Patio: Pergola and Paint
I concreted the uprights for the pergola in place, but Thom kindly undertook to attach the rafters, my artificial hip being averse to falling off ladders. Painting all this wood took about 2 weeks! And I now think I made a big mistake in using untreated lumber for the superstructure (although the uprights are treated).
Why is this a pergola and not an arbor? According to the book I’ve been using to tell me how to build a patio, an arbor is freestanding (or, I guess attached only to a fence or wall) and a pergola is attached to a building. Why then is it not a cloister? Or, alternatively, what is a cloister? Never mind.
Much soul-searching and argument with spouse over what color to paint the planter walls. My initial idea was to stucco them and then paint. But I am rapidly running out of steam and stamina for this project. While painting the cinderblock foundation of the house (revealed now that the deck has been removed), I discovered that mixing the cement paint with textured ceiling paint does a pretty good job of disguising the blocks without the stucco step.
There’s a note in my journal that says this blue-green color is horrid and not what I thought when I bought it. But it’s amazing how you adapt to a color, especially when replacing it would be wretched hard work.
Also visible to the right of the picture is the makeshift bird bath (saucer on an upturned terracotta pot) that was our temporary fix until I got around to building a proper one. It was a bit of a nuisance because saucer and pot were not attached and raccoons kept knocking it over.
The steps to the breakfast room are complete, although they need to be tiled, and the forms are in place for the steps to my study. Behind this is the ‘Nelly Stephens’ holly. I’m slightly afeared that it is going to get too big for that spot, but I suppose it can be pruned. It serves a useful function in blocking the view from the road into the back garden.
