How Does My Garden Grow....

I grew up with two grandmothers that each had beautiful - but different - gardens. My grandmother (Millie) in Ohio had a garden in her backyard that was a carefully sectioned plot made of railroad ties. It wasn't huge but she grew so many beautiful plants in neat rows. I remember visiting as a child and I would go with her to pull vegetables and weeds in the mornings before the sun was too hot. My grandfather would take me out in the afternoons and we would eat tomatoes like hand fruit with some sprinkled salt - something I still do to this day. Towards the end of summer my grandmother would spend a couple days in the kitchen to can tomatoes, beans, corn and more.

My grandmother in Greece still has a huge garden in an empty section of an olive grove near our village. It's wild, seemingly without much planning in mind, but she grows the best tomatoes you have ever tasted - probably the best vegetables, period. Everything is grown organically and the nutritious volcanic soil of Crete gives the produce a full, delicious flavor that - to my knowledge - can't be replicated anywhere else. I honestly cannot exaggerate how good everything is. When I'm visiting my husband we always leave saying, "We need to eat more greek village salads and fresh vegetables when we get home." Then we get home and feel let down.

Because of these precious memories of summers with my grandmothers, I have always tried to at least grow some tomatoes. Three years ago I started doing Square Foot Gardening. Elliott built a 16 sq ft box and I also use pots. The first year was pretty good. Last year was shameful. I had a newborn and just didn't have the energy to keep up with everything. 


This year has been the best year yet. I spend time almost every day puttering around in my garden - weeding, watering, fertilizing, trimming and doing battle with bugs that want to undo all my hard work. It's a great little stress reliever when Evie is napping. I am growing tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, arugula, strawberries, eggplant, three kinds of peppers, beans, carrots, onions, okra and a bunch of herbs. I'm excited to see all the baby fruit on my plants and I took a few pictures to share. :)


Eggplant Flower and Baby Eggplant
  Tomatoes Crookneck Squash Okra Cucumber Pepper plant with my nemesis - aphids. Tomato Plants Beans Strawberry Flowers
 

The Vintage Modern Nursery

Over the past couple weeks I have gotten several requests for nursery projects. I've been on Pinterest looking for some inspiration and it has really given me nursery fever! I absolutely adore Evie's room (and after all the work Elliott did, he would never let me change it) but it has been so much fun to look at all the wonderful ideas out there. It's probably a really good thing that I hadn't discovered Pinterest before she was born or I would have been overwhelmed with all the options.


Here are some of my favorites that have beautiful painted pieces in the design. Enjoy!

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I ♥ Red.

Here are after and before pictures of the red table I just put in my shop. I used a basic Rustoleum red oil paint after thoroughly roughing up the laminate surface. It's a good starter oil paint that has great basic colors. Be sure to add a little paint thinner or Penetrol before using - with the EPA regulations that have been passed, oil paints are not as self-leveling as they were before.

Red is my favorite color and I love the deep glossy sheen and how it has a slightly Asian feel without being overwhelming. I think it would look great in a modern or contemporary room. It could even work in a traditional room that needs a pop of color.

Before:

Happy Father's Day!

I hope everyone has had a wonderful day! 

Father's Day 2012

Father's Day 2011 

Sun Kissed Headboard

After a teeny bit of frustration, I finally finished this headboard and I am so excited about the way it turned out. I love all white bedding and I can imagine it would look amazing in a room with the bright pop of yellow. Of course there are so many prints in contrasting colors that would also look wonderful.....how to decide?


Anyway, it's late, I've been chasing a one year old and I'm pretty tired so I'll keep it short and sweet: The paint is Benjamin Moore's Sun Kissed Yellow with Martha Stewart's Glass of Milk on the trim. Available now in the shop.


Here are the after and before's.

Evie Turns One

Evie turned one in May of this year and I am super late posting about the party. As I was planning and stressing every detail (because that's what I do) Elliott said to me, "You realize she is turning one, right?" Of course I know she won't remember a thing about the party but I really wanted it to be special. We made it through our first year of being parents - isn't that reason enough to celebrate in a big way?


The theme was Vintage Circus and it was so nostalgic and easy to do without having to purchase half of Party City.


I found a printable package from Etsy and, with the help of my sister, printed and cut almost all the decorations. I will be honest - this took the patience of a saint and slight OCD tendencies to accomplish. Each ridge on those popcorn boxes is hand cut. I also made pink and green cake stands with spray paint and some dishes and candleholders I found at Goodwill. 


For the food I ordered popcorn, kettle corn and cotton candy to be delivered the day before. I filled jars with nostalgic candy and they looked so pretty on the table. I made the cake and cupcakes with the wrappers and matching bunting and we had a simple "circus" meal of hot dogs, chips and potato salad with all the fixings.


I did paint an antique wooden high chair for her outdoor "smash cake" pictures and I couldn't be happier with the way it turned out. I wanted to do something a little nicer than her regular high chair in the kitchen and this was perfect.


For details on the where and how, visit my pinterest page HERE.


Now for the photo bomb!