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Christmas Must Be Coming…
Usually around this time of year there are a flurry of orders for wood maps. So far this year is no exception. We keep some stock on hand but of course if it is painted black the customer asks for navy. That is just the nature of the beast. We got smart and got a little ahead of things by cutting out the items but not painting or assembling them…just yet. Frames will be added later too.
Cut but not finished -
Spray Foam Insulation in the Kiln Building
Woohoo, the day has finally arrived!! We are getting ever closer to finishing this project. Spray foam insulation is being added to the kiln building. So fun…so expensive. Can’t really complain though, so far the only expenses have been the steel roof, the man door and the hinges. Everything else we had on hand or made ourselves, meaning we milled all the lumber on the sawmill.
Kiln Building -
Making a Live Edge Bathtub Tray
When we finished the basement a few years back, we took our time to find the things we wanted to outfit it with. That included going to an auction and getting this dresser which we turned into a vanity. Since this bathroom doesn’t get high use, we left the original mirror even though it is a little wavy.
Dresser turned vanity -
Back to Work on the Kiln Building
How is it the middle of October already? We have a to-do list that needs to be finished before winter arrives. We decided to work on the two most important things first. Finishing up the firewood (we have a long way to go) and working on the kiln building. We are busy splitting kindling in our spare time and evenings ( short as they are) but spent some time furthering the progress on the kiln building too.
Building the draw bridge! -
Larger Planer Means Bigger Projects
We have been on the lookout for a larger planer for the workshop. Our old one only takes boards up to 12 inches wide. We priced out planers that took 24 inch boards but they were beyond what we were willing to pay. Hate when that happens. Then the clouds parted, the angels sang, and one came up for sale in our area. Love when that happens.
New to us planer -
The Firewood Process
Remember a few weeks ago I showed you the pile of hardwood we bartered skidsteer hours for. Well we spent the weekend working on it. First thing Saturday morning we loaded up the truck and headed out to the location about 10 minutes from home.
Ready to go -
We Bought A Truck That DUMPS!
The last few years, on countless occasions, one of us has said, “It would be so much easier if we could just dump this.” We considered buying a trailer that dumped, but already having two trailers for different uses, we thought three would be overkill. Then we mulled over the idea of converting our current truck by buying an insert that dumped. Didn’t really want to do that since it is our only vehicle. Like a dog with a bone, Jim searched online and finally came across this truck for sale.
New to us one tonne dump truck -
Bartering Skidsteer Hours for Firewood
Ever use the barter system? If not, you are missing out. Living in a small community people often barter for services. Case in point, we saw an ad for local firewood that sounded too good to pass up and after contacting the owner, turns out it was someone we knew. See, we have enough firewood for this coming winter but would really like to have a head start for next winter so we don’t have to scramble in the spring.
Hardwood for firewood -
Upholstering Bar Stools for the Kitchen
Today I am going to show you what not to do when upholstering a stool. You’re welcome. We have these two stools at the island in the kitchen and thinking back we have had them for at least 25 years. And for about 15 of those years we weren’t even using them. Not sure why we hung on to them, nothing special. Just your regular bar stools. Here is what they looked like just a few days ago.
Bar stools …before -
Making Beach Art Using Wood
We decided to use up some of our scrap wood to make a piece of art for the living room. I saw something similar on Pinterest and followed the link to Etsy. Yikes. I think they were asking around $400. I knew we could put our own spin on it and decided to give it a go. The first step was to start cutting strips of wood into varying widths and thicknesses on the table saw.
This could take a while
