Wednesday, April 3, 2019

Lunch on the Porch




I had errands in town today and brought home the makings of sandwiches for lunch;
a roast chicken from the deli, a loaf of French bread, lettuce, tomatoes.
The men have worked during the past week to complete the porches which flank the sun room.
Jim moved chairs and a small table out to the finished east porch while I put sandwiches together.
There was a light breeze and a spill of sunshine.
The cats wandered out to join us, a bit wary of this new space.


The posts and rails are fashioned of tulip polar, harvested here on the property.


Jim shaping the ends of the posts with a grinding wheel
Howard used a draw shave to peel the bark and has also done much of the scribing and fitting of the posts.



With the upper porches finished, the lower porch area can now be tided, the soffit put up, and eventually a clothesline. 

A view of the south-east porch.

The piles of peeled bark represent hours of work to prepare the posts and railings.
One can buy posts and railings premade from the lumber supply--wrought iron, composite wood, pressure treated wood already formed into the components to create a deck or porch.
We knew we preferred the handmade rustic effect, and there is a certain satisfaction in using materials harvested on our own land.

We lingered over this first simple meal on the porch.
I moved my rocker into the rectangle of sun by the corner railing, cherished my mug of honey-sweetened tea.
We had to remind ourselves that there was much left to do and it was time to get back to work!



9 comments:

  1. Well, I think you all earned your first lunch on the porch. The railings are really unique and add a lot of interest to the house.

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  2. Your house looks HUGE! I love the design and glad you had the warmth and sunshine for long enough to sit down and enjoy it for a bit. We had a false spring last week - now temperatures have plummeted and it is SNOWING as I speak! Bring back SPRING!!

    I can see you are going to be very happy in your new home and I can't wait to see your lovely quilts back on display again.

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  3. Wonderful, I would love to sit on your porch.
    Briony
    x

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  4. Love the look and what a wonderful place to relax and contemplate life.

    Happy Spring ~ FlowerLady

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  5. How beautiful! It's such a lovely home and setting. Enjoy.

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  6. Just one happy lunch on the porch surely made all the hard work worth while. I love your bentwood rockers...so, so comfortable!

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  7. What a beautiful home, I really do envy you with a porch, something we don't do in England. Enjoy your new home all of you. X

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  8. I do declare that you all have outdone yourselves. Just magnificent! How lovely that your posts and rails were harvested on your land. Will any of your porches be screened? Or perhaps you aren’t plagued with mosquitoes and such? Love your plan to have a covered clothesline......very Vermont! I always think is such a shame that the clothesline has gone out of fashion. Just think of how much you can tell about the home’s inhabitants by taking a gander at their laundry flapping in the breeze. A home with a new baby, a bachelor on his own, elementary age school kiddos. Fun to imagine.

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  9. A great post - wonderful to hear of things being done and goals accomplished!

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