weekly review

This was the third final week for tree fort mania. We left off with the framing posts up, but some in need to be moved and others replaced. We then began the process of starting the top railings, we found boards that fit perfect to length and began to cut them to shape, and lay them in place to get a feel for the look. We decided on making a half flap joint, which I learned is when you cut in and across a few inches on both ends of a board, then overlap them and screw them in place making them conjoin and act as one solid unit, making the whole structure stronger. As we made all these cuts we used a new tool called a chalk line, it is essentially a wound up piece of string covered in a bright chalk which when you stretch across a board, and snap the chalk is thrown on to the board making exact straight line for you to cut. My favorite part of working this week had to have been when Danny and I made our ladder for the tree house. We went in search of two big logs to act as the frame and then went in search of numerous little logs to stretch across between the two. After finding the perfect lengths for everything we cut them all to size and were assisted by maintenance who gave us a special kind of screw called a wood lock screw, which will guarantee safety for each step. I would say the hardest part of the week was trying to figure out how much wall space we had and if it was enough, before brad donated the fifth board. We were in a tough place and almost willing to use more scrap wood to cover a last side. The most interesting part of the week was learning to make a half flap joint which insured more safety to the structure. Overall this last week was incredible, it seems that our vision came true and it came very quickly, now all thats left to do is put Lizzie's wonderful murals in place so the tree fort can be complete.