Deck Gate

 Even though it will be awhile before the Grandchildren are walking , Tracy and I want to be ready.

We decided that we needed a gate on the deck. This gate will also keep Meeka and Henry from running off when the kids are here with their dogs.

Brass hinges were used  to prevent rust in the winter and to keep the gate working smoothly.


The center post are inside of the 2 x 4's so the gate will open completely,

Google Sketchup is a free 3D drafting program. It's the program I use to draw my plans.

 To make your own deck gate, Just adjust the measurements to fit the opening on your deck or porch.

Bar Stools (Chalk Paint)

  This project was my first attempt at using  Anna Sloan Chalk Paint.  This is a paint that is designed to paint over anything without sanding or prep work.

 My wife Tracy found this pair of bar stools on a buy,sell and trade site for $4.00. Sense they were painted a very ugly color and varnished, we thought this would be a great test for the Chalk Paint.

Removing the seats and wiping the stools down with a damp cloth is the only prep work that was done.

After the first coat of paint I thought this project was going to be a complete failure.

It just didn't seem to be covering the old paint, They just looked bad and I expected more from my first coat.



I kept going, and added the second coat about an hour later.

The 2nd coat covered the stools very nicely

To seal the paint after it dries there is a wax to put on. It is very easy to use, just like waxing your car.

These pictures show the finished bar stools, after the wax was buffed off. Now I was pretty impressed with this paint.

I have a much larger item that I will be trying this paint on in the next couple of weeks. The next piece has a plastic type vernier as the finish. I'll let you all know how it works out .