July 17 2011, Garden no 13

Update on the painting

By midday I’d managed a few hours sleep, the headache was under control, the sun was shining and I knew I couldn’t miss the opportunity to carry on with the painting. Outside painting can only be done when its not raining, not even a little bit damp and preferably when the sun is shining to speed up the drying process. We don’t get an awful lot of days like that in Scotland, so when perfect painting conditions occur, you have to go for it. My iron gate is a disaster, it needs doing again after yesterdays rain but I couldn’t face another day with the gloss paint, not after yesterday.

This cheeky chappie spent the afternoon stealing my red currants, I would rather have harvested them myself but I guess providing food for the birds is better than letting them go to waste.  No sign of the baby thrush today, I’m hoping that’s a good sign.
Some of the fences and wooden edging was streaky and needed touching up with blue timber paint, but that didn’t take long.

The bulk of my day has been spent with the white masonry paint. It doesn’t smell as horrible as gloss, and it doesn’t give me such a headache, but its equally messy and I find it quite hard to apply. BUT…..I’ve worked long and hard today and think I’ve actually finished with the white paint. I started re-painting all the walls, but then I realised how much paint it would use and how much time it would take and decided to just touch up the bits that had flaked or suffered frost damage. Most of my day has been spent on fiddly bits. The little white kerb stone on the edge of my garden is now white. I didn’t even know it was there until I had the hedge removed. While I was painting the fence I decided a white kerb stone would show off my new fence perfectly. The old tiles around the pond were broken and flaky. That happened the first winter, I learnt that interior tiles are not designed to withstand the Scottish winter with its frost, ice and storms and now the whole lot are covered in a couple of coats of external masonry paint. Hopefully that will survive the winter intact.
I built a small breeze block edge along the bed where all the fruit canes are, that had a couple of coats and looks much better for it. I’ve also made a little corner by the gate to keep the recycle bins tidy. They kept getting shoved around the garden and never seemed to land in the same place twice, they have a home all of their own now which I’m sure will keep the garden much tidier. When I first painted every thing white a couple of years ago, I never did get around to painting the inside of the steps, until today. That was quite hard work because my walls are textured and its really hard to get the paint into all the little pits and lumps. Once the first coat is on its not too bad but today, it was starting from scratch on the steps. It took forever. On to my next years corner flower bed. Actually, it’s a big pile of upside down turf, covered in black bags, that I’m hoping will rot down over the winter. We didn’t know what to do with the turf when we dug up part of the grass for the veg patch. So we piled it all up in the corner and hoped it would rot down over the winter. I built a little wall to keep all the earth in place and now that little wall……………is white. Something else I didn’t get around to doing last year was painting the original corner flower bed, but now it’s done.
It’s a good feeling to know I’ve cleared away the timber paint, cleared away the masonry paint and only have the gloss painting left to do.  Once that’s done I’ll have to go buy some more concrete floor paint to repaint concrete slabs. Hopefully all of this will be completely finished before school starts again.
I'm still covered in white paint, I look like a snowman,  I have bits of white paint flaking off me and drifting all over the room. I have white in my hair, white under my fingernails, white all over my clothes,  if I don't go get cleaned up every thing will be covered in white.

Tags: garden, garden2011, plants, pond

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edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jul 19, '11 Thanks folks ....................I love sharing my little garden projects here, its nice to know some folk actually enjoy my garden posts.

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jul 19, '11 veroniquemariquita said I have a really ugly set of steps that is the outside entrance to my basement. Your nice fresh white paint with blue trim is giving me inspiration to spruce mine up a bit. don't you just hate 'ugly' in the garden, I do. I'm really pleased I finally got around to painting the steps, it will look even better when I find the red concrete paint to do the tops of the steps with, Last time I painted the steps I sourced the exterior concrete paint at a local store that has closed down now so I'm just hoping I can find some some where else. And yes.............it really is very nice to stand back and admire what's been achieved. :-) almost makes the backache and headache worth it

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jul 19, '11 mitchylr said It's all looking good. As the weather was pretty dull yesterday, I decided to make a start on my living room ohh when all this is done and the weather turns, I will carry on with my living room, its half stripped right now. Don't know about you but I never use gloss inside, for interior wood, radiators etc I use the silk finish wood paint, its water based, I couldn't stand that awful smell indoors, it would make me ill.

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jul 19, '11 esoterika713 said What kind of paint are you using? Is it oil? its the blue gloss paint for the exterior doors and iron gate that gives me the problem, yes that is oil bases and revolting, but nothing else will give that sort of protection, and with our climate, plus the salt air, we need the protection on exterior surfaces. ...........The other paints are OK, the white masonry paint is water based as is the blue timber paint.

delete reply veroniquemariquita wrote on Jul 19, '11 I have a really ugly set of steps that is the outside entrance to my basement. Your nice fresh white paint with blue trim is giving me inspiration to spruce mine up a bit.

delete reply veroniquemariquita wrote on Jul 19, '11 You have everything looking so neat and tidy now. Doesn't it give you a good feeling just to sit back and look at all you have accomplished!

delete reply forelithe wrote on Jul 19, '11 Good for you ! The textured walls go really quickly with one of those hugely fuzzy rollers, but they also use more paint. It's the edging and corner brush work that takes all the time

delete reply djdx wrote on Jul 18, '11 Looking spiffy!

delete reply mitchylr wrote on Jul 18, '11 You did get quite a lot done!! Well done. It's all looking good. As the weather was pretty dull yesterday, I decided to make a start on my living room. It's gonna take a . I spent several hours 'cutting in' along the edges of the black wooden beams in the ceiling. It's a really awkward fiddly job and I've got a crick in my neck now!!.

delete reply artprevails wrote on Jul 17, '11 It all looks beautiful!

delete reply artprevails wrote on Jul 17, '11 Wow! I am impressed! You got a LOT done but what a great feeling, eh?

delete reply esoterika713 wrote on Jul 17, '11, edited on Jul 17, '11 What kind of paint are you using? Is it oil? I volunteered to paint one of the buildings in our co-op yesterday. About four hours worth. I do the garden which counts as volunteer time so anything extra is good too. It looks like your hard work is paying off. Your garden looks amazing. I like the white. It is something I would never have thought of but it looks great. :)

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jul 17, '11 nessiek said Have you looked at your first photos to see how far you have come? :-) I do like to look back and compare. Thats part of the reason I keep this garden blog, all garden entries are numbered and tagged so If I want to I can bing them all up and go through them one at a time ( so could any one esle if the really wanted too) I wasn't quite so careful with the earlier ones but I'm used to doing it now .............best record keeping method ever I think.

delete reply nessiek wrote on Jul 17, '11 Fantastic! :o) Have you looked at your first photos to see how far you have come? Brilliant job!

delete reply greenwytch wrote on Jul 17, '11 great job, Loretta.....i loved reading about your garden adventures and ventures and the photos are fabulous. your creativity and enthusiasm are an inspiration. kudos to you, my dear!

delete reply brendainmad wrote on Jul 17, '11 I'd say you deserve a good rest, but I suppose you'll have to finish the panting first. Hope it all dries.

delete reply nemo4sun wrote on Jul 17, '11 lol you are so cute in your discrptions but a big KUDO on what you got done it all looks really good :)

July25, 2009, Most of the painting is finished

Most of the painting is finished !!!!

No rain today, I checked the weather forecast yesterday and it said showers later on in the afternoon, determined to beat the rain I was in my garden at 7am this morning!!!
It’s now 2.30 and the weather is still holding BUT; The painting is virtually finished, just a few odd bits will need touching up once it's dry.
My house looks like a tip, my dishwasher’s not emptied, I’ve not been to the shops, there’s no food in my cupboards, but who cares??? The painting is done!!
If you are not used to houses built this way it must look a bit odd. These houses are built as four flats /apartments to a block, two on the ground floor and two on the first floor (or first and second if you are American).
The block that I am in is on the corner and mine is the upstairs flat, my garden is the corner plot at the front of the building, the land at the rear of the building is communal land used for drying clothes.
The door to my flat is the white door at the top of the little steps. This door leads to my stairway and my flat is at the top of these internal stairs. The other doors are all blue, the blue door furthest right is my shed door, the next blue door is the door out to the communal land at the back, the third blue door facing into the garden is another small shed build under the area occupied by my stairs and the tiny blue door on the wall is to gain access to my electric meter.
Now I have my own little oasis of blue and white on the corner of my street, you can't miss my house now!!! Guess I should go shopping now that's finished.

Tags: garden, plants

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delete reply dianahopeless wrote on Jul 17, '10 Blue and white is my favorite. You did a smashing job!

delete reply deystar wrote on Jul 27, '09, edited on Jul 27, '09 Turned out lovely! Isn't if funny how where ever we are living we often dream of living somewhere else? I personally would LOVE to live in Scotland! LOL The pic starfishred posted matches your garden perfectly!

delete reply pestep55 wrote on Jul 26, '09 Looks great /:-)

delete reply sandycaar wrote on Jul 25, '09 THE BLUE AND WHITE LOOKS SO FRESH AND BREEZY IF YOU WILL,,CONGRATS ON COMPLETING YOUR TASK,,CELEBRATE,,HAVE A WONDERFUL REST OF YOUR WEEKEND,,HUGS AND LOVE XOXOX SANDY

delete reply acousticeagle wrote on Jul 25, '09 Great job, fabulous. Really fresh and with an inviting look.

delete reply djdx wrote on Jul 25, '09 Looks good! And so satisfying to finish a task.

delete reply kathyinozarks wrote on Jul 25, '09, edited on Jul 25, '09 looks fabulous Loretta!! and thanks to Heidi for the champagne-you are also all invited to my cyber picnic-just bring a dish-hugs

delete reply tsblackmoon wrote on Jul 25, '09 it looks very nice. bravo!

delete reply starfishred wrote on Jul 25, '09 forgetmenot525 said all this talk of Greece and the fantastic weather today, not to mention the champagne, this has all given me an idea. Think I will sort out all my pictures of rhodes and post them after I have eaten, think it was about 4 years ago I was there..............oh it was wonderful loretta they are having a terrible heat wave there right now it is well over 40C and dry-

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jul 25, '09 all this talk of Greece and the fantastic weather today, not to mention the champagne, this has all given me an idea. Think I will sort out all my pictures of rhodes and post them after I have eaten, think it was about 4 years ago I was there..............oh it was wonderful

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jul 25, '09 I'm over whelmed...............thanks you lot, the champagne is wonderful, and its still very warm and sunny so I can sit outside and enjoy it

delete reply starfishred wrote on Jul 25, '09 brendainmad said You're lucky that you can paint the fence and doors the colour you want. Well, in my building we're permitted to have the door that we prefer, but things like the colour of the walls of our two patios are white the interior bars on some of the windows (those in the basement flats and ground floor) are grey. The decorative bars on all the windows that look out onto the street and all the other flats are black. I imagine they'll be painted when we paint the interior of the building. I love your place. It's so bright and cheerful. You've done so much in such a short period of time. BTW, a nice cheese would go well with that white wine. come join us for a little champagne brendaimad

delete reply starfishred wrote on Jul 25, '09 agnes128 said Oh my! Isn't it ... CHAMPAGNE ?!? Wonderful! quie aggie only the best for us and loretta

delete reply agnes128 wrote on Jul 25, '09 Oh my! Isn't it ... CHAMPAGNE ?!? Wonderful!

delete reply starfishred wrote on Jul 25, '09 mitchylr said It's definately Santorini. The island is part of the caldera of an ancient volcano that erupted asbout 3,500 years ago and caused the destruction of the Minoan civilisation. The main town, as you can see in the photo, lies along the cliff-tops of the inner caldera. It's spectacular and beautiful. yes it is santorini I was just there and all the houses are white wash with blue doors and trim looks really cool

delete reply brendainmad wrote on Jul 25, '09 You're lucky that you can paint the fence and doors the colour you want. Well, in my building we're permitted to have the door that we prefer, but things like the colour of the walls of our two patios are white the interior bars on some of the windows (those in the basement flats and ground floor) are grey. The decorative bars on all the windows that look out onto the street and all the other flats are black. I imagine they'll be painted when we paint the interior of the building. I love your place. It's so bright and cheerful. You've done so much in such a short period of time. BTW, a nice cheese would go well with that white wine.

delete reply starfishred wrote on Jul 25, '09 white wine for all and snacks to celebrate lorettas wonderful paint job

delete reply mitchylr wrote on Jul 25, '09 forgetmenot525 said Not sure where the photo is Mitch except that it's in Greece, the most beautiful place I ever visited was Rhodes, the Greek island nearest Turkey and North Africa..............there is a whole intact an functioning medieval walled town there.......... It's definately Santorini. The island is part of the caldera of an ancient volcano that erupted asbout 3,500 years ago and caused the destruction of the Minoan civilisation. The main town, as you can see in the photo, lies along the cliff-tops of the inner caldera. It's spectacular and beautiful.

delete reply agnes128 wrote on Jul 25, '09 So maybe just appetizers to go with the wine? Hmmmm gives me some ideas, I'll find something to celebrate. Maybe the weekend? ;-D

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jul 25, '09 agnes128 said May I suggest you buy something good to eat, just take out a white tablecloth, put it on that little square table and celebrate food...............maybe as an afterthought but top of the list is a nice whiter wine ahhhhhhhhhhhhh and the tablecloth sounds good thanks Aggie

delete reply agnes128 wrote on Jul 25, '09 Wow that's gorgeous, fresh and spruce! I won't say more about Greece ;-D Who cares about the dishwasher? You said you'll go shopping? May I suggest you buy something good to eat, just take out a white tablecloth, put it on that little square table and celebrate !

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jul 25, '09 Thanks for the picture Heidi and thanks Sea, if you thought it looks a bit like Greece then I guess I did something right. Not sure where the photo is Mitch except that it's in Greece, the most beautiful place I ever visited was Rhodes, the Greek island nearest Turkey and North Africa..............there is a whole intact an functioning medieval walled town there.................ohhh bliss to me it was heaven

delete reply mitchylr wrote on Jul 25, '09 It's looking great Loretta!! I love the blue/white combination :-))

delete reply mitchylr wrote on Jul 25, '09 That's Santorini, I believe. I wish I could live there!! It's one of the most beautiful places I've visited.

delete reply seanymph3 wrote on Jul 25, '09 Reminds me a bit of Greece, the last shot. Oh my I just looked down and saw heidis comment ....sorry. lol. I love it tho.

delete reply starfishred wrote on Jul 25, '09, edited on Jul 25, '09 WELL DONE LORETTA AND NOW IT LOOKS LIKE YOU LIVE ON A GREEK ISLAND IN THE AGEAN WELL DONE- HERE IS THE REST OF YOUR VILLAGE WHITE AND BLUE

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jul 25, '09 bennett1 said t is somehow Mediterranean looking thank you..................that's actually what it's supposed to be. I realized a while ago that I will never afford to travel the way I would like and so I thought................If I can't sit out my retitrement in a beautiful courtyard, with the scent of jasmin and honysuckle wafting on the warm breeze, surrounded by flowers and herbs in a Greek fishing vilage somewhere, then the obvious thing to do is....... CREATE MY OWN :-))

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jul 25, '09 spiritjewelz said Maybe if the rain holds off you can enjoy your outside with some tea! That's what I'm hoping, if not today then some time before I have to go back to work........glad you like the blue

delete reply bennett1 wrote on Jul 25, '09 I think your colors are just lovely! It is somehow Mediterranean looking - in Scotland.

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jul 25, '09 Thanks Frank..............you know I was thinking that, I noticed how nice my neighbioirs dandilions looked through my blue fence and when you said the guest was a forsythia I thought how nice the yellow will look

delete reply veryfrank wrote on Jul 25, '09 It looks very nice Loretta, good choice of colors. If your mystery guest is a forsythia, the yellow next spring will look good with the blue.

delete reply spiritjewelz wrote on Jul 25, '09 It's a beautiful blue and a great to be finished with painting! Maybe if the rain holds off you can enjoy your outside with some tea!

delete reply lrrpslady wrote on Jul 25, '09 You've done a wonderful job. This is top rate.

edit delete reply forgetmenot525 wrote on Jul 25, '09 thank you, my house is not very big, or grand, it's just an ordinary house on an ordinary estate, but I try to make the absolute most of it and make it mine.

delete reply lrrpslady wrote on Jul 25, '09 How LOVELY!!!! You are amazing! (I fixed the pics by the way). I just love this, it's so refreshing.