Odds on Concrete

[LovelyLadyLux]

Been doing a mega amount of landscaping. Fences up, terraces made and on and on. Today I started out the front with a major pour of concrete. It is now all flattened off, swept, broomed, brushed, skeeted or whatever it is that needs done........

I've got the trash bins circling it with lumber forming a fence.......been on the lookout for the neighbours cat and am just hoping that the deer will keep their little feet OFF 'til is all sets......

Odds it'll be OK come the morning?

[Jayway]

Ummmm - - deer like jumping, dont they ?

[LovelyLadyLux]

Ta dah!!!!! NO DEER and the neighbours kindly kept their cat inside so now kitty kat paws. WHEW......flat smooth concrete - YESSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!







NOW the deck is going in out front. Soon FINALLY FINALLY FINALLY I'll be FINISHED and DONE with all the landscaping around this place and get on with planting flowers (deer are not eating pieris) and working on my vegetable garden.

[Horus]

Looking good

[Grandad]

You are getting there LLL and I assume that you have a 'newbuild' that you are working on to suit your individual plan.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Not finished yet - getting closer but not yet......still more to do. Seems every time I get close to thinking this is IT there is something else......

The middle picture above was the before and this is the after - tah dah! The front deck is FINALLY in and stained BY HAND by yours truly. All cedar and all hand stained (two coats ) UGH. Looks great but I don't think my hands or knees will ever be the same.

[Horus]

It is all starting to look very nice, we should have no problem in finding you when we all drop in for a surprise visit

[Grandad]

That is really smart LLL

Does the orchestra sit in the road when you are conducting from up there?

[LovelyLadyLux]

@ Grandad - yes I do have a rather lofty view

@ Horus - when you pop round make sure you bring Annie!

I love cedar but it IS a soft wood and requires upkeep. That'll be fine for me as I don't mind looking after it as I do enjoy how it looks.

Not sure if you get this brand there but there is a product here called Sikkens. It is absolutely the 100% BEST stain going. It brings out all the natural colour and adds almost a plasticized seal to the wood. Costs but is so worth it and once you get a couple of coats of Sikkens onto wood (particularly cedar) it brings out all the natural grain of the wood, shows up all the big knot holes.

My parents had, in their sitting room a full 2 storey wall done is cedar that was probably 8 cm thick. Course their house was built decades ago and nowadays you probably can't even find cedar cut that thick. The other end of their room was a full brick fireplace with the same accent of cedar on top. My dad was a builder so was able to do all this worth himself and he had cedar accents all over his house. He stained them yearly for the first couple of years then got down to about every third year but the feel of the heavy wood feature in the house was wonderful.

[Horus]

Yes we have that brand of preservative/wood stain here and it ranks as possibly the best for that sort of application