My client Joshua is really smart investor. He bought an investment property here in Asheville and had it completely updated: new roof, new wiring, new plumbing, better floor plan, and so on. He was almost done with the renovation, but he didn't have enough time to devote to the last item on the list: the kitchen. That's when he called me.

Savvy sellers know that the kitchen and bathroom are the most important rooms in the house. Joshua wanted "kitchen appeal" to make the house look fresh and up-to-date.

We started by installing new countertops, sink, faucet, drain assembly and garbage disposal. Then we installed new appliances: the water heater, fridge, stove, microwave, and dishwasher.

Presto! A new kitchen.

That hardworking gentleman cutting out the hole for the sink is my friend Jesse. I brought him in to help with the countertop and appliances, since they would have been awkward for just one person to move. He's also an experienced handyman in his own right, and I often recommend him to clients when I'm too busy to take on more work. Thanks for the help, Jesse!

Now that the kitchen was done, it was time to fix up the bathroom. Joshua had already ripped out the dated fixtures and had the new plumbing stubbed in, so it was ready for the new sink, toilet and light fixture.

Last, but not least, a grace note: new ceiling fans in all the rooms.

I'm sure the added "kitchen appeal," "bathroom appeal" and even "ceiling fan appeal" will help Joshua's investment sell faster, and I really enjoyed making these finishing touches.

When you first move into a house, you're eventually faced with the question of what to put on your walls. Most people just hang art work or a flat-screen TV up there and leave it at that. I recently helped someone hang something a little more special.

One of my regular clients had a beautiful skin canoe that her son made and wanted to have it hung on her living room wall.

It's a marvel of craftsmanship: a light wooden frame enclosed by a translucent leathery husk.  This is the only wall in her house that it would fit.

The problem was that she wanted to be able to remove the canoe from the wall again, and she didn't want to put any holes in the canoe (of course). We came up with a simple solution:

The canoe is held by two belts which are bolted to the wall and into studs. This is a great way to keep a delicate item out of the way, but still have easy access. Her next project is to install 8 saddle racks to hold her collection of saddles.

Well, summer's here and it's time to get my lil' rat bike up and running. Meet the venerable Honda CT 90!

This bike is super simple and all of the parts are still available online. Not bad for a 45-year-old motorcycle! If you can really call it a motorcycle. Its only 90cc's. But it does have a high gear that could climb a tree if it had the traction.

It's been sitting for about a year or more. I popped in a fresh battery and some non-ethanol gas and it came to life after two kicks.

Honestly, I was thinking about selling it. But after riding around a bit, the love affair is back in full bloom. This thing is amazingly reliable, but, she does need some TLC. The brakes barely work and the front brake lever broke off. So no back up brakes. It comes with a little tool kit that presumably will remove any bolt or screw.

It does get most of the main problem culprits, like a loose chain, but after a quick check, it doesn't have the tools to do everything. Fortunately as a handyman, I have every tool I need:

As reliable as this thing is, it still makes me nervous getting too far out. So over the next couple of weekends, I have some casual shade tree tinkering to do.

I've recently been working on a house that was just purchased in Weaverville. The owners have many updates and repairs to do. Yesterday I installed some cabinets for their laundry room. It's hard to believe that they weren't installed already. Now they look like they've always been there.

I might be getting myself in trouble here... now my wife says she wants more cabinets in our laundry area. I must admit that it would be nice not to have an avalanche every time I pull a towel off the shelf.

Pre-made cabinets like this are an easy way to add storage without making the room look cluttered, and I think they also make the space look more finished. Bonus: a well-designed laundry room like this can improve the value of your home.

Next step: a fold-down table near the window so the homeowners can fold laundry and look out at the nice view.