Categotry Archives: How to
Straps Are Totally Cool
Seriously. Get a load of this sucker. A little inch and a half width strap held down what felt like a ton of scaffolding. I was more worried about the whole dang truck flipping over on the curves than the straps coming loose. I’ve seen these puppies around before. I even inherited one from some passing hippie, but never knew how they worked. I mean, I could tell there was a ratcheting thing going on and it isn’t hard to […]
Window Replacement Checklist part 2
I left out a few things from last week. Remember, this is for putting a window in place of a door. 1. Crowbar! They aren’t joking when they say you can break your screwdriver if you keep using it to pry up wood. And yes, just assume you are going to have to remove every flipping piece of trim. Better to do it from the start rather than arguing over it and ended up removing things as you go. 2. […]
High Places
Last Monday I talked about putting in a new window. I thought I’d talk a little more about the project. The window is replacing a door in an old house. This in and of itself isn’t so hard. We simply built in the studs the way we would with a new construction and sized it for the size of the window, filling in the area where the door once was. The problem is the height. The door in question lead […]
Modern Window
I’m installing a window in a place where there used to be a door. It’s a bit of a challenge both because I’ve never installed a window before and because it’s on the second above a bad surface. Yet I am approaching the task with some confidence. I’m doing it because of the internet. Used to be when faced with something like this I would run to the library, dig out a bunch of books, struggle with the jargon, and […]
Anatomy of a Comment Form
A quick tour of how it works. This one’s for all you lurkers out there. Lord knows I have a ton of them. Below is a copy of my comment form. Isn’t it pretty? 🙂 Looks pretty basic, doesn’t it? Honestly, there is nothing to be afraid of here.
How to Grab a Direct Link From a Blog
Mini-lesson time. If you want to be able to link directly to a specific post in a blog, then navigate to the page that has only that post. Different blogs do this in different ways. With the vast majority, all you have to do is click on the title of the post and it will take you to a page with just that post.
The Making of The Quilt
I’m sure this is more than anyone really wants to know, but for those few intrepid souls who are interested: . As you can see, I have plenty of scraps to chose from.
How to Make an Origami Helmet
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286/365 How to Make a Crazy Quilt
I’m not a quilter. I’ve made three full-size quilts and three baby quilts, but I have yet to do it right. Nor do I intend to. I’ve tried the real way of doing it. All those titchy little details that can cause a quilt to warp and twist if you aren’t careful drive me nuts. Instead, I make crazy quilts. How to make a crazy quilt. Step 1: Acquire a large pile of scraps through the natural processes involved in […]
How to Draw Manga Eyes
I wanted to show you some how to sew stuff today. The Girl cut out a cute jacket which I would love to share with you, but I forgot to take pictures. Weird of me, I know. Anyway, I mentioned to The Girl that I messed up. She suggested that I do a how to draw thing instead. Mr. Al, The Girl and I have all gotten into manga in the last couple of years. Manga is Japanese graphic novels. […]
Old Pumpkin
Remember the pumpkin? The one I bought for Halloween then never got around to carving… . Well, I finally got around to it. I couldn’t believe the thing could sit around for so long and still be good, but it seemed fine – no soft spots or discoloration or odor – so I carved it up with an eye toward eating it and/or maybe leaving a thin, dry shell that I could reuse as a Halloween decoration in the future. […]
How to Accept an Award
Has someone (like me) passed along an Internet award like this one to you? Confused on what to do next? Keep reading. Awards of this variety are intended as both a compliment and a networking tool. They can be a great way for readers to discover new blogs: yours, the one who gave you the award, and all the people you like enough to give an award to. They also make all the blogs involved rise in the Google listings […]
With Styrofoam
To get those strings of lights, you just put Styrofoam cups over medium or large outdoor bulbs.
Bridalveil Place Mats
It’s been ages since I did something besides a recipe on Sunday, but with my new sewing machine still humming away, I felt like sharing a sewing project. I’ll get back to the recipe thing next Sunday. The very first project off my Baby Lock was this; a set of 8 place mats. The picture does not in any way do it justice. These are so upscale, and I am so proud of myself. Ok, maybe not that proud, but […]
Table Setting: A Progression
To continue from last week: I asked my mother, who used to teach Meal Management courses on campus, what the biggest, hairiest, most intimidating table setting might be. I’m looking for something I can use to scare the hero of a book I’m thinking about writing. She said something along the lines of Russian or European style would likely do the trick. Frankly, I don’t find European all that intimidating. They baby you along with wait staff that hands you […]
