Secret Door in a Haunted House
There are a lot of hidden secrets in #1915House, but so far there’s no movable shelf hidden door to a secret room. …
Happy Birthday, Leatherneck
November 10th is the birthday of the Marine Corps, and my buddy Master Craftsman Rob North is a proud member of that …
Custom Fabricated Truck Mounted Disco Ball
It’s a car camping weekend to celebrate a buddy’s birthday, so as my Read Headed Lady Friend and I gather our camping …
Requests Answered: My Cranberry Sauce Margarita
When Thanksgiving comes around, I bring my homemade cranberry sauce. But it’s not just a condiment, it’s the key ingredient in my …
Making a Convertible Live-Edge Cedar Bar
You’ve seen my bar where I mix a cocktail after every build – It’s pretty cool, but you can’t sit at it. …
DoItWithCocktails: Royal Fizz
After building the weightlifting bench, I needed a cocktail with fitness in mind. High protein is the way to go. This variation on …
Making an Adjustable Weightlifting Bench and a Cocktail to go with It
I needed a place to do my benchpress, and lying on the floor just wasn’t cutting it anymore. So I got out …
Moto Ramp Wine Rack (and tool review)
You know I have a cool, upcycled bar for whiskey and spirits, but I didn’t have a place to show off my …
Blow Torch BBQ: the Maker-Cue
It’s the Fourth of July, so that means it’s time for some grilling. (It’s time even if it’s not the 4th.) But …
Reversing the Swing of a Gate
My neighbors installed a fence that prevents by gate from opening all the way, making my driveway too narrow. Time for some …
Are You a Maker?
I’m a maker. Are you? If you are, or if you’d like to be, or if you just like to watch things …
Making a Kitchen Island from Plywood and Steel
I needed a new kitchen island, so I made one. It’s all angle iron, sheet steel and plywood, but it’s a nice …
10 Tips to Make a Lamp out of Anything
I was at the Torrance Habitat for Humanity ReStore to lead a DIY workshop on how to epicycle anything into quirky, funky or even traditional …
DIY Workshop: You Can Make a Lamp out of Anything
Seriously – you can. Everything in this picture is about to become a lamp. I’ll be at the Torrance Habitat for Humanity …
Making Double Tiered End-Table/Nightstands
I built these simple end-tables in about 10 minutes a few weeks ago, and after living with them as nightstands for a …
Fill a Hole in the Wall with an Access Panel
There are holes in the walls of my master bedroom that provide access to the attic. Here’s how to create access panels …
Tile Porch Demolition (and anger management)
The tile on my back porch was both badly laid and the wrong material, leading to a slip and fall hazard (on …
Get your goggles
Video coming tomorrow.
Convert Your Porch into a Loading Dock
The back way is the best way to get into my house, but if you’re carrying something long or heavy, you have …
2 More ReStore Finds Become 1 More Hutch
Needing a place to store my watch and rings, I’m creating a vanity cabinet for the master bedroom set of furniture. To …
Upgrade an Old Desk and Unveil a New Tattoo
I got this old, white desk, and it’s time to trick it out to match the rest of my black and red …
Go To the ReStore – Make a Franken-Chair
For the second of my fresh ink/low dust projects, I got a couple of sad and lonely chairs from Habitat for Humanity’s …
The End Tables that Broke My Promise
I needed some end tables to use as nightstands, and I also needed a project that wouldn’t kick up too much dust …
Attack the Paneling
Someone put paneling all over the walls of my 100 year old craftsman style house, and it’s time to take it down. But …
Those screws should come out easy enough
Here’s how I removed the oversized vanity from my undersized master bath in #1915House. Those screws should come out easy enough, but …
My Vanity Was Way Too Big
The sink in the master bathroom takes up too much space, so I’m building a pedestal sink out of welded steel and …
Came off a Movie Set – Now I Watch Movies on It
There’s almost no furniture in my new house, because I haven’t built it yet – but I do have a place to …
A Serving Tray from an Oak Stump (put a pie on it)
My friends at MYFixitUpLife gave me a DIY Dare to find something out on a hike and make a serving tray for …
7 Principals of Problem Solving: Gate Edition
The boards are coming off this gate. My mission, if I choose to accept it, is to prevent that. It’s clear that …
Happy Halloween (and fixing a gate)
The boards are falling off this gate, but the hardware doesn’t fit anymore because of the weathering of the wood. Now what? …
Yes, this Scimitar is for #BackToTheFutureDay (it’s also a knife review)
Everyone’s taking about #BackToTheFutureDay. I want to build something, but I’m not a high tech guy. So, of course – scimitar. And …
You Can Hang Art on a Cinder Block Wall
You can hang art on any wall. You just need the right tools. Obviously, you’re not going to drive a nail into …
7 Principles of Problem Solving: Bathroom Sink Edition
I don’t really need to write an article about how to remove and install a faucet in a bathroom sink. When you …
Problem Solving a Sink
On the road as the Itinerant DIYer, I’m at Ted Lyde’s house replacing a faucet. But what do you do when your …
My 10 Rules for the ReStore
The Habitat for Humanity ReStore is an excellent DIYer and Maker resource for tools and materials at a good price – and for …
Build a Lamp out of an Oak Branch (or anything else)
You can turn almost anything into a lamp. All a lamp is is a cord with a plug on one end and …
Build this Oaken Lamp and Take a Tour of My Shop
Couch surfing with family while my new house is in limbo, I still can’t stop making things – so here’s how to …
Repurposed Blockbuster Card
Moving out? Spackle job to do? Tools packed? Time for the last useful act of your Blockbuster card. Do I look tired …
Upcycled, Repurposed Flag Stand (for behind your desk)
Make this for the 4th of July, and then display it in the office for the rest of the year. Any sufficiently …
Sweating Copper Pipe Inside Your Wall
When you’ve got a leak behind your wall, you’ve got to cut away the sheetrock, expose the pipe and replace the leaking …
Sweating Copper Pipe in Your Wall
The plumbing supply lines in your walls are probably copper pipe. There are a few other materials they could be, like the …