Can hemp oil restore a wooden knife handle?

Can hemp oil restore a wooden knife handle?

I'd acquired this kitchen knife some time ago, at least a few years. It wasn't pretty when I got it, but, hey, free kitchenware usually comes in handy.  I'm also sure it has gone through the dishwasher a few times, so I was curious to see if hemp oil could restore the much dried-out wooden handle.  So this post is not so much about the freestyling, as it is about how to possibly renourish old wooden items with a natural product.

The product I tested was Miss Mustard Seed Hemp Oil, used for furniture finishing (this is not a sponsored post, I was using the product for furniture refinishing). Here we have the hemp oil bottle and the untreated knife handle, sitting on a cutting board in my kitchen.

Hemp oil and knife handle

This is a close-up of the untreated knife handle.  You can see how the wood is a little rough, especially near the back edge of the handle, and the color is rather faded.

Untreated knife handle

In the photo below I've applied hemp oil to one side of the handle (towards the bottom of the picture).  The wood was clearly VERY dried out, it absorbed the hemp oil right away, you can see how it looks darker and shinier.

Knife handle after half treatment with hemp oil

The results of hemp oil treatment

The results indicate that the hemp oil *did indeed* make this knife handle look better.  The wood was darker, the grain of the wood visible again whereas before it was rather faded and gray.  The handle also felt a little smoother after the hemp oil was applied and given time to soak in.

Knife handle after hemp oil treatment, looking nicer.

The conclusion - hemp oil made the worn out knife handle look nice again.  This is probably a treatment I'll have to repeat if the knife handle gets dried out again from general use, but it only takes a few minutes and smells nice, sort of like grass.  An upside is that I didn't have to worry about any toxic substances, and I was able to compost the paper towel I used to apply the oil. 

Happy freestyling and fixing!

X-linked freestyle

X-fabric marks the freestyle spot

As someone who works with physical materials (paint, wood, metal, fabric, etc) I tend to accumulate all manner of supplies.  Long-time readers also know I take free things even if I'm not exaaaactly how I'm going to use them.  In my desire to avoid waste I have been known (known to myself at least) to hold on to things like fabric for a long time, we're talking years here. But sometimes the stars align and I realize it's time to clear out the old and send it along to someone else who might be able to make something of it.  Such was the case with this upholstery fabric which had been patiently waiting to become something for 3+ years.  A friend had a purple couch, and the fabric has purple in the color scheme, so she took the fabric and the loan of my sewing machine and got to work making herself some new covers for her accent pillows.

Freestyle for the triple win

Conclusion

The results are fabulous and fun. I couldn't be happier that I was able to help someone else in their freestyling!

Happy freestyling!

Framed! A new home for the blue Christmas Tree Worm

The Discovery

Frames are fun. So fun they might be considered addictive, because who can resist transforming something with a simple coat of paint and a new subject?
I saw this frame out for the taking, very dusty - but with intact glazing (glass) in the front.  Checking for intact glazing is crucial when getting free frames because people often discard frames with broken glass - which can be very dangerous to handle.

The original found frame

The framed subject matter of some olive oil and lavender, although gentle and cottage-style, was not my style, nor was the off-white (aged bone?) color of the frame.  I did like the 'carving' detail around the frame edge though. I thought that with some new paint this could be made-over into something that might have a place in my home or office.
The only question was, gold paint or black? Hmmmmm.

The makeover

The first step in the makeover was to disassemble and clean the frame. The frame was nothing fancy, all the pieces were held in place with staples placed around the edge - these were easy to pull out using a pair of pliers.

Staples that had to be pulled out to disassemble the frame

After disassembly I wiped everything down with ammonia-based glass cleaner, and vacuumed around the edges of the frame to get rid of any stray fluff.  I then carefully removed (peeled) the print from the back of the matting where it was glued on in such as way to not damage the matboard since I was planning on reusing it.

The pieces after disassembly

The choice between black or gold paint was decided by one simple fact, I have A LOT of black paint on hand from when I painted this chair.  It's not a pure black, but a softer dark grey-black.  The picture below shows the frame after the second coat of paint.

Frame painted in Black Iron (custom mix)

Although the two coats of paint slightly obscure the floral detail around the edge it is still visible enough to give a sense of texture. This is not a valuable frame, just simple pressboard, so I don't anticipate much close scrutiny.

After deciding on a photo to frame, I attached it to the back of the matboard with some art tape.  Then I reassembled the whole thing and placed new staples around the edge.  Since I wanted the staples to stick out from the edge of the frame back I held the staple gun up to a screwdriver that was positioned between the center of the staple gun and the side of the frame.

I also found two tiny screws and some old picture hanging wire to add to the back.  This was necessary because I was changing the orientation of the image from portrait to landscape.  The tiny screws seem like they would have been easy to screw into the back of the frame, but it was surprisingly dense. I ended up using an electric drill to make things easier on me. Yay power tools!

Tiny screws - to wrap picture wire around

Below is a photo of the back of the frame after full reassembly and with new hanging wire added.

Ready for a new showcase

The Conclusion

I love how this project turned out!  The black frame and the white mat set off the photo of an ombre blue Christmas Tree Worm wonderfully.  In case you are wondering what Christmas Tree Worms are, you can read more about them here.  I had this photo printed from Costco's online photo store because you can get 8x10 prints for an AMAZINGLY CHEAP price of around $2 each.  

Wall beauty for less that a cup of coffee? Yes please. 

Beautiful blue Christmas Tree Worm parts

Happy freestyling!

Get a handle on it!

Finding a free suitcase

I found this free roller suitcase one night, and it was clean and empty but with one very obvious problem. 

A broken handle, of which I don't actually have a photo.
I took it because small roller suitcases uses beyond just travel, including helping to store things in my basement storage unit in a more organized - and slightly protected - way.
Once I got it home I thoroughly vacuumed the insides (including under the liner) and treated it with baking soda - just to make sure there was nothing lingering.

An 'it' bag?

Although I didn't need another suitcase, I wanted to see if I could fix the handle and make it a fully functional bag again.

Diagnosing and fixing a broken handle

The retractable handle mechanism would not retract because the place where the handle curved from the horizontal handle part to the vertical connector had broken on one side. The pieces were all present, but the button on the top of the handle could not contact the little vertical metal rod that controls the retraction.  I'd seen this before (and there are videos online) so I had some idea of how to fix it.

A repaired retractable handle

I borrowed some super glue from a neighbor (who coincidentally said he would be interested in a free suitcase if it was fixable.)  I applied the super flue after carefully aligning the interior metal rod with the push-button mechanism, and lining up the exterior plastic sections along their fracture line.  Following the super glue manufacturer's instructions I held the pieces together while the glue was setting.  After letting the glue dry further for about 2 hrs I tested the handle and it retracted perfectly.  The new owner was happy with his free find, but said he might reinforce the repair with some electrical tape for 'peace of mind' - which sounds like a good idea to me.

Conclusion

So far the suitcase has held up to the rigors of travel, and hopefully will continue to do so for many trips to come.
Happy freestyling!

Framed! A woodblock poster print finds a new home

The discovery

When out looking for stuff with a friend he found this poster of a Japanese woodblock print, sort of rolled up and definitely abandoned but otherwise in good condition. 

In the night, and amongst some other stuff the woodblock poster looked like this....

Poster and other freebies

But when laid on the floor in daylight it looked like this!

Woodblock poster print laying on floor

It sat in his apartment on a shelf for a while because there was no suitable frame for it......... until I remembered the large black poster frame sitting under my desk!
(forehead slap sound)

Frame with original poster

I had taken this frame because it was intact and lightweight. The topic seems more suitable to a college dorm room, and it had probably had been in one in the recent past, but that's the good thing about frames - they are so easy to repurpose.  This frame isn't particularly high quality, the frame is some sort of dense pressboard or paper-based material, and the glazing (front clear piece) is flexible acrylic, but it looks just fine.

The reframing

After examining the frame a little closer, it turned out the that the woodblock poster was an exact size match for the frame.  Ridiculous that it took me more than an instant to put these things together.
I got out my tool and started the reframing process.

Step 1. Assemble tools: staple puller (pliers), screwdrivers, staple gun, and new staples

Pliers, screwdrivers, staple gun

Step 2. Unscrew the hanging wire across the back if you are going to change the orientation of the frame.  In this case I was switching from a landscape orientation to a portrait orientation, so I also had to adjust the wire (shorter) and re-clamp the little lead-based wrapping pieces.

Attachment point for hanging wire hardware

Step 3. Pull out staples.  You will probably have to discard these unless you have a clever way to repurpose used and deformed staples. 

Spent staples pulled from the frame

Step 4. Clean glazing (clear front layer) if needed, then lay new poster down behind glazing, and backing material behind that.

Step 5. Use a staple gun, held slightly away from the edge of the frame, and staple a few times on each side.

Step 6. Secure the hanging wire in the proper orientation, this might mean unscrewing the screws and moving them.

Step 7. Stand back and enjoy your work!

Conclusion

I loved loved loved making this freestyle connection, and the poster owner loved the final product. Now he has a cool new and totally free piece of artwork to decorate a sleek bachelor pad. I took the frame not knowing what I would use it for, and I'm so glad I did!

The repurposed frame with its new poster

Happy freestyling!

Chair season - the angular colonial repro

DIY Furniture makeover of colonial-style chair with numerous spindles

Background

It is rare that I like the lines of a chair, especially upon first sight.
Such was the case with this wooden chair, which I believe to be a reproduction of something colonial, or maybe just colonial-inspired.


The bottom has a stamp that according to some internet research indicates that it was probably made in the middle part of the last century. The stamp says Fitchburg, Mass.

Refinishing the chair

For a while this chair served as a step stool around the house, and by 'a while' I mean about two years. It held up beautifully and was just the right height for so many tasks, from painting the ceiling and installing light fixtures to hanging art.  During that time it also got a little bit scuffed up, although the finish wasn't perfect to start with - free things rarely are.

Eventually, this winter, it might have been March, I decided to refinish the chair. I actually had to chairs to refinish, which apparently is a critical mass when you have limited storage space and want things to be functional and pretty.

Wooden chair holding the refinishing supplies.

First I used citristrip.....

Wooden chair after the initial Citristrip application.

...and that was a mistake because OH MY GOD ALL THOSE SPINDLES.
Small round spindles are not ideal for a product that you normally remove by scraping with a flat blade, because with each pass of the blade you only remove a tiny amount of the citristrip/old finish, rather than a 1-2inch section like you would on a flat surface.


Eventually I switched to sanding, but OH MY GOD ALL THOSE SPINDLES.  In the photo below you can see that the bottom half of the chair has been sanded (mostly by hand), but the top is still showing only the finish that was removed by citristrip.

Wooden chair after citristrip used on the top,
and sanding on the bottom part.

Wooden chair after switching to sanding as
the method to remove the old finish.

At one point I finished sanding and moved on to the step of (hopefully) fixing one of the cross brace pieces that had come loose. To stabilize this I used some wood glue and a belt to hold it like a clamp while it dried.

Wooden chair with loose cross brace being glued,
secured with belts while the glue dries.

At this point I think I erred, because I decided to "branch out" and do something different by painting the chair instead of dyeing it with the pigments I had on hand.
Poor choice.
If I had dyed the wood and not liked it I could have eventually painted it, but one does not paint and then dye.  So, lesson learned, don't let haste and fear drive your design decisions.
Here it is, painted in Benjamin Moore Black Iron.

Wooden chair after being painted with the first coat of paint,
back side.

Wooden chair after being painted with the first coat of paint,
front side

To my eyes the first coat of paint looked grey, not black.

So I took the paint can back to my hardware store and had them add more pigment. Then I painted another coat.

Better, still not black, but again, the project fatigue was starting to set in. And of course I was peeved AT MYSELF for not dyeing the wood in the first place for fear of having an uneven finish like I had seen on my splat-back chair project.
Silly when I think about it in retrospect.

Conclusion, the finished-for-now chair

Here is how the chair stands (sits?) now.

Spindle-back chair refinished with black paint,
accessorized with decorative pillow.

Spindle-back chair refinished with black paint.

And that is probably how it shall stay for a while, unless I decide to add a top coat.
Do I need a top coat?  How rough am I with my furniture? Polycrylic or shellac?
Or I could try to buy some of that alkyd paint I read about online that supposedly gives a tough enamel finish....  Paint costs can add up quickly and I really don't like a bunch of partially-used cans sitting around.  So many things for the freestylist to consider.

Happy freestyling!

Chair season - the chair with the vase-shaped splat

DIY Chair Makeover - with pictures

It's always better to have a pair, naturally. But when you only see one of something, whatever, just take that and figure out how to make it work. That was my guiding principle when I spotted this interesting chair on the top of a furniture pile.

Finding the chair to work with

I decided to take it since it was a classic shape, solid wood, and I could see that the seat would be easy to remove and recover with new fabric.  After getting it home I decided to strip the finish and dye it black. The quasi-inspiration was chair shown (below) in navy blue, except with a different back, a fabric seat, and a darker (black) color......

Pottery Barn - Napoleon Chair

The color inspiration came from these gorgeous chairs featured in one of the homes designed by Amber Interiors out in California.  The pulled-together-yet-non-matchy-matchy-ness of this dining space is superb.  Of course I'm not going to go out and buy matching shaped chairs, but I'm definitely going to experiment with black wooden chairs for a while.

credit: amberinteriordesign.com
http://amberinteriordesign.com/project/client-tupac-meets-biggie-to-decorate-the-diggies/

Make sense?

Refinishing the free chair

So here we are, with the citristrip applied.

The key with citristrip is to use so much that you cannot see the wood underneath. This is how it will have enough time to act before it dries out.  After scraping off a goodly amount of citristrip + old finish I got to the point where it became faster to just sand off the remaining bits of old finish.  Eventually I got to the point where the frame, as far as I could tell, was down to the wood.

After all of the stripping and sanding, and more sanding, and more sanding, it was time to dye the wood!  I used an aniline dye dissolved in water and painted it on with a brush.  There is probably a better way to do that type of application, the paintbrush dipped in water is pretty drippy.

The initial round of dye application (above) revealed that some spots were resisting the dye, and hence needed more sanding to remove the stubborn remnants of the original finish.
So I did more sanding.
 Then I applied another round of dye....

As I was applying the dye I was naturally filled with doubt.....
Was black the right choice?
Would it be too dark?
Would the finish be uneven?
Would it end up looking like crap?

Well, after dye, furniture wax, and a recovered seat (including a new layer of foam and batting) I got my answer.

The chair makeover, completed

Here's a close-up of the corner so you can see the detail of the printed fabric (from Spoonflower.com ) and also appreciate the soft lustre of the waxed finish.

So there it is, for better or worse, my dark floral makeover of a classic wooden chair.
If you look closely there are a few spots that resisted the dye, but maybe I can pass that off as the unique variations of a hand-finished piece? (Although we all know the truth is that I just get tired of sanding.)
 Hopefully if you didn't know what a splat was on a chair you've also learned a new furniture word!

Happy freestyling!

Grilled to meet you - update

Finding a tiny charcoal grill

Remember in early April when I found a small charcoal grill and gave it to a friend who was longing for one? I wrote about it in this post.

Here is the grill as first discovered...

a grill, discarded.

Transporting a tiny charcoal grill, using a laundry basket and towels

Here is the tiny grill ready for transport...

a grill, rescued and slightly disguised for transport

New owner enjoying their new (free) tiny grill for some summer dining

And now, here is one of the overjoyed users, showing just how nice it is to have a patio set and a grill for summer food prep. (See that little folding table? Yes, it was also a freestyle find.)

Happy free styling, share your requests with the universe - you never know what will turn up.

Fan-tastic (x2)

Why you should look for discarded small table fans

Summer has arrived, and with it the need for better air circulation.  Luckily I've got two little table-top fans for which I paid $0.  Less fortunately, when I tried to use the trusty old square fan (a freestyle find over a decade ago) for the first time this year it wouldn't start spinning, and the other fan that I had pulled out of the trash room had never spun at all.  After some internet research and watching a videos on you tube I was able to restore full functionality to BOTH fans.  Turns out the most common cause of fans not working is that dust and hair get sucked in and gum up the works. So if you plug in the fan, turn it on, and hear a buzzing sound but no spinning blade is happening that means the electrical parts still work, but the mechanical parts are stuck.

Here's a quick photo journey of how I fixed this small tabletop fan, and quick DIY that saved me over $30 since I used the same process to repair two fans.

How to examine your free table fan and decide if it can be repaired, step-by-step instructions

Step 0. Gather supplies, including screwdriver(s), small scissors (fingernail scissors or embroidery scissors), pointy-tip tweezers, WD-40, paper towels

Useful tools: nail scissors and pointy-tip tweezers

Step 1. Plug in and test fan. If there is no movement of the fan blades, but you can hear the electricity buzzing, that is a good sign.  In my case there was no movement of the fan blades when plugged in and turned on, but yes! there was buzzing sound when turned on.

Our test subject, a free tabletop fan

Repairing the free table top fan

Now that I had some indication that the electrical part of the fan was still working, I thought the problem was likely something mechanical that was stuck. Let's continue on to Step 2....

2. Unplug fan and remove cover by unscrewing all the connections around the back.  These are likely small screws, somewhat recessed, that hold the back plastic part of the fan to the front plastic cover part of the fan.

Removing the tiny screw that hold the front cover to the back cover.

Fan with the front cover removed.

3. Use tweezers and a nail scissors to pull off any dust on the center shaft.  Cut any hairs that were wound around the shaft and pull off the pieces.  Use a paintbrush or paper towels to wipe off any dust, including on the back cover and on the fan blades.  Do this for the front cover that you removed (I ran that piece under the sink sprayer and then let it dry thoroughly, but that was probably overkill).

Brushing the dust off of the back cover and fan blades.

View of the center shaft with some detritus wrapped around it, need to remove that gunk!

4. Bring fan into bathtub (or do this outside) and spray WD-40 on the parts that *should* be moving, like the center shaft.  WARNING: If you spray WD-40 inside your bathtub the surface will become EXTREMELY SLIPPERY, make sure you clean it properly before trying to use the tub or shower for bathing.

If you spray WD-40 in the bathtub, it will make the tub REALLY SLIPPERY.  

5. Wait a few minutes for the WD-40 to soak in, slowly rotate the fan blade by hand to make sure the liquid is evenly distributed.

6. Carefully set the fan upright, but facing a wipeable surface like the side of the tub or the back of the toilet seat.  When you turn the fan back on any excess WD-40 will come flying out the front IF the repair was successful.

7. Making sure fingers and hair are clear of the fan, plug fan back in and turn on to test if blades spin properly.

Spinning fan blades indicate a successful repair.

8. Once blades spin properly, do a happy dance of DIY success. Let fan run a few minutes until no more WD-40 is flying out the front.

9. Turn off fan, unplug fan. Wipe any stray WD-40 off the fan blades or other parts it might have leaked on to, and then reconnect front cover using the same tiny screws you removed in step 2.

One of 6 tiny screws that held the cover pieces together.

10. Enjoy new, or newly repaired, fan.

Conclusion

Happy freestyling, and don't be afraid of trying to fix that free fan. With the right screwdriver and a few small supplies it only took about 20 minutes.