1st Unique Gifts will have a Home

I’m so excited!

The reason for my excitement is that my new workshop/studio is being built.  When it’s done, I’ll have a fabulous space to work which is just a few steps from my back door.  1st Unique Gifts will have a proper home.

This is the progress so far:

this is the starting point

No walls yet!!

Still no walls!

The concrete footings have gone in (and it snowed):

footings in place for walls

It will be kind of an L-shaped building (plus a sticky-out bit)  wrapping itself around an existing garage.  You can get an idea of that from this picture, now that the concrete floor is in place:

A floor in place

 I’m not sure as to what I will do with the floor.  I need a cost-effective (i.e. cheap) option.  I thought about just painting the concrete floors, but don’t know how my aching joints would hold up.  I suppose I could try it, maybe with a few rugs where I stand or sit the most.  I don’t want flooring that I’ll be worried about splattering with paint: I am a messy painter!

And now there are walls:

the studio has some walls!!

And even windows:

And now the studio has a window

And a door:

The door is in place

I managed to save the tree at the corner of the building, although it did have to lose a few branches.  I’m sure it will provide some much-needed shade in the summer (although given our unpredictable climate, I won’t predict in which summer the shade will be necessary – maybe not the upcoming one??  We can only live in hope).

I am sure the local wildlife will be grateful for every tree I save.  The garden was sorely neglected and very overgrown (and obviously attractive to birds, squirrels, cats, frogs, etc), although the two greenhouses, well-filled compost heap and myriad trees and shrubs attest to it being a well-tended garden at some point in the past.  The years of neglect mean though, that some trees are overgrown, in the way and even dangerous.  So, the chopping down has started – which must be a bit of a blow for the birds and squirrels.  It will be a slow process, though, which may mean it’s less of a shock for them, as I want to reuse as much of the wood as possible: chippings for pathways, logs for the woodburning stove I haven’t yet got, rustic stools and benches perhaps?

More later!