Nesting tables have been around since the 1700’s when table’s voluptuous curves slimmed down a little so you could actual fit one under another. Back then every parlor needed a table for tea, embroidery and, of course, cards – why not slip them all under one another when not in use? Well 300 years later,…
Shim Dresser Re-do
Who doesn’t have an old dresser in the house that could use a facelift? We certainly did! I’ve also always loved the simple beauty of wood shims…I know, I’m a little weird. But c’mon, they’re nice, pretty wood and cheap – so I can’t help myself. For those who don’t know what shims are, they’re the little…
Mosaic Plate Table Top or Wall Art
I was hankering to do another plate mosaic after my stepping stones from a season or two ago, but I wanted this one to be a bit more modern and abstract. I landed on a cafe table top that could also be used as a piece of wall art. All white plates that had a…
Mouse House Bedside Table
My kids won’t sleep with the lights off. Yeah, you know..the imminent threat of monsters, etc, etc. I’ve looked at night lights, but sockets in our old house aren’t in the most useful places. So I decided to make them beside tables that included a night light in the form of a little built…
The Kids Table, All Grown Up
With all three of our kids now out of high chairs and heading into our first Thanksgiving with the entire extended family, the old school concept of the kids table has real world implications for me. What table do I use, where do I put it, how should it look, where will I put it…
Reclaimed Lumber Table
Reclaimed lumber is the best. The beauty of the wood carries the piece, meaning that you don’t really need to do much to make it a masterpiece. Case in point, this credenza. All it took was one piece of reclaimed lumber and a few pipes from the plumbing department. It helps if you can have Melissa…
Sewing and Craft Armoire
I had an hour a couple of weeks ago to make some headbands for a sewing segment I was filming. It was nap time so I new I had to work fast! By the time I got the sewing machine out of the basement, my notions box out of the closet, the fabric out of the…
The 30 Minute Circles Coffee Table
Beautiful materials are beautiful materials, no matter what form they come in. So why not take one form and make it into another? That’s what I do this week on Home Made Simple. The challenge was to create a statement coffee table that would stand up to wear and tear… and do it on a…
Galvanized Pipe Desk and Bookshelf
In this Saturday’s new episode of Home Made Simple, I had the challenge of designing rooms for two teen boys. The rooms needed to be both cool (they are teens after all) and have a functional place for studying (that was the parents request, not the boys). So I headed off to my favorite place…
Home Office Redux!
I’ll be the first one to admit I have a messy desk, really messy…..like so messy I would never show it to you. So, when I had the opportunity to help another creative business person redo her workspace, I was delighted. On Saturday’s episode of Home Made Simple on OWN I tackle this, hmmm…shall we…
Climbing the Walls – Tables that is
Shelving is always a tricky proposition. We all need it – for books, files, kids toys, family photos, treasured knick-knacks, but so often we don’t have a lot of choices. Functional wood shelves work in a garage, metal baker’s racks can work in a kitchen, but what do you do in the rest of the…
Old Window, New Life
I’m not sure if it’s studying architecture, going to school in colonial Williamsburg or living in a San Francisco Edwardian, but I’ve always loved old windows. True divided light, so many panes it’s impossible to clean, always have a draft windows. In the really old ones you can see the ripples where the glass (which is…