Bluewolf Posted August 17, 2018 Share Posted August 17, 2018 I was talking about it a while ago in the Off Topic thread and decided to take a few pictures as I was going along... It's been a bit of a slog at times I won't lie, the coffees have been many, the delays frustrating and the heat! don't even get me started on the heat!!! I was losing so much fluid in that sun by the end of some of them days I felt like a mummified corpse... I would have preferred a straight run at it but it's been a bit on and off since I started for a number of different reasons and I won't mention anyone's name directly but it's amazing how much disruption a 3 year old midget can cause... So this is what we started with... Where the chairs are in the picture is where the old garden shed used to be. I got a skip in and ripped the whole thing down along with a rather large tree branch that had snapped and come down on the roof from next door... The grass was patchy and needed sorting out.. I have done just about everything with it over the years to get a decent bit of grass up there but it was not having it.. I have slabbed it, re-seeded it, laid new turf and none of it has lasted and it always looked crap after the winter so I needed to sort it out once and for all... During the preparation I had to remove about 9 large slabs that formed the base of the old shed and when I finished lifting them up there was a huge network of mouse caves and tunnels underneath. 7 of the 9 slabs had chambers under them with mouse runs joining them all up.. All gone now though thanks to BO the mouse murderer... you may remember seeing this rodent assassin in the Pets thread.. Anyway... Once I had got all that lot cleared away and the ground somewhat level I set about working out what I would need for the job etc and then took a quick trip to B&Q for my supplies... The new play shed was due about a week after this so it gave me plenty of time to get the bulk of the framing and decking sorted.. Once my supplies had arrived I was all set to go... I even booked a shift off to give me a good crack at it so I could make the most of the good weather.. this had nothing to do with the World Cup being on either... that was pure coincidence The shed arrived much earlier than expected thanks to a friend up in Notts where I used to work and he got me £200 knocked off the price so got a right result there.. cheers mate! First thing to be done was the framing section where the first section of decking would be going.. Once this was completed I started knocking out the decking so we could get the shed up and started.. Hows that for level... I ran slabs along the back of the decking to prevent the dirt from hitting the shed as next doors garden is slightly higher than ours and the dirt came through and caused rotting on the back of the old one so took some extra precautions this time.. Once the first section was complete we started putting together the new Play Hut so the missus would have a few things to be getting on with like painting etc while I carried on with the real hard graft, sweating, heavy lifting, cutting, sawing, drilling etc.. you know, all that proper manly stuff... Once that was up I was left with this section to finish.. All the crap kept going in there as we moved stuff around all the time so it needed clearing out and another set of framing and decking to get completed.. All the time I was trying to get this finished the missus would be stopping me and saying "come look at this" to point out a protruding knot hole in the shed or something similar... Not that they do, but if Carlsberg did women who could waste as much of my time as possible on things that are not high on my list of priorities then I would already have one... Now that was out the way I had to look at getting the grass area prepared. I had already ordered the grass so it was a matter of getting the framing and sand in place.. When I was taking up the small slabs there must have been about 3 ants nests along there, and within about 5 minutes from being uncovered they had got all the eggs underground to safety.. One purpose and super efficient, I bet none of them ever blow out sick from a days work.. These two were left squabbling over what direction to take the last egg.. 'to me,to you' never seen such disorganized rabble in all my life!! So now the last of the top level of turf had been removed and with the slabs gone I began leveling off and getting the grass framing in place.. Once they were bedded in we laid the ground sheets to prevent weeds coming through and began getting the sand in.. My son decided to help out leveling the sand and broke my new broom within about 5 minutes... He was trying to fix it back together while I was getting more sand in from the front crafty sod.. Mooms used it as a bit of a beach and was digging it up quicker than we could compact it down which was really helpful... We finished off most of the inside of the hut.. The floor was pretty naff that came with the Hut so wanted to do something with it and got lucky as a bloke down the road had been doing some flooring and was throwing out a few good lengths of it.. I gave him a knock and asked If I could take some and he told me to come back at the weekend as he would have some better stuff left over so I did and he had nearly 2 full packs of brand new heavy duty flooring so it was more than enough to lay on the bottom of the hut.. Got carpet and curtains in it now and I put in a proper staircase with Bannister instead of that rubbish ladder they supplied... Here are just a few of the things Leelah was getting up to.. Using the playhouse floor as a dance floor... Using my hammers to 'help grandad' although it's better she learns how to use them now as her dad is a useless pleb and she may need those skills later on in life if she ever needs a bit of DIY done around the place... Getting umpteen screws, drills, bolts and all manner of stuff out on a regular basis..Every time I turned around my pencil was gone or my drill had been taken.. Time and again being held up so she could mess about... Like when I got a free deflated World Cup football from Screwfix while picking something up I told her it was a budget safety hat and she was wearing it around the garden.. Mooms could sniff out a ball deflated or otherwise a mile off and was in hot pursuit the whole time.. The missus was not over keen at playing 'hats' much to Leelahs amusement... and mine for that matter Helping out with the painting... Everyone pitched in at some point or another to do bits where they could and it was a decent use of some holiday time... Leelah obviously was oblivious to what was going on around her flouting the health & safety regulations, ignoring the risk assessments I had carried out and refusing to wear her 'Grandads little helper' High Viss while on the job... In fact just using the whole experience and goings on as her personal playground... Couldn't tell you how many times she had my tools and drill bits out, getting in my way, making a mess with the toys and throwing dirt and sand on my head while I was working... she just doesn't give a toss!!! going to be rule breaker that one... Well now it all looks like this... Job Done!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator Stan Posted August 18, 2018 Administrator Share Posted August 18, 2018 Not gonna lie but in the 22nd picture down with the guy holding the broom, i thought you looked older than that... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danny Posted August 18, 2018 Share Posted August 18, 2018 That's class mate, love a bit of landscape gardening! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry Posted August 18, 2018 Share Posted August 18, 2018 Quality effort @Bluewolf mate! Good story, actually informative and makes me feel like I’d have some hope of doing similar in the near term if I had the balls to try it. My little man turns 3 in 2.5 months (and little girl on the way in Jan) so maybe I should look at least at the playhouse part of that. Could be a good project for me and my (recently retired) old man once the weather improves a bit!! Is the turf artificial? It looks absolutely pristine either way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluewolf Posted August 18, 2018 Author Share Posted August 18, 2018 6 hours ago, Danny said: That's class mate, love a bit of landscape gardening! Cheers mate... done all kinds of stuff over the years.. great when I have the time and money for it.. 4 hours ago, Harry said: Quality effort @Bluewolf mate! Good story, actually informative and makes me feel like I’d have some hope of doing similar in the near term if I had the balls to try it. My little man turns 3 in 2.5 months (and little girl on the way in Jan) so maybe I should look at least at the playhouse part of that. Could be a good project for me and my (recently retired) old man once the weather improves a bit!! Is the turf artificial? It looks absolutely pristine either way. Yea it is mate... After trying it every other way without success I went for that this time.. A few years ago it was poor quality and I didn't want to spend a shit load of money on crap but it's come a long way now and so much better.. nice and safe for the little ones as well underneath, no hard surfaces and a 10 year guarantee.. I got a bit lucky with that as well in truth, The one we wanted to get was out of stock and the next one would not have been available until mid August so told him I would need to go elsewhere as it needed finishing sooner. He was a real big help and he swung it so we got a more expensive one for the price of the one we were going for in the first place.. It's like a big outdoor carpet.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Subscriber nudge+ Posted August 18, 2018 Subscriber Share Posted August 18, 2018 It turned out great... I'm sure she'll love it! Also you should consider writing a book or something, love it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harry Posted August 18, 2018 Share Posted August 18, 2018 1 hour ago, Bluewolf said: Cheers mate... done all kinds of stuff over the years.. great when I have the time and money for it.. Yea it is mate... After trying it every other way without success I went for that this time.. A few years ago it was poor quality and I didn't want to spend a shit load of money on crap but it's come a long way now and so much better.. nice and safe for the little ones as well underneath, no hard surfaces and a 10 year guarantee.. I got a bit lucky with that as well in truth, The one we wanted to get was out of stock and the next one would not have been available until mid August so told him I would need to go elsewhere as it needed finishing sooner. He was a real big help and he swung it so we got a more expensive one for the price of the one we were going for in the first place.. It's like a big outdoor carpet.. Good one. We have a dodgy lawn too and it annoys me greatly. But just too many deciduous trees to go for an artificial option. Big oaks that drop leaves everywhere in autumn. Ill probably turn it and reseed it in spring. Need a shade tolerant type of grass i think... Do you have a photo of the staircase you installed in the playhouse? Interested to see how you made that happen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluewolf Posted August 18, 2018 Author Share Posted August 18, 2018 22 minutes ago, nudge said: It turned out great... I'm sure she'll love it! Also you should consider writing a book or something, love it Yea, not too shabby... Miles better than what it was before and now I won't have to keep going back over the same old ground over and over again.. got other stuff I need to be getting on with.. That's where we were playing footy yesterday before she rugby style kicked the balls over the fence and that put paid to that.. A book you say.. interesting.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluewolf Posted August 18, 2018 Author Share Posted August 18, 2018 8 minutes ago, Harry said: Good one. We have a dodgy lawn too and it annoys me greatly. But just too many deciduous trees to go for an artificial option. Big oaks that drop leaves everywhere in autumn. Ill probably turn it and reseed it in spring. Need a shade tolerant type of grass i think... Do you have a photo of the staircase you installed in the playhouse? Interested to see how you made that happen. Actually no I don't as it still needs a bit of sanding and painting but once it's painted up I will put up a picture so you can see it.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator Batard Posted August 18, 2018 Administrator Share Posted August 18, 2018 Post of the year right there. Actually felt part of the journey. I’ve just taken a look at my garden and I think we could utilize your skills, Joe! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berserker Posted August 18, 2018 Share Posted August 18, 2018 Excellent work and looking good mate. I'm sure the little one will love it too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SirBalon Posted August 18, 2018 Share Posted August 18, 2018 Recovered one of the missing pictures and the reason for so much time spent in the garden... Little did Mrs Bluewolf know! great work mate! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Honey Honey Posted August 18, 2018 Share Posted August 18, 2018 That play house you've built must be worth about £300,000 in London now is it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator Stan Posted August 18, 2018 Administrator Share Posted August 18, 2018 6 minutes ago, Harvsky said: That play house you've built must be worth about £300,000 in London now is it? for which part of the room? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluewolf Posted August 18, 2018 Author Share Posted August 18, 2018 2 hours ago, Batard said: Post of the year right there. Actually felt part of the journey. I’ve just taken a look at my garden and I think we could utilize your skills, Joe! Thanks mate, glad you enjoyed it... 2 hours ago, Berserker said: Excellent work and looking good mate. I'm sure the little one will love it too. Cheers mate, she does so makes it all worth while.. 1 hour ago, SirBalon said: Recovered one of the missing pictures and the reason for so much time spent in the garden... Little did Mrs Bluewolf know! great work mate! Charlie Dimmock.... them were the days and thanks.. 1 hour ago, Harvsky said: That play house you've built must be worth about £300,000 in London now is it? 1 hour ago, Stan said: for which part of the room? 2 levels... decking area and own garden... 450,000 easy!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
True Blue Posted August 18, 2018 Share Posted August 18, 2018 That looks great Dad, beauty of a garden top job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Posted August 18, 2018 Share Posted August 18, 2018 That looks pretty awesome. If you need a new project, I have rooms that need painting, a wardrobe that needs putting up, bamboo that needs removing and a garden that need levelling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluewolf Posted August 20, 2018 Author Share Posted August 20, 2018 On 18/08/2018 at 16:43, True Blue said: That looks great Dad, beauty of a garden top job. Cheers son... where were you when I needed help with the heavy lifting??? off out enjoying yourself i suppose.. On 18/08/2018 at 16:56, The Palace Fan said: That looks pretty fucking awesome. If you need a new project, I have rooms that need painting, a wardrobe that needs putting up, bamboo that needs removing and a garden that need levelling. Thank you kindly... I will start working on a quote.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Administrator Stan Posted August 17, 2021 Administrator Share Posted August 17, 2021 Is it still up to decent standard @Bluewolf? The 3-year anniversary of this masterpiece... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluewolf Posted August 17, 2021 Author Share Posted August 17, 2021 17 minutes ago, Stan said: Is it still up to decent standard @Bluewolf? The 3-year anniversary of this masterpiece... Wow... 3 years, that has just flown by, still looking good mate happy to report, well worth the effort Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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