Tag Archives: Light

Lights, Water Heater, Arbor…Action!

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We stumbled unintentionally onto another “blog series”…Its called finishing projects…



(This second lamp sat in a box for two years and we finally installed it this weekend)

Every home dweller can relate to the unending list of projects or house maintenance. We often ignore certain issues and take the road of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”. Only when something is glaringly ugly and/or integral breaks do we call the handyman or pull out the hammer. 

I am soooo guilty of project procrastination. Literally I kept a Big Lots arbor for 6 years and only until this week put it together…Yeah it’s that bad…



So why the sudden change and working on projects that have sat around? (some apparently for years) Well we have a deadline of sorts. In only a month we need to decorate a few rooms, do some major spring cleaning, and finish the unfinished…And there is no better motivation to knock out pesky house projects than giving yourself a deadline right? (Just as long as you’re not giving yourself an ulcer too😉) 

I wish we had an amazing project or fabulous “after” reveal but to be honest, this week has been spent schlepping boxes of stuff to goodwill. The guest room/office is in complete chaos as we’re trying to reconfigure it for more usable space. Also we can finally walk through the guest house without tripping on camping gear or college textbooks (oh yeah we said goodbye to three boxes of our undergrad books! Happy Day!😊)

Unfortunately our only “after” reveal was replacing this rusted out 70s style outdoor light with a brand new “beachy” style one from homed depot. 





As well we’ve finally replaced our second water heater (in the guest house) Another boring maintenance project but necessary. In two years since we’ve bought our home we’ve replaced two water heaters. I’m hoping now that I will not have to budget for new ones within the next 10 years. (Grrr…money that could’ve been spent on new flooring)



Yet having running hot water for guests is probably a good thing. We’re also setting up for (hopefully) another concrete countertop project. This time we’re tackling a mini bar, and bathroom. I’m crossing fingers that we’ll be done by next Sunday. Especially since countdown is now 30 days away! Yikes gotta get back to work! 

Unlike us, we hope you have an amazing weekend full of fun times. Don’t be like us kids, just say no to project procrastination. Or you end up digging holes and shoveling mulch on your Sunday. #TakeBackYourWeekends people! Happy Sunday everyone!

A Few Inexpensive Updates…Drum light Ceiling Fan

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I’ve been ever so slowly updating the office/guest room for the past….ummmm…year! We’ve  been in “hunker down and save” mode these past several months. That said, I hope to someday post some killer “after” pics but for now here are a few inexpensive updates anyone can do.

1) Add a $20 rug…I found this lovely one at Ikea…Our dogs are like magnets to a new rug…They are the official rug “flatten squad”. ipone pics 090

2) Update the room’s lighting…I traded out an old sit-a-top desk lamp for this plug-in Target pendant on clearance for $24. (Luckily I had a left over gift card handy so it was a freebie) I also washed, ironed and re-used hand me down drapes from the master bedroom.

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3) Go crazy with drum shades! Total cost ($23 thanks to a few Ross finds and some connector pieces at Home Depot)

#1 light update, here is a lamp given to us for free…[Sigh] the difference a drum shade can make…

Before lamp before piclamp after pic After

#2 shade update, modernize an old ceiling fan with a drum shade…

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Very easy project…Just see the following steps:

1) Find a triangle or old standard drum shade (not the kind where the shade attaches to the bulb base)

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2) Based on the light fixtures you intend to hide, find an extender piece that will allow for enough space and hanging length. (Consider switching out or adding longer pull chains). You will also need some hex nuts and couplings. These can all be found in the lighting section of Home Depot normally next to the fan light kits.

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3) In our case we flipped the shade over and secured it to the base of the fan light using a coupling and hex nut. Then adding a chain extender to the bottom chain, slid the chain through the shade extender and coupling. Next I screwed the shade extender into the coupling at the base of the fan. (See pics below)

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4) We tested it to ensure the fan did not actually hit the shade. We also allowed enough air space between the lights and shade (After all we don’t need a fire hazard in the new home)

Yay! Instant update for a fraction of the cost of a new fan light kit.

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