A Yard Sale Find and a Womp Womp

An update on the front border. After the first rain fell, all of the sand washed out from between the blocks. I had a suspicion this might happen, so I wasn't terribly upset or disappointed. As of right now, I'm leaving them as is to see how they hold up. If it looks like they need something else, I will probably get some of the sand/cement mix that I saw at Lowes.

 In other news, I found this little guy while at a yard sale a few weeks back. It was only $3, so I picked it up and took it home.

It obviously needed some cleaning up and had about an inch thick layer of ash on the bottom of the lid so I know it was frequently used at one time. I did some googling to find the best method to clean copper. I ended up trying salt and lime. It did make it cleaner, but no more so than I think plain old water would have.

And the best part is, it works!

 

I imagine it will find a place on a bookshelf in the basement when it is completed (whenever that happens!)