WELL, HELLO THERE!

First of all..... Happy Father's Day to all you dads out there!

My dad passed away many years ago, but my living in a house that he built does keep me connected to him in a daily sort of way.  Though he didn't have a fondness for gardening or yard work, he did appreciate handcrafted objects, as he was a craftsman, himself.  My dad whittled this little creation from a wooden dowel.

©Linda Nelson 2017

He would often do this when he came home from work while waiting for dinner to be ready.  My mom has a whole collection of things he whittled over the years.

I have about another week or two of a demanding work schedule, and then I'll be able to come up for air...... sort of.  Next, will be catching up in my own yard and home.  I've yet to vacuum and dust May's delivery of pollen, and many areas in my yard need some serious tending to.  However, this spot, which I get to view every time I pull into the driveway, is looking to my satisfaction.

©Linda Nelson 2017

My front yard is currently awash in yellow blooms, but, in no time, other flowering plants will come into play and become an orchestra of color.  Yay!

©Linda Nelson 2017

©Linda Nelson 2017

This shell is yet another treasure my daughter schlepped from California to give permanent residence to at my home.  I love it!  And, there's no potted sedum that ever disappoints me.  At the end of the season when I empty and store all of my glazed pottery, I simply pop the sedum into the ground, then repot it the following spring.

©Linda Nelson 2017

Well, it certainly felt good to steal a moment to post a little something.  I do miss being connected with all the home decor, crafty and garden bloggers out there.

Enjoy this gorgeous day!

CRAZY FOR WING

I love visiting my friend at Wing Cottage, and some visits, such as the one this past weekend, was completely devoted to working in her garden.  Yes, I'm crazy enough to commute three hours to a job site.  But, look at what I get to take in on the way.

©Linda Nelson 2017

©Linda Nelson 2017

©Linda Nelson 2017

A dose of bucolic scenery really does wonders for the soul.  And, seeing hay rolls always amuses me.
They remind me of giant beef braciole.

©Linda Nelson 2017

My friend and I dubbed this planting bed the "Linda Garden".  Over the past few years I've been restoring it from a neglected, haphazard mess, to an eyeful of charming, unpretentious order.  I'm not sure why the previous owner was moved to layering this garden bed with black plastic film and rocks, but doing so certainly made for quite the renovation project for me.  I look forward to my friend sending me a photo of it a month or two from now when it will be in all its blooming fabulousness.

©Linda Nelson 2017

I've never seen lily of the valley plants as lovely and lush as on this property.  They really do thrive here.

©Linda Nelson 2017

And now, for some "art" that occupies this residence, courtesy of my friend's beau, who loves to sculpt with whatever he manages to find during his oddity foraging adventures.......

©Linda Nelson 2017

©Linda Nelson 2017

And, that's the latest scoop from Wing Cottage.

 

'TIS THE SEASON.......

April has all but come and gone, and I have done nothing other than eat, sleep and breathe everything related to gardening.  It's a very critical period during my work season, and when I'm not tending to my clients' gardens, I'm tending my own.  It's been well over a month since I've posted anything or visited any blogs for reading pleasure.  No linky parties, no Google+ scrolling........ nada.  However, I managed to muster just enough energy to post four photos.

Here's a new addition to my garden tchotchkes.  This little guy drove all the way across the states from California.  He used to live with my daughter.  Now he lives with me.  I hope his creepy little smirk scares the rabbits out of my vegetable garden.

©Linda Nelson 2017

Doronicum is in full bloom.  A cheery little plant, no?

©Linda Nelson 2017

I'm not one for cooking, let alone making leek soup.  But, I sure do love growing leeks for their pom-pom-ish flowers.  I should have a nice crop by June.

©Linda Nelson 2017

And, last but not least, these hostas are ones that my mom planted before I was born.  They're not exactly what I'd seek out to purchase; it's their sentimental value that permits them in my garden.

©Linda Nelson 2017

Now it's time for bed, and for dreaming about weeding, planting and pruning.

Nighty-night.

MY FAILED EGG HUNT

Do you ever have an item pictured in your mind, then set out to purchase it, only to find that it doesn't seem to exist, or is simply not available?  My sister and I have occasionally mused about this subject, be it about a piece of furniture, clothing, the go-with-everything basic and non complicated handbag......  What ever it may be, it's frustrating when you search the internet beyond exhaustion or comb every local store, and what you're looking for just isn't there.

Well, that's how I felt about some decorative props I had in mind for a client.  I recall, and I know I didn't dream it, that the big box-type stores sold jumbo plastic lawn eggs.  I've seen them before, I'm certain.  They're the tackiest things going on at this time of year, and are in the same family as plastic flamingos and garden gnomes.  No, my client does not like such things; however I was planning on using them as forms for making giant concrete eggs.  My client would most certainly love that..... and so would I.

FYI, jumbo plastic lawn eggs are available online from

Miles Kimball; however, at this time, they're on back order.

The other vision in my head happened to be colossal-sized dimensional wire eggs, perhaps topiary forms?  An internet search including the most logical key words provided no such luck.

Now what?

I've since drawn up another idea for my client.  However, for myself, I've taken matters into my own hands.... literally.

©Linda Nelson 2017

I picked up a 7" plastic goodie egg and a package of traditional "egg hunting" eggs from the local dollar store and used them as molds for my concrete "recipe".  I'm pleased with the way they turned out; however, the seams from the plastic eggs clearly showed up on the surface of the concrete.  I buffed the seam lines out as best as I could.

For the wire form egg, I grabbed a piece of chicken wire I had on hand, donned my heavy-duty leather gloves and got to work.

©Linda Nelson 2017

I like the way it turned out, do you? I used floral wire to reinforce and secure the egg's shape.  Too bad I didn't have any more chicken wire; I would have either made more of them, or would have just made this one much, much larger.  Well, I now will certainly be on the hunt for curbside, discarded rolls of chicken wire.  The painted egg is concrete.

These props are not eggs-actly what I was envisioning, but I'm not disappointed with my efforts.

I'm no stranger to creative ingenuity, but purchasing "right off the rack", or in this case, "right out of the nest", would have been nice.

Thanks for stopping by!