I guess we were a little premature calling the deck complete back in September when we had one of the most tedious tasks still ahead of us.  Before we could really call it done we had to stain it.

There's many schools of thought on how long you should wait to stain your deck, and we've found research from everything from 6-8 weeks, to 3-6 months to allow the pressure treated wood to dryout.  Since we completed it so late in the year, we knew we would be waiting until early spring to think about staining.  This isn't always ideal to go through a Northeast Ohio winter with an unfinished deck, but we got really lucky, (or unlucky for snowboarders like Mike), and had a very mild winter.  So, after the rain settled down around May, we started the plan of attack.  Well life got in the way, vacations were taken, (we're still tan from sneaking off to Florida last week), and we were running out of days to stain this bad boy.

We finally decided that we would clean the deck before we flew to Florida, and stain it when we returned since the cleaning instructions said to wait 3-4 days before staining it.

Before I get into the details I have to warn you there are no action shots here.  Cleaning and brightening and staining are messy and we were always up against the clock during each task, so there was no time for pictures.

We started with the cleaner Mike bought online called Restore-a-Deck.  (We weren't paid or perked, Mike did his usual research and heard this was a really good product.) The cleaner was 1/2 of a 2-part system that included a brightener.  It comes in a powder form that makes 5 gallons when mixed with water.  Mike used a gardening sprayer to apply it and I was in charge of watching the clock and spraying it with the hose after the 15 minute wait time.


The hardest part was doing this on a very sunny and hot day.  The deck is supposed to remain wet while you are applying it, so Mike and I worked in sections to prevent drying out.  Once we were done there was a film left on the wood that the hose wasn't removing, so we borrowed our neighbors power washer to remove it.

I think this is where I might have gotten a little overzealous because while I removed all of the slimy film, I was left with a hairy deck from too much pressure.




We did a little research online and found this isn't the end of the world.  Since we were doing this before vacation, we left it alone and a lot of the hairs were washed away from the couple of rain showers we had.  The wear and tear from regular use and rain will eventually rub all the hairy parts off.

Even though the last thing someone wants to do right after returning from a week of relaxing in the sun is stain a deck, we had prepared ourselves for the task and were kind of excited to complete it and be done with it.  All we had to do was wait for nice weather.  Which we had hoped was going to be during the weekend, but of course we weren't that lucky.  That's why last Wednesday night Mike and I ran around getting our brushes and pan liners and started staining around 5:30 in the evening.  Yes, this was crazy.  No, this is not normal.  Yes, we usually do things like this.

What was even crazier was our neighbors had their annual end of school bonfire party for their kids and a couple of their friends where they burn their school notebooks, (a really cool tradition for the kids!) and kept trying to entice us to drop the rollers and brushes to come over for some beers.  Not sure how we held out, but we did, and finished staining everything around 10:30 that night.  Five hours to stain 625 square feet, with no breaks.  We didn't even care that we hadn't eaten dinner or had mosquito bits the size of quarters, we were done!

As for the actual stain, we used TheSealerStore TimberOil in Warm Honey Gold.  The stain was really easy to use and needed only one coat, (probably due to the fact that it was raw wood and we pretreated it with the cleaner and brightener).  For the whole deck we used about 6 gallons.  We had bought 7.

Since it was so dark when we finished I wasn't able to get pictures until this weekend.  Here's what it looked like after the cleaning and brightening:



And the Warm Honey Gold goodness afters:



And back to back:


It's pretty orange looking to me, but even in the last couple of days since we've finished, it's dulled down a little.  It's a little strange looking out and seeing the giant orange deck that is where the light colored one used to be, but it's a lot more rich looking now and the added protection is good for my peace of mind.

Now we just have to add some lattice, furniture, and landscaping.  Oh gosh, when will it ever end?!

This bathroom renovation is beginning to bore me.  Don't tell Mike I said that!  It's just besides helping carry drywall up the stairs and holding things in place while Mike screws/marks/cuts, I'm not a big help during this behind the wall stuff.  (Although, I'm going to get very involved soon, because we have drywall up!  I'll be back later this week to share pictures of that!).

That's why when the last piece of drywall was moved upstairs on Monday and we had our porch back (which has been Mike's storage space and cutting area, Mike and I wasted no time cleaning it up and getting the cushions out of the attic in the garage.
 
I shared the furniture acquisition story here, and a couple weeks ago I picked up a sisal rug and planters from Ikea.  So, after a good sweep and putting all the furniture in place here's what we're working with now:

       
While I've already gotten a couple mosquito bites from enjoying the seating, the space is a little tan-tastic for my taste.  But don't worry, I've got plans.

I got a little bored and decided to do a little virtual makeover of our porch to share my plans.  Not only is it fun to see an after picture without breaking a sweat, (or the wallet), I've learned this is a good tool for Mike as well and helps plead my case for when Mike tells me a (insert any sort of decorative item) won't look good there.

Here's what I came up with:


Big difference, eh?  The bones were there, it just needed some color.

Obviously the big show stopper is the rug.  I've had the idea to paint a sisal rug in my mind for ages.  I've seen tons of tutorials online and fell in love with this modern chevron design, which I pinned here, originally from Joss & Main.


Since we already have a red door, I didn't think this coral color would work, and decided to go with a more navy blue color.  I'm loving the way it looks and hope that Mike feels the same way!

The other big change is a lighter cushion color.  This one is the change I'm the most skeptical about.  I've got some skills on the sewing machine, but I've never made slip covers before and I'd be afraid that they might come out all wonky.  Just for kicks I hide this layer in Photoshop to see what it would look like if I chickened out, and I have to say it's not bad:

 
Either the tan fades into the siding, or the white into the railing, so either way I think it's fine.

The other additions are a lot easier and include adding some plants in the planters (what a novel idea, I know!), some colorful pillows, and some accessories on the table like a lantern to hold some citronella candles and a small lemon thyme plant, (which also repels mosquitoes, obviously the itching bites from hanging out last night had some consideration in these choices).

So, in between painting, tiling, and styling the bathroom, it looks like some rug painting and accessory buying is in my near future.

What do you guys think?  Should I attempt some slipcovers or leave them for now?  And, who doesn't care, but just wants to come over for some margaritas? 

Awhile back I pinned a quick and easy DIY air freshener idea using baking soda and essential oils (see the pin here).  I thought it was a great idea, but found the idea of having a couple open containers of baking soda around the house a little scary, especially with our little furry (and very curious) roommate. 

Usually Benelli is really good about keeping out of things, but we never know when something will pique his interest.  Like the bowl of corks which have moved from the living room to the dining room table.  He'll go months without touching them, and then one day we'll come home to 15 or so of them scattered around the room.

So, with this in mind, I've been on the lookout for someway to keep the baking soda contained in case of an errant paw tap.  My quest was over when I found some cheap (99¢ baby!) salt and pepper shakers at Target.  Since they weren't the most attractive thing and I didn't want people asking why we randomly had salt shakers around the house, I found these cute metal lanterns (I think they were $3.49) in the outdoor section, that I could "hide" my little shakers in.

That was a really long explanation for a really simple project, so let's get to it.  I gathered my supplies: baking soda, salt shakers, lanterns, and essential oils, (I bought vanilla and lavender).


I used a makeshift paper funnel to pour the baking soda in the shakers and added about 10 drops of oil.  The lavender is a lot stronger than the vanilla so I used maybe 3-4 drops of that.  I was going for a vanilla/lavender scent, but the lavender was overpowering the vanilla so, I just did that for one and vanilla for the other.

I placed the shakers in the lanterns, and although you can still see the tops, they definitely don't scream, "I'm a salt shaker!" anymore.


I placed them around the house, one in the living room, our bedroom, and a pink one (not pictured) in the guest room.

   
Really simple, but pretty effective and cheap little air freshener!