Mark discusses the merits of using pressure treated southern pine for a variety of outdoor projects.



Mark brings you an update on the Real Wood playset from the set of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition in Joplin, MO—part of the special ‘7…
Maybe it’s because one of the most formative periods of my home improvement life was building swim-floats and docks in Cape Cod’s salt water bays…
Being a carpenter isn’t always fun. We work hard, in the weather, and it’s a tough way to make a buck. There are, however, aspects…
Mark & Theresa are inside the Ultimate Tool Playground at the Craftsman Experience in downtown Chicago, where it’s all about real tools, real wood,…
Go to almost any lumber yard and the wood you’ll find there is milled on all four sides. Two-by, 4-by-, 6-by…you get the idea. But…
Question: My house is about 90 years old. It needs work. As I remodel I try to keep things as close to original as I…


Installing deck boards crown up or down can impact how the deck ages. So what do you do with crowning deck boards? Here is how to install deck boards.


Mark & Theresa broadcast LIVE from Real Outdoor Living’s Wood Pavilion at the Remodeling Show / Deck Expo 2011. Brad Staggs joins Mark and Theresa…
Mark and Theresa were among the first to be invited into the 2011 HGTV Dream Home in Stowe, VT. Click the arrow at the right…
Remodeling, retro-fit, renovation, restoration. From products to process, tools to techniques, they are all branches of the home improvement tree. We’re bringing you the best…
The real Outdoor living team pitched for the use of outdoor wood on the Joplin build, both to further aid Joplin residents and to complement…
Congratulations to Nicholas! He’s the winner of the Real Wood, Real Fun Play Structure and Rockwell Tools! Nicholas won the backyard Real Wood, Real Fun playset…
For most of my career I’ve built in what I would call “thickly settled” neighborhoods. In other words, not many back-forty type lots for me…
Tooling Up in Joplin’s Cunningham Park with Extreme Makeover. It took 10,000 volunteers and multiple builders to make Extreme Makeover: Home Edition‘s 200th—and final—episode a…
When Mark and I heard that Extreme Makeover: Home Edition was planning to build 7 houses in 7 days in Joplin for families affected by…
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[…] this project is made from Southern Yellow Pine (and a few logs from the adjacent woods). The wood is secured with their favorite Spax fasteners […]