SCAVENGING FOR BUILDING MATERIALS

I'm falling in love with working with nature's landscaping materials.

I take the dog for her walk in the morning up to the top of our mountain,

and collect rocks and interesting pieces of wood as we go.

I pile them together at the side of the road...

and then later go back and pick them up in the jeep.

I found these amazing vintage wood chairs at a store in Sky Forest called Cabin Fever.

They were $50 bucks each but I talked the store owner into $50 for the pair.

What I've found up in Crestline is that the merchants are willing to deal.

There was this area up above our cabin where nothing was growing 

and it seemed the perfect spot to build a sitting area under the big pines

(and telephone poles & wires)

So I leveled it out and carved a kidney shaped area to place the chairs.

Then I had to unload that jeep and gently toss the rocks to the sitting area so I could place them.

A great calorie burning day!!

So are you wondering what my old man was up to?

Taking pix of course  :)

Seriously,

he's just had back surgery so he is not allowed to do any hard physical labor.

Lucky guy! 

LOL

Meanwhile,

I'm up to my knees in mud.

So here's the finished area.

Two weekends ago I found the perfect wood table to set between the chairs

(not pictured)

But oops!!!!

I forgot to document the building of  the pathway that leads from my art studio up to this sitting area.

This winter my son brought up his girlfriend and we tackled this path together,

from the collecting of the rocks and wood,

to the laying out of the design edge with the rocks.

We set the stepping stones and then spread the pea gravel.

It took the three of us the entire day,

and was a labor of love.

Thank you Zach and Nicole!!

But then hold the phone,

I just found out I made the cut for the Mountain Art Network's Annual Artist's Studio Tour

in September,

and the public has to have access to your studio from the street.

So off with the jeep I go for another load.

My neighbor Chris felt sorry for me,

 and helped me gather these big boulders you see here.

I'm just moving them into place.

Cutting in the stairs.

Pounding into place the treated wood ties with 12 inch nails,

the hammer may have nailed me a few times for a ginormously swollen black and blue hand,

and a broken bone in one of my fingers.

But I just kept on trucking.

LOL

I'm a woman on a mission 

who would rather me doing physical labor then working out in a gym.

So here's a shot of the whole nine yards.

The gal from the Mountain Arts Network came the next week for an inspection of our property,

and the word she used to describe the whole ball of wax,

including the exterior and interior of the studio was 

"Enchanting"

My work is done!

Now on the to patching and slurrying of the driveway.

:)