Six Cedar Birdhouses 2

Not Long in the Hopper

 New cedar fence slats plus rescued shakes and slats for roofs

Two of six houses sitting in my workshop require some sanding, and after that it won't take long to put them together and add finishing touches, i.e., a perch, front fence, chimney.

I suppose that's why I use red cedar fence slats on a regular basis. The wood is sturdy, pretty, easy to use (smells good too) and I can build a decent-sized birdhouse (e.g., with a 5 x 6- or 5 x 7-inch interior = lots of sq. inches for a small family) without much fuss or bother.

These two houses will soon be open for business

What do you think?

Please link to Six Cedar Birdhouses 1

Birdhouse Trim, Perches and Stands

Solid Cedar Blocks

A couple of rescued metal poles will now come in handy

I collected a few cedar blocks from a house reno a few years ago and have decided to use a couple as birdhouse stands. Pine barnboard will make a solid base and keep the block from falling over once I attach a metal pole and birdhouse platform.

More to follow.

Please link to Birdhouse Trim and Perches

Photo GH

The Production Line - Cedar Birdhouse Models (4)

Progress Interruptess, Eh

First coats will continue ASAP. But....

I have had a slow start to motorcycle season, for a variety of reasons, so when I woke up yesterday I felt a ride should be on my agenda for the day. The weather was grand, the bike started up instantly - as if expecting great things - and away we went. (Port Bruce Photos)

Later in the afternoon, as I was about to paint a birdhouse roof, a friend dropped by with cold beverages in tow. Well, it was a hot day, so a slower pace and some 'rec time' were in order.

Yesterday's log: "Not bad at all"

Prediction: Steadier progress w trim today unless 'stuff happens'

Please link to The Production Line - Cedar Birdhouse Models (3)

Photos GH

The Production Line - Cedar Birdhouse Models (1)

Four Batches, All in One Go

Set of 3 on the left - rescued western cedar boxes w pine roofs

Set of 3 in middle - red cedar faces w pine sides and roof slats

My next birdhouse sale will be held in late August, so for the next few weeks I will have several different goals in mind while working - in a relaxed manner - inside the workshop.

1. Finish 9 birdhouses (3 x 3 different models), i.e., add trim and paint

2. Deliver a finished squirrel house

3. Sand, assemble, paint and trim 6 additional (new, as of Saturday) red cedar models

4. Draft plans for three new projects. Details to follow

Squirrel house, centre - new and rescued (aged) pine barnboard

Set of 3 wren and chickadee houses on right - new red cedar 

Set of 6 houses - new red cedar for faces, roofs and sides. Smells good!

How does one relax when the temperature hits plus-30 inside the shop?

Turn on the big fan and play cool music!

More to follow.

Please link to The Production Line - 18 Birdhouses (6)

Photos GH

The Squirrel House (4)

A Few More Details

Now we be done!

I said it was done but I was wrong. I posted 'final' photos of a squirrel nesting box yesterday and within 30 seconds I realized I wanted to add two more details.... a railing for the balcony and a branch for the face.

The railing and trim are from lovely bits of Wortley Village lath

Okay, now I can say 'voila'.

: )

Please link to The Squirrel House (3)

Photos GH

Basic Cedar and Barnboard 2

Assembly Line on the Go

"Red cedar faces and barnboard slats (for sides and roofs)"

Today was a very good day to stand outside and sand lumber. The breeze surely carried the dust all the way to Labatts Park!

Once I had the nail gun loaded, assembly time went by in a flash. Painting.... not as quick. I'm slow with a brush. And careful.

 "Barnboard sides and roofs look good whether painted or not"

"Coming up - a full-on trim day"

More to follow involving second coats and trim.

Please link to Basic Cedar and Barnboard 1 

Photos GH

Duplexes: "Voila! Fini, Right on Time" 4

Last One Packed Into the Car

"Be careful. The wee birdhouse is still wet"

I set up a tableful of birdhouses at a local school on Friday evening - in hopes of selling a few at a Mothers Day Sale the next day - and the last one readied for display was the above bright red duplex made from new and (mostly) rescued lumber. The paint on the little red birdhouse sitting on the front fence was still wet.

"Don't throw away your wooden spoons!"

Yesterday afternoon, after a relaxing walk-a-jog in Greenway Park (Oh yeah, I was jogging a bit!), I finished the last details on two more duplexes. Pretty solid structures, I must say.

"I like to use wooden spoons, forks and sporks for sperches" : )

The trio is made from rescued lumber for the most part. The only new lumber is the pine barnboard base. And that salad fork was only used once or twice before becoming a useful perch.

Cheers.

Please link to Duplexes: Time for 'Full-on Trim'

Photos by GH in The Workshop

Duplexes: Time for 'Full-on Trim'

The Paint is Dry

I put a lot of trim on a lot of birdhouses. My gravestone will either read "I Told You I Was Sick" or "Gord Never Trimmed a Sail But Every Birdhouse Has a Perch".

Today's to-do list: Fence, cat, hydro pole, wee birdhouse, perch.

"Roof edging, roof ridge, windows, chimney - check"

More to follow.

Please link to Duplexes: "Contrasting Lumbers" - Maybe Some Paint?

Duplexes: "Contrasting Lumbers"

Maybe Some Paint?

 "Yes, there are a lot of bits and pieces in a duplex, even a piece one cannot see"*

The roof on the tall unit is made from slats of white pine, nice and smooth. I'm tempted to add paint in order to catch your eye.

"White pine and western cedar look AOK together, in my opinion"

That being said, even without paint, the contrasting colours of the wood seem eye-catching to some degree. I'll think about paint while I assemble the last of three units this afternoon.

More to follow.

*Because the entry hole in the tall unit is approx. 8 inches from the base, I put in a hidden floor six-inches below the hole so birds can build a shallower nest. "Good idea," says the wee fledgling with short legs.

Please link to Duplexes: "A Hodge Podge of Lumber" 1

Small PEI Models 5

Almost Done the PEI Trim Package

 "The birdhouse sits atop an old walnut chair - my next painting project"

 "PEI trim package - chimney, windows, front fence/perch,

and a hydro pole to supply juice for the flat-screen TV"

"Today I will add the last bits"

Nice day to work in the shop yesterday. A northerly breeze blew all the dust away as I cut and attached trim.

Today I will add the last bit of trim over the entrance, made from rescued cedar. And by 6 PM I should be able to say, "Voila!"

Please link to Small PEI Models 4

Photos GH

Small PEI Models 3

Second Coats - Check

Such a lovely time I had. Good tunes, a mug of tea, warm workshop, red paint. Second coats were done in a jif.

If all goes as planned today, I will be adding trim to 13 birdhouses sometime in the PM, accompanied by good tunes, a mug of tea....

Please link to Small PEI Models 2

The Second Batches (3)

Time to Getta Movin'

Time to clean off, then clean up, a classic chair"

Side projects are a way of life in the workshop, and I'm learning to handle the 'this and that' atmosphere better every year.

THIS: Three pine and plywood picture frames, for a very productive and creative neighbour, are ready to deliver.

THAT: Then I will be able to clean and paint the classic chair the frames are sitting on at the moment.

"Where are the roof slats?"

THIS: While the first coat of paint on the chair is drying, I will drill and sand the holes for 13 birdhouses, six of which are sitting like ducks in a row on a shrinking pile of barn board next to my work bench.

THAT: The other seven also need roof slats added to their individual piles of stock. And three others, shown yesterday on this site, need perches and final assembly.

THAT X 2: And I need another cuppa coffee too.

All in a day's work.

Link to The Second batches (2)

Photos GH

The Second Batches (2)

A Week of Hodge Podge

"Two '5-minute' birdhouses are ready to go out the door"

I am enjoying productive times inside a warm and cozy workshop, no matter the wacky March weather outside. Seventeen new birdhouses are underway ("moving along the assembly line"), two others are set aside for a PM client ('5-minute' models, i.e., quick and easy to install on a tree), and an old chair has captured my imagination. So, I have lots to do, as usual.

 "Second coats of paint will dry nicely, in spite of wet days ahead"

 "Seven rustic houses require attention, i.e., roof slats and sanding, etc."

"This walnut classic needs a power-wash, and a face-lift"

So, as March comes to a wet, wild, windy, and woolly end, I will paint, power-wash, ponder and ply my trade. All in a good week's work.

Please link to The Second Batches (1)

The Second Batches (1)

Things are Piling Up

Birdhouse stock - from new and rescued lumber - builds up pretty quickly once weather is warm enough for me to set up two saws outside the shop. And when the table inside the shop is full I take out the sander and let the dust fly.

"Only 'The Best'?"

Close neighbours know when I'm busy. The smells of pine and cedar, and the (sometimes) uneasy strains of Bob Dylan - at his best and worst - fill the air.

While Bob mulls over a line I'll be thinking about what to do with a nice slab of walnut.

More to follow.

Please link to The First Batch of the Season (5)

 

Custom Table/Shelf 2

Finally, We're Off the Ground

 "This project will be complicated, to match its name"

Nick, a special friend and client, has been waiting - patiently, I might add - a long time for me to build a custom table/shelf to place under his downtown apt.'s window sill. Let's just say I got busy on various other stuff and move on.

"Nick is a dedicated, adventurous fisherman"

This will be a big job but somebody's got to do it - and that's me.

Main materials will be red cedar, western cedar, plywood, classic pine and lovely slates.

The 'window sill box' will include two shadow boxes, one at each end. And somewhere fish will get thrown in for good measure.

Link to Custom Table/Shelf

Photos GH

Vintage Trailer Birdhouse 1

Starts with a Sketch

 "Google 'birdhouses', go to images, go to 'funky designs' for more inspiration"

I have noticed that the month of July has been a busy month for me in the workshop. Custom projects and dozens of birdhouses have occupied my time, productively and positively in most cases, and - fortunately - quite a few items have been completed or are almost done.

When I start catching my breath my mind usually asks the question, "So, what's next, Buster?"

Well, now that I've completed a rough sketch of an old trailer and have done a bit of thinking about suitable materials for building such a thing (birdhouse that is), I think I will soon be knee-deep cutting lumber and assembling bits and pieces using the time-tested method called 'trial and error'. And though I have seen some vintage trailer birdhouses made with lumber and tin, I will stick to plywood and white pine.

"I will use angled slats to form the curved sections"

"Yup. I predict I'll need a lot of slats!"

More to follow, when time allows.

Link to Farmhouses 6

Sketches and Photos GH

Custom Birdhouse 10

Open Them Back Doors

Body is rescued white pine. Roof is new, weathered pine.

Once I attached the roof most of this four-plex was tan and gray. I felt the sides of the four-plex needed more colour so I opened my new tin of big bright orange paint and changed the colour scheme... again. The garage from which the birdhouse is modelled is actually the same colour so the client should be happy with this significant, brighter modification.

Once the back doors are attached the final stage begins... add dormer and trim.

Link to Custom Birdhouse 9

Photos GH

Upcoming Projects

Various Birdhouses

Coming up next: 1. Two western cedar log cabins

I'm pretty sure I will be standing in front of my sander this afternoon clearing the decks, i.e., getting piles of birdhouse stock ready for the assembly line. There are five different birdhouse models (and other items) all lined up in a row, so I will be a busy, dusty guy in a funny mask by 2 P.M.

 2. Three pine houses with curved roofs

 3 and 4. Two wee houses (rescued scraps) and one newbie 

 4. Pine barnboard newbie will have a front porch and fussy trim

5. Six Harrison Specials from rescued western cedar

Q: So, what else is new?

A: I need to build a bigger backyard shed for the lawnmower and growing lumber supplies. July will be a very busy, dusty month.

Link to Wee Side Job 1

Photos GH