Category: DIY

Ask the Builder: Bringing Stamped Concrete Back to Life

If you’ve witnessed hundreds and hundreds of full moons in your lifetime and make frequent use of your critical-thinking skills, you know the sun is constantly at work ruining things inside and outside your home. One of these might be the expensive stamped-concrete patio, driveway or sidewalk you had installed a few years ago. The…


DIY Peppermint Sugar Scrubs

Sugar scrubs are great for the skin. Packed with cleansing, moisturizing, and exfoliating properties, they’re simple to make and don’t use too many ingredients. Soap artist Katie from Royalty Soaps shared her recipe for DIY peppermint sugar scrubs. Follow along to make your own—perfect for yourself or as a gift to friends and family!  Refer…


Enjoy Relaxing by a DIY Garden Sitting Wall

Dear James: I want a patio, butterfly garden and a sitting wall by a slope. I think a simple no-mortar wall would look nice. What is the best way to build a stable wall this way? — Catherine T. Dear Catherine: Butterfly, and pollinator in general, gardens are very popular today and really needed. With…


Install an LED Night Light

Anyone who stumbles in a dark hallway knows the value of a sensor night light. Sure, you can use a plug-in version, but having one wired into your electrical system is a nice upgrade. We’ve enjoyed the safety of having one that combines an electrical receptacle with an LED (light emitting diode) night light. The…


How to Clean Painted Walls

Freshly painted walls can instantly brighten up a room, making a dingy space feel cleaner, brighter and more appealing. It’s also a far less expensive option than putting up new drywall or buying new furniture for a room, and for this reason, paint is often the first tool homeowners and renters turn to when looking…


Bringing the Natural World Indoors: How to Craft Your Way to Happiness

You may have noticed the recent movement toward huge picture windows and fancy bifold doors being fitted into people’s homes. Maybe you’re one of those people. Maybe your neighbors are (and you secretly envy them). What’s fueling this desire to install gigantic plates of glass in our walls? Simply put, it’s to bring the outside…


3 Reasons I Cook (And Bake!) With Sunshine

On one ordinary day back in 2012, a hefty envelope turned up in my snail mail containing a very kind letter along with a mechanical drawing so detailed it made me want to chew my hair. The sender thought I would be the perfect person to build my own solar oven. Right. Like that was…


How to Transform Concrete to Any Color

Every day, I receive quite a few emails via the Ask Tim page AskTheBuilder.com. A common question, believe it or not, is how to add color to concrete. It makes sense. A lot of people dislike the drab gray color of concrete. So people ask me about painting garage floors, steps, patios and even sidewalks….


Do It Yourself: Install Ceiling Crown Molding

It’s hard to deny the character of an old home with crown ceiling molding outlining the room. And it’s a popular feature in new homes, as builders know new homebuyers are looking for that striking distinction in rooms. You can add that to an ordinary room by installing wooden crown molding and finishing it with…


Threading and Dermaplaning: Is It the Best Exfoliant for Glowing Skin?

Is dermaplaning and threading the secret to soft, supple, and glowing skin?? There are many different forms of exfoliation, and this is one that we haven’t covered till today! Ro gets it done on the streets of Taiwan and Fel does a DIY threading treatment at home! Will there be pain and tears? We can’t…