Monday, May 23, 2011

How to Make a Garden Trellis

I planted cucumbers about 4-6 weeks ago and they are taking off! I am so proud. They are taking off so much that they have no place to go. So, I decided to make a trellis. 

All you need are a few wooden dowels (I used 6), some gardening twine, a rubber mallet (or something to help hammer the dowel in the ground) and scissors. 


Place the dowels where you want them and hammer them in the ground. I did 2 rows of 3 dowels.


Then, take the gardening twine and start from the bottom up and wrap the twine around the dowels


Take the vines and wrap them up through the twine. Now, you probably already know this but, I should have started sooner that way the vines could have wrapped themselves up the trellis! 


I already have little cucumbers growing. 


So, there you have it. Easy as can be! 




I am also growing cantaloupe...


...and pumpkins...for the first time this year. So, we will see how that goes!  



Now, let me introduce you to the Troops!


My troops are a must have and are my little warriors against any garden sneak attack! I have a huge aunt problem and this is where Captain Diatomaceous Earth comes in. Kills them every time!  My tomato plants became a bit diseased and so Disease B Gon came into action. I don't think this stuff is entirely organic which is a bummer and I am still on the lookout for an organic disease killer. I love insect killing soap. When the bad guys (spider mites and aphids) attack as they do every year, the insect killing soap wipes them out! Fish fertilizer helps give my soil and plants the nutrients it needs. It has a horrible stank to it and I am certain that has some kind of special bug fighting power! 


Cheers! 


Saturday, May 21, 2011

Porch Perk Up

My front porch has been looking rather drab. So, I decided it was time to do something about it! I like sitting on the front porch and the back patio but it was missing a sparkle to make sitting out there a bit more fun.  

Here is my front door before. I love how red it is. The previous owner painted it that bright red color. 


The front porch before. 


That little bench was my mothers. I remember it being outside on the patio when I was growing up. I am a bit attached to it which is why I have had it on my porch all these years. But, it is time to let go and switch things up! :-)  

I added a cute new rug....


A decal for the door...


...and my yarn wreath from this tutorial over here.


I love succulents so I went to home depot to pick up a few to put in the planters I found for half price at Hobby Lobby!


I have the round table and chairs that go with the bench on the patio in the back yard. I took 2 of the chairs and a little stool that I had and moved them up front and this is what I ended up with.


When that still was not good enough...it was time for spray paint! 

Good-bye gold mailbox!


Hello orange mailbox! 


Good-bye black chairs and old green stool!


Hello lime green and orange! 


I used one of my vintage cloth napkins to make a little table cloth, added a citronella candle and some rosemary.




I have this little hanging plant hanging on the porch too.


 I am not quite finished but very close. There are a few small touches that I want to add and when I do I will let you know! 



Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Happy Mother's Day!

What a nice way to celebrate mothers, taking a day out of the year just for them! Really, mothers should get more than just a day for all they do.  My sister and I made grapefruit marmalade and granola for the mothers in our family. My sister is a creative lady and it was her idea so I just went along for the ride and everything turned out delicious! The granola is fantastic. It is so earthy and refreshing.  

We wanted to do a little something special for our mother so...

My sister found this little tray at a thrift store for my mom.


Then, we spray painted it...


...and Mod Podged on some fabric to jazz it up. Kind of like what I did here



In addition to the marmalade and granola we made we added some passion Tazo tea and a loaf of apple cinnamon Irish soda bread from Sprouts to the tray.



A breakfast fit for a Queen! 

Cheers! 


Dumpster Diving

One man's trash is another man's treasure, right? Well, in this case it sure is.  I did not go "dumpster diving" per se...however, I did happen on a nice little treasure yesterday afternoon while at work. I was walking down the hall and passed a trash can that someone set outside their door. I noticed a few little green things poking out the top but kept on walking. Then I backed up a bit and looked again. Someone had thrown away a perfectly good pot of assorted succulents! But, I did not want to be gross so I passed it up and walked back to my office. I stood in my office for a few seconds and then went back to the trash can. I looked at it, looked around to see if anyone was watching, peeped through the office door window to see if anyone was in there, and then walked down the hall a bit as to not seem too suspicious. I managed to muster up enough nerve, hurried up to the trash can, and snatched the plant out of the trash. I rushed back to my office so no one would see what I just did and then thoroughly examined the plant. It was still very much alive, had a few dried up bits and pieces and the soil was low. The little aloe in the middle was a bit sad looking and was drooping over to one side. It was obviously suffering the trauma of being tossed in a trash receptical! So, I pruned it a bit, meanwhile my office mate walked and and started laughing at me when she found out what I had done. When 1630 rolled around I took my plant and split. I added a bit of soil to it when I got home and placed it on my front porch.  It is so very happy now.




So, dumpster diving is not so bad after all!


Cheers!

Friday, May 6, 2011

In The Moment

Anthropologie. Need I say more? I love everything about this place and could spend hours there. I love how they "bundle" my clothes in tissue with the little Anthropologie sticker. So, since I love Anthropologie so, I figured this picture would serve as my "In The Moment" post, because when I am shopping in there, I am totally in the moment!


After work today I met up with my mom and sister at Blue Mesa. They have he best happy hour! You get free tacos and nachos when you purchase a drink! It was a long Friday so a few Mojitos were in order. After a few hours of chatting we went over to Anthropologie. It was so much fun. We were in there for a long time because we all just kept finding more and more treasures that we could not resist!  

After Anthropologie we went over to Williams-Sonoma. We each had a shot of espresso from the Pixie machine. I love this machine. It pours a perfect shot with a perfect amount of crema on top. This espresso machine is not messing around either. That was quite the jolt I needed to keep me away for several more hours! My sister also honed in on the Beekman Boys heirloom seeds package. This is quite a package too. I know she is going to grow some great heirloom plants. Go Beekman! 

It was a very nice Friday evening, a great way to start the weekend! Now, we must get working on Mother's Day gifts! 


Thursday, May 5, 2011

Feliz Cinco De Mayo!

Today is Cinco De Mayo, which means the fifth of May. It is celebrated because of the Mexican Army's defeat over the French at the Battle of Puebla. In order to celebrate, in Texas, people gorge themselves on Mexican food and have a fiesta! My sister has been visiting so we had our little fiesta at home and made chicken tacos. Can't go wrong with a taco on Cinco De Mayo!  


Even sauteing the peppers was like a fiesta in a skillet with all the colors!


I love this skillet too. It is huge and you and put a ton of stuff in there. A wedding gift courtesy of the MIL. 




Happy Things

I love granola. I especially love yogurt, granola, and berries for breakfast. I first ate this fantastic breakfast treat at the Chocolate Maven. They call it the Great Start Breakfast. Yes, I have to agree...it is a great start to any day! I have been taking it to work with me and it gives me the refreshing jolt I need to begin the day! Our Santa Fe trip is right around the corner and I believe I will be heading to the Maven for breakfast one morning, I can't wait!




Monday, May 2, 2011

Liberate Creativity Guest Post Day!

Hi Everyone! Today is my guest post day over at Liberate Creativity! Be sure to check it out! I did a little guest post on how to make a yarn wreath and had so much fun doing it. I am very pleased that I had this opportunity.  I also have been spinning a lot of yarn and I will post that to Etsy later today for my grand re-opening. So, please start looking for that. I will post when I have re-opened. Now, go check out the Liberate Creativity site. It is wonderful! 





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