Suzanne McGrath Photography

2017 Project List

Last week I shared with you how well I did compared to my 2016 list.  I'd give myself a solid B.  I didn't complete it all but I added quite a few other tasks.  A solid performance, overall.  I've been giving it some thought and I have a decent list going for this year.  So, let's get to it, shall we?

2017 List of Projects:

1.  I'd like to refresh the deck.  Again.  I know, I know. I did this about 4 years ago, maybe?  But it needs another coat of stain.  It's looking a little worse for the wear.  And while I'd love to tear it down and build something Aaaamazing - it's not gonna happen.  I'll have to be happy with new stain. 

 

2.  While I'm talking about the outside, I'd like to add another raised vegetable bed.  We had so much fun last year but the vegetables got too big for my small 4'x8' bed.  I'd love to add a second one this year!

 

3.  I need rugs.  As in plural.  I really need three small ones:

• in front of the kitchen sink
• in front of the door to the deck
• in front of the door to the garage

The dog tracks in like crazy and I'm hoping the two rugs by the door might help a little.  Who knows?  

 

4.  I love my foyer, but I'm getting a little tired of the green, Ikea dresser.  I've toyed with replacing it but until I figure out exactly what to use, this one will remain in limbo.  

 

5.  My office needs a refresh.  BAD.  We decorated it 8 years ago when the hubby got his first job working from home.  It has not seen any major changes in all those years.  It's time.  I'd love to scrape the ceilings, slap a fresh coat of white paint on the walls, and buy new sleek desks.  It's not a large room and it has to house both of our desks so I think a white color scheme would be lovely.  I could add punch with accessories but I'm ready for this room to feel light and airy.  Now it's all darkness and wood.  Not my favorite.

 

6.  I mentioned #2's room last year.  It's still on my list.  She needs a fun light fixture and a fresh coat of white paint on the walls.  I think that will make her room feel brand new!

 

7.  Master bedroom.  I really, really want a headboard.  I still know what I want - a pretty linen or velvet tufted headboard that wraps around the sides.  I seriously don't think it will be all that hard.  I just need to muster up the motivation to do it.  And while we're at it we should probably install the marble threshold between the master bedroom and bathroom.  And a pretty hamper would be the cherry on top!

 

8.  #1's room.  I swear I will add a couple shelves to her closet.  That's super easy.  And she's been asking for blinds in her bathroom for over a year - poor kid.  

But alas, this is where we will probably spend the most money this year.  She needs a new shower.  It leaked a couple years ago and the plumber who fixed it told us it was not a permanent fix.  Well, I feel like our time is up and we need to replace her shower before it leaks into our family room again.  We'll do it ourselves and after we ripped out and replaced our shower I feel like it will be a piece of cake.  Now that we know what we're doing and will use the same process as before, we should get it done in half the time it took to finish our shower.  And after that is done I'd like to replace pretty much everything else in her bathroom - the toilet, the vanity, the light, mirror, floor tiles.  Yeah - you know.  The whole thing!!  I speak from experience - bathrooms are not cheap - even if most of it is DIYed.  So I'm not sure how much we'll get done but I'm putting it on the list!

 

9.  The family room chairs.  Need to get them done.

 

10.  The basement.  I just need to finish what was on the list last year!  Paint the doors and install door knobs.  Oh, and paint the wall I showed you in the 2016 wrap-up!

 

11.  Tile (or fake tile) the back wall in the laundry room.  

 

 

I have to say, I think this list is decent.  It has it's share of little things and big things.  I'm excited to see how much we accomplish.  Wouldn't it be fun to be able to give myself an A +next year?!  What's on your list?

 

 

2016 Wrap-Up

I know.  I know.  This is, what, 3 weeks late?  Oh well.  It's before February so I think it counts.  I like to capture what I accomplished from the previous year's list so here goes...

 

Music room. It needs a good jute rug.  Something simple that will flow with the dining room and yet I can layer another rug on top of it.  I'm totally thinking Craigslist for the win here!  (This picture is a bit dark but you can see the plain floor staring right at you.) 

I accomplished this one before January 2016 was even in the books!  Check.  Mark.

 

2.  Kitchen - You've seen my kitchen many times.  I still want to paint the backs of the glass cabinets.  Or rather, I'd like to paint foam board (so it's removable) and stick that in the back of the cabinets.  I think my white dishes will pop with a dark shade of gray in the back.

I happily accomplished this item while I was enjoying my "early retirement" this past fall.  (Alas, my retirement ended in November when I went back to work.)

 

3.  Family room.  I'd like to replace the chairs with something upholstered in a velvet.  We've had the current chairs for a few years and I am just ready for a change.

So I halfway accomplished this item.  I managed to sell the old chairs and I purchased the velvet fabric for the new chairs.  However, when I started to get quotes to have someone else reupholster them, I had heart palpitations.  So I will do these myself.  I just need to buy the foam and get to work.  

 

4.  Laundry room.  Of course this is no surprise since I showed you the half-finished countertop.  I need to stain the countertop and finish the floating shelf with a face board.  (Funny story - I had the piece all cut and ready to pin up on the shelf when the hubby took it, cut it in half, and used it for garage storage.  Ugh!)  I'd also like to tile the back wall.

This room is nearly finished.  And I think I've painted it three times in the last 13 years.  But in the end, it's like putting lipstick on a pig.  It's still a pig.  (It's still way too small!)  I think I am going to hang up these fake tiles instead of actually tiling in there.  Seems faster and easier and after all, I'm the only one who sees it!

 

5.  Basement.  We still have a space to install a bar but that project will have to wait.  Right now I'll just settle for the little things.

Cover the circuit breaker with some art:

You know what's funny?  I didn't even realize I still needed to paint the wall behind the art.  Oops!  And I hate that stupid cable box thing but I am at a loss.  If you have any suggestions, I'm all ears!

Cover the two poles in reclaimed lumber.  Paint the doors and add door knobs.

Oops!  This so didn't get done even though painting the doors would be so easy.  I really should make this a priority in 2017!

Lastly, paint the handrail that the hubby installed back in 2014!  (No picture of that one.)

Not only did I accomplish this one, I also removed the little wood pieces the brackets were screwed into and replaced them with prettier wood pieces from Hobby Lobby.  

 

Let's move upstairs to the second floor...

6.  #2's room.  (Remember there are no pictures of her room - always a MESS!)  I'd like to DIY some sort of fun ceiling mount light fixture since she does not have a ceiling fan like her sisters.  Yep, didn't happen.  I finally got her to pick out what she wanted and then the holidays were here.  Hopefully we get this one done this year because it will be easy.

7.  #1's room.  She has requested blinds for her bathroom window.  Imagine that!  Plus, I'd like to add two more shelves to her closet organizer:

Nuts, didn't happen!  I actually looked for blinds for her a couple times but walked away empty handed.  And I think I'll outsource the shelves to the hubby.  He can easily cross that one off the list.

 

8.  The Little's Room.  I'd still like to paint #4's desk.  There is already one stained desk in the room and the stain colors don't match.  Plus, the desk is pretty beat up, anyway.

I sort of called an audible in here...I ended up painting #4's desk and then selling it.  (It was the most pretty navy color when I was done.  Gorgeous.)  We decided to get rid of her desk and the bookshelf that was originally in that corner so we could bring in my old secretary.  So now when #4 wants a desk, she just has to fold down the flap (whatever it's called) and she magically has a desk!  It's such a difference because their room is now much less cluttered!  Also - they wanted me to take their picture with their friend, Ellie.  Aren't they cute?

 

9.  The three little girls all share a bathroom.  It's adorable.  It has green stripes on the wall with a froggy shower curtain.  However, they are now a little old so it's time to give them something a bit more grown up.  I'll be sad but it's time.  Ultimately I'd like to give them double sinks and tile the floor.  But for this year I'll settle for new paint and a mirror/medicine cabinet.  I forgot before pictures but I will definitely take them before I paint over it all!

I absolutely love how this room turned out!  I captured it all in my One Room Challenge series and you can find the full reveal Here, as well as the 5 weeks prior.  

 

10.  The office.  Eventually I'd like to ditch the current desk situation but that isn't in the cards this year.  So I'll settle for new blinds that actually work and a floor lamp that emits decent light!  Easy enough, right?

Another loser room.  Didn't get it done.  I will definitely add this one to 2017.  It would actually be nice to do a bit of a room refresh.  

11.  Master Bathroom.  I'm already painting the two doors that need to be hung back up.  And we need to install a marble threshold.  That's it.  Those small tasks are holding us back from 100% finished.  We will do it!

The doors were finished.  The marble threshold?  Ha, still not done.  It's so easy, too!  Sometimes I'm just lazy.

12.  Master Bedroom.  I would love to install a modern sliding door between the bathroom and bedroom.  That is a rather large project.  I know what I want it to look like but I have to figure out how to build it.  And my poor bed looks so sad.  I need a headboard!  Stat.

I LOVE HOW THIS TURNED OUT!!  My favorite project from 2016, hands down.

While I didn't finish everything on the list, I also added a few things, too.

13.  I built a new garden from scratch.  Meaning, I pulled up the sod, edged it, planted plants, and laid mulch.  It was back-breaking work!

 

14.  I painted all the upstairs hallway doors black and I love how it turned out!

 

15.  I framed three prints I purchased in Paris.  I hung them in the powder bath on the main level and I love them!

 

16.  I designed and built storage for my running medals:

 

17.  I sold my old china cabinet and bought and painted a new one.  

 

18.  The nightstands in the master bedroom got a new coat of black paint.  It's a vast improvement!

 

Man, that was a long post!  If you stuck with it, thank you.  If not, I get it.  I will be back with a 2017 list, though.  Did you accomplish any fun projects last year?

 

One Room Challenge | Week Six | The Reveal! A Shared Bathroom for Three Girls!

I'm so excited!  I made it!  Just barely, but still, I made it!  I'm really happy that I decided to participate in One Room Challenge as a guest.  It was quite the challenge and I one I never would have done on my own.

When I left off last Thursday I I had a lot to finish.  And much less than a week since I was gone Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.  Not good timing.  Also, I wanted to outsource the ceiling pendant install to the hubby but alas, that did not work out either as he has been out of town for work all week.  I just couldn't catch a break.  All that said, I am breathing a sigh of relief that I pulled this off.  

The best part of this whole bathroom redesign?  The girls absolutely love their new bathroom.  For reals.  All three of them have commented on it.  That makes this mama's heart happy!

Here come the pictures...

I love mixing metals and think it works here.  It's mostly brass with hits of chrome in the faucet and light switch covers.  I like it when everything isn't match-matchy.

 

 

That light!  It was so fun to make and I still can't believe that it actually WORKS! 

 

 

Can we talk about the toilet paper holder!  I love it so much it's insane.  It's so beautiful and a steal to boot.  (<<affiliate link)  Plus, the girls can barely manage to change the T.P. in the powder bath downstairs because you have to LIFT A BAR.  I think this gives them a chance to actually change it out.  Fingers crossed.

 

I've had this print forever but I love it in here!  I think it's by Christine Lindstrom.   

 

The Target shower curtain was actually the jumping-off-point for the entire bathroom.  I found it on clearance for $9 last spring.  I love a deal!  The towel hooks are vintage and I heart them.  I just wish I had three of them rather than just two.  Oh well.  The girls will be just fine.  I gave the girls the Turkish towels I bought for our bathroom.  I tried to love them, I really did.  But alas, I do not.  I want a super plush towel when I step out of the shower and these are not that.  Hopefully they like them more than I did.

 

 

The shelves are just Ikea brackets that I spray-painted gold.  I simply bought a 1x8 and cut it into 20" lengths for the tops.  Ta-da!  Easy peasy.  

 

Phew!  That's it.  I'll be back in the next couple weeks to show you a few DIYs like the ceiling pendant.  Holler with any questions.  I hope you enjoyed!

And if you're new here and want to catch up, here's the past five weeks:

• Week One - The Plan
• Week Two - Lighting Options
• Week Three - Painted Cabinet
• Week Four - Painted Subfloor
• Week Five - Painted Countertops

 Thanks for reading.

One Room Challenge: Week Four | Painted Floor

Hello!  I'm back with another installment of One Room Challenge.  This past week was a fun one for me!

If you'd like to catch up, here's Week One, Week Two, and Week Three.

The room is really starting to take shape now that I finished the floors.  You guys, I can't even believe how good they look!  They completely surpassed my own expectations and I couldn't be happier.  If you remember, I left you hanging with several options.  I loved them all but I let #2 pick and she nailed it.      

Anyway, in case you missed it - I just painted the subfloor.  Yep - the subfloor.  And truly, it feels great under foot - it's not splinter-y or cold at all.  Very smooth.

Here is what it looked like before I worked my magic:

Ugly, right?

 

Well, here it is now:

Awesome, right?  

Here are a couple more gratuitous shots:

What do you think?

 

Anyway, there is still a ton left to do!

First and foremost, I must paint the counters.  The situation is scary.  Actually, it's just very off-white and not pretty.  Like so:

 

What else is on my list where I only have TWO WEEKS TO GET IT ALL DONE?!  Let's see...

• Repaint the walls.  I'm just not happy with the color.  It's lovely but not quite deep enough.  Ugh.
• Paint the trim.  It's so banged up and in desperate need of a refresh.
• Make the light fixture, hang it up, and install a dimmer switch while we're at it.
• Make and hang the shelves using Ikea brackets for over the toilet.
• Find or make artwork.
• Caulk the floors now that the linoleum is gone there is a gap all the way around the room.
• Hang the new mirror.  From Target.  Love!
• Find new covers for the light switches.

So, while it's a long list, I think it's doable in the next two weeks.  With that said, I better get my a$$ to Home Depot for some more paint!  

See you next week.

 

 

One Room Challenge: Week Three | Painted Cabinets and Painted Floors

Week Three!  That means HALFWAY!  Holy cow - the time is flying.  Luckily, so is my paint brush.

(If you are new here, I am making over my little girls's bathroom as a guest participant of the One Room Challenge series.  I should title this series, "Ode to Paint" because I am painting nearly every surface in that room!  If you'd like to catch up, you can read Week One here and Week Two here.)  

This past week I painted the cabinet and I LOVE it!  Phew.  I just used some leftover paint I had on hand and it is awesome.  The navy blue with gold pulls is just gorgeous.  

But that's not all!  I also painted the floor with three coats of porch paint.  Yes, three - and that was after two coats of primer!  I think one more coat of white and I'll be done.  But not really.  Just done with WHITE.  But it's all good.

I pinned a ton of painted floors and here were the top contenders: 

via

 

via

 

via

 

via

 

via

 

via

 

(I know the above photo came from The House That Lars Built but I couldn't find the specific image.) 

 

So - which one did I choose?  Well, I didn't.  Womp womp.

Just kidding.  I let #2 pick the pattern and it wasn't my top choice.  But in the end, it's her bathroom more than it's my bathroom and I want her to be happy and feel like she had a say in it.  So, I'm going to keep you on the edge of your seat and make you wait until next week!  Any guesses?  

Until next week... 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Six on Sunday

Hello!  Did you have a good weekend?  We did.  And let me tell you, it was WARM here!  Like, 85* warm here today.  Anyway, I digress.  Let's get started...

 

1.  My MIL came down for the weekend and it was nice to have her around.  She was able to watch #4's tennis lessons and both of the Middle's soccer games.  So it was a good weekend to come down!  Of course the kids always love to have an audience.  It didn't hurt that my sister and niece made it to both soccer games, too!  It's always exciting to have a big audience.

We enjoyed the weather and the EOI (eat outside) index tonight was at least a 9 so we took advantage:  

(I don't believe in utilizing serving pieces for family dinner because DISHES.)  Also, #1 was missing because she was working.  Bummer.

 

2.  I've been working on the Little's bathroom off and on all week.  So far I have most of the vanity painted and now I'm onto the floor.  Here's where I was this morning before I put on the second coat of primer:

Not the most glamorous photo I've ever posted but you know me - I've got to keep it real, yo.  (Also?  It already looks a million times better with just another coat of primer so not to worry.)

 

3.  The dog and the cat both love the cat's food.  Darby (the cat) has pretty much zero patience for Winston (the dog), EXCEPT when she eats.  I'm not sure if she does that to taunt him, but she just doesn't seem to care.  She just eats away while he watches...

As soon as she's done, he moves in to finish the rest unless I catch him first!

 

4.  The kids didn't have school Friday so we wanted to pick apples.  Turns out all the apple orchards are pretty much done for the season.  WHAT?!  Who knew?!  So we drove out to one and just bought apples that they had already picked.  It was a little disappointing but we made up for it by making individual toffee apple crisps.  Relish.  They were so cute I should have taken pictures but I couldn't wait to eat mine so that didn't happen.  Oh well.

 

5.  #2 read the book The Outsiders for school and then the classes watched the movie.  (Brings back memories, doesn't it?)  Anyway, the 8th graders do this every year and every year the teachers let them dress up for extra credit.  She dressed up as a Greaser.  Isn't she cute?  I think it's so fun and really get the kids engaged in the topic at hand.  Win - win.

 

 

6.  Last but not least...I have begun my fall photo sessions.  If you want a session next Saturday, holler because I had a cancellation.  I met with this family today for the second year in a row and they are awesome.  Not to mention it's so fun to see how much the kids have grown and changed over just 12 months.  Here's one sneak peek for you, Kerri!

 

And with that, I'm out of here.  Have a fabulous week!
 
 

 

My Halloween House...the Decorations, I Mean...

I'm finally here.  I wanted to get this post up last week but then I decided to take a detour down the One Room Challenge path...

Anyway, I thought I'd share my Halloween decorations.  They don't vary much from year to year but that's fine with me.  The kids remember all the details and love to follow traditions.  So it's all good!

This post will be quick and mostly pictures - so here goes...

This is the view when you walk in the front door:

 

The floating witch hats are sort of a pain to hang up but the kids love them.

 

Here's a close up of the round table:

 

If you are standing on the striped rug in the foyer and turn left, this is the table I put together/painted several years ago.  I still love it.  And I'll be able to keep this wreath up through Thanksgiving which is awesome.  I love decorations that pull double-duty!

 

Now, if you turn right, you look into the music room.  I get a kick out of this little vignette!

 

Walking in to the family room...

This little vignette will take me through Thanksgiving, too.  Bonus.  (Don't you love those hydrangeas?  I cut a TON off our bushes this year!)

 

Here is the mantel:

 

Moving on to the kitchen via the breakfast nook...

 

We added a little something to our bar cart this year.  

 

The kids had a BLAST working on the potions.  We downloaded Harry Potter potion labels from the internet and used Modge Podge to attach the labels to glass jars from the Dollar Store and Target.  I think they are so clever!

 

We just added a couple small touches to the kitchen:

 

I'll leave you with a couple nighttime scenes of the mantel.  (Hint:  We never light the candles but we ALWAYS turn on the lights!)

 

And there you have it!  I hope you enjoyed this quick little tour.  Have you done any decorating?

One Room Challenge: The Girls's Bathroom

Hello there!  I decided to throw my hat into the ring known as The One Room Challenge by Calling It Home.  What is it, you may be asking?  It's basically a challenge to finish one entire room in 6 weeks (which is really only like 5 weeks of work time.)  Since I had already decided on re-vamping the little girls's bathroom, I figured, why not?  But I have to say - the timeline is tight.  When we remodeled our master bathroom it took us about a year.  Yep - as in 12 months.  365 days.  Yikes!

So I'm here.  I've talked about their bathroom before.  It's pretty much the hardest working room in our house.  The three little girls all share this bathroom while #1 gets a bathroom all to herself.  Clearly, we didn't think that through very well but it's where we are right now.  So we make it work.

Anyway, I am making over this room on a shoe-string budget.  Basically, that means for the cost of a little paint and a few pieces of new hardware.  Like I said - a shoe-string budget.  However, it's actually kind of fun and it's pushing me creatively!  At least that's what I'm telling myself.  Down the line I'd like to add a floating vanity with two sinks and a new tile floor.  However, that is not happening this round.  And it's all good.

Here is the before.  It had a froggy theme but I got rid of the shower curtain and bath mats before I took these pictures.  Still, you get the idea!

It was really cute in its day.  But now that the girls are 7, 9, and 13, they have declared it time for a change.  I don't blame them!

 

Here is the mood board.  Think painted everything - porch and floor paint on the floors, new painted vanity (blue), blush pink walls, and white countertops.  (Did you know you can "paint" countertops?  So excited/nervous to try it!)

 

Wish me luck!  I'll be back next Thursday with an update.

Six on Sunday

Can you believe this is the last Sunday in September?! Holy cow - where did the month go??? 

Anyway, let's get the show on the road, shall we?

1.  I painted the backs of my kitchen cabinets a couple weeks ago but finally took proper photos this past week.  Here is the Before:

 

And here is the After:

 

And here is another section of cabinets with glass doors.  I was getting a terrible reflection from the windows behind me which is why I opened the doors:

I know the difference is subtle, but I'm so pleased.  I love how the white dishes and milk glass really pops off the dark, charcoal gray.  Seriously, for $3 and some change, I'm wondering why I waited so long!

 

2.  I've been on a roll with paint lately.  Nothing is sacred!  This past week I decided to paint all the doors upstairs.  That's SIX DOORS!  And I did it in 3 days.  WooHoo!  It's virtually impossible to get a good picture and I for sure can't get all six doors in one picture, but this will give you an idea.  

Before:

 

After:

I'm in love with the look.  It just adds such a great punch - all for a few hours of work.  I had the paint laying around in my stash (which is pretty big!) and I figured, why not?!  So happy.

Also - let's talk about that mirror.  It was hanging up in my room but I had to take it down when I installed the barn doors.  We seriously have NO ROOM for it in our master bedroom, so I am seriously considering putting it out in the hall.  That way we will all have access to it and it has enough room in front of it where we can use it to get a full view of our outfits.  Thoughts?  Are you down with it or no?  I'm thinking it might actually balance that wall a little bit?  

 

3.  In the last two weeks - while working on my numerous paint projects - I've worked my way through a full season and a half of New Girl, and the whole first season of Stranger Things.  I don't generally watch a lot of TV but I've fallen in love with Netflix!  It makes the time just fly by.  Any recommendations for new series?  My sister says I should watch The American on Amazon Prime but other than that, I don't know what else to watch!

And I am thinking of sanding and priming the walls in the Little's bathroom (they are currently green stripes) and scraping the ceiling so I will be needing a new series to watch!  And if I don't do that, I'm going to paint the nightstands in the master bedroom.  Who knows - maybe I'll get to both!  That's a lot of opportunity for some serious Netflixing!  

 

4.  The three little girls all had Friday afternoon off school.  #2 went shopping with friends.  And #3 and #4 had their friend, Ellie, over to play.  We took advantage of the beautiful day and walked up to Sonic for slushees during Happy Hour.  I love doing little things like this - they think it's awesome and for less than $4, they think I am also a "cool" mom.  Win-win!

 

5.  I am 90% done decorating for Halloween.  I still need some white pumpkins which the grocery store did not have.  (They only had "special" pumpkins.)  Ugh.  That means a separate trip to Home Depot.  But, I took pictures and have one preview ready:

The kids - especially the Littles - LOVE the decorations so it's all worth it.

 

6.  Today was 60* and rainy.  Add to that - both the Middles had soccer games this morning.  That gave me a hankering for a Pumpkin Spice Latte.  Since Starbucks uses some questionable ingredients, I decided to try my hand at making my own.  (Also - I was way too lazy to leave the house!)  Let me tell you - "S - U - C - C- E - S - S.  clap-clap  That's the way we spell Success."   (Name that movie!)  

It was so good!  Seriously, if you love anything pumpkin, try this recipe!  (Hint:  It just uses strong coffee.)

If you are too lazy to click the link - just warm up 2 cups milk, 2 Tbls pumpkin puree, 1 Tbls honey.  When it's heated up, add 1/2 cup or more strong coffee, 1 Tbls vanilla, and 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice.  Top with whipped cream.  I was in heaven.  

 

Wow - Those six things just flew by tonight!  That's all I've got for you.  Have a fabulous week! 

 

 

 

 

Thrifty Thursday: How to Build a Barn Door Track

I really feel like this project was thrifty in that it was less than a hundred dollars (well, for the track, at least).  And the amount of bang for our buck was HUGE.  So, I wanted to make sure I wrote this post while the details are still fresh in my mind.  So here goes...

We have a typical house for our subdivision - a large open door between our master bedroom and bathroom.  It looks nice and all but we've never loved it.  In fact, years ago I sewed curtains to separate the two areas.  But they were a little too fussy and I took them down when I painted our bedroom a couple years ago.  But now - we are THRILLED.  Behold:

I personally love the doors open and they stay this way the majority of the time.  However, they easily slide closed which the hubby appreciates when I am up at 5:15am every morning:

 

I am not going to tell you how I built the doors themselves because they are pretty darn easy to figure out and there are a ton of tutorials out there.  In a nutshell, I built two doors and sandwiched them together.  I only used three sizes of wood:  1x4s, 1x6s, and 1x8s.  Here's a diagram:

I stained the doors black and gave them a coat of poly.  My only advice with the doors - especially if you are building two doors - make sure they are square!!!

 

OK.  Now that you've got your doors, you need to know how to hang them.  There are actually quite a few barn door tracks you can purchase on Amazon that are priced very competitively.  I can't vouch their quality, though.  I can only show you what we did.  And our DIY version - at less than $95 - was still cheaper than the tracks I found on Amazon!  I followed this tutorial and it was great.  I had a few questions so I'll show you what we did since it was a bit different.  

First, and the hardest part, was finding the steel track.  Home Depot only sells steel in 6' lengths.  Since my doorway is so large I really needed about 9' of steel.  (The width of the doorway doubled.)  I didn't want to purchase two pieces of steel and put a seam in the middle of my track so I did a little investigation.  (Investigation = googling)  If you are looking for a steel track - Google steel supplier.  Do not google steel fabricator.  Anyway, Royal Metal Industries for the win!

I was able to purchase a 9.5' of 2" steel track (3/8" thick) for $14.20.  Seriously.  That's it!  If I was thinking about it, I would have also purchased the straps for the door there as well.

 

Here is the Material list for the track:

(1) 1 x 4 x 10 common board to mount to the wall (cut to same length as steel track) $2.99

(1) Steel for the track - 3/8" thick and 2" wide.  Double the size of your doorway.  (My track is actually 6" longer than double the doorway.)  $14.20

(2 per door) Steel straps to attach the wheels to the door.  18" long and 1/4" thick  (We purchased 6' and cut it into 4 pieces with a hack saw)  $13.99 

(2 per door) 3" garage door pulleys $19.92  

(7) 3/8" x 2" black pipe nipples (plumbing section) $9.24

(7) 3/8" x 5" lag screws $15.40

(4 per door = 8 for me) 5/16 x 2 1/2 hex bolts (connects bracket to doors) $1.92

(4 per door = 9 for me) 5/16 hex nuts $0.88

package of 5/16 cut washers $2.68

package of 3/8 cut washers $3.14

package of 3/8 lock washers $3.82 

(2) 3x3 angle brackets (to stop door from rolling off the track) $5.14

(8) screws for the angle brackets $0.00 - I found them in my stash

I spray painted everything black because I just wanted all the hardware to just fade away.

 

Steps to Install:

1.  Figure out how high you want the track and mount the 1x4 to the wall with screws.     

• We have 1/2" clearance from the door to the floor.  
• We have 1.5" clearance from the top of the door to the bottom of the track.  Our track is centered on the 1x4.  So basically, the bottom of our 1x4 is even with the top of the barn door.
• I used a stud finder and a long nail to find all my studs before I attached the 1x4 to the wall.  
• I made sure to screw the 1x4 in at the top or bottom so I would be able to attach the lag screw for the steel track right in the middle.

The tape marked where my studs were in the walls.

 

2.  Paint the 1x4 the same color as the wall.

3.  Attach the "L" brackets at the ends.

 

4.  Mark and drill all the 3/8" holes in the steel track for the lag screws.  These holes will correspond to your wall studs.  Ideally they would be 16" on-center but our house is all kinds of wonky and nothing is on-center.  You will need special titanium drill bits for this process.  If you have titanium bits it's not hard at all!  (Make sure you drill the holes low enough on the steel track for the wheel to freely roll over the track.  I just drilled in the middle of the steel and it was fine.)

5.  Attach the steel track to the 1x4 at every stud.  This is the order:

• Lag bolt
• Washer
• Track
• Pipe Nipple

We only used a 2" pipe nipple because it was enough clearance for our track to stick out far enough from the wall and still allow the door to roll freely.  The pipe nipple is only there for spacing.  It really does not go into the wood at all. 

We pre-drilled holes and then used a hammer to get the lag screws started.  Once it was into the stud the hubby used a wrench to tighten it all the way.  Make sure your track is level - this is crucial!

Once you've got all your screws in the wall - you are good to go.  Your track is done.  Truly - it wasn't as hard as I expected.

6.  Drill 3 holes in each 18" strap.  A 3/8" hole 1.5" from the top, 5/16" hole in the middle, and a 5/16" hole 1.5" from the bottom.  Ideally, they would all be 3/8" but my Home Depot was out of 3/8" x 2.5" hex bolts.  Hence, I bought the 5/16" hex bolts instead.  Again, you will need a titanium bit. 

7.  Now you need to install the wheels to the straps.   

You attach the strap to the garage door pulley in this order:

• 3/8" hex bolt that came with the pulley
• flat washer
• 2" strap
• wheel pulley
• flat washer
• lock washer
• 3/8" nut

7.  Now it's time to attach the straps to the doors.  We set our door up on top of a book (to make sure we had a half inch clearance above the floor) underneath the track to figure out where to drill our holes.  Once we had it figured it out, we laid the doors down on the ground and drilled the 5/16" holes to attach the straps to the doors.  You basically attach them in the same order as above - just replace the wheel with the door.  If everything is square and level, you should be able to use the same measurements for both doors.

8.  Hang the door up on the track.  Roll it around and CELEBRATE!!!

(This is what it looks like from the side.)

9.  Attach the door handles.  

That's it!! You're done!  

And here is another picture of the finished product - to remind you how far we've come!

I hope this tutorial was helpful.  Honestly, I thought this would be a lot harder than it was.  It only took us a Saturday afternoon to get both doors hung up and we are thrilled.  Let me know if you have any questions or if I left anything out.  And if you do try this project, let me know how it goes!