Castle Completion!

Well, it is finished.  We had the unveiling on time, Sunday April 1st with our master carpenter and other workers present.  At first the kids were overwhelmed, but I think it was because of the crowd invading their classroom.  After the congregation headed back to the sanctuary, I stayed to photograph a more normal reaction.  They were excited; touching everything, exploring, trying out the puppet theater, and just taking in the new environment.  I was so happy at all of the responses from the children, teachers, and the parents...very gratifying.  So, with no further ado, I will let the photos speak for themselves and get back to my real life!  After all, Tomas and Isabella are dying to get back into the garden with me!

A few Ikea finds really made the space more useable and fun!

Mike's Doors turned out beautifully!

Thank goodness Lauren came and helped out Saturday; otherwise we would have had to pull an all-nighter!

 

 

 

Castle Progress Continues...March 23, 2012

Today it felt like we really made some progress.  I took a break from the clouds to really lay some paint around the walls, stone borders - complete with dry brushed texture, and battlement edging.  We still have to color wash the walls and stencil in the grout to create the stone blocks of the castle walls.  Sometimes it feels like we are barely moving forward...until I check out the amazing transformation through pictures!

It's really starting to come together!

My clouds in progress

Wait until you see what cool things we have planned for the doors!  Stay tuned!

Castle Progress

Well folks, we've been busy at the castle!  I'm sharing some updated photos of our progress.  We truly had some creative carpenters among us.  Their latest genius idea was the "stone borders" around the doors and windows.  After three days, the carpentry was finished and the faux painting began.

 

 

I'm sketching in the cloud locations

Leftover cedar planks made perfect stone borders for our doorways and windows.  The cedar was so beautiful that I had to keep reminding myself that it had to appear as stone, not wood before I could convince myself to start priming them!