Public Use Play Structure: Day 1 on site

The day before we arrive, the school yard sits empty, waiting for the magic to begin...




Immediately upon arrival, we unload and set up our equipment so that we can begin the first step: set the spacer boxes (pre-built in our shop) on top of the concrete planters, establishing that everything fits. Then we start attaching the ledgers to the existing retaining walls. A critical 1st step!














We have to get the ledgers (which you don't see once installed as they sit flush to the top of the planter wall) at the right height and in the right placement so our pre-built structure will reassemble correctly.
Once in place, we drill the concrete for the threaded rod that will be epoxied into the wall.
























There was a lot of hot sun and it was persnickety work, but the crew did a great job getting everything ready for setting the threaded rod in epoxy. Marco & Jeff both have a lot of experience doing this type of work and Aubrey was their willing apprentice.

















Aubrey seemed to like using the hammerdrill :) There's Jeff's in the background below diligently cleaning the drilled holes in preparation for the epoxy. That's the key to using epoxy to bolt the ledger to the concrete walls: super clean holes.

















More install pictures tomorrow!

Garden Potpourri: Josie visits her old/now new playhouse

Garden Potpourri Playhouse will be auctioned 9/24/10.
All proceeds to benefit Coyote Point Museum.

Josie (almost 16 years old now) stopped by our shop last Sunday with her mom, Michelle, to visit her old Garden Playhouse. Josie enjoyed her Barbara Butler Garden Playhouse from age 3 to 15 and then decided to donate it to help raise money for a good cause. Barbara collaborated by throwing her skills at refurbishing and re-creating the playhouse, using reclaimed materials.












Josie and her mom loved the new playhouse and almost want to buy it back at auction! Instead, they hope that a wonderful family with small children will fall in love with Garden Potpourri and bid to buy at the auction this coming Friday.

For more information about how to purchase tickets to attend the "Tinkering by Twilight" fund raising event, go to www.coyoteptmuseum.org

To see more images of Garden Potpourri playhouse, click here!

Public Use Play Structure for CCJDS in Lafayette, CA

New, exciting, public use play structure that Barbara custom-designed for the Contra Costa Jewish Day School in Lafayette, CA. It will be a fully enclosed, self-contained redwood & rope netting play structure built up on top of 8' high concrete planter boxes and running along the edge of the play space.













Access up (on right) via the steps enclosed by the "Ball Wall" then up the angled ship's ladder, through clubhouse #1, through the crawl tunnel, through the clubhouse #2, through the rope net bridge, through Clubhouse #3 and down the tunnel tube slide (on left) out onto the open playground. Plenty of activity while only using a minimal amount of current playground space.

Building started back in the shop as soon as Barbara was able to get the variance and permit sign offs. For this complicated design it takes a lot of conferring with the whole team.











Marco, an exceptional builder, makes the curved steps that have to conform exactly to the concrete wall when we bring it to site.

Tricky!









As soon as pieces are built they go to the staining bay, where Rudi adds the natural tung-oil stain colors. Then everything is set outside to dry in the sun. Time is off the essence as there is only 2 weeks to build, stain and pre-assemble! Normally, this size project would take up 4 weeks of our schedule. We are on double-time...












Fortunately, Rudi, our master stainer, has the experience, fortitude and know-how to get it all done.






As soon as the stained pieces are dry, the guys start to pre-assemble the play structure in our shop to make sure that everything fits together perfectly. Our motto is that it's better to find & fix any problems in the shop then when on site. Everything is geared for the on-site installation to run quickly and smoothly... and because of their diligence, it usually does!











Stay tuned for pictures from site.