Table of contents for Summer 2022 in Do It Yourself

Senior Editor BRIAN KRAMER Editor EMILY ELVERU Contributing Editor SAMANTHA S. THORPE Associate Art Director JESSICA ENO Assistant Art Director EMILY BUTTERWORTH Editorial Apprentice TRISH RICHARDS Contributing Copy Editor NANCY DIETZ Proofreader MARTHA COLOFF LONG Administrative Assistant RENAE MABIE HOME & GARDEN Executive Editor SAMANTHA HART Senior Editors BRIAN KRAMER, SALLY FINDER WEEPIE, KRISSA ROSSBUND, NICOLE DEAN TEUT Senior Associate Editor EMILY ELVERU Associate Editor SAMANTHA STEVENSON Better Homes & Gardens Test Garden® Manager SANDRA GERDES FOOD Executive Editor SHELLI MCCONNELL Senior Content Manager JESSICA SAARI CHRISTENSEN Senior Editor LAUREN LASTOWKA Editor CAITLYN DIIMIG, RD Culinary Specialists SARAH BREKKE, JULI HALE Food Styling Director GREG LUNA Food Stylists LAUREN MCANELLY, SAMMY MILA, KELSEY MOYLAN, ANNIE PROBST ART Design Directors KIMBERLY MORGAN METZ, MICK SCHNEPF Style & Design Director STEPHANIE HUNTER…

CONVERTED CONSOLE Turn a metal planter box into a central space to store on-the-go items (or gardening supplies, as we did here). Acrylic bins nestle in the container to create individual sections for essentials. Hang magnetic clips on the outside to pin reminders. LET DRY Slide a boot tray under the console to protect your floors from wet items like rain boots or a watering can. Large Boot Tray Set, $35; gardeners.com GET HOOKED To make this shelf, find the center point of a wood round (ours has a 16-inch diameter) and cut straight across using a saber or circular saw. Sand sharp edges. Near the bottom center of one semicircle board, drill a hole at an angle the size of the screw on a purchased peg hook. Glue the two…

ROUND ABOUT Get in the swing of things with a hanging planter platform. Drill six equally spaced holes through a live-edge circle round, using a bit for a hole large enough to thread twine through. Determine the hanging height, then double it and add about a foot. Cut three pieces of twine to this length. Thread twine through three drilled holes, leaving about 4 inches below the round; thread a wood bead onto the short end and knot. Thread the other end of the twine through the opposite hole, add a bead, and knot. Repeat with two remaining strands. Hang from an S hook, adjusting for height. Trim ends of the twine, unraveling if desired. SIMPLE CENTERPIECES Light up your porch or patio with stylish candleholders. Screw or glue together…

I’ve never been a car guy, but I grew up in Indiana and went to college near Indianapolis. This time of year is all about getting out there and getting it done—as fast as possible. From qualifiers to Carb Day to the Greatest Spectacle in Racing, the month of May was synonymous with speed. Though I no longer keep up with daily reports from the speedway, I experience the focus of an Indy driver when it comes to outdoor projects. (I might envision earning that checkered flag at the end of day, but I’m more likely to celebrate with a gin and tonic rather than a bottle of milk.) Team DIY wants you to feel a similar thrill this season as you dig into your garden, trim boards for…

SCENE STEALER A slatted screen accented with planter boxes filled with vibrant petunias, angelonia, creeping jenny, and more, provides privacy for an Insta-worthy backdrop for summer seating. Find the complete how-to below. MAKE IT Slatted Privacy Screen With Planters MATERIALS • 8-foot cedar 4×4s (need 3)• 12-foot cedar 1×4s (need 8)• 8-foot cedar 1×2s (need 23)• 8-foot cedar 1×6s (need 3)• 8-foot cedar 2×4• 8-foot cedar 1×8s (need 4)• Chop saw• Drill/driver• 3-inch exterior wood screws• 2-inch exterior screws• Square• Level• Jigsaw• Exterior wood glue• Clamps• Nail gun• Orbital sander and sandpaper• Exterior stain• Paintbrush• 1¼-inch exterior screws• Zip ties• 3 large plastic window boxes (Ours are 23½×7¾ inches.)• 2 small plastic window boxes (Ours are 15½×7¾ inches.)• Potting soil• Plants that grow in containers Step 1 Measure and cut lumber…

TAKING ON NEW ADVENTURES IS WHAT FAITH SALMON AND MATT HOILES, NATIVE AUSTRALIANS LIVING IN NASHVILLE, ARE ALL ABOUT. When the novice gardeners decided to grow vegetables in their side yard, they went big, tearing out a shed and driveway to make room. “We bought this home basically for the land,” Faith says, who came to Nashville as an interior stylist. “It was a hot mess when we got it,” she says of the tangle of weeds that greeted them when they first dug in. But thanks to an eye for good design, the couple turned the forlorn space into a thriving edible garden complete with a welcoming hangout for a morning cup of coffee or evening glass of wine surrounded by summer’s bounty—and their bulldog, Banjo. To create a sense…

DO IT BETTER Cut your replacement acrylic door panels roughly ⅛ inch smaller than the openings so they fit with a little wiggle room. Cut panels using a sharp acrylic cutter. Score the panel, align the groove with the edge of a sturdy flat surface, and snap the panel downward, breaking cleanly. Secure panels in the opening with pin nails and stop molding. Finish by filling cracks with wood putty, letting dry, sanding, and applying finish. LIFT IT UP Raise a simple 16×20-inch acrylic tray to the next level by adding pretty feet made from repurposed ball-shape drawer pulls. Place the tray on a flat, cushioned surface. Drill a hole through each of the tray’s four corners using an acrylic drill bit that’s slightly larger in diameter than the bolt of…

HEY, FELLOW DIYERS! Will we lavish as much love on our homes this year as we did last year? The Handy Girl crystal ball says yes. Here’s how to make the most of your DIY time, from quick fixes to huge redos. FLOORING: GOOD VS. GOOD ENOUGH CARPET VS. CARPET SQUARES Carpet takes a little more effort to install, generally costs more, and may be comfier on your feet. But carpet squares are super easy to swap and usually a snap to install. Take note: Carpet square manufacturers keep boosting their yarn and plush options. HARDWOOD VS. VINYL Hardwood is about double the cost (at least) but gives you a boost in resale value. Vinyl is easier to install if you’re doing it yourself, but it won’t wear as well…

JENNIFER HOLMES IS PRACTICED IN THE ART OF REDOING HOUSES TO SUIT HER FAMILY. IN 15 YEARS OF MARRIAGE, SHE AND HUSBAND JONATHAN HAVE BOUGHT NINE HOMES. Their latest place in Burlington, North Carolina, where Jonathan coaches college basketball, is newly built and needed few changes, so Jennifer focused on customizing the rooms to suit her “traditional with a twist” style. “I am not typically drawn to new houses because I like to do projects,” she says, “and in a new house, it feels wasteful to rip out and replace brand-new things. In this house, I was trying to make it work for us, adding things to it without completely overhauling it.” The avid do-it-yourselfer, blogger, and Instagrammer (@dearlillie) is nearly fearless in taking on new tasks. In this home,…

[P] Paint Color Because of the magazine printing process, paint colors depicted on our pages might vary slightly from manufacturers’ colors. Use paint color names or numbers, when provided, as a starting point. To get a color as it appears in the magazine, take the page to a paint retailer for matching. [V] Product Line Varies The product selection changes frequently on the retailer’s website. ON THE COVER Table, chairs—Target; target.com [V]. Pitcher, glasses, green pillows—Dillards; dillards.com [V]. Rug, pots—Lowe’s; lowes.com [V]. WHAT TO DO WITH: ACRYLIC PAGES 6–11 THROUGHOUT Wall paint Cloud White 967—Benjamin Moore & Co.; benjaminmoore.com [P]. PAGES 6–7 Acrylic sheets—Canal Plastics Center Inc.; canalplastic.com. Bar cart, white leather poufs—Crate and Barrel; crateandbarrel.com. Acrylic tray, ball drawer pulls—Amazon; amazon.com [V]. PAGES 8–9 Tubes Acrylic Round Rod…