Thursday, March 29, 2007

spring project

A number of months ago I started a home renovation project. It was one of those that kind of got bigger and bigger as time went along.

Can I have a show of hands for those that have seen a project that didn't become much more than intended. I didn't think so.



Joyce and I moved out of our bedroom on the main floor. I gutted the entire thing right down to the studs. The room had very poor wiring so I redid all of it before putting in all new drywall, flooring, mouldings and paint.

The room took on a new purpose. Joyce needed a sewing room and I needed a desk, so I had to make one that fit my needs and the space where the closet used to be.






I remembered some of Cream's great tile work from over a year ago and wanted to try my hand at breaking my own share, so I used my router to gouge out a groove in the desk top and used all the broken tile bits to create a bit of an inlay.






That didn't seem to be quite enough, so I did a bit of a cartoonish painting of a classroom with me in the middle of a lesson. If you look out the window you will see a man sitting in the park on a bench playing guitar...which is what I would rather be doing in the springtime.




Half of the desk will be used for the computer and the other for whatever else it is that teachers

do.



Oh, and if you're wondering where we're sleeping these days, we didn't think that the kids would mind if we slept on the floor of their bedrooms for a while. Joyce's blogging privacy is more important afterall. A woman's got to have space to be creative.

11 comments:

Cream said...

You've done a fantastic job, Brian! I like the colours you've chosen and yes, wouldn't it be nice if you were out there playing your guitar!
For even better mosaics than mine, check out Mary's. She is fabulous.
Did you get that little cartoon I sent you?

Romeo Morningwood said...

Colour me Green with envy! There must be something that you are lousy at..please write about that for a change.
I am admiring your schoolroom scene..looks like we finally found Waldo.

btw Granola Boy..sleeping on the floor in your kid's room is so 60's ...
but it is still one of the best forms of birth control available.

anna said...

I have an oak chair identical to yours! At least I think it's oak.

I think you did a lovely job. Is Joyce happy with it?

mmichele said...

YOU should have bought our house 10 years ago and WE should have moved into a condo.

this looks great.

Anonymous said...

You're a pretty handy guy. It looks very nice and yes women do need their space.

Mary said...

Very good! I am impressed! Next up...mailbox I think right?

I'm sure the students would like it better outside too.

Christine said...

Gorgeous! You guys are so creative! This new work space is going to inspire even more creativity. Just like teaching and being taught underneath a big tree. : )

Brian the Mennonite said...

Cream,
You're right Cream, Mary's work is amazing. I wouldn't down play yours at all, though. Quite brilliant, both of you.

H.E.,
There is in fact one thing that I don't do well, and that's...hmmm....weeeell. I'll get back to you. I'm so full of it.

We're not ACTUALLY sleeping on the kids floor. We did however take the best room on the second floor and shuffle the other kids around to make room for my underpants dresser.

Anna,
Nice. We got two of them for free from a good friend of mine who bought a large quantity of them from an auction somewhere. He would ahve given us more, but we didn't have room for any more.
Is yours a four or a five legger?

Michele,
It's a dream of Mine and Joyce's to buy a large old (And I mean at leat 100 years) house in Wolseley one day. If that's where you live, just save it for us and we'll have a look in about 15 years or so.

Deb,
Thanks. Just wait till I get going though. Summer holidays are just a few short months away. Then the real fun begins.

Mary,
Yes. I would love to do one of those mailboxes. I was thinking of making one of those for my nephew who will be getting married in the next year or so. The only problem is that they are rarely used here in Canada. We go to a local post office or the corner mail kiosk to pick up our mail. I'm sure it would look nice just as a decorative piece anywhere in the house.

Christine,
We've already been enjoying it. It's a little more private and the kids like it for when the daycare kids are here. It keeps the little buggers from hanging over their shoulders and asking a zillion questions.

mmichele said...

old st. b.

better than wolseley, actually. with a double lot (NOW you're salivating.)

you must come and see the old mansion sometime. i won't let you check my closets, though.

Brian the Mennonite said...

Michele,
Old St. B. huh? I'd love to see your place. I'm free tomorrow. :)

anna said...

I just got my fat ass off the chair to check. It has four legs.