Gratuitous Cat Posts, Jennifer's Nest

Our Little Scapegoats

By Jennifer No household can be truly harmonious without a cat or two.  Chiefly they serve as fluffy, pettable ventriloquist’s dummies (as in, “Julia says, ‘Is this all there is?  It’s all ashes — ashes!’” or, “Sky told me he…

Reader Mail

A Molding Revelation in Humid Louisiana

Hi Ken and Jen, My name’s Everett, a 24-year-old recent first time home buyer from good ol’ its-so-humid-I-can’t-breathe, Louisiana. As the son of a brickmason, who had no problem forcing his 9-year-old son to haul brick-loads of wheelbarrows on his…

Ask Ken

How Do I Make Make This Large Baseboard?

Sean and I have been exchanging emails recently about his plan for building DOOR TRIM-114.  He’s wondering how to make the large, two-piece baseboard I used to complement it.

Installation & Design Tips

Videos: How to Paint Below Crown Molding Without Masking Tape

[This is part of our How to Paint Moldings series] You don’t need to mask your crown moldings with tape when painting your walls.  All you need is a good paint brush, good paint and the right technique. In fact,…

Installation & Design Tips

How Much Does a Finish Carpenter Charge to Install Moldings?

[This post is part of my How to Install Moldings series series] If you’ve ever wondered how much money it would cost to hire a good finish carpenter to install your moldings versus installing and painting them yourself, then this detailed…

Molding Before & Afters

Before & After: Oak Wainscoting on Stairs

This was the first and last stain-grade molding project I ever installed — oak wainscoting on a split-level staircase. All of the these pictures show the wainscoting I installed before it was stained and sealed by some very talented painters. …

DIY Molding Projects, Pattern Book, VALANCE BOXES

How to Build VALANCE BOX-101 for About $14.54

Traditional Style A window valance box — more properly called a pelmet — is perfect for hiding your blinds’ ugly roll up mechanism. We built this one for our small kitchen window for just that reason.  It’s really easy to…

Our Molding Makeover Updates

How to Build a Small Valance Box for $14.54

[This is part of Our Kitchen Molding Makeover series] Video 1: Coming up With the Design On This Page Molding and Applique Inventory How to Build the Valance Box Step by Step How to Prep and Paint How to Install…

DIY Molding Projects, DOOR TRIM, Pattern Book

How to Install DOOR TRIM-133 for About $52.84

With its simple lines, affordable materials and ease of assembly, there’s no reason you shouldn’t build this door surround at home this weekend. This is one of those historic door trim patterns that I’ve seen all over the country, and…