The Chicken Mansion

The little grandson of the neighbor, came over today and wanted to visit the ‘chicken mansion’!  I had to laugh, apparently, his Uncle David, has been referring to my coop….as such!  And I suppose it fits….
I finally got started on the coop inside the shed, this week.  All the electrical is done.  So I got started framing in the chicken area.
  
  
I had already primed and painted the wall area and was ready to build the chicken wire wall.
                 
                                  
I framed in for a doorway.  I am using an old screen door, that had been majorly altered to fit someone’s space under a stairwell, in my daughter’s house.  Thus the edges are all uneven but it’s the look I wanted….so I begged it off of her.
   
It wasn’t until I saw this picture that I remembered to add some large crystals I got on Etsy to my chandelier.
                              
  
Today I attached chicken wire to the screen door.  I had to use staples as the other brads (?) were to heavy duty for the frame.
                        
 
New screen and the new crystals.  The light fixture was $5, a can of spray paint and the string of beads and the crystals, another $25…..so a full on Chandelier for $30.
 
My friend, Bev (www.beehavenacres.blogspot.com) recommended I build a little wall along the base.  So I cut and painted some small panels to lay on the edge to keep the pine shavings inside the coop.  I will put the chicken wire between the 2x4’s and this edge.
  
Now for the fun part…some wood bling! 
              
                                   
Being a professional painter for years, I have a tendency to prime, paint and cover all bare areas.  When I got done doing that I thought the shabby look might be fun so I sanded some of it off….it felt weird, doing it!  But I like it.
              
I put up four brackets on this wall and have a few more to add to some shelves I will make later.  Right now I am looking for some way to get vents into this shed, for some air flow.  I have been to several big box stores and am having a hard time finding something, I could have open in the summer and close in the winter.  Frustrating.  I am also looking for another window for the gable end.  So my ladies will have lots of light for egg production (14 hrs. a day).  My automatic door is on order and after some details inside I will be making a chicken run outside, as well.  I think my girls, Eleanor Roosevelt, Amelia Earhart and Rosa Parks will be very happy in their ‘Chicken Mansion”, don’t you?
I linked up to Brambleberry Cottage at http://thebrambleberrycottage.blogspot.com/
and The French Country Cottage
http://frenchcountrycottage.blogspot.com/
http://www.dittledattle.blogspot.com/