This post is sponsored by GREAT STUFF ^TM

They say that owning a cabin means endless projects. They are correct. Every summer we tackle something at our family cabin (last year it was a 10 day kitchen renovation) this year, our biggest priority was sealing the interior off to critters.

I have childhood trauma of seeing a mouse run across the floor at my family cabin, and we’ve seen evidence of them (you know what kind) at Court’s family cabin sporadically. But this project jumped to the top of the to-do list when we were casually hanging out on the patio and witnessed a full grown rodent run along the base of the wall and right under the door threshold.

Nope. That is not ok.

Upon further examination we were shocked to find that the threshold opens into the cabin like a big fat welcoming gate. As much as I hated thinking about mice, I was so glad that we could see where they were getting in!

I about fell out of my chair when GREAT STUFF^TM  reached out about partnering on a project. I don’t know if there was ever a more serendipitous email. GREAT STUFF^TM to the rescue! We took the creative liberty to update the patio space AND prevent our little unwanted guests.

GREAT STUFF^TM is an insulating foam sealant, It’s an absolute necessity when it comes to any type of project that needs to be sealed. Think air leaks, pests, insulation gaps, if there is a hole, GREAT STUFF^TM is your bestie. They recently launched a new Smart Dispenser that Court is level 10 excited about.

See previously, once you started using GREAT STUFF^TM, you had a small window of time to complete the job before the straw sealed itself off. With their new straw design you can store and reuse GREAT STUFF^TM for an actual month!! (you’ve got to watch the video at the end of this post to see Court’s thoughts on this ) When you are buying it, make sure that you get one with a silver straw and cap, then you’ll know you’re getting the right one!

Now, I wish that I could say that this project went exactly as planned, but where is the fun in that? DIY disasters are waaaaayyyyyy funner to read about.

We thought that this quick porch update would take a day or so, boy was that cute. The entire thing went sideways when my paint color was wrong, but I’m getting ahead of myself…

We started by prepping the gaps for GREAT STUFF^TM by blowing them out with a leaf blower, we were dumbfounded when we put the blower against the baseboard on the inside of the house and dust and debris went flying out of the cracks in the exterior. WHYYYYY?!

After we scraped off the caulk and blew out all of the cracks we could see how truly cavernous the space was.

We taped off the sidewalk with painters tape to make sure that the foam sealant only stuck to the space underneath the threshold and in the crack to the right of the door.

Using GREAT STUFF^TM is as fun as you think it will be. Just make sure you are using protective eyewear, long sleeves, and gloves.

Court said that filling the cracks was (and I quote) “The best thing I’ve done all month.” We learned that it’s better to fill the space quickly without releasing the trigger. If you release it and then start again it’s possible to blow a larger air-pocket into the gap that sometimes doesn’t get filled completely.  The more experience you have under your belt the less likely this is to happen.

After we filled the space under the threshold, we waited about 30 minutes before we filled the gap to the right of the door. Court wanted to see how much the foam had expanded, and test out the new Smart Dispenser.

No surprise that it worked like a charm!

GREAT STUFF^TM needs to cure for at least 8 hours before it can be trimmed, so while we waited I started painting the door.

The plan was to use Ripe Olive (I used it in this bathroom makeover and have loved it ever since!) but as soon as I got it up on the door jamb I knew that it was all wrong. The orange tones in the wood made it look to blue and it reminded me of a phase I went through in middle school where I loved moose decor. Not a great look.

So I went back to the drawing board and brought home a color that is similar to pea green. It was actually not a bad color, the problem was that it was the same tone as the cabin. I needed variation.

Color #3 was the love child of color #1 and color #2. It was SUPER similar to the color already on the door. Which isn’t a bad color, but I wanted to change things up a little.

Color #4 wasn’t great either so I decided to try color #5…Mandi White.

I got about half way done with the door and hated it. At which point I was frustrated, exhausted, and NOT a happy camper. So we decided to head home and regroup. I picked out a new light at Home Depot, and grabbed an old end table to repurpose, as well as my trusty Tricorn Black paint. Now, you might be wondering why we didn’t just paint the door black, it seems like the obvious and awesome choice. Believe me when I say that would have been great if it wasn’t for the fact that the entire wraparound porch and stairs are all dark brown. It would have fought with the existing exterior, and while it would’ve looked good in a cropped photo, that isn’t what we’re going for.

Back at the cabin I started mixing colors and finally came up with the perfect shade of green. Darker than the previous color, and a little muddier, it was awesome. It also didn’t hurt that we power-washed the logs to clean off the red dirt and some of the crumbly orange sealer.

Have you ever seen a more beautiful door?! lol this is real life folks.

With the right color on the door (finally!) and the window trim painted Tricorn Black, I was able to turn my attention back to the GREAT STUFF^TM!

We used a razor blade to slice the excess foam off (like butta). The best part about GREAT STUFF^TM is that it’s paintable! I used 2 different shades of brown that matched some of the color in the stained concrete, as well as a touch of Tricorn Black to disguise the  foam, and it worked better than I could’ve ever hoped! With all of the grief that the door color was giving me, I was grateful that this part of the project was so simple!

With a few decor touches, the space is done and looks awesome!!

I’m not going to lie though, my favorite part is something not a soul will even notice, the Great Stuff that is protecting our cabin from pesky mice. Now I don’t know who Court is going to blame for the middle of the night missing cookies on.

You can find Great Stuff with the new dispenser on Amazon and at your local Lowes!

Watch the video below to see this whole project in real time, with Court commentary and everything.

The post Cabin Porch Makeover appeared first on Vintage Revivals.

Coincidentally, one of my post popular posts on Vintage Revivals is how to paint concrete. I guess it’s about time we talk about how to remove paint from concrete!

This info will work whether you are trying to remove spray paint, floor paint, wall paint, carpet glue, really anything!!

Removing Paint from Concrete

The first thing that needs to happen before you can start anything significant with your tile flooring is the removal of old permanent layers. Things like paint, adhesives, oils, etc. will significantly cripple your tile job. While the thinset might have no problem sticking to the paint, the layer of paint may come loose from the concrete and womp womp, goodbye thinset strength.

Our floors had 8 (eight!!) layers of paint on them. Because we didnt know what the layers consisted of, or how old they were (lead paint I’m looking at you!) We opted to use a chemical stripper vs. sanding it off. The stripper we used is Klean Strip Premium from Home Depot. You can get it in the paint section!

To Remove Paint from Concrete You’ll Need:

• Stripper
• Floor Scraper
• Chemical Resistant Gloves
• Old Shoes
• Mask
• Paint Roller and Pole

Start by gearing up. You will want to wear old shoes that you don’t care about, and gloves if you’re going to be handling the stripped paint. This stripper is no joke, it burns if you get it on your skin.

Step 1: Pour and Roll the Stripper

Pour the stripper onto the ground and roll it out with a paint roller. The layer should be thick. If it’s too thin you’ll have to go back with a second layer.

Step 2: Let the stripper sit on the paint for 20-25 minutes.

As it activates and loosens the paint, you will see it start to bubble and release itself from the concrete. If you’re lucky like we were, you might even discover hidden dinosaur tracks underneath a few of the layers…

Step 3: Scrape

Use your floor scraper to scrape off the bubbled up paint. We found that it was best to scrape it all into a large pile and then shovel it into old boxes.

Step 4: Reapply

Reapply stripper if you’ve still got paint on the concrete.

Step 5: Wipe Down

Once you’ve scraped all of the paint off of the concrete floors, use a bucket of soapy water and a large push broom to sweep up any remaining chunks of paint and to get the stripper residue off of the concrete. Let the concrete dry for 24-48 hours before moving on to the next step of prep, or tile.

The next step in our tile setting journey was leveling the concrete, you can read all about it here!

The post How to Remove Paint From Concrete appeared first on Vintage Revivals.

Hey guys!! Are you sitting down? Good. Cause I’m about to blow your freaking mind. When you think of The Home Depot, what comes to mind? Tools? Wood? Plants? Orange smiling faces? Add another thing to that list, HOME DECOR! They just rolled out their new decor line, and you’re not going to believe how terribly good it is.

If your house is feeling a little lost, one of my best tips to make it feel like a home and add some critical personality is to mix vintage and new. Vintage pieces add the soul and new pieces make the space feel updated.

As most of you know, we moved out of our house in January and into the inlaws basement. When Home Depot reached out about styling a space with some of my favorite pieces I couldn’t shout yes loud enough. I love paying it forward and no one helps me more with the kiddos than my adorable sister in law Lindsay. (You might remember her daughter Macie’s bedroom that we made over a few years ago.) Her entryway is the lucky space. She recently repainted and installed new flooring and I was so excited to give her a little design nudge.

Every time I go to my storage unit, my heart breaks a little for the pieces that are just sitting in there. I know, its a little dramatic, but when that rolling door opens and I see all of my favorite things just sitting there collecting dust I want to lovingly console each of them. After looking at Lindsay’s entryway I knew that it was the perfect spot for my card catalog (you can see how it started out here, but consider yourself warned, if furniture abuse is a trigger you might not want to click that link)

Once I knew what the star was going to be, I went to homedepot.com and got to work. Guys. There are SO MANY GOOD THINGS. Always being a woman on a budget, I picked out some of my favorites that won’t blow your budget (the chair! the rug!!)

The first thing that jumped into my cart were these metal Windsor style chair (how great is it that its metal?! Classic style, easy modern finish and only $157 for a pair!) They are oversized and have a wide back that fans out at the top. They would be perfect in a dining room or office too!

Can we just have a moment of silence for the area rug? Its 5×8 and only $126! WHAT!???!?

Seeing as how leather is my love language, there was no way I could resist this
leather mirror. I am obsessed with the little yellow accent stitches, sometimes it really is the small things guys.

It was really important for the space to be as functional as possible and one of the must haves is a large basket for shoes. The basket that I used is natural, but is also extremely heavy duty (you know how sometimes wicker or rattan falls apart after a short time of heavy shoes being flung inside?) I was pleasantly surprised at how durable this basket is.

You guys know I love a good shelf build, but sometimes its really wonderful to just buy one. The white 24″ shelf that I used is in stock at your local Home Depot all the time!

I added a faux olive tree, simple black framed art, and an old camera to liven up the gigantor wall.

Now tell me how you’re feeling, can you believe all of those treasures came from our favorite orange store!?

Check out homedepot.com for all the mind blowing pieces, and The Apron blog for loads of DIY ideas!

Huge thanks to Home Depot for partnering with me on this post!

The post You’ll Never Believe Where This Smokin’ Hot Decor is From appeared first on Vintage Revivals.

Raise your hand if you have a whole slew of Pinterest boards chock-full of what your dream house is going to look like. Keep your hand raised if you have no idea how to actually achieve that look.

Now take that hand that’s still in the air and softly pat your cheek, repeating the words, “It’s going to be OK. Mandi is going to help me.”

If you’re like 99% of Pinterest users, your boards are brimming with pictures of beautiful spaces — spaces you’d love to live in. Here, I’m sharing all my tips for narrowing down those 15,000 pins into an exact definition of what YOU love.

We’re going to approach this in three steps:

1. The broad approach, where we get a sense of your general style
2. The next-level approach, where we evaluate permanent fixtures, like cabinet fronts
3. The detailed approach, where we get a sense for finishes and furniture

1. What’s Your General Vibe?

Image: Pneumatic Addict

The first thing is to look at your pins broadly. Are 85% of the kitchens that you have pinned filled with white brightness? Do you repeatedly pin soaring loft spaces with exposed brick? What are the colors, tones, and styles that you’re drawn to?

Pick up on the vibe that your boards are putting off.

2. What Features Do You Love?

Image: Stacy Risenmay / Not Just a Housewife

Now, narrow it down a little. Say you love white kitchens. Is there a certain style of cabinet front that you keep pinning? Do all the pictures have subway tile with dark grout? Are the floors light tones or dark tones? Are your pins pointing you toward dark accent walls or a certain style of window?

3. What Accents Do You Adore?

After you’ve narrowed things down, look more closely at the details. Do you have an obsession with brass hardware or raw wood dining tables?

When I pin something inspiring, I always write in the pin’s description what I LOVE about the picture (whether it’s the light or the shape of a pillow). That way, I can focus on that one item and the rest just sort of falls away.

Last, and most importantly, will your choices work with your lifestyle? It’s easy to get wrapped up in white floors, white walls, and white cabinets, and to picture a perfect house that’s gleaming clean 100% of the time. But is that realistic for your life? Do you have a gaggle of children who like to destroy your house? Do you entertain a lot and need more than one piece of minimalist furniture?

After you’ve narrowed everything down, use your intel to search for materials in that style (i.e., a white kitchen scheme with shaker cabinets and brass hardware). Then take one final gut check to see if it’s the direction your heart’s been leading you all along.

Check out more inspiring tips on Houselogic!

The post Drowning In Home Design Ideas? appeared first on Vintage Revivals.

Happy Monday you guys!!!

Too perky? Should we go with just one ! ?

I’ve been traveling for a solid week and I am THRILLED to be back home and in the swing of things! If you’ve hung around Vintage Revivals for a little bit you know that waaaaayyyy back in 2012 I got the idea to draw on my walls with a Sharpie paint pen. It has since spurred a whole new DIY revolution, the Sharpie wall. I’ve done a few since then and love each one more than the last. Its such an easy inexpensive way to get the look of high end detailed metallic wallpaper without the cost. And by without the cost, I mean this project will cost you $8. Booyah!

Ready to get started? He’res what you you need:

Oil Based Sharpie Paint Pen
(for a wall this size I used 2 but I recommend if you can to overbuy and take back the ones that you don’t use.) Please note that’s is NOT a regular Sharpie marker. If you use a Sharpie marker you will have a heck of a time repainting your walls because it will keep bleeding through.

Straight edge
I LOVE clear fabric rulers for this project because you can see exactly where everything lines up.
Level
Tape Measure
Pencil

Start by lightly drawing level lines on your wall with a pencil. They should be 10″ apart. (the horizontal lines in this tutorial are photoshopped, they aren’t actually that dark! ;))

Easy enough?

The next step is to mark where your diamonds are going to be. My diamonds are 14″ wide so to get the pattern spaced right I started against the wall.

(I did the following step on pictures with the diamonds already drawn so you could actually see why you’re doing what you’re doing! You won’t have diamonds drawn at this point!) On every other line you are going to mark the corner, then 7″, the corner, then 7″, etc.

Then from that point forward you are going to measure and mark 14″ on all of the marks.

When you’re done you should have a very light version of this:

The next step is to use you’re straight edge to connect the dots (lalalala)

Last its time to add the detail inside the diamonds.

Measure and mark 2″ and 4″ from either side of your diamond. (the gray lines running across the diamonds are where you’re pencil line is!)

Draw a line by connecting that mark to the top and bottom of your diamond.

So good, so cheap, so fooling everyone.

PSSSST!! Love that print? You can snag the download at its introductory price (and save $20!) here!! 

Check out the rest of the projects from Aspyn’s room here!

The post DIY Gold Sharpie Wall appeared first on Vintage Revivals.

Hello!! I’ve got a very exciting announcement.

I’m not a lumberyard virgin anymore!!!! You may be rolling your eyes like “yeah, so?” but this is a big deal for this girl!

I have always wanted to go to a lumberyard, I’ve always wanted to build stuff out of awesome wood, I’ve even googled local yards on multiple occasions. But I just couldn’t ever pull the trigger. There was something super intimidating about it, and though I’m not one that is easily scared off, I was terrified of this unknown world. A couple of months ago I was chatting with my friend who owns a cabinet shop and asked him where in the world he scored all of gorgeous wood that he uses for cabinets. He told me the lumberyard (of course) and so I asked him, how exactly does it work? He told me that he was pretty sure that they would sell it to me (that I didn’t have to be a tradesman) and that they would bring it out and I could pick the pieces that I want. Seemed easy enough. So when the time came to build Tyler’s headboard I was pumped and ready to go buy wood. at the lumberyard.

Deep breath.

The closer I got to the yard, the more nervous I became. I was actually sweating, which is a huge thing for me because I NEVER sweat. Even at the gym.

When I got there, I walked into the office. There were some seriously burly men behind the counter that looked up at me and kind of did the eyebrow raise head tilt like I was lost. (I’m sure looked like I was!) I told them that I wanted to buy some awesome wood and asked how one would go about doing so. They asked what kind I wanted (I had no idea! Is awesome a type?!) and pointed to a wall of different wood blocks. There are no prices, just types. So I picked my favorite and asked how much it was. When you buy wood from Home Depot its priced per liner foot meaning the width of the board doesn’t matter, it is just based on how much length you need. When you buy wood from the lumberyard it is priced per square foot, so they take into account the width and length of the board. I didn’t completely understand but nodded in agreement, acted like I knew what was going on, and they asked me to pull my truck into the dock.

A guy with a forklift and a massive pile of wood came out and I was sort of surprised at just how different each piece was. When you buy lumber from the yard its rough cut, meaning there is no standard size. You have to cut it to the size you need and smooth everything out yourself.

I picked a few pieces that had really pretty coloring, the guy took out his tape measure and measured the boards and wrote some stuff on a paper that I then took back into the office to pay for. I had NO IDEA how much this thing was going to cost me. I didn’t know if I was spending $40 or $400. It felt like I was walking the green mile because what if it was $400 and I had to tell them that I didn’t want to spend $400 and then I had to unload all of the wood out of my truck?! I would look like such a freak!!

Luckily it was only $70. Which I was very comfortably surprised about. After I had paid, they asked me if I wanted a donut and I felt a little bit like part of the gang. Granted I haven’t been back yet, but I feel like I could rock that lumberyard like a pro next time.

So, do you have any tips for lumberyard newbs? I would LOVE some more insight!

Tutorial for the headboard is coming tomorrow, but dare I say, it turned out pretty fantastic!

Can you hear the angels singing, pretty sure that the light streaming in helps with that sound effect a little….

The post My 1st Trip to the Lumber Yard appeared first on Vintage Revivals.

Hello! We’ve got another Fearless DIY episode up on The Design Network for you today and it’s all about the accent pillows! Frayed and Fringed accent pillows to be precise. With leather, because its me.

Here is a little teaser for you!

FearlessDIY_PillowFestClips from Mandi Gubler on Vimeo.

The first pillow is one of my all time favorites!

Can you believe that I still have leather kicking around from when I skinned that couch?!  Its going to be a sad sad day when its all gone.

If you’re a fresh faced pillow makin’ newb you might want to get started with these step by step tutorials for making an envelope pillow and making a zipper pillow, cause in this tutorial I’m going to skim over that and get more into the things that make these guys uber special.

To make this pillow you’re going to need:

2 pieces of leather that are the same size. (Mine measure 8×15)

1 spool of cotton rope (mine came from Joann, get it in the upholstery section)

Batting

Start by cutting your leather to size, once that is done its time to sew the rope on. Make sure that you watch the episode to learn from my massive mistake while doing this!

While you are sewing, double check that your leather is right side up! It will look like this when you’re done.

After you’ve sewn the rope on all 4 sides its time to attach your back piece.

It’s going to be a little awkward because all of the rope is inside the pillow, until you flip it right side out. Then you can see it for all of it’s shaggy gloriousness.

Next we’re going to make a leather fringe pillow.

Start by cutting 5 pieces that are 6 inches tall and the width of your pillow. Mine measure 6×19.

For fringe cutting you are most definitely going to want to use a fabric ruler and rotary cutter.

Stack 2 pieces of leather on your cutting mat (make sure that they are lined up with the lines on the mat) and use a piece of painters tape to secure it. That part is suuuuper important.

You are going to cut strips every 1/4” all along the piece of leather. To make this go a little bit faster (but lets be honest, its not the fastest project ever) cut on both sides of your ruler.

Fringy! The last step is to sew them on the pillow base. Space them evenly and go to town!

The last pillow is the easiest one of all!

The idea is really similar to this ripple art. Start with your first shape, and then enlarge it, and then enlarge it again!

To get the fringe-fest happening here, just sew the pieces on top of each other and leave 1/2” seam allowance.

Use a seam ripper to fray the ends and you are done!

Make sure to check out the video tutorial on The Design Network here!

The post Pillow-fest! 3 Pillow Tutorials to Boost Your Design Game appeared first on Vintage Revivals.

Its my favorite of all blogging days! Its Room Reveal day!!! YEAH! If you’ve been following along all month then you are totally aware of what is going on here. If you’re a newb then welcome and lets get you up to speed!

All month I’ve been overhauling my daughter Ivie’s bedroom. I was assigned one of six trends by HGTV Powerhouse Taniya Nayak and my friends at Frogtape and given $1000 budget to make some magic.

Lets get on with the reveal yes?

This was the jumping off point.

We took everything out of her room that we weren’t going to use and that basically left us with a white box and a dresser.

This is what it looks like now:

Ivie loves it.  I love it. Its a good day at the Gubler house. Sources and more tutorials are coming so stay tuned! Next Monday voting begins and I would LOVE to be able to donate $5000 to Children’s Miracle Network, so get your voting fingers ready and I’ll let you know when its live!

The biggest thanks to Frogtape for inspiring us to make this project happen, and head over and check out the other contestants rooms, they are amazing!!

The post Ivie’s Bedroom Makeover Reveal!! appeared first on Vintage Revivals.

Oh hello! We’re launching a new video series today that I hope you’ll love! Tip Tuesday!!

Every Tuesday I’ll be posting a bitesize video with a tip to make your DIY lovin’ life easier! Up first, the secret to caulking. It seems easy enough, you squeeze out the caulk and then wipe off the excess. But its easy to screw up and make a gigantic mess…unless you use a cup of water.

This tip comes in handy like you wouldn’t believe, especially when you see tomorrow’s bathroom update. Stay tuned!

Do you have any questions that I could answer in a Tip Tuesday video? Email them to me at [email protected] or leave them in the comments below!!

The post Tip Tuesday: The Secret to Caulking appeared first on Vintage Revivals.

Hey!! If you’re just tuning in, you’re in for an adventure. We are completely overhauling our builder boring beige bathroom (say that 10x fast!) on a small budget using stuff that we already have. The Rock What Ya Got bathroom makeover! (Make sure to catch the past posts in this series at the end of this post!)

When it came time to really figure out what was happening in the bathroom design it was looking really white. I love white. But it was like white white. No contrast whatsoever. Which is a whole different kind of boring.  Also, a reflector is a great way to visualize a mirror if you are in a bind.

We had just enough of the black matte penny tile leftover from the Laundry Room Makeover to cover a section of the wall.

So out came the toilet…again. And the new cabinet (we’ll talk about that in a bit).

In went the penny tile. You can see my post all about tile here. Penny tile is tricky tricky, you’ve got to stagger it because it is very easy to see the seams.

We didn’t have any Fusion Pro premixed grout left over from the Laundry Room, but we did have some grout left over from the kitchen tile. If you hear nothing else from this post today, hear this. Get the Fusion Pro. It is better in every imaginable way. The texture, the color, the wipe ability, the stain resistance, the color consistency. Every.living.thing.

I wasn’t sure about how I wanted to finish off the edge of the tile so we lived with it like that for a bit, I cant wait to show you what we did!! Stay tuned!

The post Rockin’ The Penny Tile Leftovers | Bathroom Update appeared first on Vintage Revivals.