All posts tagged wood

DIY Tree Branch Magnets

by eclectic on May 31, 2011 in DIY with No comments
2011-1

With summer just around the corner, it’s a great time to get outdoors and bring the rustic beauty of nature inside. This found-wood project from ManMade utilizes a fallen tree branch and DIY supplies to transform simple wood into charming refrigerator magnets.

What you’ll need:

  • A tree branch, 1-2″ in diameter
  • Strong magnets (purchase at a craft store)
  • Electric drill and bits
  • Saw (hacksaw, pull saw, miter box – anything that will safely cut the tree branch)
  • Amazing GOOP two-part epoxy

Easy Instructions:

  1. Prepare the wood by wiping off with a damp cloth.
  2. Cut off medallions from your branch, about 1″ or 1 1/2″ thick.
  3. Smooth any rough edges with sandpaper.
  4. Use a drill to clear a small hole for the magnets to sit in. (Match drill bit to size of magnets).
  5. Follow instructions on Amazing GOOP two-part epoxy to mix the paste and glue in the magnets.
  6. Allow the epoxy to dry for 4-6 hours before using your new magnets.

For a full photo tutorial and instructions, visit ManMade.

Repair, Don’t Replace: Broken Chair Legs

by eclectic on March 23, 2011 in Repair Don't Replace with No comments
690085_46134023

If you’ve ever checked out the curb on trash day, you have probably noticed how common it is to see broken wooden chairs awaiting their one-way trip to the local landfill. Too often, wooden chairs are thrown out when all they need is a quick fix. If you have a wooden chair with a broken leg, don’t replace it– learn how to repair it with EcoGlue Premium Wood Adhesive.

Loose Legs

Using chairs frequently can cause legs to become loose. It also happens over time because as wood ages and dries out, it shrinks. As a result, the joints between the parts of a chair can sometimes come loose. This problem can be repaired by forcing glue into the joints. It’s important to choose a high-performance wood glue such as EcoGlue Premium Wood adhesive that will form a strong bond and maintain flex strength, heat resistance and adhesive strength over time. Instead of replacing your favorite chair, follow these steps to repair a chair with loose legs:

  1. Examine joints to find any loose ones. Repair all joints at the same time.
  2. Separate each joint as much as possible to make it easily accessible.
  3. Clean off old glue from the ends of the chair legs and from the inside of the holes. (Use a scraper, chisel or knife if necessary.) Make sure to remove all old glue, because the new glue will not stick to it.
  4. Apply EcoGlue Premium Wood adhesive to both the tenon (the end of the leg or stretcher) and to the inside of the hole.
  5. Reassemble the parts using a rubber mallet or clamp if necessary.
  6. Hold the joint together, and drill a hole from the underside, slightly smaller in diameter than your wood screw at an angle to the joint.
  7. Drive in a screw longer than the diameter of the tenon part you are repairing. The screw will hold the joint until EcoGlue Premium Wood glue dries (initial bond forms in 30 minutes, 100% strength is reached in 24 hours) and prevent it from becoming loose again.

Check out this post from TLC for instructions to repair broken back rails, spindles, slats and other structural parts.

St. Patrick’s Day Topiary Tutorial

by eclectic on March 17, 2011 in Crafts, DIY with No comments
Picture 051

Lucky leprechauns, beaded garland, and glittering gold are abundant on St. Patrick’s Day. There’s certainly no shortage of festive craft ideas, but great tabletop decor can be hard to find. That’s why we love this topiary tutorial from NoriKraft featuring handcrafted four-leaf clovers and anchored by bright green wooden blocks. It’s an easy craft project you can make with supplies on hand, and it’s sure to add a creative touch to your party decor or dining room table.

What you’ll need:

  • (3) sheets 8.5 x 11 felt
  • (2) 12″ wooden dowels
  • (3) wooden blocks
  • Shamrock templates
  • Ribbon
  • Paint
  • E-6000 craft adhesive
  • Drill gun
  • Glue gun

For a complete tutorial and photos, visit NoriKraft. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

You might also like:

Night Owl Crafting St. Patrick’s Day Decor

Leprechaun Plant Pot-A Tutorial

40 Crafts for St. Patrick’s Day

Conquer Clutter with DIY Drawer Organizers

by eclectic on December 31, 2010 in DIY, Home Improvement with 1 Comment
4736007531_9bb6dd45de

On just about every list of popular New Year’s resolutions, you’ll find “Get Organized” in the top 10. After weeks of holiday entertaining and receiving gifts (more stuff!), it comes as no surprise that we aim to tame the clutter in the new year. If you’ve resolved to get organized in 2011, one of the best ways to get started is by preparing your storage spaces.

This week, we’d like to share a do-it-yourself project for creating custom drawer organizers that provide a fast and easy fix to organize the odds and ends that are cluttering your home.

To create custom organizers for drawers in the kitchen, bathroom, or office, you need just two things:

  1. Wood (such as pine or poplar)
  2. EcoGlue Premium Wood Adhesive

That’s it! Throw in a jigsaw (or have wood pieces cut at your hardware store), sand paper, and a tape measure, and you’ll have custom drawer organizers in no time at all.

Easy Steps:

  • After measuring the width and length of the drawer you plan to organize, determine the layout of each compartment.
  • Select a wood type. Pine and poplar are both easy to work with and affordable. A sheet of 1/4 inch (thick) x 3 inches width works well.
  • If wood has not been pre-cut, cut it into pieces of the desired length for each section. Sand the wood to finish.
  • Assemble wood pieces in the drawer to test the layout of your compartments.
  • Align the boards and apply a small amount of EcoGlue Premium Wood Adhesive to the bottom and edges of the wood pieces.
  • Finish gluing and assembling wood pieces.
  • Allow to dry for 24 hours. (Full water and heat resistance is reached within 3 to 5 days).

With a few easy steps, you have a custom built organizer that you can create for any drawer in the house. And now you’re one step closer to keeping your New Year’s resolution.

Photos from Yahoo! Shine, where you can find more on this project, and additional ideas.

Build a Custom Kitchen Island

by admin on October 4, 2010 in DIY, Woodworking with No comments
kitchen-island-big 2

A kitchen island is an excellent addition to any kitchen.  It provides extra storage, an additional surface for preparing food and can be customized to fit your needs.  We particularly like this DIY kitchen island from Popular Mechanics because it has a counter-height work-station with drawers, a pullout waste bin, a storage shelf and a drop-leaf top.  And, because the island isn’t nailed down-you can relocate it to suit the occasion, and take it with you if you move.

Keep in mind that Eco Glue Premium Wood Adhesive can be used not only when a plan calls for adhesive, but also in place of nails or other fasteners for a more streamlined look.

Cutting Plate Slots

First, build up leg blanks by gluing together full 1 x 3-in. poplar boards with Eco Glue Premium Wood Adhesive. While the glue is drying, make the face-frame parts and the stretchers. Cut double plate slots 1/4 in. apart in the 1-in. stock, using a 1/4-in. spacer under the plate joiner to register the second slots. Then cut single plate slots in the 3/4-in. plywood panel without using a spacer. Transfer the plate locations to the legs. Use a 3/4-in. spacer followed by stacked 3/4- and 1/4-in. spacers to register the double slots that match the face-frame slots.

Case Assembly

Assemble the back face frame and front face frame with glue and plates, double-check that the assemblies are square, and leave them clamped for at least an hour. Join the stretchers to the face frames with glue and plates. Note that the rear stretcher fits inside the face frame, while the front stretcher simply joins the top end of the mullion. Be especially careful with this joint. Until the side/leg assemblies are in place, this stretcher joint can break. When the glue has dried, join both face frames to the partition panel. Drive a screw through each stretcher and into the partition top edge to strengthen the joints, and fit the back panel. At this point, it’s time to glue the two leg assemblies to the case, one at a time.

With most of the island assembled, glue and screw the support strips for the floor of the waste-bin compartment, and glue and nail the floor in place. Set the nails and fill the holes with FAMOWOOD Wood Filler. Make the open shelf by fastening poplar boards to the lower rails, notching the first and last pieces to fit around the legs and frame pieces. Screw the boards in place through counterbored screwholes and then plug the holes. A shim ensures uniform spacing.

Assemble the main top from 5-in.-wide cherry boards. Strictly speaking, you don’t have to use plate joints in the assembly, but we did because they help in alignment. They’ll also add a little extra strength if some of the joints are less than perfect. Note that the drop leaf has end boards that help keep the assembly flat. Lay out the drop-leaf hinge mortises and remove most of the waste with a router-then finish up with a chisel and install the hinges. Attach the top with screws that pass through elongated holes in the stretchers. The holes allow the top to move seasonally.

Drawer and Waste Bin

The drawers are made with dadoes, grooves and rabbets, which produce strong, locking joints. We made these cuts on a table saw with a dado blade, but a router table will work, too. Assemble the drawer boxes with nails and glue. Install spacers and blocking around the partition to support the drawer slides. Fit the drawer faces after the drawer boxes are in place so you can adjust the faces for a uniform gap all around. Screw the waste-bin hardware to the floor of its compartment. Then, edge the plywood waste-bin door with poplar and install the door.

Finishing

For a great paint finish on the base and drawer fronts, sand with 120-, 150- and 220-grit paper, and apply a latex primer. Lightly sand the primer with 220-grit paper, remove all the dust, then apply two coats of a quality latex paint. We finished the drawer boxes and top pieces with three coats of alkyd varnish, lightly sanding between coats. When the final coat is dry, rub the surface with 4/0 steel wool.

Here are some other great DIY kitchen island instructionals:

DIY Network – How to Build a Custom Kitchen Island

Do It Yourself – Building a Kitchen Island in Four Easy Steps

HGTV – How To: Build a Kitchen Island with Cabinets

Enjoy Candle Light With a Standing Wood Candelabra

by admin on September 26, 2010 in DIY, mark montano, Woodworking with No comments
6a0133edb97012970b013487473e80970c-800wi

Every now and then it’s nice to choose a project that can be completed in just a few hours.  That’s why we love this standing wood candelabra from Mark Montano.  With just a few supplies, you can have your own candelabra in no time!  And, be sure to pick up Mark’s newest book, Big Ass Book of Crafts for more great projects like this!

***

I made this for a friend when she got married and they LOVE it.  It was easy to make and I enjoyed the process very much.  Everything you need to make it is at your local hardware store.  It’s a project ANYONE can do.  I hope you enjoy it!

YOU’LL NEED:

2 decorative scroll wooden shelf brackets 8 1/2 inches long (Home Depot or Lowe’s)

4 plain wooden shelf brackets

One 5 foot long piece of 2×2 pine

EcoGlue Premium Wood Glue

Krylon Spray Paint in a color you like

Masking tape

5 glass votive holders

Household GOOP

HERE’S HOW:

Working on a large flat surface, glue the wooden scroll brackets flush with one end of the 2×2.

Glue 2 of the plain wooden flush with the other end of the 2×2.

While that is drying, glue a third plain wooden bracket on the 2×2. This will start to create the base of the candelabra.

After this dries (give it a couple of hours) flip your candelabra over with the 3rd plain bracket hanging over the edge of your work surface and glue on the 4th plain bracket to the bottom of the 2×2.

When this is dry, paint with your spray paint.

Finally, glue on the 5 glass votives with the Household GOOP or E-6000.

Get Your Drawers Moving Smoothly

by eclectic on November 4, 2008 in DIY, Woodworking with No comments

Drawers by Penmachine via Flickr

Drawers by Penmachine via Flickr

Wooden drawers in cabinets, dressers and closets can often wear, resulting and less than smooth opening and closing. This is pretty simple fix; replacing the nylon glide on the underneath of the drawer, swap old or missing screws for new ones or using a wood glue, like EcoGlue Premium Wood, for loose dovetail joints.

Need help? Some resources for getting your drawers moving smoothly.