A little bit of woodworking a little bit of home repair and One heck of a view

This past weekend I had the opportunity to do some work for a friend.  This friend has a house on a lake that needed some repair work done to a couple of exterior doors.  After many years of weather some of the wood finally started rotting. 

First of all this was my view at 7:30am Saturday morning……

 

 

 

 

 

I have to tell you it doesn’t get much better than this.  I have always been a lake guy even though I have never spent a ton of time on them and I love boats, so this view pretty much made my day.  I had to keep reminding myself that I am there to work not watch the boats go by.  So anyway…  To the work part of this…..

Take a look at the shots of the rot --

This is one of the doors. This one was the difficult one.  The one that scared me, the one that had me thinking for a few minutes what the heck did I get myself into, however after stepping back cooler heads prevailed. 

 

 

 

 

 

This one looks pretty bad but it was actually really easy to fix, so lets start here.

This is on a single open French door so this is the bulkhead between the door that opens and the static window/door.  The first thing we did was figure out how to separate the rotted board from the rest of the door or if we would have to build a patch.  We were able to find the seam and start to separate the bulkhead.

 

 

 

 

A little prying and she came right off.  You have to make sure not to pry to hard and damage the other side of the door.   Just take your time and go slowly.

 

 

 

 

 

I trimmed a board that was the same width of the bulkhead.  I just used a miter saw to cut it to size.

I attached the board using some finish nails.  I set the nails just below the surface and filled them with some caulk.  Make sure to use an exterior caulk.  One the board was attached I also ran a bead of caulk down the inside edge where the wood meets the door to seal any gaps, I did the same where the board meets the other part of the bulkhead.  One area that you want to make sure you get some caulk into is at the location of the original rot, make sure you get plenty of caulk at the bottom of the board between the board and the metal transition plate.  That way if there is ever any standing water it keeps the water from soaking into the wood as much as possible.

This is how that door turned out.  I painted the entire door frame and doors, in addition to the new wood that was installed.

 

 

 

 

 

Now onto the scary door…..

So you saw the rot from above.  I made some assumptions about the construction of the door that turned out not to be totally correct. 

*******  If my friend is reading this post please just skip this section.  This totally isn’t your house…   *************

  Once I started the demolition of the rotted area it became apparent that the door was not built as we thought.  Instead of being multiple pieces the door was a single piece or it was glued together so well that we would have destroyed the entire door trying to go the original route of removing the rotted piece.  Instead of being able to just pry the piece off like the other door I ended up having to cut this section out.  There was more rotted wood than what you could see with the eye so I cut a little bigger than the rotted wood so to make sure there was no bad wood left. 

To cut this section out I used a great new tool from Dremel tools, called the Dremel Trio this was a super handy little tool. 

From this point I started rebuilding the frame.  I used several pieces of wood to build up the thickness we needed to fill the gap.

Once I had the right thickness I was able to start test fitting the piece in the hole and fine tuning everything.

Here is what the section looked like after I got the piece built up, at this point I caulked the heck out of everything to make sure it was sealed up tightly.

 

 

 

 

 

After Painting caulking and painting some more here is what the door looks like now. What rotted wood and hole are you talking about.  I don’t remember any rotted wood or a large gaping hole in the door. 

 

 

 

 

 

So here is the whole area all cleaned up and doors repaired and repainted.  I think it turned out pretty well. 

I know it looked scary at first but keep in mind there are very few things that cannot be fixed and usually they are pretty simple once you step back and take a look and think things through. 

Have a Great Day!

 

 

 

Technorati Tags: wood working,home improvement,DIY,Home repair,paint.

guest blogger: seesaw designs

Seesaw Designs is a local graphic design and letterpress studio run by three insanely talented ladies, Lindsay, Angela and Raquel. They are one of those companies where you just stare at their work and dream of being so creative (drool over these for a little while).

In addition to being an amazing local business, their blog is the loveliest and they have, possibly, the most perfect vintage etsy shop, seesaw vintage.

We are so very excited to have them here today to share some of their no. 1 favorite things about hot and wonderful Phoenix. So, if you don't know them already, we are happy to introduce you to the lovely ladies of seesaw designs...

Our five favorite things about Phoenix

by Seesaw Designs

1. St Francis

We love everything about this neighborhood restaurant, from the mid-century Wendell Burnette space it occupies to it's amazing lunch and dinner offerings (the Forbidden Rice is a vegetarian's dream). Chef Aaron Chamberlain does an amazing job of creating delicious wood-fired cuisine, and we were thrilled to begin working with them on a brand new website (coming soon!)

2. Thrifting and Vintage Finds

Phoenix is chock-full of amazing vintage clothes and furniture, and who doesn't love a good treasure hunt? The three of us are compulsive thrifters and spend our evenings and weekends searching for goodies for our online vintage shop, seesaw vintage.

3. Mid Century Modern Architecture

The valley has been home to some amazing architects, among them Frank Lloyd Wright, Al Beadle and Ralph Haver. We love the many mid-century gems that you can find sprinkled throughout the city. Modern Phoenix is a great resource for learning more about these historic buildings and neighborhoods.

4. Phoenix's Growing Creative + Small Business Community

We think Phoenix is awesome, and are proud to know people and organizations that are working to unite the community and get the word out. Phoenix Design Week is a great event serving the design community that happens every fall. Local First Arizona is an organization that works year-round to bring attention to all of the great community gems in the Valley. They put out a "small wonders" map yearly, as well.

5. Frances

We love Georganne and all the lovely finds at Frances, her boutique on Central and Camelback. Plus, its next door to Smeeks, a great place to feed your sweet tooth.

Thank you so much to Seesaw Designs!

You can ooh and aww over their work for a while, pick out something from their fantastic vintage shop or just stop in to their lovely blog and say hello (tell them we sent you!).

And, of course, if you need anything by way of design, we think these are your girls.

We hope you are enjoying these guest bloggers as much as we are.

See you back here tomorrow!

Weeds, Weeds and More Weeds

The combination of copious amounts of rain daily with high temperatures and humidity have spurred a surge of weeds in the raised garden beds.  I seriously don't mind weeds in my gardens because some of them are edible and others act as companion plants to protect the fruits and vegetables.  However at this point I have no choice but to weed especially when the weeds start overshadowing the

Incredible Series : Table designs inspired by nature

I Love to see furniture pieces which are functional, unique and embraces natural form. It has more to do with retaining the original shape and form than taking away from it. These furniture not only pleases the senses it is also a way of celebrating the beauty and uniqueness of nature.

I have put together some designs that have the appeal and beauty to inspire you to look for one for your home.

The branches are the focal design that make this table so fabulous. Love the way the knots and imperfections have been left untouched, adding to its character. Beautiful piece of art !

One can look at this table from any angle and appreciate the beauty of form. The different colors of the core and the interesting way its put together is so impressive. A conversation starter for sure.

 

 The design is inspired by a tree and cast in metal. For those who love nature and like the convenience of metal. It does not lose any of the charm,the glitter of metal and form catches ones interest for sure.

Another design which is an arty assembly of branches and wood. The design is so engaging and refreshing. It goes with any decor and color scheme and creates a place for itself.

This is how it should be celebrated, nature in its truest form. No wasting of wood in carving and smoothing, raw and beautiful. A perfect coffee table and a tribute to nature.

It is wonderful how we can all make the best of what we take from nature and use it to the full potential while keeping it aesthetically beautiful. If we can cut on wasteful furniture design and turn to natural form it can be inspiring and so rewarding. I hope you all get inspired too !

First Tomato of 2010

First TomatoJuly 24, 2010

I picked the first ripe tomato of the season on Saturday.  It is a Tiny Tim and as you can see from the picture of the tomato on 2 - inch ceramic tiles it does live up to its name.  While this little tomato won't be enough for a sandwich I used it in a loaf of Italian Garden bread.  I'm looking forward to many more tomatoes to come!

Happy Gardening!

Garden Gnome
©

guest blogger: polly of chestnut lane

Chestnut Lane is one of our very favorite spots in the valley (have we mentioned that before?).

The food is delicious and the atmosphere perfection.

Have you seen their cakes? We might have mentioned those before, too...

And they don't come any nicer than Polly. Thus, we couldn't be more excited than to be hearing what some of her no. 1's are here in Phoenix. So, herewith her top five, Polly from Chestnut Lane...

My five favorite things about Phoenix

by Polly

1. Hiking Camelback after it rains.

2. Lunch at Pane Bianco.

3. The stunning sunsets here.

4. Having an almond margarita with my husband at St. Francis.

5. Cricket Pavillion when Dave Matthews is playing.

Thank you so much to Polly!

Now go treat yourself to something delicious from Chestnut Lane or call them next time you are having a party. Need a cake? This is your place.

See you back here tomorrow for another fabulous guest post!

*images here, here, here, here, here and here.

Ginger Shampoo Recipe

If you love the scent of ginger, this simple shampoo recipe is for you. Ginger stimulates circulation because it increases blood flow to the scalp, so using ginger shampoo regularly may help to promote healthier hair that will grow faster and resist some of the depredations of modern life, like drying out too fast or becoming brittle. Ginger shampoo may also have benefits in controlling