Crates for charity...

An email came round from the PTA asking if anyone had a basket to use for a hamper for the school summer fair. Our class are to put together a gardening hamper.
I explained that I painted old crates to look like, erm, old crates and they were far too polite to refuse.

As luck would have it I had a large crate just sitting in the garage, thoroughly wood worm treated and ready to go.
Fancy that.

The colour was really quite uninspiring.

 

So I stained it darker...

 and gave it a colourwash for that 'trendy' grey weathered wood look... ta daa!

I also had a go at making a vintage sign with an old chopping board that was far too big to be practical and also split.

 

the darker one

We live opposite the rose field of Harkness Roses. We'd have a fabulous view of all the rose bushes if it weren't for a tall hedgerow that surrounds them.

According to the neighbours, our house also stands on land that was owned by Harkness Roses. (Another neighbour claims the land was a pig farm. Slightly less romantic. I choose not to believe in that one.)

Another neighbour, (ex S.A.S.) claims that everyone round here used to wait until dark and break through the hedge to get their roses in the sixties. I like to imagine him doing that with his balaclava on. 

So I thought I'd try to make a sign that looked old, perhaps something I might be lucky enough to find at the flea market. A genuine old sign that was meaningful because of our location.

I don't like how it turned out at all. I wasn't going to show you because it's not something I'm proud of but here goes...

You win some, you lose some...

I'm hard at work on my massive chest of drawers. There are piles of clothes EVERYWHERE and drawers being painted all over the landing. What my poor husband has to put up with eh?