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How To: Prune summer-flowering spireas

With this video pruning tutorial, you'll learn how to prune your summer-flowering spireas (also known as Anthony Waterer and goldflame), rose of Sharon, abelia, honeysuckle, beauty bush, hydrangea arborescens grandiflora, and butterfly bush (or buddleia davidii). For more information, or to get started pruning your own summer-flowering spireas watch this landscaping how-to. Prune summer-flowering spireas.

How To: Prune multistem shrubs

In this video pruning tutorial, horticulturist Barbara Larson shows you how to prune multistem shrubs, like lilac, forsythia, shrub dogwoods, spirea vanhouttei and other spring blooming Spireas, Mockorange (Philadelphus), Viburnum, Physocarpus, and Deutzia. For more, or to get started pruning your own multistem shrubs, watch this video pruning tutorial. Prune multistem shrubs.

How To: Prune trees and large shrubs

When you're doing pruning work, stubs should never be left. Always cut back to side chute or branch. Stubs will die back, creating an entry area for disease and insects. In this two-part tree pruning tutorial, you'll receive advice on using proper pruning techniques so as to ensure healthy, balanced growth over time.

How To: Shape your shrubs with directional pruning

You can choose, when you're pruning, which direction you want the growth to go. By looking at the branches, and looking to see which way the growth is going, if you prune out, the growth will continue in the same direction. With this video tutorial, you'll learn how to force growth in a desired direction. For more, or to get started shaping your own shrubs with directional pruning, watch this landscaping how-to. Shape your shrubs with directional pruning.

How To: Craft a heart shaped lamp shade

Turn on your heart light!! Watch this instructional arts and crafts video to make a fabulous heart shaped lamp shade for Valentine's Day. You will need a heart shaped box of chocolates, a beaded curtain, duct tape, string, ribbon, and a lamp shade. So what are you waiting for? Craft this handmade heart light and impress the one you love.

How To: Care for and prune red twig dogwood shrubs

Red twig dogwoods are often used in a landscape because of the outstanding color of their stems but are commonly grossly mishandled and pruned incorrectly. Incorrect pruning, in turn, can cause the stems of the dogwoods to lose their vibrant red color. To learn more about how to caring about red twig dogwood shrubs, watch this video tutorial. Care for and prune red twig dogwood shrubs.

How To: Use hand planes

Hand planes are the epitome of fine woodworking. Extreme woodworkers use them, and serious collectors collect them. Planes come in a wide variety of sizes, styles and designs for specific woodworking purposes. Planes are available made entirely of metal, or made of wood with metal blades and parts. In fact, you can buy the blades and make your own planes, as the old-timers often did. Planes can range in price from about $25 for new, economical models to planes that cost several hundred dollar...

How To: Build garden benches

A place to sit and relax can add greatly to the enjoyment of your backyard, garden or flower beds. A garden bench is one answer and also a fun workshop project. Garden benches, as seen by the examples here, can range from classic designs requiring a fair amount of materials and woodworking expertise to simple slab benches that require little effort, can be built from scrounged materials and add a “rustic” appeal to yards. In this DIY video tutorial, you'll find step-by-step instructions for b...

How To: Build bookcases for a home library

Books, books and more books — we've had that problem for years. Books stored in boxes in the closet, books in the attic and some in the basement that eventually became ruined. In this DIY video tutorial, you'll find step-by-step instructions for building pine bookcases to house your many books. For more, or to get started on your own home library project, watch this how-to.

How To: Make a mantel shelf

While mantel shelves provide a big visual impact, their installation is very low impact. The first piece of information you need before you can begin laying out the pieces and parts for a mantel (or "mantle" as it's sometimes misspelled) is to know exactly where you want the finished shelf to go: left, right, up and down—and what its proportions are. If it's working as a mantel, you'll want the shelf and corbels to extend proportionally past the left and right sides of your hearth. As a rule ...

How To: Cope, or cut, molding to fit your room

When installing baseboards, crown molding ("moulding") and chair rails, it's tempting to cut 45-degree miters at the corners and hope for a sure fit. The problem is that most walls aren't square. Joining two 45-cut molding pieces may give you a square joint, but a square joint may not work for your crazy corner. In fact, it seems like every wall is just a “hair” out of square. This problem could be due to a framing error or a buildup of drywall compound in the corner. But even a perfect miter...

How To: Use crown molding

If you're looking to dress up an ordinary room, think about installing crown molding (also spelled moulding). Very few additions make a visual impact like crown molding, which gives a subtle yet elegant design element to any space. And with the proper tools and set up, installation can be easy. While wood is a common choice for crown molding, urethane is also a popular material. For a recent project we installed Fypon urethane crown molding, which is lightweight, flexible and looks like solid...

How To: Patch and repair concrete

Concrete is one of mankind's greatest inventions. Very durable, it can also be aesthetically pleasing. Concrete is also often a major building material in and around homes. Over time, however, concrete can deteriorate. Patching and repairing concrete can be easy or difficult, depending on the project and the amount of deterioration. Most repair projects are fairly simple using some of the specially formulated patch and repair products available these days. Watch this DIY video tutorial for st...

How To: Install a garage door and opener

Installing a new garage door and opener may seem daunting at first, but if you take your time and do the job step-by-step, it's a good weekend project. It will take from nine to 12 hours for most doors, then another two to four hours for the opener. You will need help for some portions, such as lifting out the old door and lifting the new door up until the tension springs can be installed (some doors may weigh up to 400 pounds). You may need to remove an old door, or you may be installing in ...

How To: Install a pre-hung exterior door

Getting you, your family and your friends in and out of the house is not the only thing an exterior door is about. When you install a door you want it to swing smoothly, latch tight, seal out the weather and be secure. You can get a big head start on reaching these goals by choosing the right set-up to begin with, and this usually means buying a pre-hung door. In this DIY video tutorial, you'll find step-by-step instructions for installing a pre-hung door in your own home. For more, or to get...

How To: Tile a wall

Installing wall tile is basically the same procedure as installing floor tile. And it offers the same advantages: flexibility of design; a wide range of colors, materials and patterns; and if installed correctly, years of durability. Ceramic or porcelain tile makes an attractive backsplash behind sinks and stoves, or encasing a bathroom or shower. It's a strong and easy-to-clean material that offers great decorative advantages for areas exposed to water, while resisting moisture intrusion and...

How To: Add a knockdown texture to drywall

A new coat of paint can do wonders for a dull, drab room. But sometimes you want to go a step further. Applying a knockdown texture to the wallboard before painting can help deaden sound, hide any imperfections in the drywall and, more important, provide a warm and rustic feel to the room, similar to Spanish-style stucco. For more, or to get started on your own wall texturing project, watch this DIY video tutorial.

How To: Update drywall

When faced with old, damaged plaster walls, one technique to dress up the room is to install drywall over the existing plaster. A drywall overlay gives the walls a smooth, fresh surface that's ready for new paint, paper or trim. This is a common technique used among professional contractors hired to renovate houses bought under foreclosure. For example, real estate companies that invest in foreclosures often deal with houses that are more than 50 years old and exhibit serious signs of aging. ...

How To: Build a swing arbor

Building a swing arbor is a fun weekend project that can really spruce up the landscape without requiring a lot of out-of-pocket expense. Plus, the project is fairly easy to build, requiring only basic carpentry skills, and can provide years of outdoor enjoyment. The materials for the swing cost about $100, and you can complete the project over the course of two afternoons. For more information, or to get started building your own swing arbor, watch this DIY video tutorial.

How To: Build an attached carport

A carport, or lean-to shed, attached to an existing building such as a garage, barn, shed or the side of your house can provide economical shelter for vehicles, garden tractors, boats or other equipment. An attached carport is also fairly easy to construct against the side of another building, if you have enough height under the existing building eave. For a step-by-step look at the carport construction process, take a look at this DIY video tutorial.

How To: Build a playground slide

In this video tutorial, you'll find instructions for building a standard joist design playground slide, supported by 3-by-4 posts and secured with galvanized fasteners. All fasteners exposed to the outdoors must be weather-resistant, galvanized, zinc-coated brass or stainless steel. Standard homeowner tools are all you'll need to complete your slide—a tape measure, post-hole digger, circular saw, sawhorses and a level. A good drill/driver is a great tool if using decking screws as fasteners. ...

How To: Build a garden tool shed

he age-old “shtick” about a rake handle smacking you in the face when you step on the teeth isn't funny. It's happened to me more than once. One of the problems is improperly storing rakes, hoes, shovels and other long-handled tools. They can be hung up in a garage or garden shed, but usually end up right at the door, where they fall down, and again become a dangerous problem. The garden tool shed shown solves the problem of long-handled tool storage and at the same time provides a separate s...

How To: Build segmental retaining walls

It's fun to be out in warm weather cutting big timbers and doing a project that sees quick, upward progress. In this video, you'll find instructions for building a post and plank-style retaining wall. This post-and-plank retaining system is based on the way seawalls (or bulkheads) work. You set posts into the ground, vertically, then plank behind them. This creates a wall with texture and shadow lines with nice hollows between the posts for plantings or grass. And, because there's so much pos...

How To: Build backyard planters

Planters or organized beds with planter borders can not only provide mowing definition, but contain the flowers and hopefully keep out weeds that may grow into them from surrounding areas. Backyard planters can be big or small, permanent or portable. The simplest planters consist of edging for flower or vegetable beds. In the past, many used recycled railroad ties for this, and they still add a distinctive rustic appeal to garden beds. In recent years, however, pressure-treated landscaping ti...

How To: Make old cabinets look like new

Cabinets are usually the most prominent feature of a kitchen and greatly determine the room's overall décor. Peeling paint, nicks and scratches, or a dull, dirty finish can plague older cabinets and really sap the pizzazz out of the living space. On the other hand, a fresh coat of paint can do wonders for cabinets and breathe new life into the kitchen. A repainting project can also save tons of money when compared to full cabinet replacement, which can easily total several thousands of dollar...

How To: Build a locking tool cabinet

With the growing popularity of cordless power tools, it's extremely easy these days to accumulate a lot of portable tools, and when you add in quality corded tools, such as circular saws, routers, planers and air nailers, you can end up with a pretty hefty investment. These same tools are the first to “walk away” in a theft. Left lying around a shop or garage, they can also be somewhat dangerous for youngsters. A locking cabinet not only provides a secure place, but protects the tools as well...

How To: Install a sliding patio door

To install a sliding patio or deck door, first decide a practical, aesthetically logical and structurally sound location for the entranceway. Do not locate a patio door closer than 4 feet from any corner, otherwise the solid-wood sheathing or metal bracing at the corners could be compromised. Also, plan ahead. We chose the door's location in part because it allowed the option of later adding a bathroom at the corner of the adjacent wall. For a step-by-step at the installation process, take a ...

How To: Build a deck sunroof

Decks and patios are a major source of America's entertainment and relaxing enjoyment, but they can be hot in the summer sun. They can actually be dangerous if they reflect the sun's ultraviolet rays. And running your grill during a rainstorm that arrives the same time as your guests can be a real frustration. One answer is a sunroof over your patio or deck. If designed properly, a sunroof can cut the summer sun, but still allow winter sun rays to warm the house. The sunroof shown is a typica...

How To: Install a butcher block kitchen countertop

Butcher-block kitchen countertops have traditionally been very popular and these days are often used as companion tops with other materials, such as solid-surface tops. In addition to their aesthetic appearance, they can receive hot pans without damage. You can make up your own butcher-block countertop, or the same technique can be used to create cutting boards, or a top for a roll-around cart. The steps in creating the top are fairly easy, but the project does require some special tools, esp...

How To: Solder copper pipes

An inadequate soldering job, assuming it passes inspection, can cause leaks, corrosion and call-backs. But a quality soldering job done on copper piping can last a lifetime. For a look at professional soldering techniques for the plumbing craftsman, take a look at this two-part video tutorial series.

How To: Propagate plants

Plants propagate themselves through the structures we know as flowers. At the base of the flower, one finds developing seed. The plant will eventually shed flowers and the seed with be propagated on its own. Or we can harvest the seed, dry them down, and germinate them. For more information on the propagation process, watch this green video tutorial.

How To: Fertilize plants

How does one fertilize plants? Well, a fertilizer is a material that supplies the essential elements for plant growth. Most fertilizers are concerned with nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium. It isn't always easy to know which type of fertilizer to use. In this video tutorial, you'll find a guide to selecting the right fertilizer type for your application. Grow strong, healthy plants for a green garden with this how-to.

How To: Troubleshoot plant problems

There are a lot of things that can cause decline in plants. Some are caused by insects or diseases and some are caused by environmental conditions, known as abiotic factors. Consequently, it can be hard to diagnose which, or what combination, of the above factors are resposnible for the poor health of your plant. In this green video tutorial, you'll learn how to troubleshoot plant problems. To learn what it takes, take a look.

How To: Use earthen plaster

Lately, there's been a lot of building work going on around Dancing Rabbit. So for this episode of Dancing Rabbit TV, they're taking the opportunity to provide a one-two how-to natural DIY building lesson, an in-depth video about earthen plastering techniques and application. Tamar will guide you every step of the the build process, showing how easy it is to make natural plaster from just a few simple ingredients, both making and mixing the plaster, and then applying it to a natural home wall...

How To: Build a compost bin

In this DIY gardening video tutorial, you'll find instructions on constructing your own compost bin. More precisely, this video will show you how to build a compost bin from recycled skids and coat hangers that'll have your friends green with envy. Take a look!