The end of 2009 also marked the close of our time on the True Value DIY Blog Squad, a short but productive three-month collaboration we happily announced earlier. While it’s bittersweet to wrap up, we’re grateful for everything that came from the partnership.
True Value helped us make major progress as we prepared for new additions to our family in 2010. They supplied gallons of Drylok to make the basement storage-ready, loaned the demolition hammer that jump-started our bathroom renovation (so we can move on to the nursery), and provided a range of essential supplies—dimmer switches, paint, storage bins, drills, spray paint, puck lights, rollers, brushes and drop cloths—that kept our projects moving. They also offered helpful advice along the way. We’re very thankful to the folks at True Value for supporting and encouraging our projects.
Our fellow DIY Blog Squad members accomplished a lot in that same period. Their projects offered inspiration and practical how-to details we referenced during our own work. For example, the Bowers documented a thorough basement tiling project at All Bower Power that proved invaluable while we tiled our bathroom.
Layla and Kevin at A Lettered Cottage transformed an old door into a charming focal piece for their guest bathroom—another great example of repurposing and creative finishing.
Josh at Bungalow 23 has been experimenting with different paint strippers as part of a bedroom update, testing methods and materials to find what works best for his project.
The Handyguys Podcast shared practical painting tips in an episode focused on painting like a pro, including a recommendation for Frog Tape—something we’re eager to try on our next masking job.
Those examples are just a sampling of the projects our fellow squad members completed. If you have a few minutes, explore their sites for more True Value-backed projects—there’s a lot to learn and admire. And yes, our pup Burger was the smallest beneficiary of the squad perks—apparently one of the best seats in the store is a shopping basket when you weigh eight pounds.
Here’s to a year filled with demo-ing, painting, rebuilding, organizing, accessorizing and making spaces more functional. We expect 2010 to bring plenty more projects, and we’d love to hear what you accomplished in the past year and what you have planned next. Any big projects on your list for 2010?
Middle four images courtesy of All Bower Power, A Lettered Cottage, Bungalow 23 and The Handyguys Podcast.