Weekend

We had a busy weekend. We were out of town all day Saturday- fun but tiring.  Sunday was spent doing some yard work and doing little house projects.  Our last major front yard project was to deal with the hill of bushes, John spent hours chainsawing and pulling up bushes. Not totally done yet- hope to have a photo by the end of the week.

Chester was a big help.

What did you do this weekend?

A La Cart

While I was busy painting the outdoor tables and chairs, I heard the saw going.  John had decided we needed an outdoor bar.  I wasn't sure if we needed a bar, but it certainly would be helpful to have a prep, serving and storage space for grilling and summer-time entertaining.

We added casters so it could really be multi-functional. 

Three hooks and a bottel opener are nice additional features.

 That white hose is a special potable hose, so that it is safe to drink from.  It is the same hoses as on RV's.  The flower pot is to catch excess water.

I've asked a for a swim-up bar to be the next project.

Getting Started

 We hosted last day of school party for my school.  Since we are lucky enough to have a pool, this was obviously going to be a pool party.  Our outdoor furniture was definitely not party ready.

The two adirondack sets were a deal from the Christmas Tree Store in 2008 (see more here).  And I still loved them, but I've always wanted them to match and the paint was badly peeling.

       

 
 These metal tables were left by the pervious owners.

I spent a couple days sanding and painting.  FIY- the chairs were a pain to paint- so many nooks and crannies. Next time I would use spray paint.

Chester provided the entertainment. 

Both chairs and foot rests became a high gloss white. 

All 4 tables (2 round metal and 2 square wood) turned green.

Ready to party!

What summer gatherings have you enjoyed?

Getting Ready For The Season

Oh, my-where have I been?!  A whole month flew by without a post- opps.  I've been up to a lot (not blogging clearly), so I have much to share in the coming weeks...get excited!

One thing we've been busy doing is working on our curb appeal.  Chester has found a new way to help with the gardening.




And we John spent a week getting the pool ready.  Our holiday weekend plans are to lay around the pool- Chester is already enjoying it.  (he was so excited to have it open again, he has been doing nightly laps)

How are you spending the three day weekend?  

Whatever you do- have fun and stay safe!

Blooms

Our Clematis is blooming!  And it is slowly being trained and climbing the post.

Have a great weekend!

Front Yard

Before I share all the projects my mom and I completed, I need to show off some of John's hard work. A few weeks ago, I shared this "teaser" image. 

This is the exterior of our house as seen last spring.  The two sides are mirror images.

Early this spring John removed 8 bushes/trees from our yard, so we had a blank slate.

Notice the changes?  One thing that never changes- can't get Chester to move out of picture.  

We hung new shutters- they are a different color (black instead of white) and the panel style (we had the slates before) and are correctly sized.  We also replanted the front beds. 

I hope everything grows fast!!  The poor ivy is almost dwarfed by the flowers!

The bed on the right side is longer, which is why it has the evergreen at the end (see photo above) but otherwise they are identical.  Next to the steps are dwarf albert spruces then two Korean boxwoods and finally variegated holly.  In front of the bushes are purple creeping phlox.    

How is your yard work going?

These Happy Changes

Last week I showed off a few of our curb appeal projects and Monday I hinted at few "in-progress" projects.  We had been itching to tackle these projects since we moved in last year, but it just wasn't a priority last spring. So when we sat down to make our "to-do list" a few weeks ago, it was a quick process.

*this photo list does not include all the landscaping to be done

What yard work are you tackling this year?

The Post

Yesterday I showed off our new outdoor lights.

But we gave the lamppost some special attention as well.  Since we've moved in, I have hated that post.  I dislike the metal (and it's rusty state), I really dislike the ornate scrolly features but I HATE the bowed-tapered shape (I know that sounds impossible but it is true).  Before John added the new light, I used a metal brush attachment for the drill to clean it off. Next it got a fresh coat of Rustoleum Hammered Dark Brozen paint.  

That helped the color (and rust situation) and nicely matches the "aged iron" finish of the light fixtures. Of course, does nothing for the shape.  While you can buy replacement posts, I knew I wanted a flowering vine to go up the post, so in fact this post is "perfect".  

We selected the Clematis Crystal.

Not mine- source 

I just hope my grows quickly and is easy to train.

Lighting Our Way

We are revamping our front yard this year....like totally re-doing it.  Over the weekend John has pulled out 8 bushes/trees.  Now we have to start replacing what's been yanked out.

This afternoon we worked out changing out the lighting.  We have one wall-mounted light next to the door and lamp post further down the walk.

Before:

This is from last spring- see those cheap, granny looking railings?  They have also been pulled out. 

After:

Question-  This is the 7in fixture....is it too small or in-proportional????   It also comes in 9in option but that doesn't have the motion sensory feature.  Should I switch it out?

Lamppost before:

During:

After:

What did I do while John was switching out light fixtures? 

Spray painting. Our house is up on a hill, so there are a second set steps leading down to the sidewalk and it's railing had seen better days.

Before:

After: 

Hard to get a decent photo of that spot, but the paint makes a big difference-looks a lot less trashy now.  And yes, I got paint on the plants but those plants will be gone in a few weeks.

While I was at it, I used the Rustoleum dark brozen hammered paint on the lamp post. I'll share what else I did to the post tomorrow. 

What did you do this weekend?

Less is totally MORE!

Sum times subtraction, is actually really addition.  Are you surprised that I teach math?

Let me explain, remember awhile back how we pulled the metal awning off the front of the house? And it made a huge difference and revealed some great molding.   
Well, these people loved the look of rusty tin- there was another awning over the picture window in the kitchen. Last week, with the help of some great friends, that baby was yanked out.

 

Does it look so much nicer?  Even in it's dirty state, it looks better- simple and clear.  The backyard now looks larger too.

Taming Our Yard- part 1

We had a very busy, productive and expensive weekend.  While I'm a bit sore and stiff, it was worth it- we got a major task cross off my "May To-Do List".....taming the front yard.

Before- over grown, messy, lots of weeds, not at all pretty or friendly 

Our supervisor~

The plan: there is a lot I want to change about the yard's landscaping-things that need to removed, and things I'd like to add.  But....I want to give the landscaping a full year to see what blooms.  And I need time to plan, research and honestly would rather spend money on furniture right now.   

So for this year the plan is simple- weed and trim what is present in the yard, fill in with mulch, and plant annuals, veggies and herbs. Basically, care for what is here but neither add or remove permanent plants.

By 7:00 Sunday evening ("done" for this year)

What's left looks so puny and sad, but neat.  Do the two window boxes look tacky/cheap? 

I know, not very shapely, but at least they aren't overwhelmingly bushy.

                              

There weren't any extra long boxes, and I didn't feel like taking the time to build any.  Inside: 3 different annuals- more photos after they bloom. Each of the front windows has the same "design".

Yup- the clean, simple, pretty, well price Ikea pots at use.  I just hope the flowers grow and fill in okay.

By the end of our second day of work all three of us were ready to lay down and chill out.