My little greenhouse.

I saw a picture of a little greenhouse on a 'do-it-yourself' site on Pinterest a few months ago. I thought it was so cute! I sent the picture to my husband, Tim and all my friends showing off this adorable greenhouse. Below is the picture that was on Pinterest, isn't it a cute little greenhouse?!

So, I started collecting what I needed to make myself one of these. The very first problem is that I live in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. We don't have wood sashes like this around and in the small area of downtown, which is called the Historic District, those houses are treasured and you won't find them remodeling and trashing what makes those houses historic!  So, I went to vintage places to find them. Hence, my first experience at: (1) Highland Yard Vintage, (2) Junk in the Trunk Vintage, (3) Melrose Vintage, (4) Sweet Salvage, (5) and assorted antique/vintage shops in Carefree, Arizona.


After 2 months of collecting windows, old screws, old hinges (thank you to my best friend, Lillian, in Michigan for providing me with almost all of the hinges we used--and she had to shop twice since the USPS lost the first 13 hinges she sent to me, old washers, an old door handle, a cast iron bracket, but couldn't find an old table that was the right size, right height or would withstand the brutal summers in the desert of Arizona. So, Tim decided to build our table. And I helped and even used power tools!  The legs of OUR table, unlike the one above, are made from 4x4's and we turned them on his lathe!  I turned one, my daughter Stephanie turned one, and Tim turned 2. All of them are different patterns, too! We found a neat chair (?) spindle that Tim used across the top front to help the greenhouse stay squared. We also picked up 2 baby crib (?) spindles that we used on the roof windows for decoration.


We needed to paint and seal the wood against the sun that would rot it and I mixed my own white chalk paint and painted everything. Then I painted over all of it with a taupe tone of paint. Then another coat of chalk paint...then we distressed each wood piece. After that, I sealed each item with chalk paint sealant, inside and out.


Tim had to build a frame for the roof so the roof windows had a good support rather than just leaning on the side windows and you can see the wood frame that is attached to the top of the sides, and the roof windows sit on it. He also build the peak so that my little greenhouse has a finished look to it (unlike the photo above that inspired me to start this project). Keep in mind I had old used screws, old washers, and used hinges to construct this, and we built this with what we had. No, the roof does not open, but the entire greenhouse is held together with hinges and can withstand any storm coming through our yard! I can promise you that my little greenhouse is a whole lot sturdier than the photograph that got me started on this project.


Now that you've read the above, you're waiting to see my little greenhouse, right?  Well, we took a poll and it even has a name.  Here is my little Bloomin' Room. It's 30 inches x 30 inches and stands 18" off the ground. My daughter helped me find each of the little treasures in and around the Bloomin' Room, and Lillian provided me with the ladybug (she sits right under the greenhouse), a wire basket and a brass container (which holds succulents inside the 'room').

Tim worked really hard on this little greenhouse and planned it so well. I had bought shorter and more narrow windows for the front door and the back so that water would drain out of it and so that the door would open and close without it being too tight. He did a beautiful job, with me helping on every step of it...and he made sure I helped with it so I realized this wasn't a "slap together over the weekend" project. I now know that what some people consider a 'weekend' DIY project, might not be completely accurate. And boy, do I know that now!!!!  We kept all the original hardware on the windows, so there are window locks and handles that are authentic when these really were used as house windows!

I was looking at cards on different blogs one day and saw a card made with a rubber stamp by Magnolia. I thought to myself: well, it's a bit different than mine, but the same idea. I ordered the stamp and did something I rarely do...I made a card for Tim that wasn't for his birthday or Father's Day! Hahahhaa.  I made him a Thank You card for helping me take a picture on Pinterest and turn it into reality.

So this post is a "just because" post. It's not for a DT assignment or any challenges. It's a special thank you to Tim, Stephanie and Lillian because without them, I'd never all the parts I needed to build the Bloomin' Room.

                                                                                     With love,

                                                           Gail