Remember this photo that appeared on the blog post I wrote a few days ago?
The story behind it was that we weren't sure whether to bother cladding the bases of the pergola to hide the brackets and screws holding it down to the wall, or just paint them the same colour so that they would blend away with the rest of the posts.
Cladding the bases, is it a necessary detail worth doing, adding extra time to the finishing of the project? Or save ourselves that time by just painting the brackets away, blending them with the rest of the posts so that they would be barely noticeable once that's done?
To help us decide, I painted all of the bases and brackets that day to see how it would look once they had been painted (the brackets had been left unpainted previously, assuming then that we would definitely put the cladding on). The thought at the time that if they were barely noticeable then we'd leave them, if not then we'll clad them. Also we decided to sleep on it for a few days to see how we feel and make a decision after.
Well a few days has passed and yes, it was still noticeable to us and yes, the idea of leaving them exposed was more likely to bother us. Since we had originally planned on cladding them we decided that we ought to really stick with it, no point scrimping now (and we had to decide before that pond is filled, for once it's full of water there will be no turning back).
Sometimes, the delays to the finishing of the project are self inflicted by our attention to detail. But I have to admit, I feel that's a good thing.
So this weekend we got crackin' with measuring and cutting the wood for cladding, but what took the longest time was chiselling out the notches where the brackets are so the cladding will be flush. They had to be chiselled one by one as each bracket is in a slightly different place then measured to fit. None of them were fastened on though, that will be done on another day as they all have to be painted indoors first.
It's going to cost us extra time but it feels right, we made the right decision.
But it wasn't just chiselling that we did today. A few other jobs too like fastening on the protective grill on the surface skimmer (so smaller fish won't be sucked in accidentally), and with the mild temperatures this weekend the small water feature is now up and running.
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| Skimmer guard on - another little job off the list |
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| Time to test the little water feature! |
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| Filling up nicely... |
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| Someone's curious... |
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| There's something missing here... |
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| Voila! And more importantly the sound it is creating is just right |
Mark :-)
This gardening blog follows our journey as we create our Tropical and Exotic themed garden. We hope you'll enjoy the journey as much as we do. We started our Exotic Garden in 2005 and this site will show its development, as well as our travels, both abroad and within the UK to gardens, nurseries and friends.
That is a lot of hand work with having to chisel all those pieces. I do agree that it will look nicer though and it's yours so it should be just exactly like you want it. I still can't get over your little water feature. It's fantastic what all you accomplish in your yard. Really shows what people can accomplish when they want something bad enough.
ReplyDeleteCher Sunray Gardens
Thanks Cher! Fortunately it turned out that it wasn't that difficult to chisel down the notches, we managed to carve it all in one day. Just need attaching now :)
DeleteLove small fountains and the sound they make. You are really getting all the details just right.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad we got the sound just right too :)
DeleteI must say this whole thing is epic ! You've come so long now you may as well make sure the details are to your liking.
ReplyDeleteThanks ks! With not much comparatively left to do now I think it'll be worth it to stick with the finer details as planned.
DeleteI am sure a lot of us follows what you have been doing, and i feel somehow stressed too when it is not finished yet. That is the power of thoughts, emotion, etc, "we are one"! So i am now happy and a bit relieved. We can now watch the fishes!
ReplyDeleteThanks Andrea, that sounds lovely :) the small water feature is now sorted, just the big one to finish now.
DeleteGood decision, it would have gnawed away at you.
ReplyDeleteTrue Martin!
DeletePernickerty, pernickerty, pernickerty! It is looking so wonderful though. Like Andrea, I can't wait to start watching the fishies!
ReplyDeleteThanks Hazel :) us too!
DeleteI think it was a great decision to start with the simple option and then evaluate whether that was really what you wanted. And just as good a decision to say "nope, that's not us"! :-)
ReplyDeleteI can't wait to see what it will all look like with the water, plants and fish...
True Soren! It didn't take that much time to paint the bases and it gave us an idea what it would look like left as such, which led us to decide to go ahead with the cladding. And pleased we did :)
DeleteYour hard work and persistence are matched only by your attention to detail, laudable qualities all! No wonder your garden looks so amazing! Joining with you and your other fans in the giddiness of a job nearly completed! Is the window attached yet? How long until water goes in the new pond?
ReplyDeleteThank you outlawgardener! Window not attached yet, just waiting for another person to be available to help us manoeuvre the heavy glass. Then when that's on it'll be filling time!
DeleteI really respect your attention to detail and willingness to do things right first time, I tend to rush the finishing bits as they are not nearly as much fun as beginnings, but your perfectionism will pay off, particularly given the slick styling you have gone for. How lovely to have the small water feature up and gurgling.
ReplyDeleteHi Janet, it was lovely to see the water feature running, and love the gentle sound it is producing so far. We just have to do the big one now :)
DeleteWell done Mark and Gaz cant wait for the fish to go in
ReplyDelete