Out With the Gold


You all know what gold door knobs look like, but here are a few pictures to refresh your memories:


A few of the door knobs had parts that were plastic and Grant couldn't open the door to his bedroom! He would wake up in the middle of the night yelling "I have to go potty and I can't open the door!" So this change-out wasn't purely for looks- we needed door knobs that work.  

I ordered some new satin nickel door knobs and hinges, once again from overstock.com. I love this site because you can read reviews and really know what you are buying and they have GREAT prices- and I lucked out and got free shipping too (their regular shipping is super cheap also). 

Dave and I changed the knobs and hinges out late one night, so not exciting pictures of us working on doors, but here are the results-

Grant can open his bedroom door!

These doors to the office are begging to be painted a different color- I am thinking black for a great contrast or something fun... 






 
ahhh, much better! 


Updating Cabinet Hardware

My first DIY tutorial!



This house came with a lot of gold... and not the good kind! Here are a few really fuzzy before pictures from the house listing online. I really should have taken more "before" pictures so I don't have to use the fuzzy ones!






Time for an update!

Here is what you need to get started:


  • New knobs/pulls (I did both, but I am only showing how to do the pulls since figure you can unscrew the old knobs and screw on the new ones... Pulls is a little harder...) I got mine on overstock.com - love them!
  • Drill & a few different size drill bits- make sure you have one that matches the size you need for the pull- mine had a pieces that needed to be recessed into the cabinet, so my biggest size bit matched that.  


  • Screws with a flat end, not pointy (not sure what the technical name is, are they considered bolts?) that are long or short enough- I was installing the pulls mostly into drawers, so there was two surfaces to drill through and the screws that came with the pulls weren't long enough so we went to Ace and got some longer ones. 
  • Tape measure/ruler
  • Painters Tape
  • Rubber Mallet
  • Screw driver
  • Dust pan & brush- for easy as-you-go clean up
Let's get started!

First take all of the old hardware off. It is ok that there is a hole because the pulls I choose will be centered and will cover it. 

Place a length of painters tape over the middle of the drawer. The painters tape helps keep the surface from being chipped or damaged when you drill. These are thermofoil cabinets-- they are cabinets covered in plastic. I would do this for wood cabinets too.


Time to do a little math. I am sure there are many ways to do this, but this is how I did it.

First measure the exact middle of your drawer front. Measure height, divide in 1/2... same with width and then mark where they meet with a dot. Measure the distance from the center dot to the top. Measure down the same distance from the top a few times and draw a horizontal line across the tape, making a line exactly in the middle of your drawer.


The holes in my pulls are 3" apart so I measured 1 1/2" out on each side of the center dot and made dots on the line. I then drew straight lines down off of that mark. I then measured to make sure the distance was still 3" apart. 


Then you need to figure out where you want the pull to be centered. I measured the overall height of the pull and then subtracted it from the whole height of the drawer and divided it by two. That number is what I needed above and below my pull for it to be centered. That measurement for me it was 1 1/2". Because where the screws are on the pull are not at the exact bottom, you have to account for that. Mine were 1/8" up from the bottom so I added 1/8" for mine. So I made a mark on the vertical lines 1 1/2" + 1/8" up from the bottom... Make sure you do this on both lines. 

Those dots are the ones you are going to drill. Put your pull on the dots, lining up where the screws will go in and see if it looks centered. 

It does!


Time to drill the holes-- this is the scary part for the first few drawers, but don't be scared!

I started out with a small drill bit- about 1/3 of what the final hole needed to be.


Then I did one that was about 2/3 as big...


Then the largest bit. 


I then made sure the pull fit into the holes. You may need to wiggle the drill around a little when you are drilling with the last bit if it is tight. I used a rubber mallet to pound them into place. DO NOT sure a hammer- it will dent your pulls!!!


Take off the tape and you should have pretty holes!


Pound the pulls back into the holes.


Screw the screws in the back of the drawers. 


You are done! 


Repeat over and over and over...


Have you noticed that most people don't install pulls or knobs on the "fake" drawers in front of sinks etc? Well, I am not a fan, so I installed them there anyways... I figure people know it isn't a real drawer, and I think they look better this way. 


Laundry room


Kids Bathroom



My sink... Dave needs to get some too-tight-for-me-to-get-off gold knobs off of his cabinet doors, so no picture of his... 
Yes, I know a door need to be adjusted, but don't the pulls look great! :)

Another project checked off my long list!





New Fancy Windows

Here are some before shots

Old wood & vinyl windows...



They did have cute metal latches :)




When we had our home inspection before we bought the house, we were told that the windows all needed to be replaced. Blah...no fun....$$$....Some were worse off than others, but eventually they all needed to be replaced. We asked friends and called around for recommendations and had three companies come and bid. We are so happy with who we choose. 


Today was the big day. We had 9 windows on the back of the house- (south facing, so they were in the worst shape) replaced with fancy new ones. The office, Andrew's room, the master bedroom and the family room all got new windows. Both panes come out to be cleaned, you can have either side open, move the screen to the side you want, they have a privacy latches so the windows can be set so the only open 5", great UV ray protection and on and on... 


Two guys came at 9am and were done at 2:30- not bad for 9 windows! I can't wait to get the rest done... in time....Now to get some new blinds :) Paint first, then blinds... 




New windows ready to be installed


Hudson sat and watched them from the balcony...





Love them!







Isn't the tree pretty outside my office? I can't wait to see what all of the trees and plants look like in full bloom :)