Creating your own faux antiques is easy and fun
Antiques are valued for the craftsmanship, age and their patina, or that natural worn look. But if you have a piece of furniture that is new and you want it to have that aged look, try some of these suggestions and create your own faux antiques.
A few chips, dings and wormholes are perfectly acceptable in an antique piece of furniture, so get out your file, rasp, hammer and awl. These tools can be used to round off corners and create minor surface imperfections and wormholes. This can be a fun chore, too.
The finish itself can be made to look old. When putting stain on the surface, rub some back off from the edges and put a little extra into the crevices to simulate years of use.
Many old pieces of furniture have several coats of paint on them. Paint the piece one color and, after it has dried, there are a couple of ways to simulate several layers of paint on the piece. If you wipe a little petroleum jelly on some areas and put another coat of a different-color paint on the surface, the new paint won't stick where the petroleum jelly is, showing off the color you put on first. You can do the same thing by just painting a second coat of paint over the whole surface and then rubbing or sanding it off here and there to show the color underneath. Craft stores also have what they call a "crackle" finish. This is applied over the first coat of paint, and when the second color is put over the crackle compound, the new paint cracks, showing the old paint through the new finish.
Don't use new hardware on your faux-tique. Shop for old hardware at flea markets or salvage dealers.
You might not be able to pass your piece off as an antique to a professional, but it might give you the look you want in your home for a whole lot less, and it can be a lot of fun, too.
New use for cereal boxes: Magazines are a great source of information. Whatever you are interested in, there is a magazine for you. Woodworking and craft magazines have plenty of helpful instructions and patterns to use. So, if you are like us, and you have a nice collection of magazines, why not keep them organized so it will be easy to find what you are looking for when you need it? Find a box the same size as your magazine cover. Cereal boxes are a good choice for most. Then you can cut out one long side panel and place your magazines inside with the spines facing outward. You can paint or cover the box to give it a classy look. Your precious magazines will be safely stored and ready to use when you need them.
PVC not just for plumbing: PVC pipe is a great material to use for various projects. It's inexpensive and easy to work with. Use the large-size pipe, cut into 10-inch sections. Lay the sections on their side on a flat surface and stack them. Use PVC adhesive to hold them together and create super storage bins. Create a wine rack, a tool holder or even a stylish shoe rack for your closet. Large-diameter pipe can be turned into toy storage racks and lots of other creative things. Let us know what you come up with.
Super hints
• Surge protectors that have several receptacles built into them are the perfect way to add outlets to a room. You don't want to overload the circuit, but if you accidentally do, the surge protector will prevent a problem by shutting down.
• Solar landscape lights are getting better every day. Now they shine brighter and last longer than ever before. They are a great way to light up your yard without wires or electricity. If you don't have a yard, you can put them in a potted plant or just in a pot of gravel. They will light up your patio or front entry just as easily.
• Ink stains can ruin surfaces of all types, but they can be cleaned away easily with alcohol. Just dilute the stain with alcohol and then absorb it with paper towels or a sponge. It works quickly and easily and almost every time.
Q. My husband accidentally dropped the grease cup from our grill onto our patio. I've tried everything to get the grease stain up, but nothing has worked. What can I use to remove it?
A. Use mineral spirits paint thinner to help dissolve the grease. Then cover the wet stain with an absorbent material like clay cat litter and leave it there overnight. Hopefully it will absorb the mess and you can just sweep it away in the morning. If the stain is stubborn, you may have to repeat it, but it should do the trick. This is a great way to remove most grease stains from concrete, so keep it in mind for future greasy messes.
Q. I've adjusted my refrigerator so many times that I don't really know what it's supposed to be set on. What is the optimum temperature it should be?
A. Ideally, you want the fridge at about 35 degrees Fahrenheit. Some compartments can be adjusted lower, like the one usually labeled "meat." The freezer should be about 5 degrees, so if you can set the unit to take care of both and then use a good thermometer to test them, you should be back in business.
Q. What will get rid of water spots in my dishwasher? It's stainless steel and has spots inside, and the dishes get spots, too.
A. The anti-spotting agents that can be added monthly to the dishwasher should help. But you can put a quart of vinegar into the washer and run it through a complete cycle with no dishes in it and see if that cleans it up. Do that once a month with or without the anti-spotting agent. We also hear that fabric softener will do the same thing when used monthly without dishes in the unit. Check your spray arms, too, to make sure they are free-flowing and doing their job.
Reader tips
• Our next-door neighbor's tree sheds all over our back yard. I don't have a leaf blower because we don't have any trees, so I have tried several ways to deal with his leaves. My favorite way is to use my shop vacuum cleaner. By putting it on the "exhaust" function, I can blow the leaves out of my yard. It seems to work as well as a leaf blower, and it makes more sense for me to own since I don't have any trees.
• We had a bad spot on our back concrete patio that had started chipping away. In no time at all, it was several inches deep. I decided to fill it in with more concrete. I drove some masonry nails into the existing concrete down in the hole, thinking that the new concrete would hold better with something to hold on to. The new concrete has held for several months now, and I believe it will last this time. I think the masonry nails did help.
• Our dining-room chandelier is brass and a bit dated. I can't afford a new one, but I did paint the room and did some other things to redecorate it. I found some colorful glass beads that matched the new rug and tablecloth. I bought several strands of them and draped them all over the brass chandelier. Now it fits right in and certainly doesn't look dated anymore. The beads cost a whole lot less than a new fixture, and they look great.
• I have found that my sprinklers don't pop up as easily through my thick lawn anymore. I found a great way to make it easier for them. I remove the lid from an aluminum can and file the edge of the can sharp. Then I place it over the sprinkler head, sharp edge down, and push it into the grass. This cuts the grass away in a perfect circle, leaving just enough room for the pop-up head to do its thing without a struggle. I only have to do this a couple of times during the summer, and it doesn't show at all.
• When we moved to our new home, we brought our refrigerator. Unfortunately, when we put it in the kitchen, the door was opening on the wrong side, and it was hard to get to. I thought we would have to replace it but found out from the owner's manual that the door could actually be taken down and the hinges moved to the other side so it would open the other way. It was really simple to do, and now it's perfect. Who knew?
Shoptalk
• Rust stains on concrete, siding and other common areas outside your home can be caused by a variety of things, including landscape fertilizers. But Singerman Laboratories' Concrete Rust Remover will remove these stains easily, without harming your plants or other vegetation. It's easy to use and will remove only the rust - no surface pitting or staining. It's available from TheRustStore.com.
• Pressure washers are great, but finding biodegradable cleaners to use with them has been a challenge. G-Clean makes dissolvable pouches of Concrete Cleaner & Degreaser, Siding & All-Purpose Cleaner, and even a Mold & Mildew Stain Remover for use with most pressure washers. The formulas are all made of recyclable, renewable and biodegradable materials, so they won't harm the environment or your landscape. The concentrated cleaners are easy to use - no mixing required - and are made of American-grown plant-based oils. They're available at The Home Depot. Visit getg.com to learn more.
• Write to Al and Kelly Carrell in care of the Daily Herald, P.O. Box 280, Arlington Heights, IL 60006, or visit the Carrells' Web site at thesuperhandyman.com.
© 2009, Cowles Syndicate Inc.