Stairway to Heaven

After that last posting, I was ready for a change of pace and attitude! So here's a project with a positive outcome: a brand new stone and mosaic step for my studio. And yes, those are my feet at the bottom of the picture.
Bob had said for quite a while that he had stones picked out with which to construct an official step for my studio. I have been making due with a simple wooden step that was functional but not especially pretty. And instead of one large stone that would have been hard to move up from the stream area and put into place, Bob suggested three large stones with cement and mosaic in between. A great idea!
Bob did his usual magic leveling and arranging the stones and then he helped mix up the cement. I had the fun part of selecting the plates from our vast collection of smashable crockery (cheerfully provided by my place of employment as many dishes come in already cracked, chipped or otherwise defective). I first toyed with the idea of using a slew of green plates, then red plates and finally circled around to choosing blue plates as it references the blue walkway we made through the Blue Garden. It was the right choice as the perfect plates volunteered themselves and I happily bashed away.
It was fun playing with mosaic again; we hadn't done that since the walkway project. I know that making the terrace behind the house was a big inspiration to making the step. And what an important step it is! It leads into (and out of) my studio. There is that inevitable metaphor of crossing a threshold from one reality to another.
Here's a slightly further back view:

Isn't that nice the way the stones and the tile integrate? Plus it's so much larger that Robin and I have a bigger landing pad when we depart on our morning walk. (I don't remember exactly why we always exit through my studio, but we do... ). Bob correctly decided that the shape and color of the mosaic looked like an eye. I showed him a preliminary sketch I did- of an eyeball! I had wanted that as a sort of subtle suggestion, nothing really literal or obvious. Just a suggestion of the internal seeing that goes on when in the studio...

Terrace Processo

So the real work on the terrace commences! (To be distinguished from all the preliminaries like hauling gravel, concrete and wood...) Bob is so smart. He figured out a nifty framework to level the areas we constructing: we wanted a combination of cement pads (that would be easier to shovel in the winter) and stone and concrete sections... along with narrower channels which are a combination of mortar and white quartz in between that would unite the pattern. And it had to slope away (slightly) from the house so as to drain well. So many things to consider!
Here we are, considering:

And then the endless mixing and applying began:

(Do I look like I know what I'm doing? Hmmmm....)These bags of cement weigh a ton (well... 90 pounds) but don't go as far as you'd think. We got 8 bags initially (remember all that math about how much weight we'd lifted one afternoon?) but we had to make a second and third trip to Home Depot for the same amount again and again.

Here's a couple of days later. Notice we have a very interesting- and stylish- mix of cement and rock going on. There's a lovely ratio of flat cement pads, radiating out from the door with the surrounding areas (that receive less foot traffic) being a mix of stone and cement. It's dynamic yet restful.

Another angle to better describe what's shaping up. We're about half way there and it is getting more exciting by the day. I can't wait to be able to use it! Next spring?

Bits and Pieces (Mosaic in Process)

Ah yes, the old cliche about breaking a few eggs to make an omelette! I have been saving blue dishes for almost a year now. It helps to work at an auction house where endless amounts of table top porcelain appears- some of it damaged. The chipped, the cracked, the broken and unwanted all made it home with me, as long as there was some blue pattern or other. (Until about a week ago when three vast stacks of white china with a gold rim were being thrown away. I am so glad I thought to take them home! I would never have had enough blue material and the white set the blue off marvelously!)
In any even, on the eve of actual walkway construction, I made a fast stop off at a local thrift store and secured a large quantity of the above dishware, "Winter Holiday" by name. The nice elderly woman who waited on me kept remarking, "What a lovely pattern this is!" I didn't have the heart to tell her that I was taking it home to smash it all to bits...Bob and I smashed all kinds of dishes, bowls, plates, platters, cups and mugs. Very satisfying. One large bin was mostly blue; the other mostly white. We set to work, mixing manageable batches of concrete: one part Portland cement to three parts sand and enough water to make a loose mix. It took only one mix load to realize the best consistency and then we were in business.

We used plastic garbage can lids as "palettes" to hold our busted bits. We troweled on about 2 inches of concrete over the gravel (which was also about three inches deep). It worked so much easier than I thought. We had debated whether we'd need a edge of metal or wood, but the concrete didn't seem to need it.
Have you gotten the idea that I'm teasing here? I'm disinclined to show the walkway as it really is spectacular and I want to unveil it on our garden tour (the topic for my next posting).
But here's a detail of the mosaic:

We varied the sizes of the pieces to make it a more dynamic pattern, plus the fit together better. I devised a simple to follow pattern, sort of herringbone alternate stripes of blue and white. There's also quite a bit of gold which makes a nice sparkly detail. Again, thank goodness for all those many white with gold rim dishes I took at the last minute! I'd be plumb out of luck if I'd held out for just blue! And really? I think the walkway would be far less interesting...
We finished it! I wasn't sure if we'd get it done in time, but we succeeded and it is so much cooler than I even thought...

Blockheads Everlasting

The second stage of my foundation wall is complete! This morning, I filled in the cinder block holes with a smaller batch of concrete that I mixed up (all by myself!) as Bob is gone to NorthWest CT to help out at an estate sale. I'm pleased that Bob trusted me to shake and bake and mix and match that concrete mix!
So you learn all kinds of useful stuff. F'rinstance: concrete is a 1-2-3 mix. That is, three units (a small bucket in this case) of gravel, two units of sand and one unit of Portland cement. You mix these dry ingredients together in a wheel barrow (or trough) add water, and hey presto! you've got concrete. (Bob also made a sticky mix of Portland cement and hydrated lime and sand. This he used to fill in around the bolts that will hold the sill in place. I guess there's a concrete/mortar mix for every application).
What's scary is that you do have to work somewhat quickly as it sets up and gets hard- mostly to clean off tools. Bob and I went in the house the other day, thinking that we were taking a brief break but then it rained and we ate lunch and the next thing we discovered was concrete enclosed trowel and hoe and wheel barrow... nice. I'm not as precise about clean up as I should be. It's one (of the many reasons) I don't paint with those blasted oil paints. Just plain hated the clean up. Don't get me started about print making...
I remarked to Bob that we're at the stage with the foundation that I think it's all we have ever done, or all we ever will do. I realize that two days from now, we'll be done and onto the sill and framing and whatever. But right now? Seems like my entire life has been concrete and blocks.
Anyway, in between a million things, the studio is progressing. I also took time to shoot the below beautiful and disgusting photo:

I was out cleaning up Maggie's pasture and there are three(!!) butterflies chewing and flapping and engaging in some sort of butterfly menage-a-trois on a fresh, steaming pile of horse manure. (I've seen this before. A fresh pile of our previous dog's shit with a truly marvelous huge swallowtail butterfly astride it.) While I crouched down to take my picture, there was suddenly a powerful, warm and mysterious breeze on my shoulder. Maggie had snuck up and me and was wondering about my sudden interest in her poop.
Enough fun and games!  I have to get back to the homemade version of labor camp.