Our house is quite new - we moved in during the summer of 2003, and since we had the house built during the year preceding that, the garden was a disaster area in the beginning. We knew we wanted a deck of some kind along the length of the house (with access from the living room), but didn't quite know what kind. After having paved a barbecue area with rocks we retrieved from the property, we decided the deck would be far too big for that kind of a project, and opted for wood. The area is at ground level, and didn't require being attached to the house in any way, so I said - OK, I'll do it.

Hubby was very doubtful, but we women can be persuasive, so early this spring, I went to it.

We had prepared the ground by leveling it with gravel, so the size was decided upon (3,5 x 15 meters), and the materials were purchased. 2'x4' for the foundation, and ordinary, treated terrace boards for the actual deck. Also, I needed 2'X6' for steps.

Tools are paramount. I would never have considered getting into a project like this without a proper saw - you know, the kind you can swivel and turn so it cuts the wood into any angle you choose. A level is a great help, and a right angle too. So is a rechargeable drill - a marvelous gadget!

Since I really knew nothing of carpentry, I had to work out for myself how to do everything, but I found that the scraps I remembered from my geometry lessons in school helped a lot. I now know why they teach kids that stuff... I spent quite some time planning the whole process, and had it pretty well worked out by the time I began.

I started by making a frame with the 2'x4'. The frame went all around the projected size of the deck, and provided support for the next part of the plan - 2'x4' beams inside the frame, distanced at 60 centimeters. These were to provide support for the boards, that were to be screwed on to the beams. Why 60 cms? I found (on the Internet!) that this is the ideal distance between beams supporting the boards I'd chosen. 28 millimeters thick boards can take a span of 60 cms. Once the beams were distanced correctly, I screwed the whole frame together at fairly right angles, and was ready for the next step.

I needed two steps from the deck to the terrace doors, and I didn't want them to be too small - I wanted to be able to sit on them, and I wanted them to be deep enough, so that anyone coming out of the doors with a heavy tray wouldn't stumble headlong into the scenery. So, before starting with the actual deck, I needed to have the foundation ready for the steps - so that it would provide support both for the bottom and the top one. Two more frames were made, corresponding with the terrace doors, complete with support for the beams I was going to need to support the steps in two levels. I used far too much wood, as it turned out!

Onwards with the deck - the boards were cut to fit onto the beams, with two screws anywhere it crossed a beam, and 4 screws anywhere one board met another one on a support beam. I used those little distance crosses that are used for laying tiles to keep a constant distance between boards. The steps were made once I reached them with my boards - 2'x6' for the frame and beams, and boards to cover the steps. Two levels, and it turned out beautifully!

A month later (yes - with 6 kids, plenty of beasts and varying weather conditions, it did take me a month!), I had completed the terrace deck, and gained enough confidence to build a table for 12 to go with it...

Surrounded by big rocks collected on the property, loads of flowers and with a lovely view of the rolling countryside, we've enjoyed it immensely this summer, as we hopefully will in years to come.

I'm proud that I pulled it off, but most of all, I now believe even more firmly that: "You don't know what you can't do until you've tried!"