Flower Boxes

So anyone who was disappointed to hear that I paid for materials on the last blog, will rejoice to hear that my latest project was free accept some more screws. The left over cuttings from the step were the perfect size for flower boxes that I added under the windows out front. It took some time, but I persevered. Here is my story.

So when you think about taking on a scrap reclaiming task you sometimes benefit from good planning, but there has to be some luck. My Wife asked me to build some new flower boxes for the front of the house and I thought, "Great, when will I have time to that?" And "How much will this cost?"

The time thing is always a question for me with a new daughter at home. Most new dads would much rather be playing with their little wonder than fiddling with a saw. When nap times come around the work generally slows to a crawl unless you're one of those really lucky guys that have a separate garage or shop. To you I say," I am jealous without knowing." Please refrain from commenting on how wonderful your workspace is. Mine is my back deck on sunny days. In the last few weeks, even when I was working on the steps from the last post, it has been dreary, dull or flat out pouring rain. Makes it tough to use your outdoor workshop right.

When I made the poker table that got me into No Budget Handymandom, I used the storage room in the basement as a shop. That has since filled with our stuff we can't throw away, or things that just don't fit upstairs because of the season. "I dunno what most of it is!"

The window boxes were going to be easy. I'll make a box that measures the width of the window; screw it to the house where the old ones were that rotted off from the old owners, and move to something else. WRONG!! When I find the 5/4Xx6 decking I had left over from the step I think, "Hey this would look really good if I angled this and mitred that. I can really big head things sometimes, but it often works out in the end.

For those of you planning a similar venture. Draw diagrams and stick to them unless they look horrible in real life. I starred at the wood for a long time thinking about what I would make. In my head the answer would pop in their eventually, or I would simply make a boring box. Boring is no fun to blog about so I added some flare.

I wanted to incorporate the router that a co-worker had given me earlier last week, but in my haste to finish the project before getting drenched by the inevitable storm that came once per day for the last 25 days. Out door workshops are not water tight. "Next house I will have a garage darn it!" Aren't i lucky to have coworkers who don't use their stuff either?

I added some mitre cuts on 45 to hide the seams of the pressure treated wood. I left a gap at the bottom for excess water to run through and thought I was a genius when I finished the product. When I consulted with a co-worker the next day who once owned a greenhouse business. I had neglected to think about soil erosion. "Yeah no one ever called me the able gardener." I now had to add some plastic liners (Kitchen sized garbage bags) to the box to keep the soil in. So far it is doing its job, but I will likely forget to water the friggin' things in a week or two anyway so whatever. The boxes still look really cool.

Here are some pics of the new boxes. The stain is some that we had left over when we stained out vinyl siding. No big purchases for this guy. As little as possible into the project. 

I will be saving my money for the roof next year and some new windows. NEVER use someone Else's unwanted windows in your house. Not only will you take forever to get them levelled, but they will leak and break down sooner.

I hope you enjoyed and were inspired by my latest project. this blog post was less about the work and more about getting the work done. Until next time, Payless is more than just a shoe store; it's how some jobs get done.