WORKING ON BUILDING THINGS

 


My Dad built himself and my Mom Adirondack chairs, then created his own pattern to build a little one for me.  They were painted yellow – my favorite color.  I loved my little chair.  I wonder if that’s why yellow is my favorite color? J


Some years later Dad & my brother built a roof over the terrace in our back yard.

The terrace roof completed created a great place to gather in the summer – to play ping-pong or just sit around.  The ping-pong table was collapsible & easy to store off to the side when not in use.

I designed & my husband built this front entry deck for our house in Groveland.  It was a tricky design because there is a stairway leading down from the front door to the garage behind the railing behind the bench, so we came out the front door and either went down the stairs to the garage, or came forward out onto the deck.  They don’t show here, but we had flowerboxes behind the railing where the candy-canes are crossed.  Obviously decorations for Christmas were up when this picture was taken.

The wooden back deck to our Groveland house was beginning to age so we had a new deck built of simulated wood.  It wraps around the far side of the house.

The new deck completed & showing the wrap-around side deck.  The original deck had wavy metal panels underneath the decking to keep the rain from falling on the patio beneath, but we didn’t have those redone because raccoons would sneak up in between the metal panels & the decking & create nests for themselves & their babies.  What a mess!  So when it rained we couldn’t use the patio, but it didn’t rain that much in the summer anyway.

When we moved to Soulsbyville the only real view we had of the hills surrounding us was from our front yard, so we had a gazebo built from which we could enjoy the view.  Here it was still in the process of being built, obviously.

Once finished, I set to work gussying it up!  I loved sitting out here in the early morning sipping my coffee, reading the paper, and enjoying the view.  I really missed it when we moved, but I have a lovely patio now with a patio swing & a view across the fence of a beautiful big oak tree.  Not quite the same, but it will do.

Meanwhile, our son built himself a garage.

My sister’s husband built this sweet little two-piece cabinet for our Mom when she moved into a small apartment and needed more kitchen storage.  After she passed away I had it for a while till we moved into a smaller house.  One of my daughters has it now.  Hopefully it will stay in the family for a long time to come.

And our middle daughter, wanting a nice little table and chairs for the kitchen in her new house, sent away for this cute trio.  It came in pieces which she painstakingly put together.  She also put a couple of other things together including a small occasional table and a side chair for her living room!

I put a floor lamp together once.

Come to think of it, I also put a small upright bookcase together, and in the sixties, when I moved into my apartment, I made a long low bookcase out of boards & bricks – like, who didn’t back then? J

:->

La Nightingail

Comments

  1. Barbara RogersMarch 16, 2024 at 6:28 AM

    Loved seeing all those decks, and thinking of all your time relaxing on them! Lots of talented persons in your family who could build things!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. La NightingailMarch 17, 2024 at 8:29 PM

      Decks, patios, gazebos - I love being outside when the weather's warm - especially in the early morning & later in the evening. Late spring, summer, & early fall plus Daylight Saving Time is my favorite time of year!

      Delete
  2. Monica T.March 16, 2024 at 2:04 PM

    My dad designed the house we moved into when I was 10; and later in life, an extension of the house his parents built in the 1930s. Myself, I lived all my adult life in rented flats, so no big building projects!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. La NightingailMarch 17, 2024 at 8:26 PM

      One of my favorite things to do is figure out floor plans for the perfect house. Of course ideas for the perfect house change as life goes on. What was perfect 20 years ago would not be perfect now, but I keep doodling at it. :)

      Delete
  3. Mike BrubakerMarch 17, 2024 at 6:45 PM

    I learned to build things from my dad, too. He was always fixing broken cars or appliances and he introduced me to power tools and woodworking that became my alternate world away from music. Much of the time in rehearsal when I'm not actually playing, I thinking about building or fixing something. I find it very therapeutic and satisfying to be able to make my own repairs or furniture. Unfortunately my wife thinks it creates a backlog on my long, long list of things that need doing! :–}

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. La NightingailMarch 17, 2024 at 8:21 PM

      It's hard to buckle down & do the things that need to be done when you want to do things that would be so much more fun & rewarding. I try telling myself if I'd just get the needed things done first, then I could relax & fully enjoy the other. Unfortunately I'm a terrible procrastinator & most of the time do the things I want to do, then feel guilty about not getting the other done. Oh well. :)

      Delete

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