Hardware Style: 100 Creative Decorating Ideas Using Materials from Every Aisle of the Home Center Store

by Marthe Le Van

It’s the most creative how-to book to come along in years, and it’s now at a great price! These 100 great ideas will change the way do-it-yourselfers look at their local home improvement center—and revolutionize home décor. With a layout inspired by the store’s floor plan, this abundantly photographed guide tours all the different departments, from plumbing to hardware, electrical to lawn and garden, suggesting a host of imaginative ways to use what’s on the shelves. Many of the projects take advantage of the latest decorating trend, repurposing, where items conceived for one function are used in an entirely different, original way. With only basic techniques, craft curtain tiebacks from welded chain, transform glass or metal screens into coasters, turn copper plumbing pipe into candleholders, and much more.

144 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2003

Reviews

[Ami · Rating 1 out of 5]

The ideas I'd most like to implement were above my skill level and the "easy enough" ideas did not look appealing to me. I suppose any book has merit if someone can get something out of it, and maybe someone else would. Personally, I found it to be a frustrating mix of shelving that I currently have no hope of installing myself and about 10 different ugly things I can make by gluing/sewing on washers or ugly things I can make to display candles. Hmph.

[Lee · Rating 2 out of 5]

this book has some good ideas of what to do with items found in the hardware store, but unless you have tons of these parts hanging around, it would be very expensive to purchase them for the purpose of making furniture and decorations out of them.

[Ligaya · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is getting close to 20 years old which explains why most of the projects in here are unsurprising. Creative reuse is commonplace now. Some ideas are clever, some clunky. I could swear the project with saw horses uses Ikea trestle legs. Nice photographs, though.

[Mom]

I've read this book before, but it has great ideas for using hardware creatively.

[Manintheboat · Rating 2 out of 5]

Those are some unattractive ideas...

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great idea book for "Do It Yourself" home items. Not all are projects I'd want to do, but all in all there are a lot of ideas I've never seen or thought of!

[Dolldiva · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really unique project ideas using general hardware supplies.