Weekend Round-up: At Home Vacation Homes, Cheap Fence, and a Free Drill

I’ve been meaning to get back into the habit of citing interesting or inspiring articles I find around the blogosphere.  After all, citing someone’s work is the highest form of internet flattery.   I won’t make a commitment to a weekend round-up (for as soon as I do, I will certainly fail to post the next weekend).  But when I have time, I’m going to give it a shot.  So, here’s what I found interesting this week:

At Home Vacation Homes

I read a wonderful post today by FloridaChic over at Debt Smack on making your home your vacation home.  She cites a book by Judi Clubertson and Marj Decker called Living Large that makes some pertinent observations about vacation homes.  Most notably, how you can apply the decorating/organization  principles in those homes to make your primary residence a little more like a getaway.  FloridaChic focuses primarily on techniques to reduce clutter and unneeded things (a very good goal and one towards which Kim and I constantly strive).  Being a houseblogger, I tend to think more about the renovating and finishing aspects of the home. 

For instance, last year we hired a contractor to install a large deck on the back of the house.  We lined the deck with Tiki torches about every 10′ or so, and at night, it feels like we’re on a carribean getaway vacation.  This year, I hope to install some outdoor speakers so we can add ambience (waves crashing in the background, some Jimmy Buffet, etc).   We still like to go on vacation (been to the islands three times!) but we’ve no desire to own a home there.  

What do you think about this?  Do you have a vacation home?  Do you think of your primary home as your vacation home? 

$0.00 Fence

The Martineaus over at A Bungalow Transformation just constructed a fence for $0.00 from stuff they already had around the house.  Not only is the fence functional, it doesn’t look half bad for being made from salvage parts.  And, the Martineaus gets big points for putting something old to good use instead of throwing it away.  Check it out and give them kudos for keeping the dogs in, saving a few bucks, and saving the planet at the same time.

Craftsman Drill Giveaway Contest

I don’t cite many giveaway contests, but this one caught my eye because (1) it’s a home improvement tool (2) being given away by an independent blogger (3) who’s trying a giveaway for the first time. This is the best kind of linkbait to support.  So without further ado, Kyle over at Rather-be-Shopping is giving away a Craftsman Cordless Drill.  Write a post on your own blog and link back to Kyle and you get 20 entries instead of one.  See the specific rules on his site for entry requirements. 

Also, for the record, this is my entry into the contest.  My frugalist (and stupidest) home repair job was trying to reseat a toilet with a cheap-o bol wax ring from Home Depot.  I didn’t spring for the No-Seep #10, and it cost me a ruined drywall ceiling in my kitchen when it leaked.  No, the kitchen isn’t fixed yet.  I’m waiting to win the drill so I can get started