DIY Home Projects

Everyone loves the look of a vintage refrigerator — especially a colorful model. If you’re really lucky, you bring home a brand new Smeg, or Big Chill for your kitchen. But if you’re a purist, or on a slimmer budget, you make your dream of a colorful vintage refrigerator come true for much, much less by rolling up your sleeves and doin’ it yourself.

With so many amazing outdoor activities during the warm seasons, this all-purpose fabric towel is a handy (and handsome) accessory to keep stashed away in your car or scooter bucket. Impromptu cliff diving excursion? No prob, you’ve got a great towel/cover up. Picnic in the park over your lunch break? Bust out the blanket!

Project by: Ashlea Location: Red Deer — Alberta, Canada We purchased a 1940s farmhouse complete with just about original everything. While our little home was big on charm, it was also big on orange, lacquered wood trim, doors, floors and cabinets. Our dated kitchen cabinets were cute, but the swan and fruit basket decals weren’t quite our thing.

IKEA’s MELODI pendant lamp is a really great blank slate — there are a million ways to tweak and hack one to make it yours. Weave the plastic shade with natural round reed get a contrasting mix of materials that’s both organic and modern. IKEA MELODI Pendant Lamp Natural Round Reed Scotch Tape Spray Paint (optional) Tools Drill & Bits X-Acto Knife Measuring Tape Pen 1. Wrap the tape measure around the diameter of the lamp and put an odd number of pen marks on the shade.

Bottles covered in macramé, or knotted rope, are an old school craft — the result reads either nautical or Bohemian. The netting’s an easy way to add texture and decorative pattern to a surface, and it works particularly well with glass bottles and tall vases. Learn how to do it here, and then start knotting! IKEA 365+ Glass Carafe Twine Scissors 1. Tie a circle of twine around the top of the glass bottle.

making a comeback 9″ x 11″ frame that has an interior depth of at least ¾” and spring-loaded backing clips on the back of the frame. I used this picture frame. 36″ x 12″ piece of black felt 1″ White plastic letters Pencil Scissors Ruler or T-Square Hot glue gun Mitre or circular saw Qty 18 – 3/16″ thick square balsa wood dowels, 24″ long 1.

Here we have a perfectly ordinary drop leaf dining table. You’ve seen its ilk at thrift stores, and maybe one is in your home right now. This particular one, however, has been totally transformed by a talented Game of Thrones fan into something you might see in The Red Keep. Get the look: How amazing does that look?? It could basically be used by Daenerys to take the Iron Throne. The step-by-step was posted to Imgur yesterday by smife0, whose brother updated the table.

If you love a good backsplash and want to bring some DIY flair to your kitchen but are a little tile averse, Claire has a fun solution for you! Skill Level: Moderate Time Required: 2-3 Hours Project Cost: $150-$200 Harlequin Wallpaper – Palmetto Demoiselle about 1/3 roll Wallpaper adhesive 5.5mm thick hardwood ply cut to size of backsplash (can be done in store) 4mm toughened low iron glass which we got cut to size at the store.

We all know that the kitchen tool drawer can get messy fast. Housing everything from uni-tasking gadgets to everyday workhorses like cooking spoons, it’s easy for them to become a tangled jumble. And since we all have different items and drawers, there’s no one organizational solution that will work for everyone. Or is there? The answer is to build your own drawer inserts. You can customize them to fit both your exact drawer dimensions and your specific needs.

This gorgeous wreath perfectly straddles summer and fall, and is super easy to make. Set aside one hour and you can have earthy and welcoming door decor! Skill Level: Easy Time Required: 1 hour Project Cost: $25-30 (if you already have a glue gun) From Caitlin: An inspiring DIY wreath project you can enjoy anytime of year from the photographer and stylist, Caitlin Atkinson, and author of Plant Craft: 30 Projects that Add Natural Style to your Home.

Who here wants a less crazy Thanksgiving? One where you feel happiness instead of panic, and calm instead of chaotic? A Thanksgiving “plan of attack” doesn’t exactly sound festive right now, but it does help eliminate a lot of hectic elements that sneak up on you when you’re not prepared. Take some action now and don’t get stressy or stabby around your friends and family the day of the big meal.

While you may be grateful for it in the middle of a cold winter, an ugly heater can be an eyesore that you get tired of having to decorate around. Peeling or chipping paint, the wrong color or shape, or an awkward location can all make a radiator your least favorite piece of your home. Even if you don’t have a problem with how it looks, it may just be taking up valuable real estate that could be put to better use. But, don’t despair!

Looking to add a festive vibe to your home, without all the glitter and lights? Orange pomander balls are quite possibly the quickest and best all-natural, great smelling, non-gaudy decoration you can make this holiday season. And according to our ancestors of yore, they ward off bad spirits and bring strength and fortune —a holiday bonus. Make them around Thanksgiving and, if dried correctly, they’ll last through the entire holiday season, and maybe even longer.

Project by: Dona Location: Shelter Island, New York My husband’s hoarding habit paid off. Once I learned that the bed of a truck is the same size as a queen mattress we took his rusting 1965 Chevrolet truck and turned it into a guest bed! We worked on this project together, it required sawing the cab (now it’s the headboard) in half; sawing the tailgate off the truck body; wire brushing the rust off , etc. We carried the pieces into the house where we put the truck together again.

By the time Thanksgiving dinner is over, I’m already spent. Which makes the quick pivot into Christmas a particularly tiresome prospect —especially because that holiday is, in turn, followed closely by New Year’s Eve and our huge annual party. Being wedged in between those two other major holidays means that poor Christmas gets a little neglected in our household — which is why these quick, easy decorating ideas are really appealing.

There’s a particularly gorgeous $329 accent table at CB2 right now that I can’t buy because I should really pay the mortgage this month, so I made a super easy DIY version. Sure, it doesn’t come close to the cast aluminum bamboo-shaped legs of the original, but did I mention it was cheap and easy? The top is inspired by blue agate, and if you sit far enough across the room while you drink your gin and tonic, the legs resemble something like bamboo.

If your home is feeling a bit stale, here’s a way to freshen it up and move forward with positive intentions. Burning herbs and flowers is a customizable twist on the incense you might remember from college. Choose your favorite blend of organic materials—based on their individual scents and properties—and create your own unique aromatherapy.

Q: I live on the sixth floor of an eight floor apartment building. My bedroom is sandwiched between two pipe locations – on one wall, the bathroom pipes for the two units directly above mine. On the other wall, the pipes for the neighboring unit, and their two upstairs neighbors. The way the room is set up with doors, windows and a radiator, the only places for my bed are on those pipe walls – and the best place is by the neighbor-wall.

Q: I Have just moved in to a new home and would love to change the kitchen but do not have the budget for it just now. I have been reading lots about contact paper and self adhesive vinyls but I’m not sure whether this would work on my cupboards because of their uneven surface? Also, has anybody used it on their work surface to great success? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

I feel fairly confidant in my ability to spot an IKEA hack, but this project had me doing a double take. Christina’s project is not a casual, pick up and craft DIY, but it’s so perfectly executed that we had to share!

Eric’s Eames chairs were sitting stylishly in his dinning room for years, complimenting a blue cloth on his old table. After picking up a Saarinen style table and ditching the cloth, he found himself missing the pop of color. Rather than cover up that lovely marble table top, he found a fresh and inexpensive solution. From Eric: Sometimes, buying a new piece a furniture can make other pieces in the room feel mismatched.

Framing a garment can seem like an intimidating process, but it’s actually quite easy to do yourself. The framing pros have a lot of specialized tools and tricks (like using a tagging gun instead of hand stitching, for instance), but for us weekend warriors, it’s all about using simple tools and getting the job done so we can enjoy our completed gallery wall that much sooner. So grab your grandpa’s letter sweater or your granny’s floral girdle and get to framing!

If you’re the kind of person who loves the look of embroidery, but “can’t even“ with the time it takes to tediously work every single stitch into a project, punch needle might just be for you. Lazy crafter? Punch needle. Can’t ever seem to color inside the lines? Punch needle. Enjoys crafting while sipping a bottle of wine? Pick up a punch needle. Punch needle has been around for a very, very long time.

I’ve been on a lighting kick lately. Maybe it’s because I just re-read The Little Book of Hygge. To me, light — whether it’s natural or created — is king when it comes to your home. Not all of us have floor-to-ceiling windows or an expansive budget for beautiful light fixtures. And many DIY lighting projects require at least a little bit of electrical wiring. Not in the case of this Paper & Stitch IKEA globe light hack, though.

Remember the good ole days of decorating your locker with neon magnets, stickers, and magazine cutouts of Will Smith, Jonathan Taylor Thomas, and the like? Lockers were like our own little slice of personality-heaven in a world where we were told when to learn math, when to eat, and when to turn in our shoebox dioramas. I’m here to say those lockers days don’t have to be over just yet.

Melissa and James are just renting this cozy Cape Town apartment, but as avid entertainers (and Melissa a soy candle maker), updating the kitchen was a necessity. Old, dark wood cabinetry was given a crisp coat of white paint. And an eye-catching cut vinyl piece above the stove adds pattern and drama to the room. But while the whole kitchen features lovely elements, there’s one item that stood out the most to me: the hanging copper pipe rack.

Ryan and Michelle are all about DIY projects in and around their Annapolis, Maryland home. Whether it’s propagating bamboo for privacy fencing, re-tiling bathrooms, or building custom furniture pieces, they love projects that allow them to save money while making their house more of a home. Ryan’s latest project – a DIY floor mirror – is no exception. Learn how to make your own by following his helpful tutorial.

Textured spray paints have come and gone over the years and for the most part, I’ve been happy to see them go. But I think I finally found one product that I’d like to have stick around for a while — Rust-Oleum’s Stone Creations Spray. I used it to transform this cheap metal IKEA table into a granite and brass look-a-like. Here’s what I started with, the GLADOM tray table in green which costs $29.99.

Spice up your entryway, bedroom, or hallway with a bold statement piece that’s sure to mesmerize and beautify. The blush pink fringe is the perfect pop of color, and the sleek shape has “chic” written all over it. See how to make your own, from cutting your own custom mirror to dip-dyeing the perfect fringe, with this helpful tutorial.

Even as a self-proclaimed “maximalist,” I still find myself drawn to the clean lines and effortless simplicity of Scandinavian style. The soft, neutral color palette is very versatile in a variety of spaces without adding too much visual weight. If you’re down with hygge (and willing to try your hand at some amateur carpentry), then these nightstands are definitely for you.

Lumbar pillows get a lot of love on Apartment Therapy, and for good reason. They’re the easiest way to pull together your bedroom. One long statement piece in front of your standard shams and bam! Instant style. But if you can’t find exactly what you want or just wish that one Anthropologie pillow was several shades turned down (and many dollars less), we have the DIY to make your own.

What do you get when you mix Edgar Allen Poe and a bit of glam? A bewitching style that’s all about rich blacks, candles, and skulls. And if you’re into skulls, you’ll be into this quick and easy DIY. Using silicon skull molds and plaster, you can add the perfect garland accent to your Halloween spread, or leave it up and keep your glam goth game strong all year long. Plaster of Paris Silicon skull ice mold Eye hooks String Bucket Paint stirrer or similar 1.

When I was little, I always imagined building forts out of sticks or rafts with ropes to float down the river like the Boxcar Children or Huck Finn – completely not realizing that probably wouldn’t happen in suburban Florida. But I was always drawn to how people could create things with minimal supplies and loads of inventiveness.

Keep the cold out (and the heat in) with these simple tricks!

Growing up in the South, I had never heard of such things like radiant flooring, heated towel racks, or steam rooms for bathrooms. But as a current resident of the North, I’ve learned that a life without warm towels and heat lamps is a life I don’t want to be a part of.

The more you give, the cheaper it gets.

There are two house tours in which the renters decided their apartments’ plain, boring kitchen cabinets weren’t cutting it. Renovating wasn’t an option, but these clever renters found a way to add color and pattern anyway: with washi tape! Both examples are vibrant and unique, but how much does it cost to cover your kitchen cabinets in tape? And how long does it take to do it? We got the lowdown.

Soap is one of those DIYs I thought would be more complicated than it turned out to be. All the soaps on Pinterest are so beautiful — there was no way they could be easy as well! But with my rapidly growing essential oil collection, and need for some quick holiday gifts, I thought this would be a good way to use them. Before even preparing the soap base, mix your essential oils to preference in a non-reactive container (like glass).

There is so much beauty and elegance to gaze upon in this wonderfully minimal house tour, but our eye was drawn to one particular—and highly unlikely—element: that museum-worthy pedestal, which is secretly a giant Jenga set. Looking at this house tour on Emily Henderson’s site of designer Melanie Burstin’s home, one would never guess that such a chic, refined space would feature something as chaotic and, let’s face it, loud as a giant Jenga set.

Maybe you’ve had the same bed pillow for ten years and have your sights newly set on some memory foam. Or maybe you’ve got an extra five random pillows stuffed in your closet, just in case, and it’s time to KonMari. As with most things we toss or get rid of these days, old pillows can still be used long after they’ve left their prime days behind. Here are 10 ways this everyday basic can help you out around the house, no matter what condition they’re currently in.

From mid-century-inspired styles to sleek end tables, here are nine finds that won't break your bank account.

Deep down, we all want to lead more thoughtful lives—and who can blame us for believing organizational nirvana will get us there? So we're turning to the place where all good hacks start: IKEA.

Don't break the bank just because you can technically afford "necessities" your grown-up salary.

This homeowner took her inspiration from the past, including '70s and '80s-style touches.

Apartment Therapy and Chairloom will be together again this Saturday April 27th to jumpstart old reupholstery projects or begin new ones. It’s a Happening: a chance to get together and get inspired. Come meet Chairloom’s Molly Andrews Burke as well as over 20 textile artists for the 2nd annual tent revival.

Lindsay thought she found a “sturdy, but out-of-style wood coffee table” at her local thrift store—but when she got home, she realized she’d been fooled. The ugly veneer made this piece impossible to restore, paint, or reshape. “At that point, I wanted little to do with the table,” Lindsay says. But she’d already dropped $15, so she decided to figure out some solution.And it’s a good thing she kept trying.

Lindi wasn’t sure what to do with this awkward space on the side of her living room. “It didn’t really have a function and was largely unused,” she says. But soon she found her vision: Her home lacked a community work area where her kids could hunker down over homework and Lindi could edit images for her blog. Black vertical shiplap anchors the space, and floating wood shelves in a dark stain add depth—and match the desk.

Katherine‘s master bathroom was filled with wasted space, with a wall of closets and a separate room for the toilet and tub contributing to the cramped floor plan. In order to reveal this space’s true potential, “we pretty much had to start from scratch,” Katherine says. “It was in need of a major facelift.” They started by ripping out everything: unnecessary walls; the dark, gloomy builder-grade cabinetry; even the toilet.

Tassels are a great way to add color and texture to absolutely anything. Beautiful additions to gift wrap, home decor, and fashion —they are a project you should absolutely add to your DIY repertoire. Tassels can be made out of an array of materials, from silk and wool yarns to basic cotton embroidery threads. While there are a number of ways you can construct a tassel, we chose a basic method you can use on any material. Yarn or Thread Scissors 1.

The kitchen magician or grill master in your life will love this handmade, personalized BBQ mop from you! Pair this easy-to-make kitchen tool with a jar of homemade sauce 100% cotton twine 3/4″ x 12″ wood dowel (I found mine in a 3 pack at a hobby store, but you can always cut a longer dowel down to size.) 2 zip ties (use clear if you can find them!) Scissors 1. Wrap the cotton twine around a book or piece of cardboard that is 4″-6″ in length approximately 40-60 times. 2.

These rice and lavender hand warmers are a cozy winter treat. They may seem to lack a certain high powered, high priced, in-demand shiny Christmas present quality, but believe me, they are magical. Because nothing is more comforting when you just can’t get warm. Make them for your office mates, your aunt, your dog walker — everyone will love them. Guaranteed.

This simple little strap is just as useful as it is cute -and it takes just minutes to make. No sewing machine? No problemo! We constructed this beauty out of webbing found at the craft store and specialty fabric tape. So as long as you’ve got an iron and an embroidery needle, you can easily tackle this cheerful little stocking stuffer. Or combine it with a yoga mat for a more substantial gift.

Erin‘s small, square master bathroom was cramped and outdated, with brown tiles and a builder-grade sink that offered no inspiration. But a trip to Italy did: “I kept talking about how I envisioned a master bathroom that looked like it belonged in a boutique hotel in Italy, and my partner surprised me with a vacation to one of my favorite cities in the world! Rome!” Erin says.

Cat and her boyfriend, Brian, seriously lucked out: His family’s hunting lodge in southern Utah is the perfect weekend retreat. But over time, the cabin has transformed from a yearly hunting haven for the boys to a family vacation home. “Naturally, it was in need of some decor and interior design,” Cat says. Cat and Brian’s upstairs bedroom had an awkward slanted ceiling and standard white wall.

The end result is cheery and modern.

Innovative DIY projects are always inspiring, but even more so when they’re budget-conscious! All of these Before & After DIY projects can be done for under $50. So pick your favorite and get to it!

The power of paint can’t be denied – we all know how it can transform a room, but the effect is also powerful when it comes to projects that involve the application of paint to furniture and cabinetry. Here are ten examples from the archives (including one where the “furniture” didn’t even exist prior to the paintjob!); check out the befores in this gallery and then click through on each for the always-fun-to-see afters.

Perhaps Valentine’s Day isn’t your thing. Totally cool. Maybe Valentine’s Day chocolate (and only the chocolate) is your thing. I so hear you. But if you’re thinking of decorating your space for a romantic night in or looking for a fun activity for a Galentine’s Day party, Helena’s easy and adorable garland is a fast and fun way to get in the Valentine’s Day spirit.

Maybe it’s the capital letters, but LEGO and IKEA seem like a match made in DIY heaven. Thanks to Stéphanie you can hack your way to an adorable and inexpensive LEGO holder.

Ashley Crites, one half of the team of Relative Renovations, described her master bedroom as “bland, gray, and the dumping ground for old furniture”—not exactly an ideal place to spend a third of your life. So when she had the opportunity to take part in the One Room Challenge, she knew exactly which room to choose. Inspired by Brady Tolbert’s gorgeous tufted headboard, Ashley chose a deep green velvet to upholster headboard panels that span the width of the room.

At this point, most of us can spot a BILLY bookcase, KALLAX cubby, or LACK table a mile away. Basic and affordable, they’ve been some of the most popular items at IKEA for years, and our first apartments would’ve been bare without them.

I come across so many beautiful baskets in stores that I forget these items are often handmade. With a little bit of practice and patience, it’s not so hard… as long as you start small. After all, they don’t joke about bird courses as ‘basket weaving’ courses for nothing! I recommend preparing your materials (find local materials, then dry and soak them), then weaving them into small shapes or flat mats.

This north-facing, low-floor unit lacked natural light, but Paige replaced blinds, ripped out a built-in bookshelf, and painted the walls a bright, fresh white.

There are only so many changes you can make to a kitchen you do not own. Jess Bunge, Senior Market Editor for Emily Henderson, faced many of the classic challenges of a rental—dated floors, lackluster countertops, an oddly shaped floor plan—but brilliantly worked around them to make the space one to sigh over. The real star of this new kitchen is the countertop cover. With help from her dad, Jess cleverly cut plywood to fit over the gray granite, and built a matching backsplash.

This garden-level space was the home’s entrance, office, guest room, and living room all in one, and though it was full of intriguing art, fantastic patterns, and great furniture, it needed a little something to make it as welcoming and cozy as possible. Removable wallpaper to the rescue!

This adorable little brass tubing planter has been making its way around Pinterest lately —and for good reason. It’s just as fun as it is affordable and stands about 18″ tall so it’s a perfect addition to any small space! If you’ve yet to work with brass tubing, this is a fantastic intro project to get your feet wet.