Was I the Last to Know?

In my furniture rehabbing adventures, I've often had one sticky problem that is now solved. Just in case I'm not the last to know about this, here's a quick and easy solution to handle bolts that are too long.

Often, the original hardware isn't the right look for all our fabulous makeovers. We want shinier, darker, bolder, smaller...just different handles than what we're working with. This was the case with my recent dresser transformation. I liked the longer pulls just fine (after spray painting them a shiny silver), but the four single knobs weren't anything special.

Before

After

I bought some new little knobs and when I put them in, the screws were too long.

2 pliers, a nut, and a too long handle bolt for a new knob

Usually I put a washer behind it and call it good, but a recent trip to my local Ace hardware store gave me the solution. One of the workers gave me this tip: when a screw is cut down, the threads get messed up and make the whole thing useless. The trick is to screw a nut onto the screw before cutting it.

The trickiest part of this whole thing might be finding a nut that fits

Go ahead and cut the bolt down; I used my pliers and a whole lot of hand strength. Maybe bolt cutters would've been easier...but the pliers were handy.

Now just go ahead and unscrew the nut from the bolt. This realigns the threads, the knob screws in just fine and voila! the new knob now fits perfectly in the dresser!

Hopefully this helps someone else in their furniture rehabbing projects.

Going Bananas

Ever have a need and just want to fix it simply and easily? Here's something that I finally took care of that should make my hubs very happy.

What in the world?

My husband has a problem with bananas. Not in the 'They're just so yellow' or 'Why do they always travel in bunches' type of problem; he loves them, but hates how they get bruised just sitting around. I know, I know - just get a banana hanger and be done with it, right?

Well, if you have the infamous galley kitchen with ONE countertop space to work with you know my answer: Just Say No! to anything else on the counters. I'm forever shoving stuff in a drawer or cabinet to get it off the counter. Drives my husband crazy when I put his wallet in the drawer, but I digress.

To fix the problem without adding to counter clutter (shudder), I simply drilled a small pilot hole into the cabinet and screwed in a simple hook.

To those of you who are hesitant to drill into perfectly fine cabinets, I say: it's underneath, it's wood and meant to be drilled into, and if you take it out later - a little wood putty takes care of the small hole. Go ahead and drill if it makes your life a little easier.

To those of you who wonder if the hook isn't decorative enough or if stands out, take a look:

It doesn't really stand out too much as it's near the radio (which is also hung from the cabinets and off the counter), and when the hook is being used properly...

...it's not seen at all. Since we always have bananas in the house, this should work just fine and it only cost 36 cents. Not everything has to be decorative folks.

Alas, the counter was only cleared for the pictures and is now filled with mail, assorted water bottles, and other household clutter *sigh*.

As a sneak peak of what I've been working on for a little while and am impatiently waiting on a delivery to finish:

More on that piece coming soon! Until then, I'm going to go take advantage of the beautiful weather and spray paint my little heart out :) Happy August everyone!