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Norm will be sent off with a one-hour tribute special, The House That Norm Built, premiering Monday, October 3 at 9 pm ET on PBS and streamed on The Roku Channel. Admired for his easy-going manner and common-sense approach to renovation, Norm is an uncompromising old-world craftsman who searches out new construction products and processes. Let’s take a look back at some classic Norm moments while celebrating his storied career on This Old House....

Color Wheel Guide Trying to figure out which of those colors will mix harmoniously on your living room wall is enough to make you turn straight to the ecru- and eggshell-white family and never leave. How do I find out what paint colors go together? One way to go, however, is to use a complementary color scheme. Proving the rule that opposites attract, these pairings can always be found at opposite ends from each other on a paint color wheel....

The bark of the cork oak tree has been used to seal champagne bottles since the 1600s, but it was a pretty new idea to use it as flooring in 1937 when it was installed at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater. Visit the iconic house today, and you’ll see much of that cork still in service, a testament to its durability. The material was prized for its warm natural look, noise-dampening ability, and ergonomic comfort—and still is....

What’s most alarming is that home fires have become more dangerous and devastating recently because of the flammability of the materials in the house. Thirty years ago, you had on average about 14 to 17 minutes to escape a house fire, according to Consumer Safety Director John Drengenberg of Underwriters Laboratories (UL). “Today, with the prevalence of synthetic materials in the home, occupants have roughly 2 to 3 minutes to get out,” said Drengenberg....

Steps for Installing Decorative Stair Brackets Step 1: Choose and prep your brackets Here we used simple-to-install wood brackets that go up with adhesive and nails. To make the project even easier, we had the stock ¼-inch-thick profile custom-milled to just 3/16 inch so that the bracket would be slightly recessed beneath the existing scotia molding that skirts the treads. Any thicker and we would have had to remove the scotia and replace it with longer strips that could wrap the brackets....

A classic picnic table with attached benches is the perfect solution. This staple of backyards and parks—with its elbow-to-elbow dining and climb-over seating—works in all terrains, so you can move off the deck and onto the grass. Picnic Table Parts: An Overview You could buy one of the ready-made options offered in a range of outdoor-friendly materials. But if you’re like most This Old House readers, you’ll probably want to assemble stock lumber and sturdy bolts into one big enough to seat the entire clan....

See for yourself as This Old House contributor Chris Beidel, owner of Pernt, a handmade-furniture company in Brooklyn, New York, walks you through the steps of this ceiling beautification project. Primed lumber: WindsorONE+ 1x6 finger-jointed pine, $1.35 per linear foot; WindsorONE Coffered Ceiling Overview Day-to-day timeline SATURDAY Install the beams (Steps 1–12). SUNDAY Install molding, and paint (Step 13-16). Step 1: Locate the Joists Work out your design on graph paper, mapping lights and major features of the room....

Building a Simple Deck The deck shown here features a pressure-treated floor frame that’s supported by a ledger board and concrete piers, and topped with 5/4-inch decking. And because the deck is only a one step high, no railing was required. Now just follow Tom’s tips and build your own backyard oasis. It’s a great way to make your neighbors jealous. Anatomy of a Deck An on-grade deck—one built just above the ground—doesn’t require posts, steps, or railings....

Get yourself a wooden bench with a simple design, and position it in a shady spot for your leisurely breaks. If you’re good with a jigsaw, it’s not difficult to make a nice contoured one with simple horizontal slats. Or you can find many similarly shaped ­offerings in garden catalogs and shops. A well-placed bench will be a welcome respite for the constant gardener, and the occasional regal admirer....

How to Build an Exterior Sliding Barn Door Resources C.R. O’Neill Company and William C. Gilbert Carpentry provided expert assistance with this segment in Lexington, MA. How to Hang a Sliding Barn Door Shopping list Barn door kit, including: Rails Brackets Rollers Hardware Impact driver sockets Tools

How To Build Your Own Baseball Bat Display Case Resources Tom works with a homeowner to finish building a custom case to display his son’s commemorative championship bat and pins. Tom measures the case to help him determine how thick to make the rails and stiles. He uses a table saw to cut the stiles to match the length of the case and cuts the two rails to fit in between the stiles....

Color is one of the most transformative tools in your design arsenal. It can completely change the feeling of a space. When it comes to paint, keep in mind that the amount of natural light a room receives, the direction it comes from, and even how it plays off your furnishings all affect how wall colors appear. South-facing rooms tend to get warm, sun-drenched light, so you may want a cooler tone to balance out the warmth....

Whatever your reason for needing a custom-sized mirror, it will be much less expensive to cut it yourself than to have it professionally done. All you need are the right materials. Materials for cutting a mirror The most important thing you’ll need, besides the mirror itself, is a glass-cutting tool. Glass cutters are small and inexpensive, typically costing less than $10. They feature a small rolling cutter at the tip for scoring the glass, a notched section for gripping stray glass pieces, and a balled tip for deepening the score mark....

What Does an Electrician Do? Although wiring might seem like a black-and-white proposition—either the light goes on or it doesn’t—it’s actually a vast interdependent network. Circuits that are otherwise safe but poorly designed can damage appliance motors and electronic gear because they deliver the wrong amperage. Lights on even partially overloaded circuits can flicker when an appliance is in use, or the breaker may trip or the fuse might blow, shutting down the circuit entirely....

How to Fix Light Wood Abrasions Light abrasions are often the result of materials rubbing on the finished surface of the wood. This is actually a collection of light scratches in the outermost finish layer, which is usually lacquer or polyurethane. How to Fix Large Wood Abrasions When working with larger abrasions, it might be necessary to blend the repair into the rest of the wood. These abrasions may be slightly deeper than a lighter abrasion, but not so deep that they dig into the wood....

Does Cork Make Good Flooring? Cork is also a lot easier to install than traditional wood flooring. Manufacturers now offer products in engineered panels that snap together without glue or nails. These floating-floor systems sit well over plywood, concrete, or even the existing flooring. As This Old House technical editor Mark Powers shows here, in one afternoon you can turn a kitchen or playroom floor into a comfortable mat where your toes can roam free without fear of the big chill....