The finished play house

I was about to write about the dairy-free tandoori chicken masala I made for the first time tonight (part of my new year's resolution to cook something new every week), but thought it would be much more visual to show the finished play house that I have painted for the local nursery. Don't get me wrong, the curry was delicious, if a bit "fizzy" for the children, but the play house is much more fun, look:

The beach hut

I mentioned that I was re-painting the playhouse at the local nursery, and the front is finally finished! I can't finish the murals on the back and sides until the weather improves, so for now, here is the front:

The life belt is made from 2 cut pieces of marine ply painted up with the same paints I used for the main hut painting. The name is on 2 pieces of driftwood which my friend Anna kindly painted using enamel* paint.

*I think - I should really check to be sure.

The day job, sort of.

I am officially a self-employed artist. I haven't done much in the way of painting while the children have been small, and before that I mainly did picture framing and not painting. Last year, I painted a mural for the local nursery as a thank-you gift when Charlotte left for school.

Here it is, painted in acrylic on marine ply and varnished. It's pretty simple, incorporating colours, counting and a bit of imagination (who lives behind the purple door?).





As a result of doing this, I was tasked with a proper job. The play house in the garden was looking a bit sorry for itself and needed a proper make-over.

Here are the pictures of the play house prior to my make-over. All sound woodwork, but just needed a good tidy up.

I had some soffit boards painted on our house a couple of years ago, and the decorator who did it used a special coating instead of ordinary paint. He was raving about the stuff, so I looked into it for painting the shed.

My local trade paint shop sells it, tinted to 45 different colours, so I bought a carefully chosen selection and was able to mix these to make all the colours I needed for the job. I am part way through it right now, and when it is finished I shall post pictures. As long as the rain holds off for a bit I'll be able to get it done!