Peony Love

**** Sigh ****

Seriously, is there anything more beautiful than a handful of just picked peonies?

I think not!

I've been waiting three years for such a bumper crop.
Last year I was ready to rip them out if they didn't bloom.  A single handful of blooms saved them from my inpatient hands.  This year, they seem to be thriving.

The tiny buds make my heart skip a beat in anticipation . . .

Look at how many there are.  I'm in Peony heaven!

Once the buds open up, it truly takes my breath away.  I find myself rushing out to the garden each morning to check on them.  Silly . . . I know . . . but I just can't help myself.  Besides, someone has to let the dog out right?

The first cuttings of the season are arranged in a small tureen and placed on the kitchen table.

I'm so thankful for our early spring, maybe this year I won't have to take my Peonies camping with me like I had to last year.

I'm hoping in the next two weeks all those beautiful buds will open up.  Then I'll be able to scatter them all over the house to enjoy them.

Until then, I'll enjoy this simple arrangement.

Have a lovely day,

Robin

Spring Hutch

Good Morning!

Hope you were able to work in a little R&R over the long weekend.  I enjoyed a weekend of work and play with the family which was delightful.

With summer closing in fast I thought it was a good time to share how I decorated my hutch for spring.  Soon it will be changed for the summer months but for now I've concentrated on green, blue and white.  My favorite spring colors.

I tried to keep things simple and use only my favorite items that screamed "spring" to me . . . like this blue tool box I scored at a garage sale last summer.  Filled with small plates and a cluster of candles tied together with white ribbon; I love the mix of industrial and pretty.

This shelf I reused an pretty plate, a distressed frame and some greenery. . . .

Along with a new lantern I found at the thrift store.  If you know me at all you'll remember there is always room at my house for another lantern.

These two shelves are a mix of old favorites . . .

Like this tiny bird I've had for years. . .

And new favorites like this cute sign the neighbor picked up for me when she went out of town - Isn't she the sweetest!

There is even a mix of new crafts and old ones.

I painted the garden sign years ago, and placed a old finial in front of it on one side,

And cute birds on the other side.

You may remember the boxwood wreath I made a couple weeks back.  I've balanced it out with two pretty sugar bowls.  I love the contrast between the green and white.

I guess this photo just emphasizes that thought.  I think it's my favorite photo of all the ones I've taken for this post.  I just love all the different shades of white and the dusty tipped green branches. 

**Sigh**

It's so pretty to me.

And of course, last but not least - - another lantern. 

Aren't these little jar tea lights adorable.  I found them at the dollar section of Target.

So there you go.  My springtime hutch.  What do you think?

Robin

Kitchen Shelf Arrangment

Good Morning!

Last week I showed you my new chicken wire frame which I love but at the time the area surrounding it was too cluttered to share.

Today however it's clutter free and I feel the need to document the occasion!  LOL.

Seriously, this nook of the kitchen is a enormous clutter magnet. I'm constantly working on clearing it off. On those few and far between days this spot is actually looking good it's a favorite of mine.

On the counter top I've place a few of my favorite vintage items like the white kitchen scale, a pretty depression glass saucer and a petite creamy white creamer.  The wood phone charging bin I talked about here sits to one side and on the other is is a trio of candles which I like to light once the sun goes down to give the kitchen a pretty glow.

On the shelf above the counter I place a grouping of small pitchers.  The pitcher on the left is one of my all time favorite.  I love it's cracked and stained surface, which I think adds even more charm.

To the left of the shelf, I placed a simple white plate on a stand and then to add a pop of red to the kitchen I placed the cast iron bird.

And in the center, I added a clock.  No vignette seems to be complete without a vintage clock these days.  I used them everywhere.  This particular clock is one of two clocks I have in a creamy white color, so you can imagine how much I love it.

And of course above the shelf is the chicken wire frame I talked about earlier.

The whole arrangement is super simple and easy to put together and so totally me.

However the simplicity, it a spot that makes me simile every time I happen to glance it's way.

So there you go, I've successfully documents this monumental occasion of a clutter free space.  Come tomorrow I can almost guarantee it will be a memory!  LOL

Enjoy your day,

Robin

Linked up to:
Cowgirl Up
Wow Us Wednesday

Framed Chicken Wire

I've long admired the combo of a simple frame and a little chicken wire. 
Kim over at Starshine Chic uses them so nicely on her mantel and every time she shows off a new vignette I tell myself to make one soon. 

A few weeks ago I found myself with a little time to put one together and I had the perfect spot in my kitchen to hang it.

I picked a chippy frame from my stash and rubbed a little black paint along the cracks and edges to make them stand out more.  Then took some sandpaper to the whole thing to scrap off a few big chunks of the white paint for even more distressing.

Next came the chicken wire.  I simply stapled it to the frame as close to the opening as I could just like Kim said to.  I then brushed on some black craft paint all over the chicken wire to help it stand out a little more against my wall color.

Once hung on the wall, I looked around the house for vintage doo-dads to hang inside the frame.  I came up with a postcard, an old photograph picked up at a flea market and a vintage price tag.

The finished project is just what I was hoping for.  Something simple and classic looking with a little vintage to make my heart go pitter patter.

Hope you have a lovely day,

Robin

Linked up to:

White Wednesday

Wow Us Wednesday

DIY Boxwood Wreath

Good Morning!

Hope you all had a restful and enjoyable weekend. The family and I went to the cabin in the woods with Grandma and Grandpa and we had a wonderful time.  It's so nice that the weather is warming up so that we we can get out into the fresh air and enjoy it.  Even got a little tan so I'm not so chicken white anymore - thank goodness!

Today I'd like to share a recent craft project.  I have wanted a boxwood wreath for a long time and have been on the look out for one with not much luck, they just don't seem to be very popular around here.  I did however finally spot a boxwood garland at Micheal's and decided to make my own.

One eight inch foam wreath form, a glue gun, a toothpick and one and half six foot boxwood garland was all I needed.

After trimming the boxwood sprigs down to size, I poked a hole in the wreath form with a toothpick.  Next I put a little hot glue on the boxwood stem and pushed it into the hole made by the toothpick.

Super easy, but time consuming. 

But I love the results.

I think it's the perfect spring time accent to the hutch and I love the pop of green among all the white.

That's it for me today, it looks like it's going to be a beautiful day and I'm planning on playing in the garden as much as possible.

Enjoy your day,

Robin

Linked up to:

Treasure Hunt Thrusday

Primp Your Stuff Wednesday

Show Me What Ya Got

Front Yard Project

In between rain showers this past week, I've started the major landscaping project of the summer.

Removing the rock from the base of the driveway all the way to the corner of the house.  It's slow, dirty work but I can't wait to get it done.  I'm very close.

Here is the final corner that needs to be finished.  You can see where I've started removing the rock.  Bucketful by bucketful.

Here you can see the top layer of rock has been removed and now I just need to dig out the embedded rock with a rake or my hands which seems to be more effective.

I started this project at the end of the driveway and you can see here what it looks like once I've removed all the rocks.

The rocks I've removed have been moved to my sisters house by the bucketful,  my arms and back are screaming at me to stop but I'm happy this stage of the project is almost completed.

The next stage will be much more fun.  Here's a breakdown of what I'll do next.

1. remove the brick along the fence and reposition them to add a planting area at the base of the driveway by the fence.

2. remove the remaining brick and relay them close to the shrubs at the top of the driveway.

3.  add top soil between the two new planting area's and spread grass seed.

4. prep the area around the existing shrubs at the top of the driveway and along the sidewalk to the front door.

5.  Add top soil and compost

6. Lay down landscape fabric

7. Plant two or three new shrubs and some perennial flowers

8.  Top all front yard garden beds with new mulch

Ta-Daaaaa!  Then I'll be done!

It seems like a lot but I think once the bricks are moved around it should go pretty fast.

Talk to you soon,

Robin

Seed Starting

With planting time only six days away, I thought it would be fun to show off all the veggies and flowers I have growing on my sun porch.

This year I used peat pots and basic potting soil and I couldn't be happier with the results.

All the plants are growing well and looking very healthy.

For veggies I have summer squash, snap peas, cucumbers and pumpkins.  I may have over done the pumpkins.  I think there are a total of 16 pumpkin plants in three different sizes of pumpkins (Little Boo, Jack O' Lantern and Casper).  Not sure where I'm going to plant them all but I'm determined not to spend $6 at the grocery store for a single pumpkin come October so I'm hoping for a bumper crop.

I have also started a few other plants like dill, Envy Zinnia, Queen Tequila Lime Zinnia, White Zinnia and Profusion Cherry and Profusion White Zinnia's. 

Love me some Zinnia's!

The larger plants I'll start hardening off this week and hope to be able to plant sometime next week. 

Which requires some time in the garden prepping the beds . . . which I'll have to try to work in around the daily rain showers we've been having here . . . Hmmmm, which might push my planting time back a few days . . . Hmmmm, which is troublesome . . . . .Wish me luck!!!!!

Did you start any seedlings this year?  Would love to hear what planted.

Robin