Beadboard Backsplash Tutorial - Part 1

I've not been sewing much this past week because I've started a new project (or 3). This definitely falls in the Home Improvement category and not in the Sewing or Knitting ones, so feel free to click away. My feelings won't be hurt. :-) However, maybe this will help someone out, so here goes...

We moved last summer to Florida, into a brand new, perfect home (yea!). It has no "backsplash" in the kitchen except for the 3" Corian counter lip thing. After painting the kitchen walls BRIGHT green, the kitchen was feeling a bit dark, and I wanted some sort of backsplash. I got the inspiration from The Lettered Cottage, and decided white beadboard was the way to go. Hubs left 2 weeks ago (he'll be gone for work for 4 months), so I figured there's no time like the present! Here is my beadboard backsplash journey....

I used pre-primed panels that lock together. They were a very manageable size to install myself. It would have been cheaper to get a huge sheet of un-primed beadboard, but I could have never gotten it cut accurately and nailed up by myself.

First, measure the height of the backsplash area you want to cover and cut some pieces that length. I used my miter saw and needed to flip the pieces over to cut the whole way through.



It probably won't take long for you to come to an outlet. Remove the plastic cover and start marking. If your outlet will fall between two sections of board (easier to deal with), hold up a board and mark the tip and bottom of the outlet. It's always better to err on the side of too small an opening. You can always make it a bit bigger, but if you make the hole bigger than your outlet cover, you've wasted a board.

To mark the vertical edge of the outlet, you can measure or use my very unscientific method of laying down the board where it will ajoin the next one and using a straight edge to find the mark for cutting.

Here is the rectangle I need to cut out:

Using a jigsaw, cut the two lines intersecting with the edge.

Then, you'll have to take out the rectangle in two chunks as shown.

Wash off the saw dirties with a damp sponge.

Cut the other side of the outlet the same way. Maybe you'll get lucky and have it also be the edge of the counter bordering the refrigerator...


After cutting this outlet, I realized I need to cut them big enough to clear some screws that protrude a bit from the outlet, so back to the jigsaw I went.

Much better

Here is one that I had to cut in the middle of a board. I marked the rectangle first.

To use your jigsaw to cut out the rectangle, first use a drill with a large bit to make some holes big enough to slide your jigsaw blade into.

Then cut out each corner separately.


What I neglected to show was how I attached my boards to the wall. I've read that you can glue and nail, but I found nailing to be quite sufficient. I like to know I could remove it if I really want to without the drywall coming with it. I would dry fit 4 or 5 pieces and then nail some in before continuing. This project has given me the practice to be quite confident with my nailing skills.

Thus concludes part one of my beadboard saga. Future installments include covering a wall including baseboard and cap rail, raising your outlets to beadboard depth, and decorative moulding and finishing. Who's excited? :-)

Lampshade Redo

So... I took photos of this whole process, but iPhoto ate them. Grrrrrr.

Anyway, it's not that complicated. This little project started when I saw a lovely linen lampshade for $30 or something like that. I bought the $7 plain white lampshade instead and brought it home. Then I found some coarse linen in my stash that was rougher than I expected it to be when I ordered it online. I rolled the lampshade along the linen and drew my "pattern, leaving about an inch on each side and extra for the seam. The resulting shape of fabric is kind of like a section of a big circle (this is where a photo would have been nice).

Then I used a good old glue stick to attach the fabric to the cheap lampshade. That's right - a plain old glue stick. It was really simple, not messy, and has held up for the month or so since I made this.

Here's the result:

Shorts, cooking, and painting

This morning, I diligently took pictures of my newest complete garment, a pair of wool shorts. Unfortunately, I didn't want to drag my pint-sized photographer outside and didn't want to get out the nice camera and change the lens, and they came out very badly, so I'll be staging another photo shoot soon.

Until then, here's a quick look at the problem I had with pockets bagging out.


I simply unstitched the basting at the top of the pocket and pulled the front piece up about 3/8". Worked like a charm.


In other news, here's a lovely Florida tomato tart I made on Sunday night. Isn't it pretty? I got the recipe from a little booklet that was free with a local farm stand purchase of tomatoes. Unfortunately, my husband wasn't a huge fan of the spice mixture and texture, and the kids weren't crazy about it (and they're not generally picky eaters), so if I make it again, I'll definitely tweak it a bit. Kind of sad when your homemade pie crust and fresh, local produce culminate in a pretty, but not delicious ending.


Finally, here's a look at my kitchen walls. You may recall I had painted them bright green and then had second thoughts about the brightness. I ended up sponge-painting over all but the wall behind the cabinets with a lighter green. I'm happy with the results and am anxious to make the curtains. I'm not allowing myself to buy the fabric until I touch up the white trim, though. :-) (and that's my littlest ham, trying to find the perfect piece to complete his train track. He couldn't find it by rummaging, so I guess he had to get in and have a look.)