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I like to think of every season as a new opportunity to grow and expand, each presenting unique opportunities unlike the last. The garden is the perfect example of the unpredictable circumstances that life presents us with. Temperatures fluctuate, rainfall differs, and pests cycle through-all factors in how your garden will flourish or fail. For example, two years ago my cucumbers gave me jars of pickles to share with family and friends…last year the temperatures were a record high, rainfall was a record low, and my plants shriveled before they had the opportunity to produce a single flower.
I’ve tried a few times to start a garden journal, recording what/ when I planted or what I did well, all tucked into a neatly bound book. I have failed miserably, resorting back to the chaos: “If it survives to see another day, then it’s a keeper”. Honestly, I believe every gardener has to share this sentiment on some level or else we would all lose our minds striving for perfection in a stacked race against nature.
Now that our home is complete and life is starting to form some sense of routine and regularity for the first time in years, I wanted to set focus on making my garden truly functional to our needs. The past couple of years has been about getting my toes wet, and learning how my environment affects certain things I like to look at or eat. Now: I want not only a pretty garden but a bountiful one as well.
Let’s dive into ways to make a garden both of these things.
1.) Invest in a good quality soil and compost mixture. Strong plants start with healthy soil.
2.) Spend 10 minutes in the garden daily. This not only will keep you on top of any issues that may arise, you may also find yourself feeling lighter and calmer after spending some time in the dirt.
3.) Plant what you enjoy. This will make the above easier.
4.) Minimize clutter with a Hose Reel by HoseLink. I absolutely love how adding in my 82′ Retractable Hose Reel (in Beige) minimized the visual clutter of tangled hoses. These hoses also come with quick-link connections for simple, hassle-free watering. The Retractable Garden Hose Reel is a wall-mounted unit featuring a high-quality spring-loaded hose that automatically rewinds on command, making watering a breeze and cleanup even easier.
5. Make use of vertical space! By utilizing trellises and archways, you can maximize any garden space. Think outside your norm and plant vining vegetables like squash, pumpkins, and cucumbers to reduce pests and disease!
Make your garden work for YOU, and don’t be afraid to make mistakes and change things up as you learn. Happy Gardening friends!
After 7 weeks of off-and-on work, my dream closet is DONE! There is something special about working hard for something and reaping the fruit of your labor, and this closet is no exception. Since we started planning our home build, I always knew I wanted to build out our primary closet myself. It’s a challenge I have been preparing for over the past couple of years of DIY projects, and every lesson learned has brought me closer to my closet.
This post is primarily for photos, so to pop on over to my Q&A blog please click HERE.
My first endeavor regarding cabinets and drawers was our barn workshop! Because I knew that the barn workshop was going to be a temporary fix to a long-term problem and that we would be moving our “workshop” to the garage after the build was complete, I took this as an opportunity to learn and grow my skills. (Drawers are still hard, but I did get better this time around). I applied a lot of the same concepts from that project to the closet project. (Click HERE to read how I build my cabinets).
I am in awe every time I walk into this closet. For me, there is so much sentimental value in this space because it marks the end of a stage of life for us. During our 2.5 year time in what we refer to as “the Limbo period”, we had limited space in our 700sq ft home. We lived out of boxes and bins, and things were never quite settled or put in place. I held onto things in storage because we never expected to be waiting for our Home for so long, and there was always an air of discomfort knowing our physical belongings were scattered. And then our little house flooded and that feeling was only amplified by the unknown timeline of moving forward.
But now, I go through boxes. I add items to the discard or donate pile. I hang my belongings and carefully fold them in the drawer. I am at peace. I am Home.
Click HERE to find all products I saved to my LTK.
Hello friends! The closet is done and after working part-time on it for the past 7 weeks I can’t tell you how elated I am to finally have a place to put our things! Honestly, between 2 vacations, hosting parties, having crews here for punch list items, being sick, and just plain old life, I don’t think 7 weeks is too bad given the fact that I can say I DID THAT! And, because my quotes started at $15,000 I saved myself a lot of money.
(note: $15k is reasonable for someone to charge for a closet this size. But because I have the time and ability to do it myself, I chose to go that route instead).
Of course, there were times when I had to ask for help-have you tried lifting or cutting a 3/4″ 4’x8′ sheet of plywood yourself? They can weigh up to 80lbs and yours truly is only 5′ tall. I am so grateful to have a husband who not only supports but highly encourages my DIY mindset. It takes a lot of patience to be married to a go-getter like me, and I cannot thank him enough for being willing to lend a hand or help problem-solve to figure out the best step forward. That’s just what partners do-they help each other.
I have compiled a list of FAQs because I think that is going to be the simplest way to answer the mass questions I have had pour in from a viral post on Instagram. (Some kind and inquisitive, others, not so much.) Of course, there will only be a handful willing to find and read this post-so thank you for being here! I absolutely love being able to share my experiences and lessons with you all, and t brings me joy to hear how I have encouraged you in your own projects!
All trim work was done with 1/2 premium pine boards.
How do you plan out your measurements?
I am not a professional and won’t claim to be. I don’t have any fancy software: I draw it out on graph paper and use painter’s tape to get the scale how I want it. It’s all backward math from there. If your wall is 11′ long, and I want 4 cabinets, divide 132″ by 4 to get 33″ wide cabinets. then subtract if you want any gapping or thicker trim. ALWAYS REMEMBER TO ACCOUNT FOR THE THICKNESS OF THE MATERIAL WHEN MAKING CUTS.
Do you have a tutorial?
While my closet highlight goes through a majority of the process, I followed a similar build style to that of my Barn Workshop Project. This was my first trial and error with cabinets/drawers and I have a lot of helpful information there. I will say that for this project, I used instead of MDF, I used all plywood for a stronger product result.
What kind of tools do you need for this project?
I would not recommend this for beginners, because you have to have straight and accurate cuts. Start with a smaller, singular cabinet or drawer base and then gauge if you are ready to take on a larger closet. There are also many DIYers who have upgraded IKEA PAX units with great success and those require less expertise if you are intimidated by building a whole cabinet.
Technically, you could do this with a circular saw, impact drill, Kreg jig, tape measure, level, square, stud finder, and a brad nailer. I recommend also having a table saw and a miter saw (or have your large cuts done at Lowes for $1/cut) to get the best cuts. Other useful tools to make life easier are clamps, a circular sander, a drawer jig, a dato and a hardware jig.
I did not pay for labor. Yes, my time is valuable but it is also my job to complete DIYs around my home and property and share them on social media platforms. I will disclose that we also have contractor discounts set up at multiple hardware and paint stores, which give us a slight discount on products. I did not have to buy any new tools for this project but above listed what I used.
Not included in this cost is what I gave our painters who were already here for construction punch list touch-ups to spray the cabinet bases. They work on a day-to-day- rate, so if you want to get technical add $500 for the 1/2 day they painted for me while I was out of town.
How much time?
I can’t give a full compilation of hours because I worked on this off and on for 7 weeks when I had the time.
Would you change anything?
Overall, I am happy with the results. Looking back, I would do a few things differently:
I would not caulk my drawer and cabinet faces. They look a little messy and I spent extra time trying to clean them up. Instead, I should have gone and bought some 1/4 solid wood to trim the faces with.
I think I am going to add a few more shelves to my shelving units for shoes.
Ultimately, I did not want my cabinet doors to overlap or to have a “floating style” but this resulted in an error of not measuring twice, cutting once. For time and sanity’s sake, I chose not to purchase more wood and redo them, maybe one day I will, but they’re good for now.
Every project is live and learn, and despite the errors that I made, I absolutely love what I built.
