Finally, my masterpiece is DONE!

Ta Da!!

My new dining room table.  Made by me with help from my handsome hubby and Ana-White.com

I made some modifications. One change was size, to fit my diminutive dining space, second was I used 4 x 4's for legs, and another was I used 2x12's for the top.  My husband and I wanted a chunkier feel to the entire table.  I am not sure whether I should call it a modified Farm table or maybe it is closer to the Tryde series or just a combination of both. Here is links to both:

http://ana-white.com/2009/12/plans-farmhouse-table-knock-off-of.html

http://ana-white.com/2010/01/plan-hyde-console-table-pottery-barn.html

After cutting my table legs (4 x 4's) and aprons to size I stained them with a gel stain in a dark color( Min Wax Red Elm), leaving the areas I am going to glue free of stain.  After the stain dries I paint on a crackle medium (I use Folk Art Crackle medium) and let dry.  I glued and screwed the base pieces all together.  Because it was so cold and snowy outside I brought it into the house with the help of my husbands muscles and I painted on the white coat.  Once dry the crackling is evident.

The picture is not that great with indoor lighting, it was still too cold and snowy to do it outside. I sanded along the edges to show the stain beneath and to age it a bit. 

The 2 x 12s were soaking wet when we picked them up at the local lumberyard so we had stacked them inside the house to dry for a week or so.  When I decided to put them together I thought they were dry enough and here is 2 planks glued.

This was a trick of my husbands. This is the underneath of the tabletop as we attached the last 2 planks and since our clamps were not large enough to fit across the entire top he used 1 x 4's screwed in at angles to pull the edges together until the glue dried well.  We had used a table saw to rip the inner rounded edges off so they would fit togther snugly, we left the outer edges of the table top rounded.

here it is before I stained the top.

You can see the little dip in the boards in this shot, they were not as dried as they should have been, I guess I was too impatient but I like the little imperfection. 

I had my muscle man move the top into my painting studio to stain it, the stain fumes were too stinky for inside the house.  I moved lots of houseplants like Peace Lily and Pothos into the studio to absorb and clean the fumes out of the air (did you know a Peace Lily can remove 75% of certain toxins in the air of an average room in 24 hours) They worked great. I was able to work in there the next day.  I also stained the underneath for a uniform look.  I finished it all off with Varathane brand Waterbased clear semi gloss Spar Urethane (outdoor).  I prefer it to Polycrylic as it does not amber in time.  I have painted faux finishes and custom signs for 10 years now and the Varathane has performed the best for me.   Gloss and semi-gloss are the most water proof along with being the Outdoor one.

Several angles of the finished table in its new home.

It fits perfectly but I am not sure I have room for a console table under the window.  I would like one there to serve as a buffet but we will see.  I can always build it and if it is too snug to fit under this window then I can use it under the front window. 

A Busy Monday Ahead

Good Morning!  So far it looks like a sunny day here in N. Calif.  Glad to see it, we did get a few inches of snow over the weekend but maybe the sun will melt it today.  My weekend flew past in a whirlwind.  Saturday I spent working on a Memorial announcement for a friend that sadly passed away a week ago today.  It should have been an easy task and yet my printer is being rebellious and is doing it's own thing. But I am stubborn and will make it bend to my will! We also got the top put on the dining room table we built.  Pictures to come soon.
Then Sunday we had our Christian meeting in the morning and lunch at some friends' house afterward.  The sun shone warmly and I soaked up as much as I could. 
Today I am trying to get as much done as I can before my nephews arrive.  Being 3 yrs and the other 18 months they take my entire attention and I get little else done but I just enjoy the moment and their company since the little rascals grow up so fast. 
Here are some photos of another garden bench I have built and painted.

This bench I made shorter, 36" wide instead of 48".  I painted roses, iris, ivy, birds and bugs on it. 

Here is a link to a plan to build, these are quick and simple to do. Garden bench

I have a modified plan too to share but that is for another day.  Ta ta for now.  I am thinking of putting some decorative painting tutorials up one day.  Drop me a note and let me know what you think.

Fabulous Friday!

Hello Dear friends and fellow bloggers.  A fabulous Friday has dawned and the sun is shining, briefly, here in soggy and snowy California.  Let's hope the weather gives our neighbors in S. California the break they desperately need!.  Today I am posting a rustic garden bench that I built then painted, including the winter scene.

I have built a few of these and painted them all differently.  This one I wanted black to set off the chilly scene on the seat.  This bench measures 48' wide and 11" deep.  There is a pattern for building the bench at http://www.ana-white.com/ if anyone is interested (look under Rustic Bench).  Though I built this one a few years ago the one she has step by step instructions to is nearly identical.  I have another bench plan that is a bit different and I will post that one too, soon.

I got busy this morning and put 3 coats of Varathane brand water-based Spar Urethane on my dining table base.  (the Outdoor semi-gloss) Now it is ready for the top which is sitting out in my studio.  I think I may have to turn half my studio into a place to build things as the garage is just too cold.  I will just have to vacuum frequently to clean up all the sawdust from sanding and finishing.  I will still cut my lumber in the garage. 

Also I have been practicing with Picasa so I can manipulate photos better, so much to learn.  I get to have my baby nephews on Monday, let's hope for sunshine so we can go to the park and maybe Tuesday too.  We shall see, fun, fun, fun. 

My wonderful husband put the new part on our refrigerator this morning.  We have been without an ice maker for 6 months and the way I live on ice tea (year round) that is just NOT convenient.  I finally got tired of waiting to get it fixed and Googled the problem.  Sure enough someone has what to look for and where, found the part that was broken, ordered it and voila!  a working ice maker.  I love the internet!

Ta ta for now!

Bright and early tuesday.

Good early morning, I cannot tell what the weather will hold for us today but it snowed most of yesterday.  I ignored it as I whirled around working on my projects.  Now that most special order signs have been completed I worked on things I have wanted to do for myself.  Like my dining room table.  I stained the underside and put a coat of varathane on it then had my hubby flip it over for me so I could work on the top.  I am wondering if I will like this top as I did not sand it enough to get all the glue off.  Blame the weather, it was so cold in the garage that I just did not spend the time on it I would have if it was warmer and comfy to work out there.  So the stain is not absorbing well where the glue was smeared on the wood surface.  I could say it adds character and go with it for now then if it really gets on my nerves replace it one the weather heats back up. 

Here the table top is crammed into my studio so I can work on it in comfort, I just have to squeeze around it as it sits between my two painting tables.  If sanding was not so messy I could have sanded it in here, the dust everywhere is too much though.  I will put a few coats of varathane on it today and call it good.  David worked on proposals in high hopes of getting some kind of work.  It is rather like fishing, there have been bites but he has yet to land one.  I really need to take a day and organize and clean the studio.  Soon, very soon.  ta ta for now!

A freezing cold Thursday!

Man, was it cold today.  I tried to work on my new dining table top but only sanded a wee bit before my hands felt like they were going to fall off, so I focused on learning how to make blog buttons and I varathaned some signs.  I should run out to my studio now and slap on another coat, I would like to ship them tomorrow if possible.  One of the signs I did is above.  It turned out even better than I had hoped.

I did work on my planter tub project but have yet to download the photos and re-size them.  Another day. 

Next I am going to post the step by step of building my studio soon.  Just for the hey of it!

A fun Monday.

Hi All,

One of the many things I accomplished today that has been on my 'to do' list for a few weeks, I got my Butterwort plants put into mini Terrariums (aka: glass containers from a thrift store).  I covered the tops with plastic wrap to keep in the humidity.  These plants eat fungus gnats or some folks call them fruit gnats.  Working out in my greenhouse made me crave warmer days and my garden. But I will get started soon on my seed starting so I can have tons of luscious plants to put into my garden. Let's hope for a decent warm spring this year!
 My main goal today was to get some signs finished and I managed to do most of them.

This sign is for a friend who cuts my hair, we bartered. She asked for a Pansy sign, I hope she likes it!

A special order sign, I just sent the photo off to the customer to see if she is pleased, then I will varathane it and add the hanger.  She is getting it for her parents beach house.

This is a new project, I am redoing this metal tub/planter.  I will show you the finished product soon.  But here is the progress today! Love Rustoleum spray paint!

And along with all these projects I was able to sand down my new table top, fill some spots with wood filler (had to make my own with sawdust and wood glue) and house cleaning chores.  Not bad for a Monday!

We shall see what I can get done tomorrow!

I did get to paint today. I finished a few signs.

I put the palms on this one today. It will say "Welcome to the Nest". 

 This is a family name sign for their cabin by a lake.  I have yet to photo the Pansy family name sign I worked on also.  Not bad for a couple hours work.