlook.com

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