Some days everything goes wrong, and other days I feel like Captain Awesome. Today was one of those days. Part of the key was I was in the right frame of mind, but I also took my time, made sure the tools were set up ahead of time and everything was clean and organized. But I’d like to think some was related to me gaining experience as well. I guess in a way me learning to take my time and set things up first is due to experience.
I did have one set back, 2/3 of the way through the day I was trying to rout a grove using the router table. It’s not a good one, but it’s better than my old one (and it was free, so can’t complain). But not only was the fence moving, but it wasn’t straight, or square. I tried to bend the metal straight and it snapped in half. Possibly it was a sign that I should make a fence (or maybe I should buy a router table). For now I quickly put together a simple fence out of some old melamine. Is it perfectly square? No, but it’s a lot closer than the old one, good enough for now.
Anyways, many projects on the go, more than I can handle really, but it feels awesome. I’ll be posting some of them in the future as they look less like piles of wood and more like something. Hopefully some new stuff in the Etsy Shop next week as well!
Had a quick refinishing job last week on an old piano bench. The bench had a mahogany veneer on top of some cheaper wood and the varnish had worn off. The top was also dented and scratched and in need of repair. Unfortunately the veneer was too thin to do much, although some of the dents were sanded off successfully and the rest were filled. Several coats of poly urethane later, it looks almost new.
52 Create, my weekly creative output for 2011. Continuing along with my “Craftvent” calendar for my 2 year old daughter. Simply put, it’s an advent calendar filled with crafts, all home made, many will be joint projects so she gets some fun of making stuff as well.
Day 23 – Ever heard of the French nursery rhyme called “Ah les Crocodiles“? Me neither, but they sing it at my daughter’s daycare. When they get to the chorus, all 15 kids start bouncing around the room like a toddler mosh pit. Some day I’ll have to get a video of it. Anyways, crocodiles are popular around here, so I made a quick one out of the last of the card stock we had.
Day 22 – Saw some paper lanterns on the interweeb and couldn’t resist. They are super simple to make but look great (and I had a ton of scraps left over from the Princess Hat). Hung them up in the window with some string to add even more decor to our small apartment.
Day 21 – The other day we watched “Finding Nemo”. I didn’t think it was all that great a movie, but my daughter seemed to think it was awesome (she’s more of a traditional Disney lover, so seeing as this was on the other end of the spectrum from Snow White – and had no princesses – I was shocked). Anyways, thought I’d make her a couple of fish, the little one is Nemo of course, the big one, the whale.