Sprucing Up

three projects for the weekend

Number One: The Chicken Door

A year ago, when I built the chicken coop, I put together the frame, roof and sidewalls with wood from the lumber yard, then patched together each end with random bits from around the house. I felt very clever including two repurposed, glass-fronted cabinet doors, which allowed a view into and through the coop, from the kitchen window. I did not take into account that the paint would start to pucker and peel by mid-winter.

I decided to replace them with plexiglas mounted onto a rectangular frame. I put one together a month ago, and it was just fussy enough that I avoided doing the second one until this week. Here’s the process:

Materials on studio floor (because raining outside). The wood is a scrap that is just long enough to function (but not the full size of the plexiglas). I had a full-size piece that I could have used, and would have cut straight across the top, but I wanted to use this instead in order to not waste any material (and it’s a chicken coop, not the British Museum):

I put hinges onto the wood, pre-drilled the plexiglas (important - it will crack otherwise) and screwed the plexiglas onto the wood with short screws:

Then I took this outside (rain had subsided a bit) and removed the old peeling cabinet door, as well as another funky scrap of wood that I had installed to fill the space below it:

To do this job, I put on a nail apron, which is essential if you wish to not drive yourself crazy with lost drill bits and dropped screws (Pro Tip!):

I propped the door up and realized that I had to reposition the hinges, which I did. A chicken looked on with some skepticism:

Screwed it in, opened and closed it - success!

It might look like there is no door there, but the plexiglas is thick, and (in this case) does not need a full frame. The wood on the left is hinged, the plexi is screwed to the wood, and a simple wooden latch holds it shut.

Number Two: New Outdoor Sofa Cushions

I paid quite a bit of money for a used outdoor sofa several years ago. Perhaps this is why I avoided replacing the grotty old cushions for such a long time. These came in the appropriate size on Amazon. I thought I had ordered blue, but it arrived black. The setup involved a 48-hour fluffing and airing process:

Here is sofa before and after:

Its much cleaner, but still doesn’t look especially pretty (and shows dog footprints to great effect). I recently purchased some outdoor fabric on deep-discount, and I think I will fashion some sort of removable cover. Ginger seems to like it:

And the old cushions can be a doggy daybed:

Number Three: The Screen Door

Another purchase from Amazon - a new magnetic screen door, which allows pets to come and go but (hopefully) keeps the mosquitos and chickens out. The process is fairly straightforward, involving velcro tape around the perimeter of the screen, taped to the perimeter of the door and anchored with tacks. Humans and pets come and go through the magnetic opening in the middle, and tie-backs prevent it from being ripped to shreds when the inside door is closed, and a dog scratches upon it to come in:

closed and open

And finally, a word from the building inspector:

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