Did you know that April 7th was National DIY Day? Honestly, neither did I. But when I found out it was I knew I wanted to share some of my favorite DIY’s with ya’ll. I’ve always loved making things and repurposing items. But up until a few years ago it was always simple things that didn’t require tools or a lot of creativity. It took a lot of nerve for me to get up the courage to start using big power tools. But once I did, there was no going back. I think the scariest one for me was my table saw. I was terrified of it. Today, though, it’s nothing. I use my saw all the time. And it has opened up a world of possibilities. From owning my small business to building all kinds of things for our home. My husband helps me with a lot of our projects, but all the designing is done by me. And I am comfortable enough using tools now that I often can start and finish a project on my own. I just let hubby help so he doesn’t feel left out or think I don’t need him. LOL.

I did not necessarily want a TV in our bedroom. They are an eyesore that is hard to decorate around. But hubby insisted. And then I saw these amazing TV lifts from http://www.touchstonehomeproducts.com that allow you to hide the TV in a cabinet. Unfortunately the pre-made cabinets they sell were out of stock and the waiting list was long. But that didn’t stop me. I got the TV lift and we built a cabinet to house it. By building our own we were able to customize it to our liking and paint it to match the rest of the room. We actually even built it to hold a larger TV since we would like to upgrade our TV someday. Now hubby gets his TV in the bedroom and I get a pretty space to decorate.

We also got our electric fireplace from Touchstone Home. We built the fireplace surround and have modified it a few different times to fit our house. But this latest style might just be my favorite. I love the clean, simple lines and minimalistic design. It fits in so well with our current living room decor.

I made this faux fireplace completely on my own. From start to finish. I was in the running to become a brand ambassador for a popular magazine and we had to design and build a DIY project. This was my submission. Although I didn’t get the gig, I’m still really proud of myself for making it to the finals and stepping out of my comfort zone. And I now have this beautiful piece to display in my kitchen and can say “I made that.”

My open shelving in my kitchen is probably one of the easiest DIY’s we’ve done but has had the biggest impact. This DIY completely transformed our kitchen. When I decided to take down our upper cabinets and add shelving I knew I didn’t want store bought brackets. I came up with the design I wanted and using scrap wood we had on hand, we built these. Super easy, super cheap and super cute.

Here’s another project I did completely by myself. I have always wanted a vintage pie safe. But all the ones I saw online were super expensive or not quite the style I had in mind. So I built my own. And the best part? It was free. I used only scrap wood from previous projects. Even the chicken wire and hinges and clasp were free. I’ll admit, it’s not perfect. But it is unique and I get asked all the time where I got it. The plate rack above it was also a DIY. And another free project I did. I built it right on to the wall. It’s such a fun place to store dishes, cookbooks and some of my vintage items.

Last but not least is our ground level deck. This is our latest DIY project and the most expensive. But the impact that this has on our front yard is huge. It looks so good and I cannot wait for summer nights spent on the patio. I truly believe anyone is capable of being a DIYer. If I can do it, trust me, you can do it too! So, Happy DIY Day!! Let’s build something.