Ugly Americans

Do you have a pet or small child that has trashed the underside of your Drexel or bed? Are you nearing your PCS and looking to fix the damage before somebody comes by to inspect your furniture for damage and bill you accordingly? Then today's tutorial is for you! This is a pretty easy repair to perform on your furniture, and the materials you will be using are inexpensive. All you need are the supplies, time and patience. Let's begin. What you will need: staple gun and staples scissors flat head screwdriver Sharpie or similar permanent marker needle nosed pliers material for the dust cover - you can use the internet and get yourself Cambric Uphol Fabric , or you can use black landscaping fabric , which gardeners use to line their flower bed (and protect plants from weeds) if you have a local supplier at post. . As you can see from the photo above, this ottoman's dust cover has met with an unfortunate fate. In this shot I have already removed two o...

As we near the end of our time here in Sarajevo, the urgency of 'getting stuff done before packout'  has increased. One of those things would be the furniture we don't own, but have to take care of while we're at post. The Drexel. So, if you are getting ready for you first post, already at your first post, or an old hand at this but looking for other ideas to make your life easier (and take less of a hit on your pocketbook at the end of a tour), keep reading.  I like saving money, and I don't like to spend it on things I don't have to (like damages to furniture I don't own), so I try to keep embassy furniture as clean as possible over the course of a tour. This is no easy feat because the furniture has a tendency to wear easily (poor fabric, weak seams, poorly designed casters, etc.). But when you add kids, you are pretty much guaranteed stains, all the time. That you will need to clean, all the time. So, this week has been solely focused on fixing ...