Tool Talk Tuesday featuring Living With Lindsay!

My fab friend Lindsay asked me several months ago if my blog was "open for business." The way she asked made me laugh, but as she'd been kicked butt with her blog and making friends out in blogland, I think she wanted to bring me along! Not long after that funny email, she posted my accent wall in her Teach Me Tuesday feature and I couldn't wait to feature her, too. She's a homemaker EXTRAORDINAIRE (she's also incredibly politically astute and wickedly smart...I know this as I went to grad school with her!), and can do more with a glue gun than anyone I've ever met, but we couldn't find the perfect opportunity until recently...when she was given her very own tools!

Please join me as we hear from Lindsay about her 5-year anniversary gifts...that came in a tool box!



For our five year wedding anniversary, my devoted husband gave me a tool box.

I know what you are thinking..."A tool box?" Well, there was a diamond necklace inside of it, so don't feel too sorry for me, okay?

Along with my beautiful necklace, he also filled my tool box with some essentials. You see, he's really picky about his tools and we both decided that I needed my own basic set. Too many tense situations have erupted over me using his tools in ways that he has deemed harmful to the tools (not to myself), so this gift was a long time coming.

The tool box was originally Home Depot orange, but DH figured I'd want to paint it with plastic spray paint anyway. He knows me so well! Now it's all pretty and Lindsay-like!

If you don't have your own set of tools or are looking to add to your current collection, here's a list of my "any gal" must-haves:

1. Cordless screwdriver/light duty drill - I have a Ryobi 4-volt from Home Depot, and I am very happy with it. It has enough power to drill a light duty project (like adding the hinges to my makeover desk) and plenty of power to take the wrist pain out of manually driving screws.

2. Tape measure - Seriously, I can't live without this thing. I have this nice 25-foot metal tape measure, a fabric measuring tape, a yardstick, and more rulers than you can shake a stick at. When you are working on DIY projects, precision is key to having great results. Find a tape measure that feels sturdy in your hand and look for one that has a long rigidity length (i.e. how long you can extend it upwards before it starts to bend).

3. 8-in-1 hand screwdriver - When the cordless screwdriver won't do the trick, definitely have another screwdriver on hand. I love mine because it's green it has eight different bits in the handle so I can pretty much use it for any size and type of screw.

4. Painter's tape - I think blue painter's tape is one of the greatest inventions ever. This is the tape you use to paint straight lines and mask off the areas you don't want to paint, but you can use it for all sorts of things, such has holding trim in place while the glue dries, marking touch up spots on a piece of rehabbed furniture, and holding a set of hardware together so the screws don't get lost. It's pricey as far as tape goes, but I think it's well worth it.

5. Light Duty Hammer - I actually don't use a hammer very often since Tom has explained to me why it's better to use screws than nails in most situations (they don't pull out of surfaces as easily as nails do), but it's always good to have one on hand...even it if it's just for closing a paint can.

6. Precision screwdriver set - It's nice to have a set of small screwdrivers for those tiny little screws that crop up out of nowhere. A set of 6 is pretty cheap, so they are definitely a good tool to add to your toolbox.

Of course, we have many, many more tools than this, but these are the necessities I wanted to have of my very own. What's in your tool box? Anything I need to add to my must-have list?

Lindsay wants to know what's in our tool boxes, but I want to know what that diamond necklace looks like!

I love that Lindsay has her very own tools now! Sharing a love for beautify-ing our homes and DIY projecdts have been such fun additions to our friendship...and I can't wait to visit her in TX next fall for a big thrifting adventure that we'll both be blogging about later on down the road!

Lindsay is a clever chick with impecable taste and talent. PLEASE visit Living with Lindsay often for inspiration, fab ideas, and to be amazed by what one woman can accomplish!