~country living feature~

It's always a good day when you find out

Country Living has featured one of your projects!

You can see the full tutorial here!

xoxo

~a $25 tablescape~ {thrifty thursday}

When creating a beautiful tables cape, you don't need to have a ton of money.

I am going to show you how I created this garden inspired tables cape  with $25 and a trip to the thrift and grocery store.

A dozen white roses for $9.99 at the grocery store…..

6 glass vases from Goodwill for .69 cents each = $4.14….

Glass juice pitcher from the Goodwill = $2.69

4 ironstone plates from the Goodwill  = $4.00

Taper candles I had on hand = free

6 stemware glasses, also .69 cents each = $4.14….

Place a cement garden piece/statue in the center of your table. You can also add an urn with even more flowers. I re purposed this piece from another room.

I also added misc. ironstone trays and bowls which I already had.

xoxo

~my teeny tiny container garden~

Way back in 2012, I saw this article in Better Homes & Gardens and fell in love with the use of these troughs for garden beds.

That picture has stuck in my mind like glue.

So, I finally saved up enough dough and bought 3 troughs.

You can find them at home improvement stores, feed stores, or amazon here.

I bought 3, and when I got them home, they looked a little out of place on top of the ground, so I dug and dug, and dug, and dug some more, until they were close to ground level, then filled them with soil.

So far this year I only have tomatoes, bell peppers, and a variety of herbs. This little garden is close to our kitchen, so it's very handy.

Yesterday I got this wild idea to put flagstone all around. I am not quite done yet, but I like that it turns it into more of a distinct garden area.

Still lots of work to do, but here are my containers so far!

This is making me hungry!

xoxo

~think outside the {window} box~

The little window boxes on my studio were in need of sprucing up, but I wanted to do something a little out of the ordinary.

Instead of planting in them, I planted on top of them!

I cut a piece of wood the length of each window box, and set on top.

I had 6 of these little French clay pots, so I planted them all with the same plant for a cohesive look and set them on top!

~Love thinking outside the box~

The winner of the ESCAPE bag will be posted on my instagram this morning!

xoxo

~garden goodness~

My neighbor Carol's garden is magical.

It has it all, fruits, veggies, gorgeous flowers, a cutting garden, and a place to sit and relax. 

I could lay in that hammock for hours. 

We have been working a lot in our own yard, and while it is not nearly as fabulous as this, I can't wait to show you soon!

xoxo

~love your home challenge~

~Hello~

Do you all know Melissa from The Inspired Room? Well, I  was invited to complete a simple Love Your Home Challenge inspired by her new book Love The Home You Have written by her!

This book is fabulous. 

It really hit home for me, everything she shared about her experiences being a homeowner and trying to keep up with the Jones'

If you would like a copy for yourself you can buy one on Amazon here.

This book will teach you how to transform your rooms (and your life) from plainly livable to fabulously lovable.

So, the challenge was, for me {and other fabulous bloggers}

to transform one space from ordinary to extraordinary, in a very simple way.

I chose to do an exterior space. 

After a long winter, everything outside starts to look plain and drab. Not much color, plants have no leaves, and while the sun is starting to show it's face, there is still not a lot of excitement going on.

Our steps leading to our deck were feeling very plain and overlooked.

After sweeping off the stairs and doing a little weeding, I planted a couple vintage olive baskets with fresh flowers.

Just raking the dirt made everything come to life!

I also made a sign out of a old piece of wood I had, using simple letters I painted.

{come back Thursday to see the tutorial and to get details}

A couple hours on a sunny afternoon made all the difference.

This space makes me smile now when I pull up into our driveway.

Go here for the full list of participants.

Have a great day!

xoxo

~DIY rustic centerpiece~

This is a quick and rustic centerpiece you can make in minutes.

All I did was wrap containers in faux wood scrapbooking paper, cut to size, and adhered with glue.

I added some ornamental cabbage, succulents, and moss on top of a log slice.

Battery operated candles finish off this simple centerpiece!

xoxo

~a tiny succulent garden~

I just bought this little basket at a garage sale and thought it would be perfect planted with succulents for fall.

Yep, I am slowly starting to break out the fall decor.

xoxo

~thrifty thursday~{a fairy garden chair}

What happens when one of your beloved Restoration Hardware

 dining chairs seat caning

blows out? 

You cry a little, then you get over it and turn it into garden art.

A fairy garden to be exact.

Start with any chair that has no seat.

At your home improvement center pick up a basket liner that looks like this and that will fit the opening of your chair.

Using a staple gun, staple it in place.

Add potting soil and plant with your favorite flowers.

I used lavender and a ton of succulents.

I think the succulents are perfect for this project.

At this point you can leave it as is, or to turn it into a fairy garden, continue on…..

I wanted to hang a little sign from the chair, so I painted these words on a piece of chippy old wood I had. Hang it from twine for a rustic garden feel.

Now you can start to add in little fairy furniture if you wish.

I added a little wire chair and table, and miniature log fence pieces.

I added a fairy as well but I thought it cheapened the look, so I took her out.

 Tuck the furniture in here and there for a "secret garden" look.

I found all my furniture at a craft store.

I am sure you could look in the kids section at thrift stores and find some great things, or perhaps you have some old dollhouse furniture?

 Make sure you have plants that trail down over the sides, this looks best 

and gives it the look that it's not newly planted.

And that is it!

This will be available for sale at the French Flea Market this Saturday.

Hope to see you there!

xoxo