Upcycling is the coolest thing ever!

 Recycled wooden windows = My Greenhouse!!

The foundation is level and square. I anchored it with re bar in place.

and we began...

It took about a day and half to erect the walls..I still had laundry and meals to supply the troops...This though was rewarding work and time well spent with my lil' 3 (kiddos)

I originally envisioned doing a gabled roof. Wow, the cost of those roof panels are ridiculous...and this used  a lot less...My motto, Over come and Adapt! Besides, I've always wanted to have exposed decorative rafters!!

 

I pondered on this...???  
Hum, How do I close up that roof grade?
I used the trim from the roofing panels...

I'm very pleased with the rustic appearance 

...beautiful view...

It dawned on me that the land grade was gonna make it impossible to open the door ...
That is when I get one...I want to make a "Dutch" door. 

I'm gonna use the excavated soil to back fill the greenhouse and level the inside floor.
I have an abundance of wonderful stone on our property
and I plan to make a stone floor and front patio...

I want this to be the top half of my "Dutch" door...

As you see I still need a few more windows and to construct the door...Patience is a virtue...
But, I have other projects underway to keep us busy and learning...



Well, let's jump back a ways and share some additional photos...

Again, ignore the photo dates...I'm NOT good with electronics...This was the beginnings. As, my family sat on the porch looking puzzled...I began to see a pattern...

 This is my kiddos "raised" bed we built earlier in the spring. It gave me the idea for the greenhouse foundation.

I got a door! $15!! It was actually sitting on the porch of a lovely farm house a few miles from us...I took a chance and stopped to inquire...After all the worst thing that could of happened was being asked to leave, escorted by a shot gun!

I took the lock apart, cleaned it, added a little WD-40 and it works! I still need to go key shopping. Not that the greenhouse needs to be locked but, Anna my 10 year old does.

   Building the door framing was simple enough. The trim part was fun. I used a scrap piece of plate rail to create a decorative header. Then purchased 2, 8 foot lengths of this little vine embossed trim to hide the seam from the rough framing.

I installed a closet catch to accommodate the antique locks dual dasher.

The kiddos & my hubby to the rescue! We have an abundance of wonderful stone on our property but gathering can be a chore. This where again my Papa's words come back to me. "Many hands make the work light." The floor and foundation are in and beautiful. I still have the lil' porch area to do...

Aww, I'll get there.

 Two more window areas to do...A transom is going to be over the door and another fixed window to the left of it. I'm fairly convinced that I'll have to find/purchase glass and construct a frame for these areas.

Love the door. Stained and trimmed it looks like it's been the for all of it's 104 years of life!

This is all we used to make the "stained glass"...I love the idea of real colored glass, but the reality of cost and it's vulnerable proximity to the kiddos made this a much better option...Bonus was the children did it with me. Win, win situation.

How to...Mix glue with drops of food coloring to achieve your desired shade. I thinned it with a few drops of water to help it "self level". Paint it on the "inside/backside" of the window glass and voila~ let it dry...

A.D.O.P. Alert!! This was why I went to the window and door store...This is the sidewall of my sheds. I converted this part into a chicken coop years ago. I had put an old wooden framed window in to give some light to an otherwise dreary living space for my flock. 10 years is a long time. Especially when surrounded by 6 children. Yes, we have 6 amazing kiddos. BB guns, stray baseballs and most recently, college kids with paintball weapons! I just wanted to replace the broken panes so my younger ones and I could try staining glass with school glue and food coloring...Works great...I love the colors the kiddos came up with. Not so much on the brighter blue and orange one I did...Easy enough to change but again  my attention is being turned to the free windows I was blessed with.

Okay, this is how it started...(ignore the camera dates, I'm better with power tools and kids than electronics) I was hoping to replace some broken panes of glass...The local window and door store was more generous than I could ever have dreamed...I inquired about the replacement panes for an old window I had salvaged and placed in my chicken coop a decade before...The smirk and grin was a typical response to one of my many plans. But, then the conversation took a wonderful turn to one of  "county fees" for disposal of construction debris...Debris??? I'm a "green" kinda gal...My Papa was the original "upcycler"! His generation knew how to..."Use it up, wear it out or do without." I grew up many summers in east Texas marveling at all the things he had made with "trash"....

I'm not an eloquent writer. I won't be able to "wow" anyone with my words. I am, however, passionate about creating and learning to do anything. I hope to inspire and be inspired. I'll share lots of moment by moment photos of "projects" we do...As soon as, I figure out a new computer and blogging...Hope to share more very soon.