Chopping Boards

I had some lovely thick pieces of beech wood left over from the single beds I'm in the middle of making so decided to make them into chopping boards.
I did these down at the woodworking shop as I didn't have the tools at home and I didn't want any prying eyes peeking at them before Christmas!
I cut them to size on the table saw (well, actually Thomas the carpenter who is in charge did as "normal" people aren't allowed to use the scary open table saw!).
I then used a router for the first time and actually had to look up the English translation for the word Oberfräse! I never did any carpentry or anything in England so never really needed the vocab for words like that!
I rounded off all the sides on the boards and then carved out a little drip catching grave all the way round the big board to catch all the juices when cutting duck etc.!
I then sanded them nice and smooth and rubbed normal sunflower oil into them to protect them.

Candles

Now that the presents have been handed out, I can blog about how I made them!!
I sellotaped tissue paper onto normal A4 paper and printed out sheet music onto it.
I then cut the tissue paper to the right size to fit round the candle.

I wrapped the tissue paper round the candle, being sure to put it the right way .... well, OK, I didn't and G had to point out that one of them was upside down! Not bad going for someone who wasn't paying attention though!
I then kept the tissue paper in place with a line of glue down the ends and a couple of drawing pins stuck in the wax.

I got my trusty hairdryer and gave my candles a blow dry until the wax melted slightly and caught the tissue paper.
Obviously had to make myself one too!

Christmas Tree

We're off to England for Christmas to see all my family so didn't think it would be worth getting a tree this year. We seem to have quite a few disasters when it comes to buying Christmas trees, so maybe this is the way forward?!
Here's an amusing story for you...

Our first year in our own flat in Nuremberg:
I absolutely had to have a tree so G kindly decided to go and get one. This was before the days when we had a car, so he just went on the tube. The only trees they had were ones in pots with earth. He bought one and almost broke his hands carrying it back on his own getting some very funny looks on the tube!
We decorated it and then flew to England for Christmas. On our return I started to notice quite a lot of ants in the flat and realised that there was a reason most people buy Christmas trees without roots attached! The soil had been full of ants! To top the story off, when we came to dispose of the tree we were unsure as to where you could throw them away and didn't want to drag it through the whole flat to get it outside so decided just to chop it up and put it in the normal rubbish. A word of advice to anyone planning on doing this ... do not just have a blunt pair of scissors to hand - it really doesn't make for enjoyable work!

Anyway, you can see why I might be told in no uncertain terms that we are not bothering with a Christmas tree this year! I still wanted somewhere to put the presents, so took it upon myself to build a Christmas tree!
I looked in my collection of scrap wood and had all different sized pieces that didn't even require cutting - perfect! I also had a small branch left over as a possible 3rd branch towel rail but decided it was too wonky in the end but perfect as a Christmas tree trunk!

I glued all the pieces together and clamped them until they were dry. I didn't bother getting them perfectly straight as I wanted a quirky tree.

I had some green paint on hand and painted the planks.
I then pre-drilled screw holes into the "trunk", glued it to the planks of wood and then screwed it in place.
I then hammered little nails in the tree so I could decorate it properly!!

I used a spare vase and filled it with Christmas decorations to hold the tree in place.
Not bad, 'eh?

Wood Veneer Lampshade

I bought this white veneer stuff from the hardware shop. It's normally used for sticking onto wood, I think! Anyway, I bought a cheap lamp kit and then made loads of loops out of the veneer by cutting strips and gluing them together. I then glued the loops together round the lamp so that they made a pretty pattern! I made a couple of these and they are hanging in the hallway as you come in the door and in the landing upstairs.

Photos Wall

Well, it's over a year down the line but we have finally got frames for most of our wedding photos!
My brilliant and talented friend Oliver took all the photos and then developed them himself ... thanks Olli!
Am not very good at those gallery style walls as they always end up looking too try hard, so went for more of a symmetrical feel.

This is what the wall in the living room ended up like:

Branch Towel Rail

I collected some good sized branches from the forest next to our house, stripped the bark from them, cut them to size and chopped off all the sticky-outy bits with my circular saw. I then sanded, sanded, sanded and sanded some more until I had some super smooth branches!

Apparently Germans aren't so keen on DIY as I went to a couple of hardware shops and explained what a towel rail bracket was and even drew a picture but to no avail! So, when we were in England last week, I made a quick fly-by to B&Q and picked some up. Thank goodness for Blighty!
Anyway, I digress!
I then chose a chestnut brown wood stain and applied it using kitchen towel. I did 4 coats, letting it dry inbetween each coat. I then sealed it with a few coats of varnish so that no moisture can get it.
These little gems are now in the top bathroom!

I saw this idea on Pretty Handy Girl's blog - have a look and see what you think!

Storage Step

We have finally moved upstairs to our brilliant new bedroom! Every time I walk upstairs I smile. I love it so much!
Anyway, we have a section of the room that is a walk-in wardrobe and have got shelves that go right up to the ceiling. We wanted a sort of mini ladder to be able to reach up there ... et vòila ... the storage step was born!

I measured the height of a chair and built it according to those measurements. I designed the step using SketchUp and built it with spruce wood bought with a handy 19% VAT discount and then put it all together with pockethole screws.
I primed it, painted it white and turquoise and then sealed it with a varnish. I also added some rubber step covers so we don't slip!

Not sure what to put in the storage bit yet ... will have to get my thinking cap on!