European Bar Pulls as shoe guards
Category: DIY
Replacing Old Discontinued Furniture Hardware
When a piece of hardware on a cherished piece of furniture breaks the first thought is to try to replace it with a matching piece of hardware that will be consistent with the wear of the remaining hardware. Many people have luck locating the perfect piece of hardware through collectors, but it is a time consuming process.
Attempting to replace all of the hardware on the piece of furniture can also cause a problem if the hardware is discontinued. With luck and perseverance, the replacement for the original hardware can be located through the original seller or manufacturer, but it cannot be expected that they have ample storage space to stock discontinued items.
Luckily, the availability of new hardware that will compliment the discontinued piece of furniture can be found because of the popularity of reproduction hardware. This makes it easy to match the new design with the manufacture era of the piece of furniture.
When looking for a replacement for the discontinued furniture hardware, examine the furniture surface that hardware removal has exposed. Any signs of aging can be covered up by choosing the new hardware in approximately the same shape and size as the original. You don’t want new hardware installed with a ring of darker or lighter furniture showing around it. That would ruin the entire look.
Some furniture hard ware is attached to the piece of furniture by screws inserted from the back. When replacing the hardware, you’ll have to use screws that go through the width of the wood and into the new piece of hardware. This enables the hardware to attach with no visible screws or nails, leaving a clean, sleek look that is not hampered by messy installations.
Others are attached by tiny nails or screws from the front of the piece of cabinet hardware. These screws or nails will be shorter as they will not go all the way through the wood. Once the type of hardware and size is identified, make sure the centers for handles and pulls match. This is the length between the centers of the two screws that hold the piece of hardware in place. You must carefully measure the distance between the centers of the two screws so that the same holes can be used for the replacement hardware. This will eliminate causing further damage to the piece of furniture by the need of drilling additional holes.
Must have cleaning point
2- Clean the bathroom faucet with lemon.
Tired of those hard-to-clean water spots on your bathroom faucet? This quick trick should clear that up in no time!
What you’ll need: 1 lemon.
All you need to do is take a lemon, slice it down the middle and use it to scrub the surface of the faucet. The stains will start to disappear right before your eyes.
3- Wash legos in the washing machine.
If you are reading this and have children, there’s a good chance you have legos lurking around the house somewhere. Unfortunately, like many other children’s toys, legos get filthy from everyday sticky fingers and thus, need to be cleaned and disinfected. This idea I have stumbled upon, is actually quite genius.
What you’ll need: 1 Mesh bag for washing delicates and 1 cup of standard laundry detergent.
Just take the legos and place them into the mesh laundry bag. After the cycle has finished, you will see the immediate difference.
4- Cleaning a vacuum filter.
Vacuum filters can get dirty pretty quickly. Like me, I’m sure you tend to forget about cleaning the filter, aside from simply shaking it out every once in a while (If I remember). The problem with that, is the overall buildup of dirt and grime overtime, which ends up preventing the vacuum from really working thoroughly. Here is a simple and quick fix to help you out.
What you’ll need: A dishwasher and a dirty vacuum filter.
Most filters will be able to handle a run through the dishwasher. If you are a little weary about doing this, you can always run it through a light cycle as a test run.
5- Clean the iron with salt.
I’m not usually big into ironing, but for those of you who are, you may find this little tip I’ve stumbled upon quite handy.
What you’ll need: Iodized salt. A dirty iron.
Sprinkle a generous amount of salt onto your ironing board. Turn your iron’s setting to the highest option. [Make sure you turn off the steam option.] When heated, iron over the salt and you’ll soon see the dirt start to stick to the salt which ends up leaving the iron with a beautiful shine.
6- Remove and iron out carpet stains.
Carpeting-you either love it or hate it. Although it is beautiful when you first have carpeting installed, it’s extremely difficult to keep clean. Especially, if you have a light color. If carpeting does get dirty, it can be seemingly impossible to get stains out. Although this next method may not work on every single type of stain, it will surely do a decent job at lightening the stain, at the very least.
What you’ll need: An Iron, an ammonia-based product and a clean towel.
Take your ammonia-based product, spray the stain with the product and place the clean towel over the stain. From there, you will begin pressing the heated iron on top the towel and hold it there for a few moments. Please remember to be cautious while doing this as to prevent the carpeting from being burned.
7- Prevent food from sticking to your outdoor grill.
Summer seems so far away, but we all know what it’s like to barbecue some burgers, only to be left with a mess on the grill that we tend to avoid cleaning. Here’s a great way to avoid that mess next summer.
What you’ll need: 1 yellow onion and a clean grill.
This actually qualifies as a preventative measure against grime build up on grills rather than a cleaning method.
5 DIY Christmas gifts using Re-purposed Cabinet Knobs and Pulls
If you go to Etsy’s website, there are a ton of vendors that sell gifts for Christmas, that are actually re-purposed items you can find lying around your own home. Recently, cabinet hardware has become a hot item to re-purpose. Here we have comprised a list of 5 gifts you can make to give to that special someone in your life, this holiday.
1.- Cabinet Knob Bottle Stopper
Did you know you can turn an ordinary wine cork into a decorative bottle stopper with new or old cabinet knobs? You can use whatever type of adhesive you like but, I, myself, am a KrazyGlue kind of girl. I find it gets the job done quickly and efficiently for most mediums used. You can either use cabinet knobs you may have replaced or, you can buy new knobs for relatively cheap.
Crystal door knobs add a really nice, antique touch to the cork.
These make a really great addition to gift baskets, with a touch of creativity.
2.- Cabinet Pull Key holder
Take old or new cabinet pulls and screw them onto a wooden platform or directly into the wall for a quick and creative method for hanging keys.
If your home already has an antique design element , the antique-style pulls will really accentuate the room. Cabinet cup pulls, are also another option to place keys in. The cups will act as a key dish, when flipped upside down.
3.- Tie and Scarf Hanger
I don’t know about you but, I always seem to just toss my scarves into the abyss, aka, my closet. I’ve even started using my jewelry tree as a scarf holder. Of course, this tends to look messy. I thought this idea was brilliant. Take an old or new cabinet pull and screw it into the wall. Voila! Now you have a place to neatlyhang scarves and/or ties.
4.- Coat and Hat Hanger
Most people just hang their coats in their closet but, what does the single person living in a small studio apartment do with no closet space and a room full of coats? Coat hangers seem to be making a popular comeback for many DIY-ers. Especially with all of the cool and creative ways you can make one yourself. All you need is a piece of wood for the backing and some cabinet knobs. Screw the knobs into the wood and screw the wooden backing into the wall. Since there are tons of really cool knobs, you can literally match your knobs to whatever theme your room may be. I personally think crystal and brass knobs on a piece of worn, painted wood looks very artistic and cute.
5.- Mason Jar Travel Mug
Anyone who knows me knows that my love for mason jars continues to grow every day. I love when restaurants utilize them as beer mugs but, the only downside is holding the mason jar without dropping it (especially after a couple of drinks).
That is why this idea is pure genius. Using Gorilla Glue, mason jars and the cabinet pulls of your choice, you can create your own travel mug! After applying the Gorilla Glue to the side of the mason jar, use rubber bands to make sure the cabinet pull really adheres to the glass. Allow time for it to set and dry.
