A few months ago, I learned that Hazem, a family friend, had stopped working for a local garage and had opened up his own mechanic's shop. So I stopped by before Christmas with a friend to say hello. Before I had visited, I had told his brother Ahmed to tell Hazem I could help him build anything he might need like a desk or other kinds of organizers. When I got there, Hazem had some ideas. It seems that the mechanics that rented the space before did only referral work from dealerships and there was no real customer lounge or waiting area providing a barrier to the open work space. Hazem wanted a narrow entrance that separated the shop and provided a comfortable place for his customers, keeping them away from the more dangerous work areas. After a little consultation, I came up with a plan and Sindi and I got started. We got a lot of help from Hazem and Ahmed along the way:
I really enjoyed all the aspects of this project. There is a good reason why there aren't many closeups on some of the work - I am still perfecting some of my skills :) Hazem is a good guy, and helping him with his new business was a lot of fun.
This is the main entrance for customers. The blue pole is one side of a lift, so we really didn't have a lot of room for the waiting area.
Sindi learning how to frame a wall.
Getting ready to raise the wall.
Because one end of the wall is unsupported, Hazem welded a plate to attach the wall to the lift column.
The boys (Hazem and Ahmed) cutting out the door frame.
Ahmed priming the wall.
The new wall and a small table from the entrance.
Hazem and Ahmed in the new customer waiting area.
If you look closely, you can see Hazem throwing confetti in the air. This then lands in the wet paint and gives it a nice look.
The new floor and stuff on the table.
A coffee table.
A seating bench that will soon have a cushion on it (I think Hazem is bartering some mechanic work for a new cushion).
The look from the entrance.
From the other side.
Proud shop owner taking a break.
This was a fun project - a work cart for Hazem. It was a secret, and I even brought it to his shop to paint it, telling him it was for me. He liked it and mentioned more than one time how handy something like that would be :) The front has ten organizers and six drawers. Patrick and Tony helped me design and build it.
The back has a retractable air hose and a heavy duty surge protector.
I really love these parts organizers from Harbor Freight (the German version is more than $30 each!). I like the fact you can take out individual containers.
Patrick distracted Hazem while I applied the letters on the side. We then brought him over and when he saw his shop's name, he knew he had been duped. I think he is very pleased with it.
I was happy that Patrick could be there when we gave it to Hazem. He and Tony did a lot of work on this project.
