My Garden Path ~ June

The early summer garden is so fresh! After a long harsh winter in our area, the garden is late and sprinting to catch up - so much changes in just a couple of weeks! Here are some glimpses down my June garden path.

Enjoy and watch for ladybugs!

Our old hose froze and cracked so I replaced it with this fabulous
bright green one - LOVE!!

 

Climbing hydrangea bloomed for the first time last year after about 3 years
from planting.  It's really established itself and is twining around the railing on
the front deck steps, creating a cosy little nook.

Lovely wild ferns I transplanted from the woods, a snow white visitor and
a shady retreat on a hot summer day.

Some views of my garden shed (see last summer's redecorating project here http://wildwomanjewelry.blogspot.ca/2014/08/garden-shed-project-redecorate-reveal.html )
and the garden beside our garage.

Sweet lilacs, charming bleeding heart and finally, a clump of delicate Solomon's Seal.

Virginia Creeper climbs over a trellis made by hubs, blooming rhubarb and pretty
peach daisies in a flower box!

Blue iris about to POP and chives that literally bloomed overnight.

Symphony in the Garden Shed

 I spent an hour yesterday practicing and playing my ukulele in my newly renovated little garden retreat -  it was lovely! And, playing it has been so much fun this summer.  Other family members play guitar, Sophie and I on ukulele and lots of singers have lead to many 'jam' sessions in our dining room and on the deck...we may have to take this show on the road :)

xo!

Garden Shed 'Project Redecorate' ~ The Reveal!

...finally!

 

 It took much longer to complete than I originally planned

but I LOVE it!!!!

 Here is a link to the 'Befores'

http://wildwomanjewelry.blogspot.ca/2014/07/day-1-garden-shed-redecorating-project.html 

and here is

'The Reveal'!

 

Here it is! My own little garden retreat fresh again! On the exterior, hubs leveled the whole shed, replaced the screen in the door and added new wide cedar trim around the doorway.  I painted all the trim and the flower box, cleaned up the garden and stuff around the shed and got a colorful zigzag mat for the entrance.

 

The trim is called Coastal Beige and the orangey-yellow is Honey Locust.  All the paint is Behr. I also 'pruned' my collection of rusty garden antiques for a cozy but less cluttered, junky look :).
 

My wrought iron table and chairs got a coat of rust resistant black spray paint.

 

The entire interior of the shed was painted - Coastal Beige on the walls and ceiling, Soothing Spring on the window frames, floor 'tiles' and some of the furniture and Citronella on the rafters and door.  My little table is ready again for writing, journaling, garden planning and daydreaming! The ice cream parlor chairs came from Quebec and received a fresh coat of white spray paint - they are waiting for new wood seats (hubs promised!) and are a sweet perch for guests.

 

A comfy wicker rocker is a peaceful spot for reading, a cup of tea, ukulele playing and snugging with our kitty!

...just for me!

I corralled my collections of birdhouses, watering cans and assorted garden bits on a couple of new shelves in the rafters.  I can see and enjoy them all but they are no longer all over the floor - yay!

I printed and framed a couple of my own photographs with inspirational quotes and placed them on the old medicine chest which also got a coat of white spray paint. Fresh garden flowers finish the vignette.

 

Window Box close-up.





I loved this color so much I painted the window boxes on the garage too!

 I'm so excited! I'm going to play my ukulele here this afternoon!

xo

 

Garden Shed 'Project Redecorate' ~ Day 4

 

I know this is bright ...

Stay with me :)

Day 1 - Garden Shed Redecorating Project

Day 1

Ethel and I spent a couple of hours yesterday in my garden shed taking some 'before' photos, inspecting and assessing its condition, necessary repairs, what to keep and what to toss (ok, I did most of the work while she sniffed the corners and scratched the table legs and rake handles).

The 'Befores'

 

 

 

A good sweeping to clear out all the webs, garden soil and pine needles ensued along with stacking everything off to one side...this weekend, the plan is to thoroughly clean all the walls and ceiling, scrape loose paint and toss/recycle anything not going back in.

 



I might have bought a yellow pillow today...but you'll have to wait to see that :)

My Garden Shed and Fresh Inspiration

About 10 or 12 years ago, hubs built me the most delightful garden shed.  I've LOVED it and spent hours there potting, reading, writing and enjoying my garden.  You can see some pics from this post in 2009 ( http://wildwomanjewelry.blogspot.ca/2009/06/garden-shed.html ).

 

 

In the last couple of years, I've kind of let it go, using it mostly to store garden furniture, tools and empty pots for the winter. Hubs says it looks rustic.  I say it looks like one flower box fell off the window. It's been such a mess and needed such a thorough clean up (read LOTS of time!) that I've just given it a lick and a polish in the spring and kept the door closed.

But I've missed it.

 

Fast forward to this past weekend...we took our annual jaunt to Bar Harbor (which was lovely and full of its notable quaint seaside charm!).  Saturday morning we walked down to the pier after breakfast to enjoy the water, boats and watch some local lobster fishermen setting out for the day. At one point I noticed a shingled building I hadn't seen before (we've visited for 24 years in a row and I notice these things :)... anyway, it was lovely and we wandered down to have a closer look. 

 

 

 It was a new section of one of the hotels that included several charming little shingled 'sheds' that were colorfully painted and gorgeous with overflowing window boxes.  Housed within were unique shops selling beautiful art, home décor and linens, and every manner of beautiful seaside decorative items.

I was giddy...

so giddy I forgot to take pictures.

 

And I was excited! Flooded with inspiration and enthusiasm, I thought of my own little neglected shed! I've already been to the paint store for a stack of color samples... and if I wasn't raining today and I didn't have orders I have to fill, I'd be out there right NOW!!!

 

      

                                                        

 

 My head is full of ideas for cleaning, updating, tossing, furniture, decorating, painting...and I'll post all the before and afters if you want to follow along!

Stay tuned!

The Garden Shed

Well...I finally mucked out the garden shed this weekend! In the summer, my bitty shed is one of life's little luxuries ~ a spot of my own filled with my garden tools, treasures, a comfy chair for reading and an old table for writing, garden planning or just enjoying! In the winter it is the storehouse for all the garden furniture, junk, pots, benches....and it is a mess! So, Saturday dawned sunny and perfect for clearing out the crap and bringing order and prettiness to my little summer spot.

One of the funniest things about it all is when I first described what I wanted this shed to look like to my husband, Peter, the builder, it sounded very much like an old chicken coop. In fact, I supported my description with various photos of old chicken coops made into charming garden sheds...well, I have to admit, I'm not really one for chickens, and it evolved into this sweet oasis in the garden. He still says it's the best looking chicken coop in the county! Next came the bed of flowers beside it and several wheelbarrows full of flat rocks from the beach for the little patio. It's taken about three years to complete but it was worth it! I'm writing this post from the little table inside right now ~ wireless internet is a wonderful thing!

My 'work' table!

Down the garden path...

The shed garden and stone patio... the bench in the distance is a pew from an old church that was being torn down a ways down the road.

Welcome!

From the garden gate...

Inside the shed and looking out the front window...