New digs!

Last spring after a neighbor cleared a large pile of brush away in order to re-roof and paint my garden shed for me, I began eyeing the bare spot of ground behind the shed as a potential place to work.  At the time I had work tables and a utility sink on the patio and buckets, boxes and piles of rusty items laying all over the yard behind the house.  The view out my sliding door from the dining room looked embarrassingly like a junk yard.  I consulted the handyman neighbor with my ideas.

One thing led to another as they say.  Three tons of dirt (to level the playing field) and two tons of lake gravel later, along with 100+ feet of railroad ties, five posts, 32 running feet of lattice fencing and a dent in my wallet, I had myself a beautiful 16 square foot outdoor studio with an airy privacy fence.  Follow the progress below.

I decided on a gravel floor rather than a deck for the studio as the whole process of rusting is messy and wet.  I can spill anything here without fear.  Landscape cloth was laid down first before the gravel went in to prevent the possibility of anything growing up through the rock.  The gravel is easy to stand and walk on.  The only drawback is keeping it clear of falling leaves and walnuts.  The rake wouldn't cut it.  Had to use the leaf blower several times as the season wore down.  Walnut trees are the first to lose their leaves starting in late summer!