Archives
Everything You Need to Know to Patch Plaster Perfectly
It may be tempting to replace old plaster, but you can preserve the beauty and integrity of your walls by following these tips to patch it.
How To Choose a Vintage Radiator
Vintage iron radiators offer comfort on a cold day and style year-round. Read our guide to choosing a vintage radiator for your home.
How To Use a Coping Saw
Discover the versatility of coping saws in our comprehensive guide. We discuss their uses, features, and more.
How To Reface Kitchen Cabinets
Our guide helps you reface your kitchen cabinets for a modern, updated look that saves time and money.
4 Half Bath Design Sketches
Almost as anachronistic as the formal dining room, the powder room is evolving. It's becoming a specialist: the home-office bath, the work-out bath, and more
Beautiful Kitchens
No other room in the house is as striking when properly designed as the kitchen. Here are some of our favorites.
S27 E18: A Red Box Becomes a Show House
Norm Abram finds specialist Joe Ferraro installing a new custom garage system. Chimney specialist Mark Schaub installs new vented gas logs in the corner fireplace of the library, as general contractor Tom Silva installs custom shoji screens from California. Wrap party.
How to Install Glass Fireplace Doors
This article explains how to quickly and easily install fireplace doors to help it become more efficient and safer.
A Guide to Modern House Framing Materials
Learn about the new technology and techniques in framing construction, which allow for higher ceilings, larger open spaces, and even cantilevered rooms.
S27 E17: Things Are Coming Together
Norm Abram finds general contractor Tom Silva at work on the dramatic 3-story stair. Landscape contractor Roger Cook visits a 500-acre sod farm in Rhode Island to see how sod is grown and harvested.
S27 E16: Modern Conveniences in a Modern Home
Richard Trethewey shows master carpenter Norm Abram the mechanical room. Norm travels to a fine-furniture shop in Auburn, Maine, to see some of the modern cherry furniture being made for the house.
S27 E15: Contemporary Design Elements
Roger Cook sets the massive bluestone treads on a stringer that appears to float over the new water feature. Richard Trethewey shows Kevin why a chiller makes sense for cooling a house on a tight urban lot. Flooring contractor Pat Hunt shows Kevin the new engineered floors from Europe.
S27 E14: Fine Craftsmanship
Roger Cook installs two concrete storage tanks that are part of the underground water collection system. Norm Abram travels to Middletown, Rhode Island, to see the custom mill shop that is machining the stair treads.
S27 E13: Interior Finishes Begin
Roger Cook shows host Kevin O’Connor how he’s installing a pre-fabricated pitched structural foam trench drain. Kevin visits the Stata Center at MIT.
S27 E12: Dramatic Staircase
Tom Silva oversees the installation of the steel stairs. Richard Trethewey gives Kevin an update on the mechanicals.
The Washington, D.C. House
This tough old building has survived everything, including crack-addicted squatters. Now it's returning to habitability as a 3-bed, 2-bath beauty.
S27 E11: Rain Slows Some Progress
Tom Silva shows Kevin how he’s creating a modern look inside by using minimal wood trim around the windows. Roger Cook starts installing 18 tons of bluestone in the front courtyard.
A Wall of Windows Goes Into the TOH Cambridge House
Catch up on advances in home-window manufacturing.
A Guide to Nail Sets
Here are the different types, features, sizes of nail set tools and when to use them.
S27 E10: Creating a Dramatic Entryway
Norm Abram explains the decision to use a formerly controversial exterior cladding system known as an exterior insulated finishing system, or EIFS. Kevin finds Tom Silva and chimney specialist Mark Schaub working with the new gas fireplace unit.