April Cedar Waxwings & Goldfinches

Just about any time of the day I step out, I most likely can hear the Waxwings with their light teeny whines or the "per-chik-or-ree" of the goldfinches.  They remind me of little squeeze toys with their small calls and the Waxwings like a dog whistle from a distance.

Pretty soon they'll be gone but it sure is my favorite time of the year when they are here.  We also have our first bluebird pair nesting in one of the birdhouses out back.  They started with four eggs but I checked yesterday and their was one sole, newly hatched bluebird.  At least one made it.  We've had some really cold nights off and on the past couple of weeks.  Must have gotten the best of the other three.  I'll be sure to get some great pics soon of mama and daddy making constant trips and the new fledgling hopefully taking off for the first time.  Got to stock up on the mealworms!

Here's some new pics I hope you'll enjoy.

And here's my favorite of them...

Spring Has Spring with Birds & New Blooms

Howdy folks!  I finally took a break and did some bird watching the other morning and got some shots of some of the new growth around the yard too.  I hope you enjoy!...

Dwarf Narcissus

Flowering Quince

Male House Finch (with orange plumage)

Male House Finch (with orange plumage)

River Birch Tree

Pine Siskin

Pine Siskin

Rosemary Flower

Male Eastern Bluebird (a pair finally nested in one of my houses this year!)

Male Eastern Bluebird

Purple / Violet Verbena

Female Red-Winged Blackbird

Cedar Waxwings

Indian Hawthorn flower buds

Male House Finch

Female House Finch

AND Butterfly Weed coming very soon!  Be sure to get you some plants or seeds in the ground soon to help out the butterflies, especially the Monarchs!

Repurposed Roller Skate Truck No. 10: Double-Axle Heavy Hauler

Hey folks!  I've actually been working on this one off and on for several months now.  It's finally complete!

It's the first "double-axle" roller skate truck I've done (and probably the last!).  This is 22.5" long and represents a TON of custom work.  Just try and figure out what all the pieces are from!

I left the truck body the original military green but the rest is pure fabrication and lots of modifying to get the pieces just right.  

It started with some vintage Chicago roller skates.  One and a half skates to be exact!  I won't give away what the other parts were.  I'll let you just guess.

This upcycled item, along with my other creations, is available in the GadgetSponge Etsy Shop and at Timeline Antiques in Shreveport, LA!

Repurposed / Upcycled No. 10 Milking Stool & Flashlight Lamp

I've made it to 10!  This is the 10th repurposed lamp I've made to date and, between you and me, I think they are getting taller!  Ha!

I ran across this great, old milking stool that had seen a few better days.  After some TLC and several coats of red and green paint, it was ready for some distressing and character.  I gave it a good bit of that before adding the cloth measuring tap around the perimeter.  Finally, it got a clearcoat bath.

I used a vintage, chrome emergency flashlight and pot lid for the center shaft fabrication.  The flashlight polished up pretty good!  On top is a vintage cake cover lid with an older silverplate casserole tray mounted inside of it.  The top also got some clearcoat.

This upcycled item, along with my other creations, is available in the GadgetSponge Etsy Shop and at Timeline Antiques in Shreveport, LA!

THANK YOU for the Upcycling Contest Votes!!!

A super huge THANK YOU is eminating from GadgetSponge to all the folks out there that took the time to cast their vote during the Birds & Blooms Magazine Upcycling Contest.   The results are back and you made GadgetSponge the WINNER!

GadgetSponge is still a part-time hobby and business.  Hopefully one of these days it will be my full-time occupation and I can crank out even more creations getting the repurposed and upcycled message out there that we can all partake in.   I'll be using the prize money to continue the blog and find some more great junk to give new life to.

Thanks again for the continued support out there from family, friends and other existed friends out there far and wide!  You can read the official article (HERE).