Wednesday, July 20, 2011

So Not Fun.

Warning.. There isn't a lot of pretty in this post. I'll get there eventually!

Last year when I finished scraping my shed, I swore it was the last time I'd scrape anything. What a messy, labor intensive job. But alas, I'm at it again. The front porch needs a major overhaul and I'm trying to do it on a budget. Yesterday I spent a good couple of hours scraping the lose 70 year old paint off the ceiling and trim. Then, I vacuumed the mess only to be told that I had a lot more scraping to do! :) So I guess I'm back at it today. I'd like to get a good coat of primer on it this week.
Here's a peek at my hard work:)



The rest of the makeover will include new steps, handrail and floorboards.

Not so pretty!

And of course lots of paint, and some fun finishing touches. I think my mailman will be happy if I get a mailbox.. I've heard they aren't crazy for mail slots. Anyone have any good sources for nice house numbers?

I also got the notion, yesterday, to put in a garden in the back yard. The back corner was a mess of weeds and long forgotten rose bushes. I dug it out out and added a forsythia bush, an arctic willow and a clematis plant.

Before (or kinda half way thru):

 After:

There is room for more but I'll move some plants, that I'd like to divide, into it this fall. It was more work than I anticipated and I was eaten alive but it was strangely satisfying at the same time!

Plus, look how well my window boxes are doing! I'm pretty happy with them!


21 comments:

  1. The porch is going to be fabulous! A glass of wine at the end of a long day at school will make your hard work so worth it! I love the window boxes!

    ReplyDelete
  2. jobs like that totally suck while you are doing it, but the after is way more rewarding than any other job. it is going to be awesome, and you will appreciate al the hard work you put into it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Prepping and painting the porch is one of the most tiresome jobs that never seems to end. However the reward at the end is so worth it. Just picture relaxing with that glass of wine on your gorgeous freshly painted porch.

    ReplyDelete
  4. These jobs are the worst, but when done they bring such satisfaction. It's crazy that nobody else may have even noticed what you've done, but to you its huge. I just had a handyman last week for 2 days fixing odds and ends all over my house. I was thrilled.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I can picture what the final product will look like & I love your little garden.

    Creating spaces is so much fun!!

    Cheers!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Oohh the porch is on our list too so I can't wait to see how yours turns out!

    ps what are the flowers in your window box? Gorgeous.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Scraping is the worst! We spent DAYS scraping old paint off our house, when in the last hail mary we broke out the power washer... it took off all that flaking paint in a fraction of the time... try it out, it's SO worth it to rent.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Oh my gosh, soo much work. But it will be worth it! Your flower box and bed look lovely.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wow, you have been busy. That is the worst kind of work but it has to be done! It will looks so good when you are done :)

    ReplyDelete
  10. I do not envy that scraping project. That has got to be one of the worst jobs EVER.

    ReplyDelete
  11. That is definitely a thankless job. Good luck on the scraping. Restoration Hardware has nice simple numbers that stand up really well to bad weather.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Sorry I wasn't there to help....well not really;) The new garden looks great!

    Pam

    ReplyDelete
  13. Oh it's going to look so good ( and is already coming along so well!). Your house looks a lot like what Josh and I are looking for right now: Charm! :)

    Rachel Wright

    ReplyDelete
  14. The flowers and landscape look so pretty now!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Oh my word, that is a lot of work! You are brave to take it all on by yourself! But I know it will look fab when you're done!

    ReplyDelete
  16. Everything you are doing is so first class. Worth the effort.

    ReplyDelete
  17. Everything you are doing is so first class. Worth the effort.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Everything you are doing is so first class. Worth the effort.

    ReplyDelete
  19. oh...so sorry about all the duplicate comments....pressed enter to hard...ha! and I REALLY mean what I said.

    ReplyDelete
  20. LOve the flower boxes Jane!

    ReplyDelete
  21. Hi Jane...Checking out your great blog again.

    About the House Numbers:

    As you know, out house number at 15 has attracted a lot of attention.

    We had it done by Marie at Sign Station in the Industrial Park. Its much cheaper to get a custom fabricated one than you might imagine! PLUS no one has one like it.

    Give her a call! AND we're looking forward to you getting together a group of friends to come and do a Segway Tour at Spinnakers' Landing!!

    ReplyDelete

Love hearing from you! Thanks so much :)