Are you a do-it-yourselfer? You’ll love browsing our top projects that nearly anyone can make – from painting a room or making a headboard to sewing a tablecloth or putting up molding. Improve your home this weekend by doing it yourself!
Painting is one of the best ways to get a fresh look for a room and the most common DIY project. Don’t skip the preparation (filling cracks, sanding, cleaning, and priming), since these fixes can make any paint job look better and last longer. Once the prep is done, your final coat will go on quickly and easily. We have lots online to help with your paint project -- including tool tips, preparation basics, painting instructions, what order to paint, clean up, and storage.
No need to buy an expensive headboard when you can call on some basic tools and skills to create a one-of-a-kind headboard for your bed. Go simple by hanging objects over the bed (shutters, a gate, padded cushions, or a screen). Or, make your own padded headboard from wood covered with foam, batting, and fabric. Browse these projects for more ideas and how-tos.
Some of the most expensive homes sport beautifully skirted tables for vanities, dining tables, or bedside accents. This idea is a great way to add decorating impact on a budget. Use a sheet of glass or mirror (cut to size) to protect the tablecloth. We’ve gathered some wonderful examples to see.
Do you think you need to spend a fortune on an ottoman? Then our list of DIY ottoman projects will be of interest to you, since you can fairly easily make an ottoman with wood, legs, foam, and fabric. Browse some tutorials, projects, and tips on making your own upholstered ottoman.
Add elegance to any room with a chair rail or crown molding. Though you’ll need a good miter saw and a few woodworking skills, there is plenty of help online for molding installation tips. One basic time-saving technique: stain or paint both sides of your molding before installation, then go back to touch up nail holes and any nicks.
Still popular, decorative painting and faux finishing techniques are a way to add interest and style to your decorating scheme. Skip the bright purple sponged detail, and instead go for looks that are more subtle such as colorwashing and tone-on-tone. Here are several links with projects, tutorials, and help for many decorative painting techniques.
Can’t paint a mural? Then stenciling may be the way to go. Stencil designs can now be found in interesting geometrics, sophisticated scrolls, and whimsical accents. Take a look at these stencil sites full of tips and techniques, materials and instructions.
Thanks to TV’s decorating how-tos, the idea of DIY light fixtures is now seen as a fairly easy project. Once you choose a clear vase, ceramic urn, or other decorative object for a lamp vase, all you’ll need is a lamp kit from a home center or hardware store. Wire it up, add a lampshade, and you have a lamp! Try one of these fun DIY lamp projects.
Cheap, free, and creative all describe the benefits of creating your own artwork. These ideas for budget artwork will give you ideas for your own custom wall art.
Wallpaper has gotten a makeover! Now you’ll find many brands that make strippable papers or papers you can tear up and apply to the wall with water. These Web links have more information, tutorials, and helpful tips for your wallpaper project.
