Monday, May 9, 2011

Sunday, May 8, 2011

At Long Last, A Completed Door/Table

It's with GREAT pleasure that I share these photos with you. Today my husband and I brought the door/table (now just a table!) into the house and shared our first meal on it (leftover pizza - we're high class!).

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It turned out better than I'd ever imagined.

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It took longer than I'd originally intended, but that was really just due to my weird grad school schedule.

We can easily fit 6 people around it, and probably 8 with no problem, as well.

Here's the breakdown:
$35 Old door from Charlottesville's Habitat ReStore
$25 Safecoat Acrylacq Non-toxic Sealant
$7 Miniwax Gunstock Stain
$20 Sandpaper (you'll remember, I did the whole series.. 60 grit to 400 grit)
$10 Cheap paintbrushes for staining
$10 Staining supplies (plastic drop cloth, gloves, rags, miscellaneous)
$60 Wood for table apron/frame (yeah, wood is expensive)
$32 4 Legs
Awesome friend who helped build the frame and attach the legs - priceless

$199 Total
Could we have bought a dining room table that we love for cheaper? I'm going to say maybe, but doubtful. Real wood tables aren't cheap. You could probably also save money if you had some of the supplies already on hand (like all the brushes, stain, sealant, prep materials). And you could definitely save time if you use an electric sander.

I had hours of fun working on it. I felt like I was making something for my future family, picturing kiddies throwing food at one another and such. All in all, I feel like it was a good investment and a fun project.

Starr Hill Brewery

Yesterday we did a tour and tasting at Starr Hill Brewery in Crozet. People were actually working (brewery, bottling, boxing) during the tour, so we got to see the place in action!

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For some reason in the last photo, I was most fascinated by the machine that added a little glue to a metal piece so that labels could be applied. Do you see that machine?

My husband loves their "Northern Lights" India Pale Ale, I prefer the "Festie" - their Amber German-style Lager.

Breweries = good stuff.