What to do with an old barn door

By now you know that I really dislike buying new and if I can find a unique way to use an old item, I will.  

I needed a 30 inch door for a sliding pocket door in my new room but didn't really want to buy one.  I love the texture and color of old wood and considered building one out of scrap wood found in my machine shed.  One day out feeding my chickens I noticed this door inside my barn looked about the right size.  

So, after an hour of struggling with the rusty nails on the hinges and another hour scrubbing 60 plus years of cow manure and dust off of it, I had this really neat looking door.  Its still wet in the picture, it hasn't been finished yet.

So here I am with this cool door, not quite long enough, or thick enough to hang as a pocket door.  

First thing I did was attach a piece of 1 X 6 to the back at the top, glue up the loose pieces and  secure with a band of metal and some machine screws.  I was able to attach the sliding hardware to the top of it.   

Once I had it ready to hang - here we are

Looks gorgeous doesn't it?  Wasn't hard to do, considering a middle aged female with no real carpentry training did this.  Ok so not quite, I had help with my son Jesse.  Never hang a door alone unless you're a master or something.  Even with help it slipped and whacked me in  the head.  A black eye is a small price to pay for beauty right?

So, now the pocket door was in place, shimmed, trimmed and secured down - I took down the door and added the missing length to the bottom.  Same process as the top, add a 1 X 6 board with some glue and machine screws, and fit in a 1 X 3 to the bottom to add length.  I put some stain on it to match the color of the old wood.  - I think the finished look is pretty cool - don't you think?

 I saved the original trim boards from the old room, so this should look pretty good.  This will be possibly my favorite piece in the room, but then I just like being able to say "I did that by myself!"

Making a 4 post bed from porch posts - (and sleep like a queen in it)

My life is a work in progress, always learning, always looking for something to create.  

A couple of years ago driving by another neighbors place, I noticed he had 4 porch posts in his burn pile.  Hmmm... what could I do with that?  So I called him and politely asked for permission to take them.  

About 10 years ago my sister threw out an old door and some wood trim boards from her old house and I brought them home.  Again, not knowing what I would do with them.  

One day it hit me - why not make a 4 post bed from the posts and use the door as a headboard?  

I am finally beginning this adventure of a project, here's a picture of the materials. 

Here we are, the new room is nearing the end and its time to start the centerpiece of the room.  

First I cut the posts to size - 80 inches is plenty, since most doorframes are about that high.  I used that by marking my cut all around with an rafter angle and cutting an inch or two on each side with my Sawzall.  (yes, I saved the leftover pieces).  
Then I laid the pieces for the headboard out with one door setting it with a 2X8 joist hanger 8 inches from the floor.  I plan the footboard to be 4 inches from the floor. 

 Below is a close up.  Its that easy, attach the joists with wood screws. 

To make sure the door is centered on the post, I laid a 2x6 underneath the door edge.  I then attached the upper part of the door to the post with a simple L bracket, attached with wood screws.  I plan to paint this all later so the hardware will blend with the wood.

 The last step for the headboard is to make sure the whole thing is square-  the top of the posts must be the same distance from each other as the bottoms.  In this case its 79.5 inches, then I put a small piece of board attached to the top with a nail on each post to keep it square. 

And TADA!!!  There's the rough draft of my headboard.  It stands on its own nicely - that's my helper Matt back there, he is a whiz at reading a tape measure when I can't find my reading glasses.  

Next up - piece together the footboard with the same steps and start on the side rails.  

Stay tuned!

Stripping down an old room -

Here's a little bit about me.  I suffer from aches and pains, more so than the usual aging aches - my dr thinks its fibromyalgia and that could very well be.  I've spent a lot of money on tests and they're all negative for the usual -arthritis, etc. 

I refuse to let this slow me up.  I got stuff to do and no time to be sick - I work full time at Principal Financial Group and spend as much time as possible with my sons and grandsons.  I also want a nice house and nice things so its either get off my azz and do things for myself or win the lotto.  

I decided it was time to tear out an upstairs bedroom and make it mine.  

With  the help of my sons Jesse & Matt and Grandson Daniel I got it to the bare studs

 Of course around here its Safety First! 

At the bare stud these walls look to me like a blank sheet of paper - what to do, what to do?

Stay tuned!!!

After spending $560 to have an electrician rewire the room, big thumbs up to Al's Electric in St Ansgar IA, I was able to insulate and drywall - so here's the next phase -
Drywall up - mud comes next!!!

That far pocket door in the last - that's got its own story.  

Wow my first blog!

I'm starting this blog because as I work on my projects around this old place I post photos and updates on Facebook, which seems to have a bit of a following.  So here I am... sharing my ideas with the world. 

A little about me.  I work at Principal Financial Group, am a former Practical Nurse, and a mom of 3 sons, with one left living at home with me.   Matthew is my sidekick, my partner in crime.  

I have 2 grandsons who keep me young.  

Ever look at a piece of junk and think 'What can I do with this?  How can I use it?"  Oh, you don't? Well maybe you should start!  

It could be my parents experience with the Great Depression that makes me this way. I hate to see waste and I want the planet to be in better shape after I'm done with it.  Recycling is wonderful, but re-using and "upcycling" "repurposing" are becoming more important than ever. 

My neighbors are wonderful people, and they are extremely tolerant of my picking through items that will eventually be burned.  

(please no lectures - I live in the country and this is how we get rid of old wood items, we burn them... get over it).  

So check this out - I'm driving down my gravel road, and my neighbor had thrown out the above bench and crate - I stopped and threw them into my pickup - a few screws and a cleanup later and I have some interesting items to add to my house.  


12/9/12 - I thought I'd add to this posting -  I also got the below crate from the junk pile, well, two of them but the rougher one I gave to my niece Amanda.  

And look what she did with it!  She's a chip of the old block here isn't she? 

I have a few (maybe quite a few) projects finished and in different phases of completion, so I'll add to this later - but here we are... I started and will add to it again later.  I need to go get some work done.  Or as i like to say -See ya later!  I got sh*t to do!