#22- Rebuilding the Deck Box

As I previously mentioned, we had a lot of down time at our house during our Bath Crashers filming, so The Hubs and I tried to keep ourselves busy with as many projects off The List as possible.  The problem though, was with dozens of film crew and contractors set up all over the house, there weren't very many spaces we could work that we wouldn't be getting in the way.  We went out to The Living Room Deck for a moment to get away from it all, and that's when it hit us- time to deal with that old deck box!

You many remember from previous photos that the house came with a 4' x 4' x 10' deck box that we assume was used for wood storage back when the fireplace in the Living Room was wood burning.

With the fireplace now converted to a gas burning one, this box is not only unless but it certainly had seen better days.  It takes up a whole lot of space on the deck which makes the deck look smaller, and since it is 4 feet high and 4 feet wide, it really couldn't be used as a bench without a step stool.  (More like a ladder for short Hubby and I.) I started by taking the box apart to throw the pieces in Bath Crasher's dumpster (I love free trash removal), but quickly changed my mind.

The wood on the inside was actually in pretty good shape, and after a little more inspection, the wood on the outside could probably be cleaned up as well.  So we decided instead to dismantle it, cut down the wood and rebuild the box at 2' x 2' x 10'.  This way we would still have storage, but we would gain some seating.  It wasn't hard work, but it was time consuming considering that the outside was built with dozens of cedar panels that slide into each other to form one solid piece.  Each one had to be trimmed down 18 inches, as well as the 2x4s that made up the base of the box.

We got into a rhythm though, and once all the pieces were apart, I measured, cut and told The Hubs where to put it together, and he assembled. 

Notice the huge pile of cut wood next to my saw.

Maybe it was the beautiful weather, the tunes we were playing, or the fact that contractors were installing a $50,000 bathroom for us just above, but it was an incredible afternoon.  I know you all probably think I'm crazy (and you'd be right), but that afternoon was exactly the reason why we bought The Lodge to begin with.  Just my Hubs and I, having fun and building something together.  Even the Bath Crashers crew kept making fun of us, "Well, look at the lovebirds..." An within an hour (or so), we had this:

Back off ladies, he's mine. 

Then all that was left was a little refinishing.  We took our palm sander with a 60 grit paint striping sandpaper, and we're pleasantly surprised how quickly things cleaned up.

The top left of the box has been sanded.

Quite a difference from the left completed side to the right yet to be done.

Once sanded, I used a paint brush to apply some cedar colored deck stain to match the Adirondack chairs and beverage cart we already had.

Pardon the deck, it's been raining a lot lately and I couldn't get a better shot. The color of the deck box should fade to match the chairs better with a little time.

We still need to power wash the deck to remove the line from where the old box was.

As a reminder, here's what we started with:

Not bad, eh? I still need to sew some cushions for the seat and some pillows to rest across the back so that this can be a little couch. Don't worry, you know I'll tell you all about it when I do. (In annoying, painstaking detail!)  When we're not using the cushions, it will work perfectly to store them in the box to protect them from the elements, as well as other items we might frequently need on the deck like bug spray, sun screen and a bottle opener.  (What?  I said we'd keep it real with you all.)  I'm so happy that Bath Crashers sort of forced us out onto this deck, because I have a feeling that this is one of those projects that we wouldn't have gotten to for years if we literally hadn't been stuck out there together for a few hours.  But now this is a space that we can enjoy this summer and relax on, since I am incapable of relaxing in a room that still has projects left to do.  My mind either spins with processes, calculations and figures, or I just get up to get tools and get to work. 

Oh yeah, and those of you that are wondering about this guy which was also left on the deck- he hit the trash faster than you can say Paris Hilton.

In the wise words of Kenny Rogers, "You gotta know when to hold 'em, know when to fold 'em."



P.S. Does anyone else think that Nikia from The Voice looks just like a young, brunette Kenny Rogers?  Love him.