Time to get back to work on the house...

Work on 'The Gear' came to a grinding halt during the fall due to the weather and my father's surgery. On the morning of February 22nd my father passed away from complications of the very delicate surgery that he had on November 29th. He put up quite the fight but his body just could not take anymore.

We are greatly sadden but need to move on so with this coming week R and I will make a list because every project starts with a list. First on the list will measure for lumber to finish building the deck.

The wide top board still needs to be installed on the main part of the deck. There are about 10 spindles that need installing on the small steps on the back. The small landing on the second story of the barn needs to have the old railing removed and a new decorative wider rim joist installed. We can then add the new railing and the deck rebuild will be done. EXCEPT for the million wood buttons that I need to install to cover the screws on the spindles.

Last month I purchased a small vintage oil painting on Etsy that I intend to use in the kitchen. It's a cute little painting of a bowl, flour sifter, egg beater, and a couple of eggs. The painting was a little dirty and had a spot on one of the eggs so I used a slightly damp Mr. Clean Eraser to lightly go over it to remove the surface dirt. DO NOT DO THIS ON A VALUABLE PAINTING. This worked like a charm and the painting looks a million times better.

I also repainted the brown frame with satin black spray paint and it is now perfect. Check out the before and after photos.

Before cleaning and repainting frame.After cleaning and frame painting.