To those of you who emailed ... Is it done? To those of you who asked ... Did it work? To those of you who commented ... Will we ever see it?
The answer is yes. I got butt implants, they totally worked and maybe a lucky few of you. Also I finished my hack of the Restoration Hardware Aspen Collection. Just in time to pack it away for winter!
I'm not going to interrupt your scrolling with too many words in this post.
Because the clumsiness of my words will only detract from the beauty of my hack.
Although I should mention I haven't actually finished the coffee table yet. I still need to chamfer the edges (I'm holding out until someone decides to give me a router and chamfering bit).
It is not a lightweight collection. Knowing I'd have to move it around eventually I decided to put it on casters. The only casters even remotely strong enough to support it were appliance casters. I wouldn't say it makes the sectional exactly slip across the backyard like a letter carrier on ice, but ... it can be done.
That chair there? I have relaxed in that chair. Not for long, but long enough to be able to claim I've relaxed in that chair.
There were more than a few hiccups along the way. Which could have been due to the wine now that I'm getting a good look at the whole picture.
The chair's seat and back are at what is considered the perfect sitting angle, 100 degrees. So the seat of the chair slopes towards the back a bit and the back is at a similar angle, making you feel cradled.
I wanted to have the same angles for the couch and built it that way until I realized that you can't have a sectional couch built like that because once you get to the corner your angles are going all sorts of different directions.
DAMN YOU MATH.
So I built the seat straight on the sectional and fiddled around with it by adding extra bits of lumber here and there to sort of fake an angle. More on that in a later post where I focus on how I actually built this thing.
Bread, olives and wine. The PERFECT snack ( if you replace the wine with Diet Coke).
The next step is to make or buy some sort of cover for the whole thing. A pergola is out of the question because that'll be just a bit too much going on in this little backyard of mine. My choices are either a couple of those sail cloths or one of those massive cantilevered umbrellas.
I might get a few weeks of sitting out here if the weather cooperates. And the butt implants.
Karin
Wowza! So amazing! They are right when they say the devil is in the details. He is real and his favorite hangout is a compound angle.
Kim
So much more inviting than what was previously there. Very very nice!
Marilyn meagher
Fantastic!
Ronda
and, welcome back Karen ... hope your vacation got you fit for your marathon painting session!
jainegayer
Just FABULOUS!! I knew it would be. And so damn classy!
Ardith
I am totally gobsmacked, Karen. You didn't just build outdoor furniture with your own hands, you made it for beauty and comfort. You didn't just build gorgeous furniture, you styled it brilliantly. The whole backyard is stunning. Seriously. Mouth. Dropped.
SusanR
Very, very nice. Your back yard looks even more fabulous than it looked before, which is saying something!
Audrey
You don't have a router....I'm feeling a bit superior then this morning. I have two routers and many, many bits.
Jen
Your yard (an the new furniture) looks fab, but I was distracted by what looks like a pendant/chandelier hanging over your dining table. I don't remember see that before! Do tell.
Maryanne
The set looks lovely Karen! (As well as the whole backyard.) Thank you for sharing.
:) Maryanne
P.S. Are the chickens swinging yet?
Debbie from Illinois
Fabulous!!!
Jane
I look out at my (uneven, bare) brick patio and I'm supremely jealous. This summer was (amusingly enough) bookshelves in my dining room. I love them. Next year I'll tackle the back patio.
Becky
It's stunning Karen. The black cushions were a surprise and I love them.
I had one of those umbrellas. The amount of counter balance you need is ridiculous. And it will take off on a windy day. I have a hole in my siding from one of the bars from it blowing over.
Kari in Dallas
Yay you! I will raise a Diet Coke in your honor. Hopefully you can enjoy some deliciously cozy Fall evenings snuggled up out there. :)
Terri J.
Fantastic job! Very magazine worthy. Really,really loved the garlic in your arrangement...very unexpected & made me happy again I subscribe to your wildly creative blog.
Melanie
Just beautiful. It really brings that whole area together. Also, if you got the heated butt implants (I'm sure you did; you think ahead like that), you can probably sit out there right through February!
Brenda
Heated butt implants - ok - I'm in!
Maureen Locke
Oh Karen... you've outdone yourself on this set. It's gorgeous and looks so comfy. I am however having a slight heart attack with the red wine and that wood. I can just see myself winding up with a red wine glass ring on that beautiful furniture. Be careful :(
Rose
Looks awesome! I just bought a new house and your back yard is an inspiration for me. I love the seat angle and also the wide arm rest for the wine glass.
Kim
Hey Karen – I showed my husband your post and he said that although he wouldn't be nice enough to GIVE you his router and chamfering bit, he would let you USE it. Also added that it sounds like you could've used a compound mitre saw (or something like that – too much tool talk for me & my eyes had glazed over by that point) for making your sectional. We're both blown away by your beautiful new outdoor furniture. Anyway, I think we're in your neck of the woods if you want to take him up on his offer. (I won one of the lovely reCAP mason jar lids you gave away a few years and I was so happy about it that I posted about it on Facebook – so you gotta know I'm a long-time subscriber to your blog and not a creepy random reader offering you her hubby's tools. Lol. I'll also add a photo of a table he recently made for our new home so you know he's an actual woodworker although I'm thinking he could learn a few tips from a DIY queen like you. This doesn't sound creepy at all, does it?!).
Kim
It looks like the photo didn't upload. :( It was 8MB so maybe too large a file size?
Karen
HI Kim! Tell your husband thank you for the offer, that's very nice of him. :) But I have NO idea when I'll be getting around to the table! I'm still on vacation out west until tomorrow and then I have to finish working on the lower floor of my house and then Thanksgiving and ... :) You get the idea. And yep ... I used a sliding compound miter saw for building. It just wouldn't have been useful for chamfering the edges. :) ~ karen!
Kim
No problem! And we just moved to ON last summer from out west (AB). Love love love Ontario!
Leisa
Un-flippin' believable...your whole backyard is incredible!,,, You might want to check out covers that are made for autos or boats - maybe Canadian tire?