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Doing plaster repairs and installing drywall may well account for a healthy portion of your work. Fixing old plaster and replacing lath and plaster with new drywall are much-requested jobs. Both plastering and drywalling take skill and time, and many customers are happy to pay well for a quality job. Here are some tips for these types of jobs: (more…)

Step by Step

Don’t try to do too much in one day and make sure you arrange alternative washing and toilet facilities with a neighbour if necessary.

Preparing the floor The most suitable surface for laying ceramic tiles is concrete. However this must be wood-float finished (rough textured) — if it is a mirror-smooth or steel- trowel finish, it will first need to be scratched, roughened with a chisel or acid-etched. (more…)

Flexibility is the key to successful storage in double-duty rooms and multipurpose areas. This need not result in makeshift mayhem. These stylish space-savers have been designed to make the most of in-between areas.

There are so many ways to keep things in order and easily accessible — be inventive and resourceful with every little space you have.

Entrances Storage

One area which needs to be flexible is the hallway, and as this is where visitors gain their first impressions, it is logical to give thought to its design and fittings. If possible, there should be at least one chair and a table large enough to take parcels, letters, magazines, a telephone, message pads and directories. (more…)

12 The insides of the drawers can be fitted with dividers if desired. The cassette drawer will hold three cassettes across with a little extra space for head cleaning or other equipment. The CD drawer also holds three CDs across.

13 The table top to cover all three units is made of the same veneered particle (chip) board, but in this case is edged with 25 mm x 25 mm dressed (planed) timber of the same species. Apply the edging to the front edge and sides, and mitre it to the corners. This involves accurately cutting a 45° angle at the two front corners so that when assembled, the timberwill show no end grain. (more…)

That great second-hand find isn’t finished until you’ve added the decorative touches. If it’s flair or dash you want, fittings like knobs and latches can really add that ye ne sais quoi’ to an otherwise quite ordinary piece.

A ‘finishing touch’ is quite literally that — whether you add bold red plastic knobs to a chest of drawers in a brightly coloured children’s room, or install a very classy brass latch on a restored, natural-finish timber chest. (more…)

Painting Stenciling

Stencils are most often applied as a border and provide an ideal embellishment for ordinary storage items. You can customise a chest of drawers, for example, by adding a simple floral or geometric motif to the painting top and bottom of each drawer, or to the corners of cupboards on a bedside cabinet.

When applying stencils, which you can either create yourself or buy ready-made in painting kit form, it is important to fix the stencil in place — masking tape is ideal — and apply the paint carefully to prevent it running underneath. The paint needs to be just the right consistency. It is wise to experiment on a piece of old timber or card first. (more…)

Step by Step

1 Slate must be laid on a firm base that will support it. Timber floors present a problem in that timber and particle (chip) board expand during humid periods, and shrink during drier times. Timber floors can be prepared in several ways. Care should be taken with all the procedures however, bearing in mind that timber or particle (chip) board is not the best base material for slate.

2 A number of slate suppliers have specially developed membrane systems available for the installation of slate on a timber floor. The one used here is the hessian and bitumen method and will provide the necessary `slip’ joint between the rigid tiles and the timber. (more…)

Formal swag pelmets are draped pieces of fabric which, when attached to a pelmet support board, become a classic draped pelmet. They hang free of the curtain and usually add a classical, ornate appearance to windows.

Here are some rules to remember with swag trimmings: they look best on tall windows in rooms with high ceilings, so be sure that you don’t over-design your room; consider your fabric requirements (swag curtains can take up large amounts of fabric, and this can become a budget-breaker) — plain calico or home-spun fabric is one idea, as the old principle of using fabric generously applies well here. Generous amounts of inexpensive fabric look wonderful next to skimpy quantities of expensive fabric. (more…)

The project is to install a skylight in a concrete tile roof to provide a lightwell for maximum lighting in an enclosed kitchen. The skylight will be 800 mm square so will need a rafter cut, and the lightwell is to be painted white for maximum natural light.

Step by Step

1 The size of a skylight is based on the floor area of the area to be lit. It is generally recommended that the skylight be at least 10 per cent of the floor area. In this case the skylight will be 800 mm x 800 mm.

2 Order the skylight, specifying size, roof type, the shape required, and if any accessories, such as diffusers or solar control features are required. (more…)

As far as bedding is concerned, ordinary household sheets, pillowcases, blankets, quilts etc. are usually too sensitive to be used for camping. They are also rather bulky. Instead of separate items of bedding, it is more practical to have a one-piece sleeping bag that will not suffer as a result of being trampled on or crammed into the car boot. It also provides the right kind of warmth because the way to ensure a comfortable night’s sleep is to have as much insulation underneath your body as on top of it. Neither an air mattress nor a thin campbed gives enough warmth by itself. (more…)