Monthly Archives: July 2009
New kittens need new screens
One of the first things I had to do after getting our kittens was replace the torn screened doors in the house.
Nate helped me take down the doors so I could measure them.
I decided to buy the standard aluminum silver screens over the 7 times stronger pet screens. The pet screens were expensive and only came in black. I have never replaces screens before – so might as well start with the standard stuff. There was a good chance we would be replacing these screens.
I do have to admit that I had to call Nate a few times to get proper measurements. I forgot to bring a sample of the spline (the rubber tubing that is used to secure the screen into the groove in the frame) and didn’t measure the length of it correctly. I decided to invest in a spline roller – specialized tool with two rollers. One that is convex helps bend the screen into the grove in the frame and the concave roller inserts the spline into the groove.
When I got home I got straight to work. I tried to follow the directions on the back of the spline package to the best of my ability.
I laid out the screen frame and taped it to the table.
Then, I cut a length of screen to fit the opening. As I cut, I taped down the side to square it and fit it to the exact size. Next I cut off each corner of the screen.
After securing all three other sides, I slowly roller the spline roller over the frame to bend the screen into the opening. I had to be careful not to move the screen. A few times I slipped and had to reroll. This is main reason to tape down the other sides, but sometimes the screen still moves.
Next came inserting the spline. I started by inserting the spline with my Phillips screwdriver into the corner. Then I would use the spline roller to roll the length of spline into the grove along one side. You want to make sure to press hard and get the spline in as far as possible to get a tight screen.
I would then either bend the spline into the next side of frame or cut off the end and then start a new piece for the next length.
I continued to insert the spline around the frame until done. I reattached the screen to the door frame.
There you go – Happy Kittens!
Meet the kittens
Introducing Pixel (calico) and Loki (ginger) our two new additions to the family. They are 11 weeks old brother and sister.
A Steal of a Deal
I am so excited. I scored four Smith & Hawken Marlton 2009 Wood Dining Chairs at Target for $100.00.
After our first real get together at our house it was apparent we needed to get more chairs! So I have been on the lookout for some good deals.
My mom saved the day. She had found out that her local Target had these great chairs on clearance. They had been marked down to $25 from $100. She told me to go check them out fast before they were gone.
After looking them up online to make sure there wasn’t something horribly wrong with them, I went over to the Target and bought four chairs.
It took me a couple hours to put them together, but I had no major problems. I think they will look great on our back porch.
The Before
It’s been a crazy few weeks and I have not been posting like I should be. I plan on updating with all our projects in the next few days, but until then – here’s the before video of the house taken a week after I purchased it.
The Before – Our Home Tour from Andrea Landis on Vimeo.
