We had a seriously beautiful weekend. True to form, we squeezed in as many projects as were humanly possible – all outdoors. We power-washed a secondhand playhouse. We cut down trees and mowed some trails. I rolled up a bajillion walnuts and pokey balls from the ground.
The star of the show, though, ended up being this super simple bench fix that has – notably – been waiting in the project queue for at least 2 years.
After spending the week picking up sticks and clearing the landscape under the Sycamore and Magnolia tree, I guess I finally decided it was time to get this bench in working order. I salvaged the flag-painted and wood-rotted bench from the garbage at the lakehouse. It had lived its life outdoors and was in rough shape. No one wanted to work on it, so it was destined to be hauled off.
That was 2 years ago. I intervened, loaded it up in the truck and hauled it home despite Aaron’s grumbles. I even went as far as to buy the lumber I wanted to replace the slats and I even grabbed a couple of cans of Rustoleum for painting the steel frame. I’ve had it all stashed in the garage since then…waiting…for…this day, apparently.
We have no lack of projects to handle on the farm – but Aaron agreed it was too nice to be inside, the kids were too happy to play on the deck and it was just too convenient to have this easy little thing to start and finish all in one day. So we did it.
Here’s what we used:
Aaron unscrewed the rotting painted boards, took measurements and headed to the woodshop to cut up the lumber I’d purchased so many months ago. I finished my pressure washing, then hit the steel frame with a coat of paint. It instantly looked incredible.
When he came back with the new Oak slats, Aaron decided they needed a slightly routed edge. So he hit them with a quick sander and slid them into place. Once we could see it coming together, I slapped some clear outdoor stain on the wood and let them dry.
The finished result is a beautiful bench that will return to its spot under the trees – but will actually be usable now. We can sit here to handle the mucky shoes when going in and out of the garage. Or, we can simply enjoy the shade of the Sycamore, the flowers of the Magnolia or the blooming Irises that – fingers crossed – will come back after the goats ate them all away last year.
She’s a simple beauty, but one project I’m very excited to have checked off the list. We’re kicking off the Spring with unprecedented momentum and I can’t wait to see what else we can tackle soon.