Posts

Top 5 Jewelry Boxes Best for Travel: Benevolence LA Travel Jewelry Box Organizer Best Wooden Box: Emfogo Jewelry Box Best Transparent Box: Mebbay Jewelry Box Best for Kids: The Memory Building Company Musical Ballerina Jewelry Box Most Ornate: Hipiwe Vintage Metal Jewelry Box Key Features Has a zipper lid Includes a built-in mirror Made from velvet Measures 3.75 by 3.75 by 1.97 inches What Customers Are Saying Customers with a limited jewelry collection were pleased with how well this mini box was able to contain all of their items....

Egress Doors Classic steel basement doors meet IRC 2018 building code requirements for emergency egress in finished basement living areas. And their wide openings allow you to easily move large seasonal items (like bikes and patio furniture) into and out of the basement when not in use. BILCO basement doors come in several material and finish options to complement any home. NOTE FOR BASEMENT REMODELERS: If you add a sleeping room or other habitable space to an older home, you’ll need to add an egress window or door, even if there was no egress before....

When used safely (plugged into an outlet—not an extension cord—and kept at least 3 feet away from drapes, bedding, and furniture), a space heater lets you keep a small area toasty without having to make the rest of the house feel like a sauna. Use our mini-guide to find out which is the best space heater for your chilliest room. 4 Best Space Heaters 1. Radiator Space Heater Model DeLonghi oil-filled radiator, about $91...

Dress Up a Dresser Designer Barb Blair, who snagged the dresser shown here at an estate sale, has become a pro at this type of makeover. Start with a plan: Map out where you need to cut by laying the paper flat on the furniture, then use a utility knife to trim pieces to the precise size. Instead of wallpaper paste, which can soak into wood, Blair recommends craft adhesive. For a polished finish that helps keep the paper in place, add a few coats of polyurethane before replacing the hardware....

Smarter Circuit Breaker Instead of old-school, electrical-box eyesores, we opted for two sleek load centers with observation windows that keep the circuits dust-free. Their plug on design made installation easy. And we added Internet connectivity that will allow the future homeowners to turn off any circuit breaker remotely, view their energy consumption in real time, and calculate their monthly energy costs. LOAD CENTERS: Leviton Hidden-in-Plain-Sight Door Stops One of the innovations visitors to our 2019 Idea House oohed and aahed over most is a product that’s barely noticeable....

This story originally appeared in the Winter 2021 Issue of This Old House Magazine. Click here to learn how to subscribe. Your home is your haven, a place of comfort and security. But in one respect, it may hold hazards you haven’t thought much about. “People feel safest from fires when they’re at home, but in reality, that’s where they are at greatest risk,” says Susan McKelvey of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)....

Festool TS 55 Track Saw This saw rides on a guide rail, or track, providing accuracy and versatility. The TS 55 track saw delivers precise, splinter-free, glue-ready cuts and only takes seconds to set up. Breaking down sheet goods? Cutting at an obscure angle? No longer is there a need to design a complex jig or move heavy material to your large shop equipment. See the Festool TS 55 Track Saw in action here....

Previous episode: S42 E23 | Next episode: S42 E25 In this episode: Our Generation Next Apprentices have spent time with master electrician Heath Eastman, paint expert Mauro Henrique and his crew, and Russ and Charlie Silva’s carpenters. Today, their experience goes up a level: to the roof. To learn more about the trade, they head to a roofing academy in New Jersey to meet Brian Cornelius and Daniel Caviano. In the top floor kitchen, host Kevin O’Connor finds Sean McCarron installing the wood grain floating floor before the vinyl plank flooring goes in....

Thanks to a growing interest in homeowner DIY projects and a proliferation of online DIY tutorials, more and more inexperienced homeowners are DIY-ing home improvement jobs, some with costly and dangerous consequences. We asked Adam Long, President of HomeTeam Inspection Service, about the most hazardous DIY design trends he’s seeing and what types of projects homeowners should avoid. What Is a Home Inspector? Long defines a home inspector as someone who visually inspects a home to ensure all the parties involved in the financial transaction fully understand the house before it is purchased....

It’s no surprise the National Association of Home Builders found that 85 percent of home buyers considered a kitchen pantry “essential” or “desirable.” Behind closed doors—or perhaps concealed by a pullout mechanism—this storage spot is your kitchen’s secret weapon. Arranging it properly will help you speed through meal planning and prep since you’ll know where all your food staples are and be able to access them easily. A cluttered or chaotic pantry, alas, can be a total twilight zone, where simply grabbing a snack can feel daunting....

Rebuilt Porch for a Folk Victorian: Before Katie Brashear-Nihart’s stepdad meticulously re-created the original wraparound porch on this circa-1874 Folk Victorian. Rebuilt Porch for a Folk Victorian: After “We’re only the third family to own it,” Brashear-Nihart wrote. “The previous folks made a lot of changes, including ripping off much of the original porch rather than repairing the rot. But they gave us a picture of a painting of the exterior as it looked in 1950, and we were inspired....

Overlooking one side of the living room, the office space lets Amy keep tabs on what’s happening downstairs. Built by local craftsmen to Amy’s custom design, the desk has a view to the front so she can keep an eye out for arriving guests. Wall sconces light the way down the hall to the double-door owner’s suite entry. Desk: Custom designed by Amy Matthews, fabricated by Forest Products Supply, Inc.; Paint: Super White (walls), Simply White (ceilings) by Benjamin Moore; Lighting: Circa Lighting; Flooring (office): Baird Brothers Fine Hardwoods; Hardwood Floor Installation and Refinishing: Grain LLC...

Spin mops have circular microfiber heads that help clean your floors and other hard-to-reach areas and come with mop buckets that have built-in spinning baskets that fling water and dirt from the mop’s head. Whether you need a tool for whole-floor or spot cleaning, spin mops are an affordable and easy-to-use cleaning solution. Top 4 Spin Mops Easiest To Wring: Hurricane Spin Mop Best Accessories: Tsmine Spin Mop Bucket System Most Mobile: Mopnado Deluxe Rolling Spin Mop Easiest To Maintain: BOOMJOY Spin Mop Easiest To Wring: Hurricane Spin Mop Pros and Cons ✔ Its bucket has a built-in pedal for wringing the mop head✔ Its flexible mop head pivots 360 degrees✔ Features a translucent bucket that helps you monitor its water level...

Top 5 Fans Best Mini Fan: snawowo Mini Handheld Personal Portable Fan Best Design: Vornado VFAN Vintage Air Circulator Fan Best Box Fan: Hurricane Box Fan Best Purifying Fan: Blueair Pure Fan Best Window Fan: Comfort Zone CZ319WT Nine-Inch Twin Window Fan Best Mini Fan: snawowo Mini Handheld Personal Portable Fan This handheld fan has bendable metal tripod legs that are coated in silicone, making for easy attachment to any surface....

Top 5 Sewing Machines Best Computerized Machine: Brother CS7000X Computerized Sewing and Quilting Machine Best Instructions: Brother GX37 Sewing Machine Best Speed: SINGER 4423 Sewing Machine Best Basic Machine: SINGER Mechanical MX60 Sewing Machine Best Value: Magicfly Mini Sewing Machin Best Computerized Machine: Brother CS7000X Computerized Sewing and Quilting Machine This Brother sewing machine has a digital display, allowing you to see what function you input. With over 70 built-in stitches, this Brother sewing machine gives you a lot of versatility when it comes to your sewing projects....

Top 5 Water Filters Best Whole-House Filter: APEC Water Systems ROES-50 Essence Series Drinking Water Filter System Best Filter Pitcher: Brita Water Pitcher Best Countertop Filter: Brita Ultra Max Filtering Dispenser Best Water Bottle: LifeStraw Go Water Filter Bottle Best Faucet Mount: PUR Faucet-Mount Water Filtration System Best Whole-House Filter: APEC Water Systems ROES-50 Essence Series Drinking Water Filter System This water filtration system filters the water in your home to give you drinking water that’s clear of arsenic, fluoride, chlorine, nitrates, heavy metals, volatile organic chemicals, and more....

Antique bath fixtures Richard explains the current system most homeowners have in their bathrooms. It’s a bath, waste and overflow system. There is a drain which includes a stopper, activated by either a lever or a foot pedal in the drain. The system also includes an overflow. That is a hole above the drainage pipe in the side of the tub. If the water in the tub ever gets too high, the water will begin to seep down the drain and not flood the house....

Norwalk, CT, April 19, 2021 – This Old House is pleased to announce that it is joining forces with husband-and-wife-team Jerry and Sandy Effren of Greyrock Homes and Clay Fowler, CEO and Chairman of Spinnaker Real Estate Partners, on an exciting pocket neighborhood of ten cottages in Norwalk, CT. The Cottage Community is sited on a wooded lot overlooking Five Mile River and consists of five structures—each housing two cottages attached to their neighbors by single-car garages to ensure quiet privacy....

Everyone wants well-built and attractive cabinets for their kitchen. But if protecting your health is also high on your list of priorities, then it’s also important to have non-toxic cabinets that are free of formaldehyde and don’t off-gas harmful chemicals. Formaldehyde is a naturally occurring organic compound that’s used in the production of industrial resins and found in many composite wood products. These products put out gaseous formaldehyde in the air, which can pose numerous health risks as a carcinogen and neurotoxin....

What do you do with a washed-up bathtub? You could replace it with a new one, but that’s not an easy proposition. Most tubs are set in an alcove or corner, lapped by the flooring and wall finishes to create a watertight seal and tied down in at least two places by plumbing. If you’re ready for a full-scale bathroom remodel, a bathtub replacement makes sense. If you’re not, you’re looking at creating a real mess and spending $2,000 to $3,000 for little visual change....