Tag Archives: garden

Ombre Vase Fillers

A few years ago I put together these ombre vase fillers for a quick spring project. With spring coming soon I thought it would be a good time to re-post this project that was originally a part of my Girls Want Pearls series. It was a lot of fun choosing the colors to use and creating a custom look using my own shading.

Are you as ready for spring as I am? I’m done with winter and to prove it I’ve got a fresh new pearl project to welcome in warmer weather when it finally gets here. Welcome to Girls Want Pearls #29!
I want to show you a super easy project with high visual impact.

You’ll need:
3 straight skinny clear vases (you can find them at most dollar stores), pearls and beads in various colors, water, and 3 flower stems.

I love ombre shading! I knew I wanted to create an ombre effect with dark to light colored pearls / beads. I went to shop for the perfect combination of colors but wasn’t quite coming up with what I needed. What do you do when you can’t find what you’re looking for? You make it!

I did some paint mixing with my craft paints to create 4 of the colors in my design: the cocoa brown, the bright green, and the two lighter shades of pink. I would have much prefered to buy what I needed, and I’m sure you can find the exact right colors online, but in case you can’t, or you like to dabble in paint mixing, here’s the solution I came up with. I placed a dollup of the mixed color in a small plastic container with a lid (butter tub, coffee can, etc.). I dropped in the desired amount of white pearls, put the lid on and shook them up. Then I poured them out on waxed paper and let them dry, jiggling them periodically to keep them from sticking. If you want a more translucent color, add a little water to the paint.

Once the pearls are dry, place them in the vase, add water and flowers. BTW, I did get lucky when it came to my flower purchase. I knew I wanted light pink tulips for this project. Any color would be lovely but that’s what I pictured. I went to Walmart and they had them! Exactly what I needed at the first place I looked! Bam!

So there you have it, an inexpensive way to bring a good dose of spring to your home using pearls.

Autumn Nature Walk

One of my favorite things to do with the change of seasons is walk around our property and take pictures. Autumn offers so much beauty. With camera in hand I’m on a mission to capture the essence of the season. When I step out the door, at first glance around I’m never sure there will be anything worthy of a photo. As I look at the big picture, I’m skeptical. But then I start walking around, studying the intricacies of each tiny scene. Once again, nature does not disappoint.

The fiery orange dots are berries that became transparent in the foreground of the photo.

Critters, both real and faux.

Some of the interesting rocks we have unearthed on our property.

A row of cockscomb whose growth was stunted.

And a more impressive cockscomb blossom from another patch that gets more sun.

We have had some that get as large as cauliflower heads. The saturated color amazes me every year. I showed you how I used some of last year’s harvest in an arrangement on my buffet. You can see how well they hold their color. They go from deep magenta to red to peachy orange and finally to pale blush. You can see the different shades on another arrangement I put together using stems from a few years ago.

Thank you for taking my autumn nature walk!

Pumpkins, Verdigris and A Little Bird Told Me

Ahhh fall. Such a bittersweet season with its glorious beauty and wonderful traditions only to be followed by the harsh reality of winter. But today I’m all about the visual appeal of my very favorite time of year.

In a recent post I shared a vignette using Baby Boo pumpkins from our garden, displayed in a soft, neutral setting. Today I’m combining them with bright orange pumpkins, a verdigris candelabra and rich red cockscomb to create a display full of vibrant fall color.

There is an open area between my breakfast nook and my desk and dining room. On the wall that is shared by both rooms sits one of two buffets that provide the settings for me to decorate whenever the season or the whim dictates a change.

In the above photo, the breakfast nook is to the left and my desk / dining room is to the right. I’ll show you more of that area in a future post.

This candelabra is a piece I created by marrying a lamp base, a metal cherub from another piece and an old chandelier. I gave the whole thing a verdigris patina using a paste wax.

For balance, on the other side of the buffet I placed a silver candelabra. I didn’t have five of the same color candle so mix and match came to the rescue.

I tucked dried cockscomb from last year’s harvest between the pumpkins for another pop of color.

I was lucky enough to find the green pumpkin for $3 at Walmart and I spent $8 on the delicious smelling candle for a grand total of $11. Using things I already had, things we grew and a couple of faux pumpkins meant I didn’t have to spend a lot to achieve a new look.

I have one more Baby Boo vignette to show you next week. It’s a table centerpiece styled with softer colors. And now for my weekly tip.

It really works!!!

Linking with: Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson,The Scoop, Mod Vintage Life, Between Naps on the Porch, From My Front Porch to Yours, Cozy Little House, A Stroll Thru Life, Ivy and Elephants, Common Ground, Shabby Art Boutique, French Country Cottage, Amaze Me Monday , VMG206, That DIY Party, Funky Junk Interiors , Savvy Southern Style

Caterpillars, Baseball and 7 Year Old Boys

The other day I was playing catch in the backyard with my grandson. He threw a wild ball so I went in search of it behind the shed. While I was back there, I spotted this little guy and had to go inside to get my camera.

He was actually quite large for a little guy, about as big around as my index finger.

I wanted my grandson to get in the picture next to the caterpillar.

This is as close as he would get. He loves baseball but caterpillars, not so much.

Baby Boo Pumpkins ~ Grow Your Own

For the past five years at least, my husband has planted baby boo pumpkins for me. We plant a small variety of other food-bearing plants and also some flowers from seed. Some of them come and go but the three that remain regulars in our garden are baby boos, tomatoes and cockscomb. One year we didn’t plant them and summer and fall just weren’t the same.

I adore pumpkins! I love all shapes and sizes, from Baby Boos, to Cinderella, to Blue Moon to Fairytale. I am obsessed with their form and love to use them in my fall displays, and the more the better. The cost to create a substantial vignette can add up really fast but a packet of seeds is only pennies. Even though my husband does the work of planting them, I have helped in the past and their really isn’t that much to it. If you have a small patch of ground that you aren’t using you can plant the seeds in the spring and just ninety days later you can harvest 60-100 baby boos from one packet of seeds.

They take up a smaller plot of land than other varieties. That’s one of the things I love about them.

We have close to fifty boos that are about ready to be picked. I’ll leave a lot of them on the vine for a couple more weeks but went ahead and picked a few now so I could get a start on my vignettes.

They’re just so cute. It’s impossible to have too many. I’ll share more boo vignettes as we get further into fall.

Next week I’ll share part 2 of my Farmhouse Kitchen Reveal. I hope you have a wonderful weekend. I’ll be enjoying an outdoor concert by the band Boston. Woohoo!

Phrase Art Phriday: Seed Days

Welcome to another Phrase Art Phriday where I share a piece of original photography overlaid with a favorite quote, phrase or thought. As summer winds down I would like to share another picture from my garden.

As much as I adore fall, I am always sad to see summer go. Mostly because of the cold weather that looms ahead but also because all of the beautiful green will soon fade away.

Do you ever have days that feel like you’re spinning your wheels and not accomplishing much? Then all of the sudden one day you feel like you are knocking things out left and right? Those days seem like the most productive days when in fact they are the “flowers of tomorrow” that were produced during the “seed days” of putting in the hard work. Who doesn’t love to see the blooming take place ~ that sense of accomplishment after completing a long, difficult project that turns out better than one imagined? I love that feeling.

But I’ll admit, there are some projects during which I hate the process and when it’s finished I don’t even like want to look at what I’ve created. Sad, right? Whenever you find it difficult to “enjoy the journey” change your approach and remind yourself that you’re in the “seed days”. When you feel like you can’t wait to wrap it up and move on, try to see the mundane task as a precious seed that you’re planting, watering and watching over in order to bring forth the sweet smelling bouquet of accomplishment. Then not only will you have the beautiful flowers, you will be able to remember fondly the time well spent planting the seeds.

Tarnished Royalty

Design Your Life