My grandfather was an excellent carpenter. He and his brother built me many neat things over the years but my favorite is this porch swing.
It’s handmade, solid wood and heavy. In fact, it’s so heavy that in the 15 years since he built it for me, I’ve never had a place to hang it. It’s been in my mother’s basement for years.
As you can imagine, 15 years in a damp basement takes its toll. We had several rotten slats and a rusted chain. We were blessed the frame was still in good shape .
I promptly ordered the things I thought we would need and I got to work replacing the slats that were rotten or warped. I toyed with replacing all the slats but since some were in great shape, I decided against it.
I then gave the whole swing a good sanding with my orbital sander and removed the rusty chain.
I then put two coats of primer and one coat of paint on the swing and replaced the chain with a new one.
My mom got me this arbor for my birthday so I could hang the swing. It’s very pretty and very sturdy. And we know the song isn’t hanging straight- the arbor isn’t exactly level yet. We haven’t anchored the arbor yet because we are waiting to put down some pea gravel to deal with the mud. We also want to cut those bushes but there are birds nesting in them, so we want to wait until they leave.
I’m so excited to have this swing at my house- finally! I miss my grandpa so much so I am happy to be able to have this gift he personally made for me. It looks so pretty hanging from the arbor. It brightens up our yard quite well!!
I can’t wait to finish this area so I can show it to you!!