Rain on a Tin Roof

DIY and Home Decor Blog. Fly Your Freak Flag.

DIY Projects

How to Install Nucore Flooring

By 88 Comments

YOU GUYS.

The 70’s Landing Pad is actually starting to not look like a construction zone.

Well, it’s starting to not look like a construction zone in the living room, dining room and hallway anyway.

After getting paint on the walls week before last, we’ve been putting down the new flooring in the hallway, living and dining rooms. This flooring will also go in the kitchen, stair landing and in the downstairs foyer as well, we just haven’t gotten that far yet. I’m finally moving past the point of “Oh my word, what have we gotten ourselves into?” to “Oh my word, it actually looks like a house and it’s pretty!” We still have quite a ways to go in the overall renovation, but there is a light at the end of the tunnel, y’all.

The flooring we are using for the kitchen, dining room, living room, hallway and all those other places where there’s going to be a lot of foot traffic is NuCore from Floor & Decor.

Click the link below to read the rest…

Read More

DIY Agate Slice Lamp Finials

By 27 Comments

Y’all.

I’m kinda of really super duper especially excited about this project.

It was one of those where I cooked it up in my head and I was like OMG. THAT IS AN AWESOME IDEA, JENNA.

And then I was like. Wait. Will it really work?

And then I tried it.

And I was like OH. MY. STARS. IT REALLY DID WORK. I CANNOT BELIEVE IT.

I really hope you can sense all this excitement I am feeling by my overuse of bolded capital letters.

Click the link below to read the rest…

Read More

DIY Wagons in 10 Minutes from Crates

By 32 Comments

Create your own “custom” wagons from crates in just minutes using this tutorial. It’s so simple and perfect for kids, holiday decorating and more! Find out how to make a wagon that can be used for all sorts of things below!

Read More

How to Add Feet to a Box Spring and Get Rid of the Footboard

By 22 Comments

When we set out to makeover Bill’s Room / The Guest Room / My Office, we really needed to relocate my desk so it wasn’t a focus in the room. Our best option was to move the desk to the small wall opposite the bed. However, it was relatively tight there. We needed to get that footboard out of the way to open up the space. In order to do that, we needed to figure out how to add feet to the box spring so we could eliminate the bed rails, and thus the footboard.

We figured out how to do it – and y’all I’m so mad I didn’t do it sooner because it was so easy and made a huge difference in the space.

Click the link below to read more…

Read More

Semi-Winning The Tablescape Game: DIY Stone Embellished Napkin Rings

By 16 Comments

I am not a tablescape person.

To be blunt, I suck at them.

It’s just too much thinking – there are too many things that have to be on a set table for me to also figure out what to use as a centerpiece, place cards, etc.

Now, doing one of those things solo without having to think of all the other jazz – I’m good.

Like last year – I had really cute, or really cute in my opinion anyway, also cheap, little painted pumpkins that doubled as place card holders.

And this year, I’m rocking one single element of the tablescape – the napkin and napkin ring.

Now, just let me say this is not too frou-frou. I’m not a frou-frou person and frou-frou just stresses me out. So if you were expecting a perfectly color coordinated full place setting to go along with that napkin and ring, I’m not your girl.

However, if you want pretty stone embellished napkin rings (done in under 10 minutes), then I’m totally your girl. 😉

Click the link below to read the rest…

Read More

DIY Selenite Knobs: Super Easy, Super Cheap, Super Pretty

By 19 Comments

During our staycation two weeks ago due to the hurricane, we visited the Land of the Gnomes.

Its not really the land of the gnomes, but that’s what I like to call it. I’ll tell you all about it in another post…

At every staycation stop, we let the circus get something from the gift shop to attempt and make up for not going to the beach.

Ok, I wanted something from just about every gift shop too.

In the Land of the Gnomes gift shop, I found a display of stones and gems.

They were pretty. And shiny.

Therefore, I was immediately sucked in.

Mainly because they were shiny.

After deliberating 10 minutes about which stones to buy and what I could do with them, I finally settled on a few small bars of selenite.

And I came home and made the prettiest, and cheapest, hardware knobs you ever did see…

Click the link below to read the rest of the post…

Read More

How to Raise Cabinets

By 9 Comments

So sometimes during a big project or after I finish a project, I start looking at all the little projects that made up that big project and I decide that some of those little projects probably wouldn’t be that interesting to you.

So I don’t bother too much with pictures and I don’t post about it.

But then months later, someone will ask me something specific about that small project that helped to make the bigger project possible and I will realize that I probably should have posted about that.

Does any of this make sense? Its late and I’ve been drinking. And apparently that makes me use the word projects too much.

So there’s that.

Anyway, if you remember way back in January, Grunt Labor and I finally finished his man cave.

In order to deem the man cave livable, he had to have a beverage center (a.k.a. a fancy name for a mini refrigerator). But when the beverage center arrived, it was a bit taller than the opening we had for it, thus we needed to raise the cabinets or get a new refrigerator.

Raising the cabinets was cheaper and faster than getting a new beverage center.

So you can guess which option won.

Read More

Power Tools 101: The Ultimate Guide to Using a Paint Sprayer

By 177 Comments

I had a revelation the other day.

A hold-the-phone-shut-the-front-door-smack-myself-on-the-head revelation.

I realized that for two years I’ve been showing you all these awesome (if I do say so myself) furniture makeovers that I’ve completed with my paint sprayer, but never once have I actually told you how to use the paint sprayer from start to finish.

See why I smacked myself on the head?

So here it is. The ultimate guide for how to use a paint sprayer from set-up to cleaning.

Sorry for the two year delay.

Read More

Cane Inspired Accent Wall for $25

By 27 Comments

Sometimes I try to make things more complicated than they really are.

Not on purpose of course.

I just don’t think sometimes. Its like my mind sometimes turns off its “common sense” mode.

That’s also when I end up saying things I shouldn’t to people.

Whoops.

That common sense mode of my brain shut down when I started to do this accent wall.

You see I love caned pieces. Caned chairs, caned tables, caned light fixtures. I’m crazy over the pattern.

And I have a pillow with a caned pattern on it.

And I was determined to get that pattern on my wall. I knew I could. It was just straight lines strategically placed.

But I was overthinking it.

And it took Grunt Labor coming up to me, turning the pillow diagonally and saying, “Its just squares, Jenna,” for me to figure it out.

He was right.

But I didn’t say that because I’m not too keen on how saying he’s right tastes.

Like vinegar, I tell ya.

And once this revelation was made, I figured out how to make my own cane inspired wall.

Click the link below to read more!

Read More

9 Simple and Easy Bed Makeovers and Hacks

By 85 Comments

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve ran across DIY headboards on Pinterest.

I’m confident DIY headboards could run Pinterest all by themselves.

Now, I’m not bashing on DIY headboards at all.

If you have patience and an insane amount of upholstery and tufting skills, then by all means make your own headboard.

However, I don’t.

I’m in favor of using what I’ve got.

This could also mean that I’m cheap. That’s cool too. I’ll own it.

I can paint a headboard faster than I can build one and cheaper too.

No, it might not look as chic as a velvet upholstered one would, but if it looks like any of these bed makeovers, I wouldn’t turn my nose up at it.

Read More

DIY Headband Holder for $5

By 12 Comments

Remember our Aunt Rochelle?

The aunt that you wanted for yourself?

The one who sends the circus ensembles complete with matching shirts, pants, dresses, cardigans and even sunglasses.

Well, that amazing Aunt Rochelle, she also sends headbands to match every single outfit she’s ever bought for the circus.

She’s pretty much any little fashionista’s dream.

She is 100% the reason why the kid wins best dressed at preschool every year.

Well, there really isn’t an award for that, but if there was, she’d have it in the bag.

While the circus will wear, and love, every shirt, shorts, dress, sunglasses and everything else Aunt Rochelle sends, she isn’t always a fan of the headbands.

So I had a brilliant idea when I made her dress-up station.

I would also make a DIY headband holder so the circus would easily spot her headbands and in theory, want to wear them.

Read More

DIY Sunglasses Holder for $5

By 14 Comments

We have an Aunt Rochelle.

I hope you have an Aunt Rochelle too.

You see, Aunt Rochelles always send the good stuff.

It is not uncommon for multiple packages (sporting color coordinated designs & patterns) to arrive on the front porch anytime of the year.

It may be Christmas.

Or it may not.

It may be a birthday.

Or it may not.

Said packages will contain not one, not two, but multiple ensembles for the circus.

Each ensemble is complete with a top, pants, cardigan, usually a skirt, socks, matching beret, and my favorite – matching sunglasses.

And during the summer she gets multiple swimsuits with matching cover-ups, hats, and sunglasses.

The kid has Jackie O sunglasses, pink sunglasses, movie star sunglasses, Iris Apfel sunglasses, floral print sunglasses, checked sunglasses.

If she has an outfit from Aunt Rochelle, then she has the matching sunglasses.

See why we love our Aunt Rochelle?

We also love her because she’s just a load of fun too.

With this vast assortment of sunglasses, it felt wrong just putting them in a drawer and only bringing them out as needed to complete an ensemble.

No, no, no, no, no – sunglasses like this should be displayed.

So Grunt Labor and I came up with this DIY sunglasses holder so that the kid could enjoy her shades even inside.

Read More

Black & White Gallery Wall

By 39 Comments

I have visions.

Not like psychic visions – but that would be really cool.

Room visions, project visions, idea visions.

And in my head – they are fan-freakin-tastic.

In real life, they don’t always turn out so fan-freakin-tastic though.

In my head, this black and white gallery wall was fan-freakin-tastic.

In real life, its better than fan-freakin-tastic.

In fact, I can’t even come up with a word for how awesome it is and how much I love it.

This wall totally took my living room to a whole new level.

Read More

Mid-Century Modern Lamp Makeover (A.K.A. I Dream of Jeannie Lamp)

By 22 Comments

I watched reruns of I Dream of Jeannie when I was a kid. It wasn’t one of my favorites, but I thought Barbara Eden was so pretty. And while Larry Hagman will always always always be J.R. Ewing in my mind, he was still pretty great in I Dream of Jeannie.

Well over a year ago, I found a lamp that screamed “I Dream of Jeannie” at a yard sale.

It was $2.

It came home with me.

And as most things do around here, it sat for a while until I had a great idea for it.

And finally I did.

If you follow me on Instagram, you may have seen this image where I asked YOU to tell me what to do with the lamp…

Read More

Power Tools 101: How to Use a Sander

By 17 Comments

After a month hiatus, Gina from The Shabby Creek Cottage and I are back with another round of Power Tools 101.

This month is an easy one – How to Use a Sander.

There are lots of different types of power sanders, but my go-to pick is a sheet sander. Its very versatile and unless you have a huge job, it can take care of just about anything.

Read More

Easy Confetti Accent Wall

By 20 Comments

Have you been introduced to my new favorite wall?

Its shiny, its gold, its fun, and it was so easy to make.

My favorite thing about it? There’s no way you can screw it up.

Meet my Confetti Accent Wall.

Read More

Painting 101: How to Paint Walls In Less Time With Less Mess

By 182 Comments

No one ever taught me how to paint walls.

I learned how to paint completely by trial and error after my Pap died and I had to paint every wall and ceiling in his house with two coats of primer and two coats of paint.

My uncle handed me a five gallon bucket of primer, a five gallon bucket of paint, some rollers and left.

I called in reinforcements.

My friends and I painted Pap’s entire house over the course of a couple months all while wearing his XXL overalls that we duck taped in the back to hold them up on us.

That’s one of my favorite memories and a couple pairs of those overalls are safely tucked away now.

Needless to say, after all that painting and all the painting I’ve done in my other homes, I’ve learned pretty quickly how to paint walls – and how to do it in less time with less mess.

Read More

Mohawk Lollipop Holder: A Jonathan Adler Knock-Off

By 10 Comments

This project will fall into the category with the snake bowl and the snake vase for many of you.

That’s the category classified as:

Things Jenna Loves & Most People Hate

That’s perfectly fine.

Me, my snake bowl, snake vase, and the newest addition to the category, the mohawk lollipop holder will be perfectly happy together.

Read More

Power Tools 101: How to Use a Heat Gun

By 19 Comments

This is probably the easiest tool to use – but that many people don’t have.

A Heat Gun.

I didn’t have a heat gun until last year – and I didn’t get it out of the box for a month or so after I got it because I wasn’t quite sure what to do with it.

Let me tell you – it can do so many things.

And it is so easy to use.

Read More

The Man Cave: Built-Ins Makeover

By 18 Comments

He’s waited almost four years.

He thought it was going to happen in the winter of 2011 after I got knocked up.

We tore down paneling, had drywall and carpet put in, and added moldings.

We successfully made it less scary – and then moved onto the kid’s nursery.

And the man cave became a dumping ground.

It was a waste of space.

And I hate wasted spaces.

That’s one reason I don’t like vaulted ceilings because I think they waste too much space, but that’s another blog post, now isn’t it?

Finally, Grunt Labor is getting his man cave.

One makeover at a time.

We started with the Vintage Radio turned Bar Cabinet, and now we just finished the Built-Ins Makeover.

Read More

DIY Snake Bud Vase (Snake Haters, Avert Your Eyes)

By 26 Comments

I knew there would be many of you that would hate it.

The Golden Snake Bowl.

That was fine with me.

Because I love it.

And even if you did hate it, you totally have to give me an A+ for creativity.

I mean, I took a rubber snake and made it into a bowl.

That has to count for something.

While I was melting snakes into bowls, I also melted one into a bud vase.

You read right – a Snake Bud Vase.

Read More