Rockwell tools

My house is a sty – dishes in the sink, piles of laundry still waiting to be washed, toys, books, papers spattered on every surface.

My home is a ‘Jackson Pollock’ of mess.

Not because I don’t care – it bugs the hell out of me – but because I’ve had some exciting things going on with the blog that I’ve been pre-occupied with…

like….

working (once again) with ROCKWELL TOOLS!

(Squeeeaaaal!)

Yup, they came back and offered me MORE TOOLS to work with in return for my honest review and perhaps some inspirational projects to use them on.

As a home/small project DIYer, I don’t have a huge arsenal of tools to work with – so when I get any DIY tools, I need them to be strong, sturdy, manageable and ideally multifunctional so that they can be used for more than one job.

WannaseewhatIgot?!

The JAWHORSE!

Over 1 ton of maximum clamping force
Solid, all-steel construction provides rigidity and strength for the toughest job demands
Foot pedal lever creates extreme, hands-free clamping force
Portable folding design for space-saving storage
Integrated roller for easy transportation

AND – look how small it folds up!

Lotta power in a tiny, little package!

As far as DIY tools go, you’re probably thinking “but this is just a glamorous saw horse?”

Nope, remember I wrote “multifunctional DIY tools”- this bad boy can be used as a saw horse, a vice and a ginormous clamp that is controlled by a foot pedal so you don’t have to bend and stretch over a large piece of wood. For this project, it was ideal because I needed to put a very large piece of mdf out to cut out the window holes and I really didn’t want to cut into my workbench or have anything shift or fall on me.

I’ve got a few other Rockwell DIY Tools in my arsenal as well, but I’ll detail each as I put them to the test.

This photo makes me laugh – I may have over-photo-edited on the eyes. PicMonkey offered me ‘eye brightening’, but I think it looks more like creepy white eyeshadow. Anything to detract from the 4 chins and crooked nose though. lol

So what did I test out my new toys on?

A second American Girl dollhouse of course.

Maybe not ‘of course’, I mean who needs two of these monsters? This second one is for a dear friend celebrating her 7th birthday (love you Jeannie!)

I used Ana White’s plans once again, but I changed up the measurements to be 79″tall (with castors) and only 41″wide. I trimmed out the windows (which I have yet to do on Chloe’s house) and Jeannie chose the most beautiful colours to finish it in. (one tester pot will do two coats of paint on a single floor).

I changed things up a bit with this dollhouse and used 1/2″mdf instead of the 3/4″ I used for Chloe’s. This made the unit a lot lighter to move around – important when Daddies have to carry it up or down staircases – but not as sturdy if there is a risk that the child might climb on the shelves.

Jeannie chose faux-marble peel-and-stick tiles throughout, and I used another of my multifunctional DIY tools – my Rockwell Bladerunner X2 to cut the tiles to size – SO EASY, particularly if you use the steel rip fence to keep your cuts perfectly straight.

Sets up in seconds to cut wood, metal, tile, aluminum or plastic
Lightweight and easy to carry, weighing less than 15lbs
Instant, tool-free blade changes & compatible with any t-shank jigsaw blades 4″ or less
Easy-to-use, both hands are left free to control your cuts
Dedicated steel rip fence with large scale for accurate rip cuts
On-board storage for miter gauge, rip fence and blades

If you are looking to build up your DIY arsenal, you really need both the Bladerunner X2 and the Jawhorse as a strong foundation.

Don’t get me wrong, Rockwell Tools are strong enough for the serious builders as well – with grades from DIY up to contractor size – but for my use and price point, these are the perfect size and strength for the home DIYer

I’m so excited to be working with Rockwell Tools again and I promise many, MANY more projects to come using each and every one of them!