What's Persephanie Making?!?

The ingredients:

The tools:

 The belly:

 The smile:

 The teeth:

 The eyes:

 The nose:

 The pupils:

 The ears:

 The arms:

 The feet:

 Done!

Skyloft: Ladder

The original design didn't have a ladder to get up to the loft. I wanted a clean profile. Only access was a few rock climbing pegs. Figure it was a good way to "earn" your way into the fort. But, my wife (and everyone else) seemed to have an opinion otherwise. 

The rungs. Painted black to color match.

The steps on the rungs are coated with a paint that was specific to deck paint. I also added a anti-slip powder to the paint. Don't want any accidents when there's water!

The wood of the ladder itself is reclaimed lumber! Yea! Here, I added a grab hold hole. Might as well make it even safer for people. *cough*wife*cough*

Rounded off the edges. Sanded all the surfaces of the ladder. Making sure it was splinter free.

Hiring some help.

Jaden manning the drill with authority.

Skyloft: Treefort Rules!

Every play fort/treehouse has rules. This one has no exceptions.

Skyloft: Fence/Railing

Mocking up the railing posts

Old school chiselling

Learning the ropes on the drill press.

Stringing up the fence with Russell. It's 1/8" galvanized wire with a PVC coat.

Skyloft: Windows Completed!

The Hinge:

The hinge gave me some sleepness nights. I wanted clean lines through the window detail. Lines that would wrap around the fort. I wanted it to be fully integrated and preferably wood.

Had many sketches as to how it would be accomplished:

Then I mocked one up:

Only to realize there is a flaw in the design. It only opened up 90 degrees. I wanted the window to fully open 180 degrees. So it would sit flush with the wall.

Back to the drawing board. Adding a 45 degree bend to both ends:

It works. It does exactly what I need it to do. Which is to fold the window back 180 degrees. BUT, I don't like it. I don't like the huge protrusion now. It's just an eyesore.

So, guess I'll have to cheat here and use metal hinges. Didn't want to go there, but it's the only way.

O well. This works. And it's cheap.

Skyloft: Window detail

I'll say it again. I love Craiglist! 

A nice guy was giving away some of his old wood. He had a HUGE pile of it on his lawn. Told me to take whatever I want. Really had no idea what I needed until I saw these cedar fence posts. Loved it and grabbed as many as I could. Originally, I thought these rungs could be used to fence in the deck of the sky loft. But a better idea was to use them for window treatment!

Ripped all of the pieces in half on the table saw. That way I get twice as much material to work with! The thinner dimension work better for the scale of my project anyways. So, win-win!

LOVE the smell of freshly cut cedar wood!

Found an old can of stain on my shelf.

Renewed!

Skyloft: Rear window

I love Craiglist! Found this for free! It was a window for a camper. Original owner didn't need it anymore and felt guilty throwing it away. And when I saw it, I found a perfect item to repurpose.

NOTE: Repurposing/Recycling was a lesson I wanted to teach my daughter throughout this project too.

Skyloft: Dutch Doors

Doors! Went with the Dutch door style. The ones where they split in the middle allowing the bottom half to stay closed while the top half can be opened. Just more options for fun.

Skyloft: Roofing

Andrew helping out with the roof.

Chose one of the sheets to be 100% transparent to allow light through. Wanted the area by the door to be well lit at all times. 

Getting the roofing done. It's simple corrugated polycarbonate roofing sheets. Easy to install with integrated rain/snow channels. The ripples gives it strength. I'm giving it a bit of an angle for the rain/snow to sheet off. Hope it's enough. Even if it isn't.. there's enough bracing underneath to hold a LOT of weight.

Future project: I want to install a periscope! We'll see.. another year for that detail.

Skyloft: Shed Ramp

Since the shed was raised off the ground, a ramp was needed to get the lawnmower in and out easier. 

Skyloft: Painting

Time on the shed/fort was scattered through the next few weeks. Work overtime and bad weather just did not cooperate with me.

Once the sun came out, I immediately started on the roof.  Before anything else can get soaked. 

Skyloft: More framework

Andrew, my brother-in-law, has given his hand in helping out with this project. Great handyman. The extra help totally helps!

A totally over-engineered floor! I love it. This thing is going to be earthquake proof!

The floor will be 3/4" plywood. Nice and sturdy.

Rare photo op with me and my daughter.

Bracing the roof with 4x4 crossbeams. I maybe over engineering it here. But, I was thinking I might use it to hang stuff later. Either 

Day #3 starts with sheeting the walls. Using 1/2" plywood.