3-Foot Distressed Clock

Have you seen those huge, 3-foot clocks around town? You know, the distressed, rustic-style, vintage-looking clocks. Well, we (my husband and I) decided instead of spending upwards of $150 on one of those, we would build our own... for $50 tops! This was the first time I ever distressed brand new wood to make it look worn and old. This was the first time my husband ever made something out of wood, this big. And this was the first time a project worked out in general. I am so pleased with it, even if it isn't "perfect". We didn't follow any plans - since it's pretty much a simple circle - we just went for it. Here is the complete list of tools, items, and wood you will need for this project as you see it.

The main tools you will need:

Other tools you will need:

- Mider saw or circular saw (either would work)
- Hole bit
- Tape measure
- Pencil
- A spare nail (long enough to go through a 2x4" and into another board slightly)
- Sander
- Sand paper

The wood you will need:
- 2 2x4" stud length boards
- 2 2x6" stud length boards
- spare piece of 2x4" at least 18" in length

To finish the clock:
- Clock mechanism (from Hobby Lobby)
- Clock hands (from Hobby Lobby)
- Strongly brewed tea (8 tea bags per 2 cups of water)
- Homemade stain (click here for recipe)
- White primer or paint
- Roman numeral stencil (I made my own out of cardboard)
- Black chalkboard paint
- Paint brush or foam brush
- Stiple brush
- Sand paper
- Steel wool (optional)
- Wire brush (optional)
- Wax (optional)

Yes, there are a bunch of tools you will need to finish this project, but don't worry if you don't have every single piece of equipment - ask a friend, relative, or even at your local lumber & hardware store to see if they can make the cuts for you.

Ok, so for step 1, we cut the boards in half and laid them out in the order we wanted for the clock.

After that, we flipped all the boards over to trace a circle on the backs for a guideline to cut the clock out with. To create the "compass" for the circle, we used a nail, a piece of scrap 2"x 4", and a pencil. In the scrap piece of board [guide board], we drilled a hole at one end big enough for a pencil to fit through, and at the other end, a smaller hole for a nail to fit in. We made sure to find the dead center of the boards, and hammered a nail in that spot. We slid the guide board over the nail and slid the pencil in the hole at the other end. Finally we traced the circle onto the all of the boards, being careful not to shift any of them since they weren't secured together. 

Once the circle was traced on the boards, we attached the boards together using the pocket jig. This allows boards to fit together without the sight of nails (except for on the back side). It's an ingenious invention if you haven't seen it yet!

After the holes were drilled and the boards were attached together, we cut the clock out using the jigsaw. (And by we, I mean my husband! :))

Once the clock was actually cut out, the "pocket", for lack of better terms, was chiseled out of the back for the clock mechanism compartment. This is a must, so the clock sits flush on the wall.

Using a "hole bit" to cut out the hole and chiseling out the remainder to make it smooth.

Now it was time for the finishing process. And of course, I had a wedding to go to, so my amazingly-awesome hubby, applied the tea and vinegar-steel wool stain for me. (Just make sure to let each coat dry before applying the next one. He just applied 1 coat of each). 

After everything was completely dry... and a few weeks later, since we are really busy right now... I got to finish this piece up. I first applied a white primer that we had leftover in our basement - any white primer or paint will work. I let it dry completely and then distressed it with steel wool, sand paper, and a steel brush. 

Finally, I created roman numerals out of cardboard and painted them on the clock. I used black chalkboard paint to insure it was a matte finish. After that dried over night, I, then distressed everything again, and added some matte polyurethane for protection. 

Final step: adding the hands!

And here it is, finished and hung on the wall...

{P.S. Don't mind my OITNB on TV. Bonus points if you can tell me what season and episode this scene is from.}

The Planter Ladder

In the beginning of spring this year, we decided it was time to venture into the art of wood-making. We - my husband, Tyler, and I - planned out a few projects we wanted to complete. A coffee table, two side tables for our living room, a sofa table-turned buffet table for our dining room, a three foot clock, four shutters, a blanket ladder, and a planter ladder. We also have come up with a few other project ideas, but we are starting with this list right now. We finished one of the projects - the planter ladder!

It isn't exactly what the plans called for, but we realized that the plans we have been going off of, are - I hate to say this - always wrong, and honestly, this error turned out for the better. The plans we used were from ana-white.com and we used the plans from the Cedar Vertical Tiered Ladder Garden Planter --- sort of. The plans are not well written, so when the hubs started cutting the boards, which is what the plans say to do, it ended up being the incorrect measurement, so the ladder is shorter than it should be. It should have five planter boxes on it, but they wouldn't all fit. Three boxes were fine with me. We are going to use the materials leftover to make planter boxes for a deck that we are probably going to build next year. It all worked out in the end however.

We bought everything the site lists, but instead of cedar boards, we just bought stud wood and stained it.

You'll need:

3 - 2"x6"x8'
5 - 5.5"x6' dog-ear fence boards
Nails
Screws
(estimated cost of project $20.00)

For the boxes:
Cut one of the 2"x6"x8' boards into ten (10) - 8 ⅛" pieces (cutting a 15 degree angle at the corners, making a trapezoid)
Cut the dog-ear boards into ten (10) - 23 ½" pieces and five (5) - 20 ½" pieces
Nail together the trapezoid pieces and the 23 ½" pieces to create the sides and front and back of the planter boxes. Next, nail the 20 ½" pieces on, creating the bottom. Make sure to drill drain holes in the bottom of the planted boxes so the water will drip out.

For the ladder:
Take the two remaining 2"x6"x8' and cut a 15 degree angle at the top, and at the bottom in the opposite direction so it leans on whatever you decide. Choose the distance you want between the boxes - usually anything more than 8" will work - and screw the boxes to the sides.

To finish, I used a dark brown stain and matte polyurethane finish, one coat of each.

I waited for everything to dry overnight, and planted flowers the next morning. Where the planter ladder sits, there isn't much sunlight that hits the area, except for a few minutes during the day. So I decided to get shade-only/morning-sun-only flowers. I love how it turned out, and it was pretty simple.

Let me know if you have a creative way to plant flowers besides in the typical flower pots - but there's nothing wrong with that either.

Until next time,

DIY Weathered Wood Stain

Here is a quick and easy stain recipe for that weathered, rustic look that is trending the world right now. It's super easy, super cheap, and looks great and takes little effort.

What you will need:

- Extra fine steel wool
- Vinegar (each type will produce a different color - I used distilled white vinegar)
- Glass jar with a metal lid (mason jars work best)

Break up pieces of the steel wool and place them in the glass jar, or put the entire spool in (like I did here). I can't give specific amounts because my steel wool came in a pack with a bunch of separate spools. I used one spool per jar. I poured the vinegar in the jar making sure to cover the steel wool and adding just a little bit more. Again, no specific measurements. Put the lid on LOOSELY. (I learned this the hard way... just recently actually. My steel wool wasn't dissolving, and I just stared at it like, "What the heck? Why is this crap not dissolving?" Well, I loosened the lid just thinking maybe it would help, and let it sit like that all day and BAM, it was dissolved and a dark grey/black color.) Shake it every so often, but make sure to tighten the lid first! After about 24 hours, you should be able to use it, but if you let it go longer, it wouldn't hurt it. Mine has been sitting in my garage for about 2 months and it's still perfectly fine.

The first time I did this, my steel wool did not dissolve completely in 24 hours, but it was able to still be used. I tested it on a scrap piece of board before using it on other projects... I definitely recommend this since it produces different colors depending on the vinegar type. Make sure to stain the wood before using this vinegar stain with dark, DARK tea or coffee. This gives the wood more tannin to react with. After all the stain has dried, lightly sand it to even out the stain color, and apply any type of sealant.

Until next time.

DIY Simple Fire Pit

***WARNING***
The photos that are displayed in this post were not taken by myself. Unfortunately, I had to work the day my husband decided to complete our new fire pit, but he was sweet enough to attempt to take photos for me for each step (sweet, right?), and he did a pretty damn good job, considering the weather was rainy. Please forgive me on this post for not having "high-quality-blog-worthy-photos," this is REAL life, and it happens. At least you'll still get the "picture" --- haha! Get it?

Ok, so here it is. Finally. The DIY fire pit that everyone posts about. I've seen it on everyone's Outdoor board or Landscaping board or DIY board on Pinterest. I mean, honestly, I pinned probably 7 different ones before we did our own. The difference in ours is, we took a little bit from every post we read and made it our own. IT. WAS. SIMPLE. Like, a monkey could do it - simple. The things you will need for this project are:

1. Landscaping pavers
2. River rock or pebbles
3. Sand (optional - we did not use this)
4. A wheelbarrow
5. Hand tamper
6. Orange spray paint
7. Rope
8. Screw driver
9. Shovel
10. Scrap 2x4" (to place level on)
11. Level
12. PL Premium landscaping/concrete adhesive

*We opted for a bigger fire pit, because my husband wanted to make sure bigger pieces of wood could fit easily in the pit to be burned. So we went for a 3-foot inner diameter. Check your local landscaping/home improvement store for different options. We went to Lowe's and purchased the largest pavers we could. I think we ended up buying 45 pavers and used 42.

So, the first step is to obviously figure out where you want your pit to be in your yard. Then you'll want to spray paint the circle on the ground where the stone will be laid. To come up with the radius, you take the inner circle diameter measurement, divide by 2 + the depth of the paver + another foot for the outside = the radius --- make sure all measurements end up in inches - it just makes it easier.

Our math problem looked like this (feet converted to inches): 36"/2+7.5"+12"=37.5"
For a 4 foot inner circle: 48"/2+7.5"+12"=43.5"
For a 3 foot inner circle but smaller pavers: 36"/2+4"+12"=34
*It just all depends on the inner circle diameter, the depth of the pavers, and the amount of stone you want around the outside of your fire pit.

After you have your radius figured out, you are going to measure your rope to this. One end will be staked in the middle of where the pit will be (we used a screw driver in the ground to hold the rope in the center), the other end we taped at 37.5" and kept the spray can at that point while spraying the circle on the ground by swinging the rope 360 degrees. It sounds more complicated typing this out, but it was really easy. Here is, as good of a photo as I could get... (It was taken a few days after spraying it, and it had rained in between those days also - GOOD OLE INDIANA SPRING WEATHER, blah).

We messed up our measurements the first time, so there are 2 orange circles. The outer circle, is the correct measurement. 

Once the circle is painted on the ground, it's time to cut the grass and pull the sod up. Keep the sod for any bare spots in your yard. As you can tell by the photos, we had A. Lot. of bare spots... new-yard-struggles ya'll.

Next, the ground will need to be tamped so it's packed and helps with the stone from settling. Try to get this as level as you can, keeping in my mind the slope of your yard. This is also the step where you can add sand on top of the tamped dirt to help even more with settling.

After the dirt is tamped, fill in the circle with the type of stone you desire. It honestly doesn't matter, I just wouldn't get anything too crumbly, since it will be getting pretty hot with the fire. We opted for simple "river pebbles" from Lowe's. Make sure to get the stone as level as possible. Using a scrap board and setting a level on top of that will help.

Next, set the first layer of pavers in the rocks, making sure it creates a circle in the center, and that it is as level as possible. My husband spaced out the pavers just a little, for 1) allowing air into the bottom of the pit to keep the fire "alive" and 2) if they were all touching, it wouldn't make a perfect 3' inner circle diameter.

Before placing the 2nd and 3rd layers of pavers on, make sure to apply the landscaping adhesive to both sides of the pavers - it adhered better that way. After you get the last layer on, you're done! That's it. So simple, see?

(How about those cute Hubby work boots making an appearance in the photo? He did such as good job on this!)

Another step you can do, but we didn't, is to spray the pavers on the inside of the pit with high heat spray paint to help them from becoming weak and crumbling. I didn't think it was that big of a deal, so we opted not to. Plus I didn't want the inside of the fire pit black. You could, though, put a metal ring on the inside. Again, we opted not to, but would, if needed, down the road.

So, there you have it. The easiest, outdoor, DIY project you can do for a pretty tight budget. I think we spent a total of $125.00 on everything. Obviously we already had the screw driver, rope, spray paint, and shovel, and we borrowed the wheelbarrow and hand tamp, but everything else we bought.

Let me know if you decide to complete a fire pit this summer. Attach your photos of it below.

In other news... we are currently completing a new coffee table using Ana White's plans for the Rustic X Coffee Table. I'm using a special DIY stain to make it look weathered - I'm pretty excited! I will let you all know how that turns out, so make sure you are following on Facebook at www.facebook.com/theyellowbarn1

Until next time,