Recently I was asked on a podcast episode whether it was taxing to be sharing so openly. Did I grow weary of it?

My answer? Yes.

There are times when I want to be quiet and anonymous and small, wearied of the disclosure. There are times when I think, why can’t I be a design blogger and post pictures of my home and garden? (Not to say that’s not vulnerable, because it is. And every type of blogger has their own issues and stress. The grass is not greener on the lawn of the design blogger, to be sure).

So for a wee glimpse of what Live Uncaged would look like as a design blog, I offer you my project from last week.

My friend Leslie spied a black buffet on Craig’s list. It fit in my dining nook perfectly, and was quite affordable, so I nabbed it. Except that it had two problems.

Problem one, inside the cabinet there were no shelves, just tall empty space. I needed to make a few shelves for its interior to give me more space for platters and whatnot.

Problem two, I needed a place for glasses. So I decided a shelf would be in order.

Initially I contracted a woodworker and gave him the dimensions so he could fashion the shelves for the inside and the shelf above that I envisioned. But then his life got busy, and true to form, I got impatient. I was tired of glasses hanging out on my dining table, and I wanted things NEAT.

So this girl who has had a steady diet of HGTV decided I could be a wood worker. In my mind, I believed this to be true right down to the marrow of me.

Turns out I had some pieces of maple-veneered planks that were the exact width of my cabinet. So those, I chop-sawed (the only saw I had) until they nearly met in the middle. I hand sawed the rest. I purchased veneer to cover the raw edges, and VOILA, shelves!

I cannot tell you how happy this made me feel. I could saw wood! I could iron on wood veneer! Where was HGTV‘s hidden cameras to document this genius?

Then I ventured to Home Depot to nab a six-foot by 12 inch piece of raw pine, two corbels, and some molding so I could fashion that crazy shelf. I wood glued the molding to the piece (so it would look chunkier), securing with a few strategically placed finishing nails. Then I hung the brackets using proper screws, finishing by securing the shelf to the brackets. And here’s how it looks! I initially was going to paint it white, but then loved the raw wood so much. I have some sealer I’ll use eventually.

Last, I found a long piece of board in the garage, placed those fuzzy stick on discs on the bottom, then hand lettered the top. My intention was to use this as a center piece for cheese and bread, but then I propped it up under the shelf, and it felt like it should live there awhile.

I cannot tell you how giddy this all made me feel. I could MAKE something, folks. Out of wood. So bizarre and fun.

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Don’t worry. I’ll still spill my story and angst here. But it was sure fun to put my designer hat on for a day.