The Anchor Weekly – The Chestermere Lake News

Furniture refinishing is more than a learned skill. If done properly, it’s practically an art form. It’s not hard to understand why many craftspeople specialize in it. It’s a skill that takes years to hone. That’s why I didn’t want to give short shrift to the topic in my column, “Fast and Easy Furniture Restoring and Finishing Tips.” Selecting an appropriate finish for a restored piece of furniture isn’t easy. All an experienced craftsperson or do-it-yourselfer can do is pass on helpful information. It’s up to you to take what you need, and apply it to the project you are [...]

Every do-it-yourselfer has their favorite projects.  I have a number of them, and they’re seasonal. During the spring and summer, my favorite projects are outdoors. In the cold weather months, they’re indoors.  That keeps me busy 12 months a year. I have a number of projects targeted for the cold weather months. A favorite is refinishing furniture. Furniture I enjoy finishing most is discarded, abandoned pieces I stumble on at flea markets and yard sales. That’s the beauty of living in the country.  As soon as the weather turns warm, weekend garage and lawn sales are everywhere. The furniture’s condition [...]

There are irrefutable advantages to being organized. My meticulously organized basement workshop always draws praise because all my tools and equipment are neatly organized so that everything is visible and within reach. And I take great pride in keeping it that way. But I must confess that I wasn’t always that organized. It took several years before it dawned on me that I was paying a hefty price for not organizing my workshop. An organized workshop certainly has an aesthetic appeal, but practically speaking, I discovered that each time I launched into a new project, I wasted precious time searching [...]

If you haven’t given serious thought to conserving energy during the cold months ahead, this is the time to check out your home from roof to basement for potentially costly energy leaks. In an earlier column, I mentioned the importance of weatherproofing doors and windows. But there are a number of areas that ought to be carefully checked to make sure they are secure. You would be surprised how easily heat can escape. Over a long winter, that adds up to serious bucks. Here are a few tips that can cut your energy costs significantly: Check furnace filters. It’s amazing [...]

Years ago, oil-based paints, also called alkyd, had a reputation for being far superior to water-based paints. They were the first choice for professional painters and do-it-yourselfers. In terms of durability, they were superior to water-based paints. But oil-based paints have their shortcomings. They contain toluene, xylene or a petroleum compound, which give off unpleasant fumes. Breathing them for several hours can trigger headaches and general discomfort. Wearing a mask is essential. Even then, the fumes are annoying. And medical research has conclusively proven that long-term inhalation can lead to liver, kidney and blood problems. Ideally, oil-based paints should be [...]

Installing kitchen lighting fixtures is just about as easy as installing kitchen faucets. Even the smallest upgrade improves the look and increases the value of your home. Some upgrades, however, can profoundly change a kitchen. Lighting is one of them. You can change the mood and look of a room by just removing an antiquated, cheap fixture and replacing it with a modern one. These simple changes are especially important in your kitchen, because so much time is spent there preparing and cooking meals. And if it’s a large kitchen, it may be the informal family dining area as well. [...]

With winter about to roar in, this is the time to scout your home for challenging projects that will keep you busy throughout the cold months when outdoor repairs are out of the question. Do-it-yourselfers have little problem finding projects to tackle. If there aren’t any must-do pressing projects, they’ll create new ones. Aside from the pleasure derived from planning and executing a project, I try to plan ones that not only achieve a utilitarian end, but that also increase the value of my home. Every successful project increases the value of our homes to some extent. However, many DIY [...]

Whether it’s the changing ecosystem, global warming or forces beyond anyone’s control, this fall seems endless. At this rate, homeowners will be winding up their fall cleaning in mid-December. Suffice it to say, this is a tedious fall because homeowners have little choice but to wait until Mother Nature officially drops the curtain on fall and opens winter’s chilly floodgates. This is the time, however, to prepare for a safe fall burning, and to also consider composting much of the leaves and yard trimmings you intended to burn. This decision rests on the quantity of leaves, fallen branches and rotting [...]

There is a perception that fall represents the end of the growing season. It is the time to prepare your lawn, garden and house for winter, but it’s also an ideal time to transplant and plant shrubs, trees and perennials. One of the important reasons is that fall’s cool air and warm soil yield excellent root growth. Before the winter sets in and the earth hardens, both small and larger plants get a strong start. As many trees and plants enter a period of dormancy, all their energy is transferred from producing foliage to roots and storing energy for the [...]

Fall is the time to batten down the hatches and prepare your home for winter. Many of the outdoor chores, from raking up dead leaves and burning debris and fallen branch limbs to cleaning and storing outdoor furniture, are routine turn-of-the season tasks we hardly think about. As soon as you feel that refreshing fall chill in air, it’s time to prepare for winter’s bite. While ground cleanup is important, there are a couple of fall and winter cleanup tasks that are essential and should not be put off. The most important one is cleaning fireplaces and wood-burning stoves. Typically, [...]