Category: household

  • Designing a better coffee carrier

    Designing a better coffee carrier

    Many years ago… I was in the habit of fetching coffee on the regular from my local costa coffee. Typically I’d be getting two coffees, one for me and one for my wife. At that time they offered the style of carrier pictured above. This was a pretty simple design, punched/cut out of flat cardboard,…

  • Custom fire guard

    Last year we installed a log burning stove in our living room. It’s awesome and I’m actually looking forward to the cold weather as a reason to use it again.   This year we will be playing host to my family including my nieces and nephew. So the question of how we ensure that an…

  • No-sew quick fabric coasters

    When redecorating, it’s those little details that can really tie a room together and help you achieve a unified look with very little outlay.These coasters take only minutes to make and use inexpensive materials: cardboard and leftover fabric from cushions or furnishings.

  • Bespoke picture frame to suit your space

    Picture frames are easy enough to come by, but why settle for something which is close to what you want, when you can make something which is exactly right for your home. This is a relatively easy project, but can have a major impact because you get something which fits exactly into the space you have.…

  • Making a Bottle Garden

    Making a Bottle Garden

    Bottle gardens – first popular in the 1960s and 1970s – are ripe for a comeback. Especially for those habitual houseplant killers, such as myself. The sealed or semi-sealed nature of a bottle garden makes it an excellent low-maintenance way to bring a little greenery into your home.

  • Considerations in complete kitchen replacement

    Considerations in complete kitchen replacement

    In the last week I have completed removal of the old kitchen, so I now have a large empty room, and it is time to start putting things back together. 

  • DIY skills – level up – Removing a wall

    Last weekend I levelled up my DIY ability.I’ve done a fair number of DIY tasks over the years, from the relatively mundane painting walls up to things a little more interesting such as building decking, and even once I built a raised pond, which involved digging foundations, pouring concrete and brick laying. However, last weekend…

  • The Maker’s Den – Converting a box room into a home office/electronics workbench

     Having turned one of our rooms into a study for my wife, the box room is mine. You might suggest that it is a little extravagant to have a study each, but my wife’s study is a very personal space for her, and whilst she lets me use it to work from home, she does…

  • Custom shelving

    The truth is that a study is incomplete until a copious amount of books can be unpacked onto shelves. In our rented house we had a few standalone bookshelves, but what is the point of owning a house if you don’t put up wall hung shelves? 

  • Redecorating the study

    Having recently moved, I’m back to the wonderful world of having lots of DIY to be getting on with. So much that is is hard to chose where to start!