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COVID-19 and Hippo Hardware

Posted on March 23, 2020 | 0 Comments

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Speak Easy Or Forever Hold Your Peace

Posted on March 29, 2019 | 1 Comment

Speakeasy meant just what it sounded like, Speak. Easy. As in, "Go easy on speaking about this totally illegal bar, there's a Prohibition on alcohol sales out there!" Between 1920 and 1933 proprietors of speakeasys usually placed a couple of hired goons behind a heavy, solid door but needed to be able to see who to let in. Enter the speakeasy. (With a password, of course.)

Prohibition ended 86 years ago but the tiny window lives on. This security feature is alive and well in many older homes. A house or piece of furniture are only as good as their hardware. The charm of this antique is met literally at the front door or wooden gate. It is the first impression and with a speakeasy you can bet there will be an inherent air of mystery.

To add to the clandestine nostalgia, there are plenty of styles. From portholes, Victorian designs, Art Deco, to twisted wrought iron grilles; there’s a style for just about anyone. Some feature a door knocker, glass for insulation or even double sided mirror. It’s a tiny window into a time gone by, the Emerald City or just your entryway. Hippo has many great speakeasys in our hardware department (hired goons not included).

DIY Bottle Opener with Bottle-Top Catcher!

Posted on November 18, 2018 | 0 Comments

Looking for a fun DIY project that you can custom design for your friends and fellow beer/soda/kombucha drinkers? One that won’t cost a fortune? One that is easy and you could make several in one hour? We’ve got the perfect project for you that is also perfect for your friends: a bottle opener with cap catcher!

Here’s the materials you will need (you can find them all at Hippo or you may even have some of them lying around your home.)

-a piece of board

-bottle opener (wall mounted)

-vintage tin can/small tin pail/mason jar/etc to catch the bottle tops in

-screws or nails

-screw driver/hammer

-any extra embellishments (ie: the lid to the tin can, letters, etc)

Step one:

Lay everything out on your piece of wood—make sure you’ve got the lengths right and are able to fit a bottle underneath the opener.

Step two:

Start screwing! Assemble everything—we suggest starting at the top and working your way down.

Look what you made!

For the friend who likes a pop of color: 

For the practical friend who enjoy ease of usage: 

For the rustic enthusiast: 

Step three:

Wrap that awesome gift up and be prepared for your friends and fellow beer drinkers to be delighted when they see their custom-made bottle openers!

PS: want to go for a modern look? Try these with mason jars! A little less personal but no less useful plus we have brackets to secure them! 

Hippo's Top 10 Easy Fixes for Your Home This Holiday Season

Posted on September 02, 2018 | 0 Comments

Fall is only a month away and that means the holidays can’t be too far off. And we all know holidays mean family and visitors that most likely will want to bunk at your place. But what if your home isn’t ready for visitors? Don’t fret, Hippo friends—we are here for you with our top 10 easy fixes to get your home ready for those holiday-time home crashers!

1) Make sure you have plenty of hooks! Though this one seems simple think of that huge coat pile that will undoubtedly end up on your bed if you don’t have enough hooks for coats, purses, hats, etc.

2) Check those door handles and make sure they are set correctly on the spindles lest they break at an inopportune moment. No Aunt Phyllis stuck in the bathroom this year!

3) Speaking of doors. It’s time to check on/replace those springs in your mortise locks. Heaven forbid it breaks and now your door won’t lock. Your guests and family will thank you.

4) Do you live in an old home with NO lock on your bathroom door? It might be a great time to add a simple slide bolt to keep those knock-while-entering visitors at bay.

6) You’ve got a gorgeous light fixture but it’s broken, and sure, you will get it rewired someday. . . but man that would suck if you wait too long and it burned the whole place down. There’s no time like the present to drop a little money and get that puppy UL certified! Safety first, friends.

7) Are your guest rooms dark and gloomy? Add a beautiful vintage lamp and give your guests some reading light so they aren’t keeping you up all night instead.

8) Guests and visitors mean time to stock up on bathroom accessories like towel bars and soap holders! God forbid your cousin and her kids pile all their wet towels on top of yours. Gross.

9) Make sure those hinge pins (especially on your bathroom doors!) are tapped down as you wouldn’t want your doors falling off. . . at the inopportune moment. And while you’re at it, replace your ugly boring hinges with beautiful vintage ones.

10) Who needs more mirrors? You do! So do your guests! As Mary Poppins says, “A thing of beauty is a joy forever.” She’s probably quoting someone else, but the point remains: a beautiful vintage mirror adds that practically perfect touch and every room needs at least one.

 Want to know the best thing about this list? You can find everything (and so much more) at Hippo Hardware! Plus our experts are here to give you advice whether you want it or not, helpful hints and tips and general emotional support as family-time draws near.

Spindle Kits Redux

Posted on July 08, 2018 | 2 Comments

Since the spindle kit is one our best selling items, we felt it merited a blog post to explain the increase in our price from $10 to $20. Our wholesale costs rose dramatically these past few months due to (we've been told) the price of steel. We'd like to offer a few options:

1) Our original threaded/tapped spindle kit which is great for saving lovely old doorknobs on a threaded spindle. See our blog post all about how to fix antique doorknobs here. These are still our favorite option, but the cost is higher.

2) We have started carrying a less expensive reproduction straight tapped spindle kit. These will function the exact same as our threaded/tapped spindles once your knobs are mounted. Getting them on, however, might be more difficult depending on your set. These spindles do not have any threads so if you're using them with a threaded doorknob where the threads are damaged, you may have to file out the remaining threads to get this spindle to work.

3) Threaded spindles (thread 16, thread 18, and thread 20) which work if your threads are still in good shape however you will need to know the thread size in your knob. Our wholesale on these spindles has not gone up so the prices remain much lower.

Thanks for your patience while we've gotten this sorted out. Please keep us posted on how best to help you our with your projects.

DIY Projects with Salvaged Antique Doors

Posted on May 04, 2018 | 2 Comments

Here at Hippo Hardware, re-purposing discarded material is a pillar of our business, a personal passion, and a stylish way to include the past in our modern lives. 

A favorite starting material for many of our customers is a salvaged door. Not only does a door make a great statement piece, but the quality of construction are rarely matched in our modern era. With some delicate sifting, we would love to share some of our favorite projects! 

Hall Tree

Hall trees reached their peak of popularity during the Victorian era. Although they can be difficult to find today, a DIY version is easily within reach.

With a few doors, some gorgeous vintage hardware, and a little elbow grease, a stunning and practical hall tree is made. Add a mirror or a shoe rack to organize your entry space!

Bench

With the same convenience as standard lumber, doors can also be used to craft some amazing seating options. From a cottage style, deep sitting chair to a wonderfully weathered swinging bench for your patio, the possibilities are truly endless.

Table

We love this innovative yet the simple design by far is a hanging table suspended by vintage styled hemp rope.

And don't overlook doors for a statement DIY coffee or end table. You can impress your company and customize it to your personal needs and space.

Bookcase

A simple slice down the length of a 4 or 6 panel door creates the perfect ends for an elegant, stylish bookcase. Creative organization can easily be conquered with some simple planning.

Room Divider

Both glass and solid panel doors can be suspended from the ceiling to create amazing room dividers! 

Alternatively, hinge doors together for a folding screen using whatever doors fit your fancy. Great for photo shoots as well!

Sliding Doors

Whether you call them barn doors, stall doors, or sliding doors, a rail and matching hardware quickly turns any door into the centerpiece of your creative space.

Mirror

Some antique doors have a great place for an inset for a mirror. Selecting a door with unique character is always best. You can guarantee everyone will be looking right at it!

Chalkboard

Yet another beautiful use for the inset panels of a door are chalkboards or corkboards. This popular and affordable DIY project is easy to personalize for your own space and needs. Chalkboard paint along with corkboard can be obtained at most hobby and craft stores.

Whatever your DIY project is, our architecture department is a treasure trove of materials ripe for re-purposing. We’d love to help you get your next project started or help you find that finishing touch so bring us your ideas, pictures and let us help you bring those DIY dreams to life. 

DIY No Soliciting Signs

Posted on April 05, 2018 | 0 Comments

So, I was recently having a small conundrum:  I want a No Soliciting sign on my door but I just don't love my options out there. I have heard many customers expressing the same sentiment and I just today figured out a solution I'm exciting about - label holders!  Yes - perhaps it seems obvious now, but I just realized how awesome and varied label holders are and how easy it would be to make my own attractive sign. I chose a large one because my front door is up off the street and I'd prefer folks get the message before ascending my stairs.

Personally, my handwriting is atrocious (thank god for the keyboard, I say) but I have friends who know how to make pretty things.  Likewise you could paint something, print something, or type it on a typewriter.  So many great options!  Here is what I ended up with:

 My very talented friend Thea Gahr made painted this beautiful sign with watercolor. I absolutely love seeing it every time I come home. We did have a slight misunderstanding which is why the sign is a big smaller. I did decide to laminate the sign both to preserve the art as well as make up for the space between the frame and the sign.

Setting it up was easy as pie - just mount the label holder to the door

Cut the sign to size

And then slide it into place (my frame was slightly open on the top which is the most common).

This structure would also work great for other signs, such as:  Please Remove Your Shoes, Please Turn Off the Light, or Thank You for Not Smoking. Most label holders are much smaller - around 3" x 2". We have some great label holders online right now - this copper black japanned one, this classic brass one, this lovely and unusual iron Victorian one, and this fantastic arts and crafts brass guy.

Anyone out there have some cool DIY signs they've made?  Post them in the comments below!