Weekend Update: Missed It By That Much

The first wall is almost done!

Earlier this week, I took a look at the forecast and noticed Friday, Saturday, and Sunday were shaping up nice. So, in my zeal to complete even this one wall, I took a vacation day Friday. We worked steadily through Friday, which turned out to be the PERFECT conditions. Slightly overcast, mid 60s, active breeze, gorgeous. We both worked comfortably in jeans that day....such was not the case Saturday. On Friday we put in a solid day, and stopped only as we approached the end of our "wall-ready" wood supply. We thought we had enough for the front, and we weren't off by much! A just under 2 foot strip across the top is all that remains. The going was slow too. We had a lot of funky cuts and objects to work around. 

We decided to extend the wire for the outside lamp.
We used outdoor wire caps. Now the light will be in the top
left corner versus right where the door opens, head level- effectively sucking the entire
cloud of bugs that have accumulated right on in to the house with you!
We stopped using the light it was so bad! Happy for the change!

Saturday we jumped back to. We didn't have wood to work with, so the choice was made. Dan had grabbed some pallets earlier in the week, so we had material to work with. He ripped apart and de-nailed while I ripped all the boards down to a consistent width. Then we worked together-through the hottest part of the day-planing every last one. 

We landed ourselves another batch of stunning eclectic wood. One particular piece is QUITE yellow. I thought for a moment it must be painted, but we planed it and out came a more vibrant yellow! The shavings stood in stark contrast to the rest of the pile. 

I stepped out to grab groceries and cook us some lunch, while Dan stayed on and ship lapped the boards. His Dad got him the proper blade as an early birthday gift! Now he doesn't have to do it the long way with the regular blade! He was able to finish all the wood by the time lunch was served! Much faster!

It was mid afternoon when we finished with the wood we had on hand. We ate our lunch and decided that was enough for one day. We had a birthday party to head to soon enough. So we cleaned up the yard and cleaned up ourselves, sauntered over, and had a great evening with family!

EOD Friday...WICKED.

Saturday: Hot out! More wood processing..

On Sunday we each had events to attend. Dan- a paintball outing because the gift certificate expired THAT day. Me, the bridal shower of a dear friend. It was quite lovely too! Very tasteful decor, super cute displays, and nice food choices- gluten free too! :D 

By the time we both got home, neither of us had any juice left, so the front of the house remains bald just on top. The good news is we have plenty to finish that now, and it shouldn't take more than 40 minutes. 



Also this past week I ordered the exterior stain and it just came in today! Quick! I did some research and chose AFM's Safecoat product. Here's a link to one of the articles I found helpful for explaining eco-friendly alternatives. 

" American Formulating and Manufacturing (AFM) makes Safecoat paints, stains, cleaning products, and sealers without toxic chemicals. AFM products are pristine enough even for the chemically sensitive. They contain no formaldehyde, fungicide, or mildewcide, and meet strict VOC emissions standards."

We went with maple, it has warm golden tones to it. I think it will make a lot of different pieces really pop! Oh- and Mario stopped by with another gem- which I wish I had gotten just that morning. He explained that we should apply a coat of the stain and seal the wood before going in with the putty. As you putty, inevitably some remains outside the hole, this can soak into the pores, and when stained, will not hold the stain, so you will have those little light splotches everywhere you dragged a putty knife. I got about a third of the way up our wall before receiving this tip. We plan to do a decent sanding job which should take care of most of that. 

The more we think about it, the more likely we are to move the house before all the siding is up. It's going to take a while. Ha. Next up, after this first wall most likely, is building the solar panel racking. We want that in place and ready to rock when we move. Sure we could go a day or two without power, but why when it's perfectly doable?

Thanks for reading!

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