Little Shed Makeover

We've got this little shed in our backyard and I'm going to take you on a 4-season tour of it, with a painted update and a sign.

The shed has lived 26 years in the same place and was moved to that spot from a different house, putting the actual age of the build at about 31.

The wood was hammered together back when men wore short shorts like Richard Simmons, which was the style while they were getting physical and listening to their body talk.

I didn't invent the length of the shorts or that song, but both were popular in the 80's when the little shed was born.  I'm not going to include the picture of my husband wearing that style, his children have already ridiculed him enough.

Thankfully mens shorts have since gotten a makeover, and it's time the little shed did too.

Behold the shed in the glory of early Spring. We took out a large shrub to the left and planted some hostas and grass and that's about the time I got the ambition to finally paint it.

Working right up close to it made me realize how really crappy it actually looked.

Before the Summer miracle that is paint

The shed sits on a cement slab, and is topped by a metal cupola from the original barn here on Albert's farm.  Albert was the old bachelor dude we bought this land from and I often pay homage to him by using his name on projects.

As for the shed, I've lost track of all the colors it has been prior to the black that it held for about the past 10 years.  I'm not sure how it even ended up black, did I have left over paint? 

Whatever the reason was for the black paint, it now needed a new coat of something and I decided a great pick would be the color I used on my front door makeover, Linen from Fusion Mineral Paint.

Linen is sort of a gray, and at times it looks a little green.  It's like that dress... you know... THAT DRESS... that people saw in different colors.  I see a hint of green, my husband sees gray, and the camera has it's own version.

Paint in progress as seen from the kitchen window

The shed really had gotten to be an eye sore on that side of the yard, and I have considered painting it every spring for quite a few years, but there is always something else that moves to the top of the to-do list that takes priority.

But this year before the thick summer leaves took over it seemed like a good time to tackle painting it.

The trees and hostas filled in, and the Summer view of the shed from the kitchen window was much better this year.

The new color brightens that whole area in the yard.

Speaking of brightening things up, the lights on each side are the cheap solar ground lights that we altered to fit as sconces.  They cast a little non-electric glow there after dark.

The posts with the birdhouses are from an old deck and the birdhouses have been perched on them for about 10 years.  Might be time to give them an update too, or at least fix them so they both sit straight.

I felt that the shed needed a little something, and that usually means I think I should make a sign, so that's what I did.

By combining two words from Old Sign Stencils I was able to make a sign I find a little humorous.  And I like humorous.

Our place is like a resort, with plenty to do, just consult our bean bag game boards.....

And every resort has an office, mine just happens to be the little shed.

The shed sign started out as a simple piece of 1x6.  I painted it with a variety of Fusion Mineral Paint; Ash, Tuscan Orange, and Red.  I just sort of mixed them around and used a foam brush to apply them.  I wanted more of a barn-y red, not bright red, not dark ash, not orange.  It turned out just the way I wanted.

The letters are painted in Putty.  It's an aged looking shade, not too white and not yellow. Putty is perfect for signs that I want the letters to look like they've been around a while.

If you need a tutorial on stenciling, Donna from Old Sign Stencils has one you should check out, but stenciling is an easy process so don't fret about trying it.

After I was done stenciling, I went back and hand shaded the letters.  This is a hit or miss option for me.  I never remember how I did it the time before, so how it turns out it turns out - and I have no idea if I am using the correct shading technique.

To help protect the wood and paint from the elements, I coated the sign with this Marine Varnish that you can order on Amazon. The back side got two coats, the front of the sign received three.

Season 3 has arrived and the leaves in these pictures are past their peak.  Soon the trees will be bare and the resort office will be closed.

The last season of the year will give the little shed a new coat of white, but I'm hoping that's a couple months out yet.

Looks mighty chilly to me, maybe I should consider a Winter resort for those months?

Quick Links:

Old Sign Stencils

Fusion Mineral Paint

How To Stencil, With Donna At Funky Junk

Alberts Grain Sack Look Chairs 

Front Door Makeover 

Bean Bag Yard Art Game

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