Product Reviews » Curbly | DIY Design Community

Test Lab: Bondera TileMatSet

By: Diy maven Apr 06, 2011

created at: 04/06/2011

Over the weekend, I had the opportunity to play with a new tiling product called Bondera TileMatSet. Simply put, Bondera is pressure sensitive sticky back on a roll that eliminates the need for mastic and thin set when tiling walls, countertops or splash-backs. It's billed as VOC free, mess free, and it allows immediate grouting after tile installation. Sounds too good to be true, right? I thought so too. I mean, it's sticky back tape for goodness sake! How's that going to hold heavy… Continue Reading

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Wow...This is Really Nice Garbage Can

By: Chrisjob Mar 23, 2011

I never thought I could get excited by a trashcan. It is, by definition, full of garbage.

But, believe me, friends, the Fingerprint Proof Rectangular Recycler from SimpleHuman is a brilliant example of great… Continue Reading

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Creating Your Own Small-Space Edible Garden

By: Diy maven Mar 23, 2011

created at: 03/23/2011

Confession: As a vegetable gardener, I'm pretty pathetic. We used to have a 12' x 15' vegetable garden at the back of our property (about 200 feet from our house and down a somewhat steep hill). With the weeding and watering, our excitement every spring for growing our own peppers and tomatoes faded quickly, leaving us with a less than flourishing garden. Several years back, we gave in, realizing that, even though we have plenty of room for a 'proper' garden, we just weren't 'proper' garden people. We… Continue Reading

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Test Lab: Craftsman I9.2-Volt C3 Impact Driver

By: Diy maven Mar 09, 2011

created at: 03/09/2011

The folks at Craftsman sent over a sweet surprise: A 19.2 C3 Cordless Impact Driver Kit. (Insert caveman grunt here.) Now, your first thought might be, "Looks like a regular drill to me," followed up by the question, "What's the dif?" Think of it like this, if the guts of an impact driver were to be animated in a Pixar kind of way, there'd be a hundred little humanoids inside with hammers beating away at the chuck. Comparatively, this makes your job--the real humanoid--much easier. Although the… Continue Reading

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Spring Cleaning 101: Tips from a Pro

By: Chrisjob Mar 08, 2011

For the first time in months, there's a beautiful ray of mid-afternoon sunshine cascading through my window, and illuminating all the dust and grime that's built up through the winter months.

I dunno if the sun is going to last, but I do know that I can't pretend like my house doesn't need a thorough scrubbing and organizing anymore. Grrrr...stupid… Continue Reading

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1001 Classic Old-Time Household Hints

By: Modhomeecteacher Mar 07, 2011

Cleaning house while dreaming about cleaning up the garden beds. Looking back, it's likely that I could have done a better job at both last year. To get myself pumped up for a Spring clean and purge, both inside and out, I just ordered 1001 Old-time Household Hints: Timeless Bits of Household Wisdom for Today's Home and… Continue Reading

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Snip, Burn, Solder, Shred (Plus 4 Bonus How-to's!)

By: Diy maven Feb 16, 2011

David Erik Nelson's new book Snip, Burn, Solder, Shred from No Starch Press is subtitled 'Seriously Geeky Stuff to Make with Your Kids.' That's true; the projects inside the book will appeal to kids, but they will also appeal to adults with a penchant for DIY. That's why it's a perfect book to buy to tell the kids in your life it's for them, but really it's for you!

The book is divided into 3 parts. The first is entitled 'Kid Stuff,' and it contains things that are great for… Continue Reading

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The Handbook of Natural Plant Dyes

By: Diy maven Feb 02, 2011

created at: 02/02/2011

According to Sasha Duerr, the author of The Handbook of Natural Plant Dyes, if we can cook, we can dye. One of the chapters contained within is even entitled, "Kitchen Couture". And couture it is. Dozens of recipes tell us how to use such things as lavender, turmeric and red cabbage to dye plant and protein-based fibers the most luscious colors imaginable, all of which harmonize in ways 'only botanical colors can.'

created at: 02/02/2011

Sasha begins at the beginning, outlining supplies we'll need, explaining in easy to understand terms… Continue Reading

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How to Take the Mystery Out of Electricity with Amprobe

By: Diy maven Jan 05, 2011

created at: 01/05/2011

Awhile back, the folks at Amprobe offered to set me up with a selection of their residential electrical testing tools. Immediately, I came down with a case of the yips as electricity scares the bejesus out of me. BUT, after taking a few calming breaths, I came to the conclusion that if the Amprobe tools could take some of the mystery out of electricity, then they might help ease my electrophobia. Plus, I know pros. I live with an engineer… Continue Reading

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The Dremel Multi-Max is All Kinds of Cool

By: Chrisjob Dec 07, 2010

created at: 12/07/2010

This week, Curbly is giving away a Dremel Multimax oscillating tool kit, so we thought we'd try one out and share our thoughts. I've had a Dremel rotary tool for years, and even though I have a whole basement full of big, fancy power tools, I still reach for my Dremel for all sorts of tasks. So, I was excited to try out Dremel's new offering, the Multi-Max. Whereas the original Dremel is a high-speed rotary tool, meaning it spins around at… Continue Reading

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Amy Sedaris: Crafting for the Poor and Pissing People Off

By: Diy maven Nov 30, 2010

created at: 11/30/2010

Amy Sedaris has been out promoting her new book, Simple Times: Crafting for Poor People, and one of her stops was on NPR's Marketplace. The book, of course, is a parody of the DIY and crafting culture, however, her recent comments in the NPR interview are pissing people off...at least people who don't appreciate satire. One… Continue Reading

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Illuminating Switch Plates--A DIY Attempt Gone Bad and the Power of Blogger Karma

By: Diy maven Nov 23, 2010

Find a Light Glow in the Dark WallPlate Insert

Last winter, I spotted the above pic on the internets and thought, "I can DIY that!" I stashed the idea in my 'make some day' idea bin, and few weeks back, I decided to finally give it a go. A bit of plastic rescued from the recycle bin, a drop or two of glow-in-the-dark paint and I would be golden. Or so I thought. The outcome was tragic. The paint was gloopy; the plastic too...plastic-y. I trashed the whole thing and forgot… Continue Reading

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New: Curbly's Recommended Reading Page

By: Bruno Nov 16, 2010

I know it's 'not cool' to talk about reading 'books' these days, but we at Curbly still love 'em, and every self-respecting DIYer has their prized collection. Our copy of Budget Living's Home Cheap Home: A Room-by-Room Guide to Great Decorating is dog-eared and damaged from all the use it has gotten (check out this cool book-art project we did more than three years ago!). Our other favorite book is our irreplaceable copy of the America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook (seriously the most useful cookbook I've even seen):

So, to keep track of our favorite analog volumes, we create the Curbly Recommended Reading page. It's a quarterly-updated list of our current reading recommendations for crafty-doers like yourselves, and it looks like… Continue Reading

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Recommended Reading List Updated for Spring 2011