iseecerulean

The right wall is “finished”.  The components are prepared, but I won’t fasten the roof piece in place until it’s clear I won’t need to lay the project on its side, nor glue the decking down until the base is complete.

I positioned the outer deck support at a slight downward angle, which should make the far end of the dock sag.  I’d like it to look dilapidating but still functional.  Hopefully the slant is sufficient, I couldn’t adequately test with only two hands.

Construction of the bit of roof progressed faster than I anticipated, despite my indecisiveness on the finish.

You’ll notice I am short one rafter.  I miscounted, but then liked how that looks.

I put down an underlay of  tarpaper, simulated by dark blue cardstock, as black would have faded by the sun.  A metal roof to cover this, with bits of the tarpaper peeking through.  I have some thin corrugated aluminum that’s been in my stash for years which I thought I’d use.

Though it’s dented it’s still too new looking in comparison to the wood finish on the building, so I used sodium percarbonate (Oxy-Clean) and heat to age the aluminum.  The chemical dulled the finish and flame melted spots, but I didn’t get a finish I was crazy about.

I splattered on rust spots with ink, which helped...

I was going to examine additional distressing, but then saw this tossed out of the garage by my husband while cleaning.

The corrugated aluminum was a bit small in scale, and the corrugations in the coffee can are too big for scale, but the real rust finish...oh my.

Looking at the pictures again this morning, I’m still torn.  I like the scale of the aluminum but the rust of the coffee can...though the coffee can is maybe too rusty.  

What do you think?

Progress on the right wall :)

I moved the door away from the corner a bit and put in a smaller window.

The siding is on and the wall is stained.  Nancy shared her “secret recipe“ for gray ;) 

The door and window weren’t very absorbent, but I’m going to accept them as they are.  Nothings ages evenly, including myself.

I attached the ledger rail for the dock... I didn’t wipe off the excess glue from the bottom edge, but pressed in green flocking.

 Next step...a bit of roof... it’s hard to explain, you’ll see.

I also fixed the rubber bumper under the boathouse door on the left wall.  You can see the difference from the first picture to the second.

I’ve spent most of the past few weeks working in my gardens, communing with the chipmunks and birds, but did get a bit accomplished on the build.

Left wall:

I finished bricking, then grouted, aged, and shadowed.  I stained the boathouse door, applied layers of gloss medium to make faux windows, and added a bit of signage. 

A bit of cheesecloth between the layers of the rightmost window made an acceptable spiderweb.

I used bolts, washers, and nuts to fasten the rubber bumper to the bottom of the door opening.  I’m not happy with it, the hardware is too high on the bumper, so I will make corrections, and most likely reduce the fastenings from seven to five.

Because I didn’t want shiny hardware, nor rusty hardware, I used heat to remove the shiny finish.

Right wall:

I decided, as I was gluing a piece of stripwood to the side of the door so it would fit the opening, that I didn’t like the blue I painted the door and window, as it created a focal point in competition with the boathouse door.  I was pondering whether to sand and refinish them, or flip them over and stain the unfinished other side, when I thought to test others from my stash.

I really like the shorter Timberbrook door (bottom left).  I bid on eBay for a matching window in a small lot, but fell asleep a half hour before the auction ended and lost it.  I suppose it was for the best, since I am trying to reduce my stash, not add to it.  I will use the small double-hung window I already have.

The door needs to be moved to the right, and the window hole resized, so I’ll do that this weekend, unless transplanting overgrown ferns from the front to the back garden wears me out. 

I did get the bottom section of the wall painted to look like concrete, then aged, along with the supports the dock posts sit on.  I am not happy with the paint job but I haven’t figured out why yet....too gunked up maybe?  I’m not necessarily unhappy with it either, though.  I’m over-thinking it.  Most likely it won’t matter, because by the time barnacles take it over not much will be visible.

I have plans for a roof edge but have to work out the construction.  I also need to decide on siding.  I stained some thin wood strips already but might use clapboard instead.

The base:

I sanded the edges of the cut-out and painted.  The paint is primarily to seal the MDF, don’t be alarmed by the color :)

During the past few months I’ve been collecting, scavenging, and crafting sea life to fill the tide pool, but I will cover that in its own post, later.

The Peapod:

My friend Bill sent an email suggesting I coat the boat with PC Petrifier.  I should have thought of that, I used it on the edges of the roof of the English Cottage Kitchen.  I still had half a bottle in my supply cupboard, so gave the boat a couple coats.  I haven’t started sanding/filling the inside yet.