My Resene Upcycling Award entry
My up-cycling used some old furniture on my deck. It also required a new deck which was rotten and dangerous. I was looking at new furniture for the deck but decided to posh up the old pieces which have more interesting stories. The brown bench seat was a throw out on the side of the road from one of the Brook St, Nelson neighbours. It was barely holding together so I used some screws and bolts and filler to get it stable and tidy. A sand and coat of stain helped bring it back to life. My kind deck builder (who I found on Neighbourly) suggested he use some of the mesh (used for a corner of the deck to support my pot plants) to infill the ends. The church pew came years ago from the Church of Christ in Rutherford St in Nelson and was falling apart after sitting on my deck for so many years. Again my kind builder repaired it voluntarily so I diligently sanded, filled and undercoated with Resene undercoat and top coated with Resene Paradise. The table was old untreated wood, grey with age and with no protective coating so another sanding job and some more filling. Undercoating and a number of test pots of Resene Bullion saw a golden top, and legs in sparkling deep blue Resene Sputnik. The framework of the deck roof I sanded, undercoated and top coated in Resene paint, this time in Sunflower. A coat of the same Resene paint I used to paint the bamboo screen. I finished off with a recycled duvet cover in mustard and white fabric to line the roof. Last weekend a lovely woman was selling a bench seat squab on Neighbourly in the exact colour I needed and perfect size! The finishing touch was a Smashing (Resene match) hibiscus in a Hot August (Resene match) pot from my daughter for Mother's Day. This project was completed over a number of months. Had I realised I would be entering this competition I would have been more careful with my photography and the odd unintended props!
Live Q&A: Garden maintenance with Crewcut
This Wednesday, we're having another Neighbourly Q&A session. This time with John Bracewell from Crewcut.
John Bracewell, former Black Caps coach turned Franchisee Development Manager and currently the face of Crewcut’s #Movember campaign, knows a thing or two about keeping the grass looking sharp—whether it’s on a cricket pitch or in your backyard!
As a seasoned Crewcut franchisee, John is excited to answer your lawn and gardening questions. After years of perfecting the greens on the field, he's ready to share tips on how to knock your garden out of the park. Let's just say he’s as passionate about lush lawns as he is about a good game of cricket!
John is happy to answer questions about lawn mowing, tree/hedge trimming, tidying your garden, ride on mowing, you name it! He'll be online on Wednesday, 27th of November to answer them all.
Share your question below now ⬇️
Poll: When should the tree go up? 🎄
From what we've heard, some Christmas trees are already being assembled and decorated.
What are your thoughts on the best time to get your Christmas tree up?
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4.7% Second half of November
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43.6% 1st December
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17.5% A week before Christmas
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33.1% Whenever you wish
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1.1% Other - I'll share below
What's your favourite tomato recipe?
Kia ora neighbours. We know your tomato plants are still growing, but we're looking ahead to the harvest already! If you've got a family recipe for tomatoes, we'd love to see it and maybe publish it in our magazine to share with our readers. Send your recipe to mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz, and if we use it in the mag, you will receive a free copy of our February 2025 issue.