Thursday, May 2, 2013

Drop Cloth Curtain

It is May!  Can you believe it?   May is when our weather starts to get warm.  I have been enjoying the outdoors so much this past few weeks.  I spend a lot of time out back on our covered patio.  But it faces West, and in the afternoon it can be so hot!  We put sun shades up on the two outside ends.  Why we didn't put three up, I don't know.  Probably the cost.  In the past week or so, while out there in the late afternoon, I have been trying to figure out what to do to block the sun.  I went to Home Depot yesterday and bought a painters canvas drop cloth.  I went back and forth on whether or not to get the heavy duty one, or a lighter weight one.  In the end, I went with the lighter weight cloth, and I am so glad I did.  It is perfect.  I bought the 8 oz. canvas.  There is a  heavier one, that is 12 oz.  It is also a larger cloth.  The size I got turned out to be perfect.
I was going to buy a closet rod and hang the curtain on that.  But I wanted to do it as inexpensively as I could.  So this afternoon when I took it out, and began to play with it, it hit me.  Staple gun!  I began in the middle of of the top of post.  The seam was in the middle, so I started there, and worked towards the right and then the left.  Taking small pleats evenly along the way to distribute the fabric.  I stapled it at the very top of the ledge, along the entire length.
I stood on a step ladder and hung the fabric from the top so that the bottom was about an inch or so above the patio floor. I didn't want it to skim the ground to get dirty.  So going only a few inches at a time, making sure that it was even along the bottom, I stapled along the entire top, then when done going from end to end, I folded the excess fabric from the top over the stapled edge as a sort of valance. 
I needed a way to roll it up when I didn't want to use it as a sun block.  So I used a roll of burlap that I had to put the ties up on both sides.  It too is staple gunned to the top, and then I took some trim I had and covered the top where the staples were visible,  using my hot glue gun. 
I am going to get a piece of pvc and cut it to the width of the fabric, and adhere to bottom, making it easier to roll up when I want to let the sun in.  But for now, this works great, and using the three pieces of burlap I can tie it up out of the way when I want.
I guess I didn't take a picture of it rolled up.  But it was quick and easy to do.  Like a roman shade.
Recently our son moved back home.  I had to do some rearranging, and removing of furniture.  I had bought the tan chaise lounge you can see in above photo, on Craig's List for the guest/fitness room, but had to take it out when Drew moved back home.  I didn't have anywhere else in the house it could go, so I had it in the garage with a sheet covering it up.  Our cat Maui made herself very cozy on it, and thought what the heck, I love that chair, and I moved it from the garage to the patio the other day.  I have spent every afternoon sitting there, reading.  It is not meant to be outdoors, but the patio is fully covered.  I doubt a hutch is meant to be there either, but I have one out there too.
I have my OTT light next to it so I can read when it gets dark.  It is such a great space to be, and now the entire patio can be shaded when the afternoon sun gets hot.
Did you notice the Hen House sign?  My brother and sister in law got that for me.  I just love it, but   haven't decided where to put it  yet, so for now it is hung on the patio.
They also got me this beautiful green plate.  I guess everyone knows how much I love birds!
My friend and neighbor Jane came over yesterday with this gift for me.   She too knows  how much I love birds, and she found this beautiful hand crafted glass picture when she was in San Diego recently.  
It looks so pretty when the sun light hits it.
I have retired my old Wellies and they are now being used as planters here on the patio.
I have a Calla Lily in the other one.
I have moved the baby chicklets outside, but they are still separated from the big girls.  They are still in the pack n play with their heat lamp on at night time.  During the day, they are fine with just the screen on top.
At dusk, they get covered up with an old comforter.  This will give them additional warmth, and for extra protection,  I put the picnic bench on top just in case we get a curious coyote or raccoon.
Little Ella with the mohawk is beginning to make me think she is not a Lakenveldor at all!!
Tonight we BBQ'D hamburgers and I used lettuce from my garden.  I will be able to use yellow squash and zucchini very soon. 
I do a lot of snacking while I am out there to water in the evening.
I have to come up with creative ways to keep my chickens from sneaking into the garden through the fence slats to munch on my veggies.  I used an old sheet and wove it through the one side.  And then I took the feed saks from the chicken feed and clipped those to the bottom of the other area that they were slipping in through.  These saks are a sort of coated plastic, and very durable.  I have one attached to their coop by the laying box for privacy.  I think they are so pretty with such vivid colors.
Oh, and one last thing.  My friend Joyce gave me some dehydrated oranges today.  She made them from oranges I gave her last week.  They were amazing!!  Like candy!  I cannot wait to get a dehydrator now!!
That's about it for me.  Time to waddle off to bed after a long day.  
See you soon.
XO  Kris

24 comments:

Holly said...

I've seen you pinning screened in porches so I've been wondering what was going on. What a great idea, Looks great and will be perfect when that summer sun hits. I've been planning on buying drop cloths to make some pillows, glad to hear you liked this weight, I'll probably go with these too. I'm jealous of your strawberry, mine are just not doing anything.

priscilla said...

Great job on your curtain .. That chair looks so cozy out there! such nice bird gifts :) Love that turquoise chair with the plant ! Hope you have a great weekend ! Supposed to be cool and rainy here !

priscilla said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Tania said...

You have been a busy, busy, busy! I love your chickie pen, that is a great idea :)

Fantastic job with your curtain, it certainly looks to be cooler in you patio now :)

xx

45th Parallel Quilter said...

Those strawberries and the dried oranges look SO good ... love good fruit! Thanks for sharing your home and ideas with us ... always a pleasant "stop" in my day ;-) Linda

Deb~in~Denver said...

Love how your curtain turned out! You are very clever! Your chaise looks so inviting, nothing better for reading or napping! I always enjoy seeing your porches and gardens, thank you for sharing!! Ella makes me smile. :)
xo Deb xo

byhooks4u said...

what a wonderful idea for the drop cloth. I have a sun room that gets way too much sun and tends to heat the room up early in the day. I have been pricing bamboo shades..way to costly so I think I may steal you idea and use the drop cloths too. thank you for sharing.

Betsy said...

Such a full post! Your curtain idea is ingenious. I would spend all of my time there in your chair, although I would probably be knitting or crocheting! :-). Your gifts are lovely too. Mmmmm. The garden is doing great. We had snow a few days ago so nothing has been planted around here.
Chickens! I want chickens but hubby says no. Ella is a cutie!
Blessings,
Betsy

Patty Marker said...

The garden looks great Kris and what a pretty solution to your West facing patio. I am trying to think of the best place for me to place one. Our sunroom is West facing (What were they thinking?)also and now that Jess has moved out we are working on cleaning it out. Wouldn't that be pretty? Stay in today,it's going to be a scorcher!

Debbie said...

The curtain looks good and it seems like the perfect solution. You are always soo creative when it comes to fixing little problems like this. It's suppose to be pretty hot again today, so good thing you got it up. Oh, and I think that lounger out there is PERFECT. I'd love to lay out there I know. Enjoy your week-end!

Carol said...

How nice your yard looks, and your patio is so cozy looking. Looks like a great place to read a book or sit and crochet.

Mereknits said...

I love what you did to the porch, what a great idea, it looks really great. Love the feathers on your little one, she is looking very chic. I think putting the chair outside was a great idea, it will be so nice to sit outside in comfort. A nice little place for you to get away and regroup.
Hugs to you dear Kris,
Meredith

Pammy Sue said...

Aren't you creative! Very cool. Fun read on my iPhone sitting in the waiting room waiting for an MRI. Fun times. Everyone on here has their head down, nose in their phone or tablet. What did we all do before these things? Love your Mohawk chicken. What do you think she is? Like I even know a thing about chickens.

Teresa Kasner said...

Kris.. I wish I was your next door neighbor! I'm so jealous of your garden.. hubby says he's too busy with my volunteer activities to put his raised beds together. I wonder if you accidentally got a Polish chick? They have topknots. We're most happy with our Ameracaunas right now.. each lay a blue egg every day. Our idiotic Buff Orpington has been broody for almost 2 months.. I'm about ready to stew her up. ((hugs)), Teresa :-)

Anonymous said...

I think I would be spending all my time on that patio too.....it's wonderful and your new curtain is pure genius!

Kelli said...

I love the curtains Kris! You are so creative.
Beautiful pictures of your beautiful yard. Now I want to make a trip to Lowes and buy some more flowers for my yard.
Have a nice weekend!

Poppy said...

Hi Kris,

Love the colours in that glass picture, ditto for the charming chair and red geraniums - same colour combos!!

Poppy

Val said...

Drop cloth curtain - brilliant and a must try!

Hanne said...

I love your photos, its like Im almost there to visit you :)

Jill said...

Curtain looks great! I love birds so much too, love the green plate and glass picture. So many great things going on at your house. Hope you have a wonderful week

Blessings,
Jill

Gracie Saylor said...

Miss Tilly on her soap box and Little Ella made me :-) My little grands were out in the sprinkler yesterday. 82 degrees here!!! You have been busy indeed and come up with clever, practical, and yummy ideas for your family, Kris. Thanks for a good visit! xx, Gracie

Pam said...

You are so talented & creative! I've never had dehydrated oranges before, they sound tasty.

Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson said...

Kris, love the curtain. We've talked about doing something like that on the West side of our Pergola. Your garden looks gorgeous! I have lettuce, radishes, spinach, onions, and cabbages planted so far. Will plant the rest this coming week.
hugs,
Jann

Unknown said...

Nice color combination and good photography done.

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