Hey all, I want you to meet Ronda (if you haven’t already seen her fabulous creations and room makeovers all over the web)! I’ve admired her style, her get-it-done approach and her sense of humor for quite some time and I’m thrilled to have Ronda as a regular Sawdust Girl contributor. She has plenty of awesomeness to share…and that’s what I want Sawdust Girl to be: All Awesomeness!
Hi, I’m Ronda from Batchelors Way.
I’m a mother of 6 great kids and wife to one patient husband. I love DIY projects on a budget. OK, truth be told, I’m known for being able to remodel and decorate on insanely small budgets.
I’m so excited to be part of Sandra’s blog. I was first introduced to Sandra by way of her Master Closet Post. At that time I was wanting to try to do more building and less relying on my husband to build everything for me. When I saw her closet I thought,”If she could do it why can’t I?” So I began taking on more and more of the building part of our projects. Let me show you some of the projects I’ve tackled.
First, the hutch part of our Pirate Room headboards.
Go see how I gave myself a pep talk and built it here.
Next, the Paper Sorter for our new office.
You have to check out this post I seriously took on some new skills here.
Here is the paper sorter in it’s new home all trimmed out.
Did I mention I did most of the work in our new office too?
What do you think?
Not too bad?
I’ve learned lots as I have stumbled through building projects.
People often tell me they could never build something like me.
OK, lets face it, there are a few people who just don’t want to,
but I believe just about everyone who wants to, can, they just have to get over their fears.
So here are four big fears and how to get over them:
1. “I’m not sure what is best, I’ll just wait!”
Decision making!!!
I am the best at this. I have worked for years side by side with my husband on home projects and we made almost every little decision together. When I started projects on my own I would want to wait to see what he thought. Which meant 15 or 30 minutes into my work day I would have to shut down because I didn’t know which way to do something or which type of trim would look best, blah, blah, blah.
To get over this fear I have gone to the Internet for help. You can Google how to’s and photo’s of almost anything. I sometimes draw pictures to help me visualize things. But really the key is to go with your gut feeling. The best decisions of style and design for each us is usually within us! And if it turns out wrong just think of it as a learning experience.
2. “What if I mess up?”
Sooooo what!!! So you mess up!
No one learns anything with out a few mistakes. That’s how we learn.
Practice, practice, practice! Give yourself permission to mess up. I often use scrap wood to practice on, especially when using a new tool or using more expensive materials. And just remind yourself that some of the best things were discovered through mistakes.
Really, I Googled it! Slinkys, penicillin, chocolate chip cookies, Post-it notes and potato chips were all mistakes!!
3. “Using big power tools scares me!”
I have to give myself a pep talk almost every time I use the table saw. Read the manuals and go on line to find tutorials or videos. Knowing how to properly use your tool is key. Safety is most important to familiarize yourself with all the safety recommendations and features. After you have educated yourself just take a deep breath and go for it. (Just don’t hold your breath or you’ll pass out.) After the first few minutes, your confidence grows and that knotting feeling in your stomach subsides. And repeating over and over, “Power Tools are our friends!” can help too!!!
4. “That project is to big, I can’t do that!”
Every project can be broken down into smaller parts. Many projects start with a box, build that then add another box and another, add the trim and details. Before you know it you have a finished project. If you can’t break it down yourself, ask someone with more experience to help you break it down into smaller steps. Soon you will be amazed at what you have built.
Now go forth and build!!
Your fears have all been banished!
Ok, so not only is Ronda amazingly talented — she is funny and wise. Wise words if ever a wise word was spoken. Say that 10 times in a row…then say hello and welcome to Ronda– and then hop over to her blog, Batchelors Way, and say it again — because she deserves a love bomb kind of welcome! Don’t you think?
lara thomas says
I love this…!
Kat says
I love that paper sorter!
Feral Turtle says
Sandra, you inspire all of us!! I have been following Ronda for some time now. Always amazed with her awesome ideas! Really love her bathroom makeover. Cheers.
Janis says
Wonderful! I am guilty of #1 and #2. Especially #2. My husband and I are working on a built-in bookcase in our family room and I have finally realized that if we mess something up, we just fix it. Fear of something being less than perfect has kept me from doing a lot of things that I want to do, but no more!!!