Monday, May 9, 2011

Trash to Treasure

How was your weekend?  Mine was busy, but very productive.  The weather was completely gorgeous and so my efforts this weekend were directed outdoors.
For at least the past three years, we have had this rusted chiminea in our shed.  We used to have this on our old patio years ago.  Then it rusted and got sent to the shed.  I almost got rid of it last year, but never got around to it.  This year, I decided it was time to clean it up and repurpose it.
Using a wire brush, my son and I took turns sanding off all of the rust.  It took us a while, but in the end it was ready to be spray painted.
I used a bronze colored hammered spray paint to transform the piece.
While we were working on this, the sprinklers kept going off.  We had to move several times to avoid getting soaked.  Then my son had to go to his baseball game, so my son and my husband left for the game and I finished alone.  The chiminea weighs a ton. I could barely move it on my own.  I ultimately pushed it on it's side and rolled it across the backyard.  Not easy.   But if you have read this blog for any length of time you know that patience is not one of my virtues and so I wasn't going to wait until they got home to move it.
I added my restored chiminea to the side bed in my backyard.  I added a plant inside the chiminea, although I'm not sure it's going to thrive in there, so I might plant it elsewhere.  I left it in the pot for now.  The only issue at this point was that the chiminea is so heavy that it sunk into the mulch.
When my parents came over for Mother's Day yesterday, my father saw the situation, and built me a little platform for the chiminea.  He made it using left over pavers from our new patio.
Now it's perfect.  I'm so glad I didn't get rid of it last year.  What do you think of it's new look and function?

-Judy

31 comments:

  1. I think you will enjoy it Judy...looks good!

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  2. I think it looks great!! I'm picturing you rolling it across the yard though :) lol

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  3. That turned out fabulous. Sounds like a lot of elbow grease but worth it in the end.

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  4. Wow, what a transformation...it is beautiful!

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  5. That's such a great idea!! It adds height and texture and was free!!!! Awesome!

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  6. hiy a, great transformation love the new use for it and you have a gorgeous garden sculpture too x i would love to see some ivy growing out from the top of the chimnea x tfs
    xmaggiex

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  7. I love your idea, I have a chiminea setting on my deck that has a crack in it...so we can't use it. I am going to put some flowers in it and make it useful!
    have a great day,
    Regina

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  8. Judy. it turned out great... don't you just love spray paint? hope you had a nice Mother's Day... your yard looks fantastic...

    Pattie

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  9. It looks great, Judy! I think the bottom half of it would look cool as a table base, too. Nice job :)

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  10. love it! we have one that is looking a little gross too!

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  11. Love it! Even if the plant doesn't work out inside, it's a beautiful sculptural piece for the garden, and will look great as the plants around it mature. Thanks for sharing.

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  12. What a great find. I LOVE that thing.

    =)

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  13. I absolutely love it! Wish I had it.

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  14. Great transformation!!!
    Added interest as a garden sculpture...
    Love that it was hidden away in the shed & now into the light, as a brand new beautiful creation.

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  15. totally LOVE it! (glad you didn't get rid of it!) We have a potbelly fireplace that we inherited from my parents that is ALL rusted and in desperate need of some love and some metal repair... I can't wait to make it over and share it too!

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  16. Looks great! Thanks for the visit to my blog. I am now following back.

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  17. That looks great Judy! And I totally cracked up that you rolled it through the yard because I have done so many crazy things being too impatient to wait for my hubby to help! :-) And I'm totally jealous of your weather...it rained all weekend here. Yuck!
    Vanessa

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  18. Judy, it looks wonderful and so does your yard! Enjoy! Janell

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  19. Looks so cute! And I love that you saved it from ending up in a landfill! Nice work Judy!

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  20. Nice job on the cheminea, Judy. Thanks for visiting my blog, the nice compliment, and for becoming a follower. Yes, I'm on board with you as well.

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  21. I love it! Such a creative idea. Thanks for thinking up to Weekend Warrior at Ask Anna. :)

    Anna
    www.askannamoseley.com

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  22. Nicely done! I really like the pavers underneath it,... great idea!

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  23. Way to re-purpose Judy! I think it looks fabulous and I am as bad as you...I get so impatient, that I just forge ahead myself..guess it runs in the family. ;)

    Heather

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  24. Beautifully done! And a charming addition to your garden! xo

    :D Lynda

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  25. Oh I have one of these rusted Chiminea's sitting on my porch now for 7 years...and some extra pavers. What a great idea this is! It looks so pretty in your garden.
    Marianne :)

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  26. This is wonderful!
    I am featuring it today on my blog!
    Jennifer
    http://craftyhair.blogspot.com

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  27. I am sure that was A LOT of work but so worth the effort. I love seeing unusual things in the garden and this is perfect. Creatively going green is how I see it. :) Thanks so much for sharing this on Motivated Monday at BeColorful and I hope you will keep the inspiration coming.
    Pam

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  28. I am impressed with your cleaning skills. The chimney looks like it is new!

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  29. Wow, that was a great find! Looks brand new!

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