Oh, how I love yard work!

Hope you all had a great weekend! Happy Martin Luther King Day!

This past weekend was a pretty productive weekend. Chris and I spent both days working in the yard. Not my favorite thing to do, but it was much needed. 

Before- Help me!

We opted to do-it-ourselves and put the money towards other things. It can be so easy to take the easy route and  pay someone to do the dirty work. Believe me..we were really tempted to do just that. But we soon realized, you can't hire someone to do every project you need done, or you'll eventually go broke. 

So, Chris and I dug along. He did the brunt of the digging up of previous plants, stumps, rocks, etc. on Saturday. On Sunday, we finished the job by laying down compost, pete moss, and garden soil. After a hard days work and a couple garden snakes later (2 to be exact and not tiny, ewwwww), we have a clean slate now and the front is ready for some pretty shrubbery. 

After- All ready for new plants!

Can't wait to finish this project up hopefully in the next couple weeks. Looking to add some Japanese junipers and who knows what else. Definitely want to add a Buddha or Pagoda possibly. It will be very Zen like. 

Love this look- Image via google

Japanese Junipers

Feelin Blue Deodar Cedar

Have a great week!!

Dressing up your door for Fall

It's a beautiful time of the year! I love this crisp weather and all that comes with it..pumpkins, mums, fall wreaths..the beautiful colors.

Decorating up your front porch is a must this time of year! I visited Lowe's and picked up some great plants for the front porch over the weekend. I also had this architectural column I thought would be great for the space. It's a  great addition to the vignette. Added some well needed height.

Happy Decorating! Enjoy this beautiful weather.

Rocking Along

It's been a fun filled day thus far this lovely Friday morning. The DMV has had me waiting almost two hours. Luckily my trips to the DMV are few and far between.

On a more enjoyable note, I wanted to share my latest project with you and show you some before and afters. It's such beautiful time of year and a great time to spruce up the backyard. I know for me, I'm looking forward to many BBQ's and being with friends.

I've had these rockers given to me years ago and they never tire. They've gone through some wear and tear (as you can see). These are some before's I captured. With so many coats of paint throughout the years, it was time for some sanding. Very simple to do. Just make sure you wear a mask.

{In need of some TLC}

{Side table before}

All you need is a simple sander, stain, and some spray paint.

I chose a brighter green (Leafy Green) in satin and put on a light Lacquer to finish them off. I like the Satin over the Flat!

Viola...several hours later, here are the after's. 

{Stained it a black finish}

{Makes a cozy sitting place}

{Also spray painted this table yellow and bought some new outdoor yellow pillows to tie it together}

This is my next project for the backyard. I'm going to sand this one down and finish it off with some teak oil.

Have a great weekend!!

So "Succulent"

I've been wanting to buy some succulents for a ceramic pot I bought recently. Succulents are very "hot" right now and I've heard are pretty easy to grow. You can see them at Restoration Hardware and they are gorgeous.

{Image via vignettedesign.blogspot.com/}

                             

So today, I decided to try my hand at planting some succulents I picked up at Home Depot. They carry lots of varieties so I bought a few. I wanted to make sure I got enough to make my display look full. Hopefully they grow out nicely. Will be interesting to see how they do. 

{Several different varieties}

{Fill up 1/3 of dirt in pot}

Tip: Also, just a little tip I've learned when planting in containers and pots. Once you take the plant out of plastic, break up the roots real good and soak those in water. I typically dunk the roots in water for a few seconds and then place them in the dirt. Also, when planting in containers, you don't have to be afraid to plant flowers close to each other. The closer the better and I've had lots of luck with my containers doing it that way. 

{Always a good choice}

{Viola}

Will take additional pictures in a month or so to show you how pretty they've got (I hope).

Make it a good day!