Old ragged pavers to checkerboard yard (spring 2012)

After a mowing or two

Something strange went on in our yard during the 30+ years that the previous owners occupied this space. There's plenty of yard but they did some really strange things with bricks, pavers and concrete. Last weekend I decided to tackle one of them, an eyesore along the side of our house near a covered concrete patio. (The patio's no looker but can be concealed with an outdoor carpet during nicer weather).

Uneven, patchy paver area was a complete eyesor

This area is warped looking, with large faux brick squares. One of my biggest aesthetic pet peeves if faux anything. Maybe it's the influence of so many references to 'poseurs' by my high school friends in the late 80s. But I can't look at a chimney swathed in siding (really, why would anyone want a chimney to resemble wood??) or a formica countertop with a marbled design (like ours, unfortunately). Why can't we stand behind the materials we use and make the best of them? That's what I set out to do here.

In progress look at the checkerboard DIY fix for an awful group of pavers

Using a pitchfork, I pried up one paver at a time. That was pretty easy - as you can see there were enough gaps where crab grass and weeds had horned their way in. Once up, I slid the paver onto an abutting section of the lawn. I traced the outline of the square with my pitchfork, moved the paver to the side, and used a shovel to pry up that section of the turf. Then I slid the sod chunk over into the space left behind by the paver.

Gap left by a pried-up paver, before it was filled with grass

I learned during this process is that the grass roots probably don't need more clearance than what was left by the paver. At first I carved out a deeper hole, assuming the clods of mud on the grass roots would create a bump that might trip people. But when I tamped down the grass with my foot (my daughter also helped jump on them), they sunk too far down. So I ended up filling the gaps back in. By the fourth or so try, I just moved the grass over without doing anything special with the hole.

Paver on the left is flipped over to reveal a smooth surface that I prefer to the fake brick imprint

I took a gamble that the grass would last... I don't know much about its root system, what it needs in terms of sun, etc. This is a fairly shady area of the house, with only morning sun. But a week later and so far so good... it's still very green and healthy looking.

The pavers as they start to creep over into the yard...

Once I got going, each paver took about 10 minutes to replace - quite doable for the number that I was dealing with. It's not a professional job (level, sand under each paver, etc.) but it looks pretty good. I didn't really  know if it would look ridiculous but for the cost - an afternoon of my time - it was definitely worth the gamble. This section of our yard was such a shambles, there was very little risk that a mess-up would make it look worse. I'll have to take another shot from a distance this weekend.

Cost: $0
Time to complete: 2 hours for approx. 10 pavers, including some ramp-up time

Medicine cabinet decoupage (spring 2012)

Late-night transformation of a stock medicine cabinet into something more personal

For some reason, near midnight on a Thursday I thought it would be a good idea to try out an idea that had been rattling around my head for awhile. When the mood strikes, I guess... What I wanted to do was take a stock white medicine cabinet and paper the interior with something colorful and patterned.

In its original state

I wasn't sure if I should try wallpaper; I did not need a lot of material, and I don't know of any local shop where I could see the patterns in person. I saw mention of scrap booking paper for decoupage cut-outs. So when I had a free moment I ducked into a Michaels store. Turns out the scrap booking craze has left some detritus in its wake, in the form of a clearance section with heavy, almost card stock patterned paper. I found a few books of about 20 sheets for less than $3 each and figured that was an investment I could safely make - even if I completely screwed up this project.

Supplies (plus Mod Podge)

When I was a kid, my Mom always had a pot of Mod Podge nearby, which we used all the time. I was glad to see they still make it (and have not changed the label in 30 years, so it was easy to spot). This would serve as adhesive and water-proofing, so the paper would not absorb steam from the shower and buckle. Of course, this is a permanent solution - if I wallpapered, I believe the paste is more forgiving. But I figured that this could always be covered over again.

In progress (a single piece would not fit the entire back so I opted for a collage)

I started by choosing a few sheets that had the watery colors already in the bathroom. Then I cut up the sheets into more manageable chunks. Intact, they were not wide or long enough to span the back of the medicine cabinet, and I did not want a noticeable seam. I figured, why not go for a collage, as the patterned pieces I chose were already busy. By layering them willy-nilly, there would be little expectation that things would line up perfectly.

Finished product

It was fun to slop on the mod podge and stick the triangles of paper on the background. It went up fast - immediate gratification. I'm not sure it is as attractive as I'd hoped, but I like it much better than the blank white background.

Now the odds and ends that collect in here sort of merge with the background...

Cost: <$5
Time to complete: a few hours