Hmmmm. The first was my sewing cabinet. It was actually the first thing I
took the time to properly finish and actually steel-wooled between coats
of Deft, and it showed it. Additionally, it was the first thing I made
just for me. I still have it though it has a couple of dings on it now.
It's a shame I only could afford Douglas Fir plywood at the time; it could
be an heirloom if I could have afforded a nice wood. It will last
forever, however, as it is very sound and well constructed.
The second was a kitchen cabinet I made for over our kitchen windows. It
had two partitions (three sections)with two doors on each section, 70"
long and 20" high to fit exactly over the windows. The select white birch
was so well matched that the doors almost looked stamped. When it was
done, the Deft was so good that it shown like a mirror. That was the
preview for my kitchen remodel. It might sound odd, but even the entire
kitchen didn't produce as much satisfaction as that one cabinet. I
actually joked with my husband that I wanted to be buried in it, even if
it meant cutting the body into three pieces. When we left that house, I
took the cabinet and installed it in the kitchen of the next house. Yes,
it is now in this house. It wasn't easy finding a place for it here where
it wouldn't be in the way because of its length, but it is in the hallway
off the bedrooms/bathroom. It's not a place where it's properly
displayed, but it's there. Interestingly enough, though I installed
standards in dados, I never made shelves for it as there was no need.
Another milestone was a year or two ago when my middle son sent a friend
of his to me, "My mom knows a lot, she always manages to come up with the
right thing," when he needed help with a particular project.
I guess the most recent, and maybe most important, have been when my
daughter-in-law started asking me to build particular things for them (and
especially for the granddaughters) as well as particular sewing projects.
In the earlier years, there had been a bit of an attitude (inspired by her
mother) that because I was a do-it-yourselfer, I really didn't know much.
Even her mother has changed her attitude after she saw the girls' Dorothy
(dinosaur) costumes for Halloween 2003 and the Christmas bookshelves, both
custom things of course.
An older milestone was when our male friends, who were laughing at a woman
remodeling a kitchen, visited the finished project. The very positive
feedback from others who they talked to about it was quite rewarding.
Oddly, though I had a sense of pride/accomplishment at the finished
project, it was more a necessity or ulitarian project. But then I consider
all of mine ulitarian. If I didn't need them or have a use for them, it
wouldn't be built.
Not a milestone, but a "you see!" was when I went to work as office
manager for a remodeling company. After the first few weeks, he took me
to the jobsite and said he wanted me to cut out for the sink and left to
work outside. When he came back in, the sink was in place, fitting
perfectly of course. He looked at me and said, "You really did remodel
your kitchen, didn't you?" Geez. (For the record, he had left the drill
in the truck so I had to go out and get it to drill the holes for the
corners which he probably figured I wouldn't know about.) Guess he didn't
believe a woman can run an office, look good, and use a saw. Oh, well. LOL
Glenna