Nesting – Getting Ready For Winter. Yes. I Said It.

,

Finished Work tops. Somehow I know this isnt a smart idea.

The W word, and we are not even close to last gasping here in VA. Hell I got until November, and with Sweet Pea can go most through the year. But with all this Pandemic time on my hands, and I don’t rest for a second. It started to be time to clean out the barn and get ready for some drywall that will be installed in two weeks. Then Heat!

I have had this old hardware store cabinet for years, okay, my entire life, and my fathers life, his fathers life and his fathers life. It’s out of a general store our family owned a bazillion generations ago. The top is from shelves found in my grandfathers basement 40 years ago. The wood is insane beautiful pine

BAM! Back to life. I loved the patina but it was to far gone, and had all this other crap on it,

I love her pulls! TROY?

Restored and they are real and stunning!

Love the Texaco Green, so started using it on all the tables and bases for tops. A color system

I have had way to much fun cleaning, and organizing, designing a color system to clean it up and making a workshop gallery of sorts. Its a concept that evolves.

Added some flair to the workbench

A pencil shelf out of knotty pine

Even the crappy CRAFTSMAN tool box got a sanding and paint

A seating area is starting to emerge.

Open space. Oh there is a plan..

A rough look, subject to change. A Gallery Workshop concept.

23 replies
  1. m-fine
    m-fine says:

    If you are going that far, ditch the fluorescent tubes and get some bright white daylight LEDs. You get better brighter light to work with and better color visibility as well. All around easier on the eyes.

  2. Rick
    Rick says:

    Wow patterned rugs, garnished workshops and white walls. I’d be afraid to work in there. Guess you’ll just have to only display there and build another for the messy work.

    • Rick
      Rick says:

      Not garnished- Varnished. Some day I swear I’m going g to find the inventor of auto-correct and strangle them.

    • Greg Lewandowski
      Greg Lewandowski says:

      Matt, I agree with Rick, you are starting to cross the line to man cave and will have no where to work on stuff and make a mess!

  3. Matt
    Matt says:

    Those are DAYLIGHT LED lights. They are wonderful. The rugs are dog pee discards from the house. We have one little piddler. So nice rugs are in storage and these are all Wallmart crap that after to many piddles get tossed, so I reuse them

  4. Bilge Rat
    Bilge Rat says:

    Albert Einstein famously pointed out that “If a cluttered desk is a sign of a cluttered mind, of what, then, is an empty desk a sign?”

    Still, very nice organization.

  5. Kelly Wittenauer
    Kelly Wittenauer says:

    But now it looks too nice to actually work in!

    You do realize that everything will need to be moved out of the way to hang the drywall? And that drywall dust gets in everywhere, when the tape & mud job gets sanded?

    We’ve used Hardy board in our last two garages. Looks fine with exposed joints, so taping, mudding, sanding. Far more dent resistant, as well. Also recommend the white metal we put on the shop ceiling.

    Won’t that empty space be filled with boats for the winter?

  6. floyd r turbo
    floyd r turbo says:

    Drywall?? Oh hell no. It might brighten it up painted white, but drywall? V groove pine with pickled white wash? or sheet plywood with wainscotting grooves or just smooth panel with joints covered with batten strips. Ok, my $.02. I’ll go away now. Drywall is fast and cheaper but no warmth. And if its a work space for the walls, thin roofing metal for the walls painted your color of choice that could be potentially hosed down if you’re using space to varnish in. Or reclaimed rusted roofing metal for the rustic look.

  7. Darthtrader
    Darthtrader says:

    “We tend to meet any new situation by reorganizing, and a wonderful method it can be for creating the illusion of progress while producing confusion inefficiency, and demoralization.”

    Petronius Arbiter 210 BC

  8. Ronald
    Ronald says:

    I like the look of the raw wood but was wondering in the back of my small mind how you stayed out there much with those tall ceilings and appears to be no insulation in the walls in cold weather. The drywall is no doubt cheaper but is sure messy for a long while after the workers leave, I have seen a few garages around that used the white 5 rib metal sheets (as in pole barn metal) on the inside walls and ceilings. A friend just done the same in his garage and had maybe cedar planks ran horizontally for the top 8 ft. or so and used the white metal for everything else, It turned out good.

  9. Don Palmer
    Don Palmer says:

    Matt, you have raised my anxiety level quite high this morning. Your place looks incredible but IT’S TOO CLEAN AND YOU ARE REALLY SCARING ME MAN! I don’t dare let my wife see this or I am toast! : > ) (just kidding… not really… oh I don’t know… it’s the anxiety.

  10. Jeffrey Martinson
    Jeffrey Martinson says:

    Wow! You’ve still got a lot of vintage but the whole change is overwhelmingly bright, uncluttered and modern.

    I love your old shelves and cabinets, especially with the story behind them. My barn is full of builders notes and marks (1923) that were meant to be covered by beaver board and never seen. As a barn, they were left unfinished, though, and I appreciate seeing the cool cursive numbers and text (“25 feet”, “door”, etc.) to remind me of the many hands that have working in and on my haven, of which I’m just a passing occupant.

  11. Dick Dow
    Dick Dow says:

    I think I know what color my old workbench is now! I’m with the “wood on the wall” team – can be made to look nice and you can hang stuff on it wherever you want without having to find a stud. The only downside is it is not as fire-resistant as sheetrock, but there are paints that compensate for that. I plan on doing the same finish work on my shop in about three years… 🙂

  12. Matt
    Matt says:

    That was so yesterday, already a mess. The material I used on the workbench is totally wrong, from a kitchen remodel. May put plexi on it. AHHHHHHH

  13. Todd C
    Todd C says:

    I like it, have always admired your shed. The personal space reminds me of “the 12 gauge garage” as in 12 gauge heavy steel cabinets.

  14. Matt
    Matt says:

    The walls are going to be Wayne’s coating, 8 feet tall, with 1×6 trim, all green to incorporate the green work locations. The ceiling will be a slight putty white to Disapear. The floor will be stained with a wood color stain and cleared.

  15. Duster
    Duster says:

    Looks so good. The mental wrestling is all part of it.
    So will the ‘ drywall’ mean it’s better insulated?

  16. Rob Jones
    Rob Jones says:

    Looks great. My barn issue is it houses cars, motorcycles and boats… I think I need to focus.
    But, “Texaco Green”. Is that the same green SweetPea wears?
    I have a 30′ boat I want to do blue hull, off white decks and green cabin sides.
    I’ve been looking for a urethane in a similar green but the only one that has anything close is Kirbys, but that’s oil base. I’ve branched off to automotive type paints but struggling to find the right color. Almost too many choices there.

Comments are closed.