Renovating on Shine

Makeup-Bag MacGyver

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Lipstick for home improvement? Yup. Your toiletries bag is essentially a tool kit. Here's how to use what's in it to help you with your DIY projects:<br> <br> <img alt="" style="width:300px;height:300px;" src="http://a323.yahoofs.com/phugc/7LvXDqXY1wsl/photos/fd2ade6ae69a751c7565881d58965d3c/mr_01141b9a55630a.jpg?ug_____DmejqKFiM" width="300" align="center" height="300">

Wine as inspiration for a pressed tin ceiling

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Last night I was at Sycamore, the local watering hole...

Updating an old stairwell

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BEFORE
Faux paneling and carpeting glued to the stairs and oak floors prompted homeowners to find an artistic solution to this stairwell makeover.

POTENTIAL
The homeowners knew paint would be an easy fix for the walls and ceilings. They were equally confident that the original oak floors could be refinished (despite being covered with an adhesive) and the stairs restored with new treads and risers.

PURPOSE
The stairwell would become a gallery for a large collection of paint-by-number paintings, adding color and visual interest to this high traffic area of the house.

Could your granite countertop be dangerous?

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Kate Murphy reported in The New York Times Home & Garden section today that fears are on the rise about a possible link between granite countertops and lung cancer, thanks to the presence of radiation and radon (in varying quantities) in the increasingly-popular countertop material. While experts have been aware of the radiation issue for years, typically the levels present in consumer materials have been so low as to not be considered a serious threat. Now, radon inspectors are finding higher and higher levels in what is, admittedly, a tiny minority of the granite on the market, but it's still enough to spark concern.

Here's what you need to know:

House of the Year Video Room Tours: Bathroom edition

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Country Living's editor of architecture and home building Rebecca Thienes walks us through bathroom renovating and redecorating ideas from the magazine's 2008 House of the Year in Beaufort, SC. The highlights? A cool, upscale color palette of gray, black and white; slightly antique-y silhouette portrait art; aged bronze lighting fixtures; tumbled-limestone shower tiles; nautical accents; and hardware that echoes fixtures found throughout the home. What do you think of this room?

I also noticed a great story in the July issue of Real Simple that showed 3 easy bathroom upgrades that even renters could pull off. Anyone who has hunted for a rental apartment knows the horrors that outdated bathrooms can be...

Before/After: Lake Street Kitchen Reno

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San Francisco-based architect Cass Calder Smith completed this renovation last year on Lake Street in the Richmond district of San Francisco. His clients, who enjoy entertaining at home, wanted a kitchen where friends could gather while they cooked.

Serving Dish: Kitchen Makeover: Befores and Afters!

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This weekend, Rich and I put the kitchen and breakfast room back together again. Oh sure, I still need to stain a few doorway saddles, and we've ordered 6- and 3-panel doors for the two closets that had flat doors (this way all the doors in the house will match). And yeah, I do still want to get...

Do I need a hood for my stove?

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Former kitchen renovating blogger Thaddeus Kromelis sent an email with cute pictures of his kid the other day. Which reminded me that he had blogged for us about renovating his kitchen. Which made me go look at his posts. Which sent me into a panic because I have no plans for a hood for my stove. Do...