Welcome August
Project this week: Repurposed Cabinet to Dresser
This is the 'after' of this week's project - a small dresser.
Part 1 of this post:
DGS 15th BIRTHDAY was a couple of weeks ago.
At 15 DGS helps with more things we (mostly me) can not reach, lift, fix, move...
He is showing a good ability to discuss a problem rationally (so rational that he usually comes out ahead on problem solving).
DGS has 2 years of high school woodworking with a great teacher who thoroughly taught using all the hand tools and how to use every machine in the workshop before letting the students work on their projects, lots of practice before using the expensive wood. Clean up after yourself was included. He is carrying on with Woodworking and Tech as his electives in grade 10.
This week... DGS did the following projects...
• installed curtain rods, level
• installed shelves, level
• installed a smoke detector
• figured out how to take weird screws out of DH's IKEA Cabinet
Remake project and then found the right bit to make it happen
PLUS how to separate the pieces of wood once the weird screws
were either loosened or removed (lots of wooden dowels in
construction (depending on their placement)
When DGS was14 earlier this year he clipped a long blue computer type of wire up high to connect his wi-fi stuff to direct wi-fi stuff.
DGS has a very weird and clever sense of humour, keeps us on our toes.
Grandparents of a terrific grandson always get to re-learn something they likely practiced when they were 'parents'.
What I am re-practicing now as I leave the years of the 'helping' part of Grand-parenting is to learn and remember to 'back off' because when you are 15 you know how to ...
So, don't boss, don't re-ask, don't butt in. Let this precious 15 year old do what he either is figuring out how to do something (thinking time) or reviewing what he can already do. Be patient and keep your mouth shut, if he wants to do the work he will, if not, well, you get to do it yourself.
So, the 2nd part of this post - the IKEA Leksvik Cabinet update.
I posted finding and hauling home Curb Find and Remembering March 15, 2018.
It is an IKEA Leksvik Cabinet (a reader identified it for me). Big, heavy, solid pine, well constructed, missing a door and two shelves. DGS (at 14) helped me get it into the back of the van - and that was not easy. It has been in the living room now for almost 6 months. It is too big and there is no-where-else-to-put-it -in-our-house.
Problem: the living room is crammed full of furniture and stuff and this cabinet did not make the situation better.
(Peaches is being a VERY good patient as her leg heals from her operation last Friday).
What is our solution? Well, first there was a LOT of discussion. I removed all the piles of stuff on the shelves and top and boxed it for now.
We decided to take-it-apart.
The IKEA Cabinet was put together VERY well and the screw/dowels holding the system together were amazing. Finding a screwdriver head that would work on the big sized screws plus the small sized screws took awhile (I think they use special IKEA screws that may have originally come with the corrected screw drivers for assembling).
This is the back of the cabinet before taking it apart (below).
I don't know how many photos of 'take a piece of furniture apart and make something with the pieces' you can stand.
The bottom board of the cabinet was used for the top and bottom of the drawers. DH added a base using the narrow boards on the top shelf of the cabinet and DGS tacked on the back pieces which you can see above in the 'backboards' picture.
All pieces used to turn the 'drawers' in a cabinet into stand alone drawers were part of the original cabinet.
Before and After
Here is another 'scaled down' project from a large shelf to a "Shrinking Bookshelf", January 25, 2018.
Now we have a small chest of drawers and space.
My job: find things and cleanup
Cost: no cost
Time: about 4 hours over a couple of days
Retrieving space in the living room: priceless
The left over wooden pieces from the cabinet will be turned into a free-standing shelf.
Thank you for visiting today.
Always appreciate your comments.
Joy
Sharing with:
Embracing Change
A Delightsome Life
Crafts a la Mode
Try It - Like It
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The Painted Farmhouse
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My Autoimmune Life
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Between Naps on the Porch
Celebrate and Decorate
Home Stories A-Z
Stone Cottage Adventures
Fluster Buster
Grandma's House DIY
Dabbing and Decorating
Embracing Change
A Delightsome Life
Crafts a la Mode
Try It - Like It
Chic on a Shoestring
The Painted Farmhouse
My Thrift Store Addiction
My Autoimmune Life
The Cottage Market
Funky Junk Interiors
Under A Texas Sky
PiecedPastimes
Pam's Party and Practical Tips
Ms Toody Goo Shoes
Strawberry Butterscotch
Our Mini Family
Scrapality
Across the Blvd
Little Farmstead
Love of Home
Meet Our Life
DIY Showoff
Dwellings The Heart Of Our Home
Rustic and Refined
Normandy Life
Grandma's Briefs
Between Naps on the Porch
Celebrate and Decorate
Home Stories A-Z
Stone Cottage Adventures
Fluster Buster
Grandma's House DIY
Dabbing and Decorating
It sounds like he may have a future as a woodworker or at very minimum a very handy person to have around. Great save on that piece of furniture, It would have been just another piece of garbage otherwise
ReplyDeleteYour DGS actually sounds like a wonderful young man, using his hands and helping. They all are a bit rough around the edges but he is on his way to being a responsible young man.
ReplyDeleteI am still smiling after reading your post about how to keep your mouth shut...that would be really rough for me. Your grandson did a great job. I am so proud of him!
ReplyDeleteWow, this came out so great! What a fun project. I'd luv to invite you to share it with us at Wall to Wall DIY Wednesdays, which runs thru Mondays! Best, Ann
ReplyDeleteThe new look is great, Joy. Thanks for sharing at Snickerdoodle. Pinning.
ReplyDeleteGreat job, Joy! Thanks for sharing at Vintage Charm!
ReplyDeleteWhat a pleasure it must be to see your grandson growing into a fine young man, so useful to have around too! I do like your new chest of drawers, also useful and good to have around!
ReplyDeleteHappy Mosaic Monday.
Find things and clean up....sounds like a job I would enjoy too! What a fine young man to tackle these projects! I know you appreciate everything he does! Give him some praise from all of us and a pat on the back for a job well done! Enjoy your week!
ReplyDeleteDGS sounds like he likes being around to help! He is a keeper. Wonderful redo! Have a fun filled week.
ReplyDeleteLove looking at how you repurpose different items. Great ideas. Found you on Grandma's Briefs blog party.
ReplyDeleteYour grandson has established some good skills that is come in handy for him. Making the furniture smaller was a good move.
ReplyDeleteI was happy to know that DGS HS had a good Industrial Arts (shop) program with a good teacher (that is what my husband started out teaching years ago (we have been retired for 20 years)... it is so important and yet many school districts have discontinued it because of lack of funds.
ReplyDeleteHow great to have such a talented and helpful DGS around. Learning these kinds of practical skills is so important in today's world. The small chest of drawers is a good remake of a larger piece that wouldn't fit in your living room.
ReplyDeleteYour grandson sounds like just an all around great kid! what a clever remake of the cabinet.
ReplyDeletehugs,
Jann
A handyman around the house is a treasure! I love how you downsized that huge cupboard.
ReplyDeleteWhat a clever repurpose. Take care. Cheers from Carole's Chatter
ReplyDeletePS. Found you via LInda's sidebar .. Have followed her since before the grand quads were born
Thanks so much for sharing at the To Grandma's House We Go DIY, Crafts, Recipes and More Link Party! Pinned this! Hope to see you link up again this Wednesday!
ReplyDeleteAmazing transformation. Your grandson has talent. I love the cabinet. Thanks for linking to Keep in Touch.
ReplyDelete