Veggie Garden Flower Pot Wreath

Hey you all! What a day yesterday was...

Storms most of the day. Hail, (marble to ping pong size), lightening and anywhere from 5-9 inches of rain in about a 3 hour period. All the blooms on my plants were ripped off, and my hydrangeas that I have marveled over and pampered are in a heap on the ground. I'm just hoping they will survive somewhat intact. Our yard looks like a shredder has been through the trees with leaves covering everything. The pool wasn't flooded with mud, but it is filled with tons of oak leaves, sticks and small branches. Thank the Good Lord, no tornadoes. I'm hoping that today we can get out and clean up the mess.

Another kind of bad news is that a lightening strike took out the modem for my big computer that is my workhorse. So it will be a few days of pinch hitting here on my laptop that I keep in the kitchen. It's not set up with any of my photo storage, links, or my email. I'll be blogging with one arm tied behind my back. Hope you all will understand if things are sparse around here. I'm just glad I can post at all.

I did have these photos in draft for a blog post, so I'm sharing them with you today. In last week's post of the Vintage Wheelbarrow Tablescape  I used some vintage French seed packet labels for tags that could be used for guest seating place cards, and then some cute little flowerpot napkin rings. I've been wanting to do a flower pot wreath since last year when they went wild over on Pinterest. I know several of you gals have done them recently, so hope you don't mind if I'm a copy cat.

I just used gardener's twine to attach the flower pots and then filled them with moss. The base is an old grape vine wreath I'd had out in the garage for a few years. I thought about putting faux daisies and other flowers in the pots, but in the end with the veggie tags it was much too "busy".

Sorry these photos are a little blurry. I was using my big lens and didn't realize they were fuzzy until after I'd already hung the wreath up, and then by that time I had put away the step ladder and cleaned up my mess.

Here are the vintage French seed packet labels attached to the tags, 

from the tablescape post.

and then one of my whitewashed flower pots that was holding silverware.

Here's the wreath hanging above the sideboard;

I'll show you the rest of the "recycled veggie wheelbarrow" 

that's now on the sideboard, soon...

I've looked through Pinterest, and love all the different flower pot wreaths, but this was the only one I'd seen done in whitewashed pots. And you know me, I love me some whitewashed, chippy anything.

Hope you have a wonderful Sunday, 

and that you're weather is better than mine.

joining in on these parties:

Blitzed on Pinterest at Debbie-doos

Met Monday at Between Naps on the Porch

Amaze Me Monday at Dwellings

Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm

Tweak it Tuesday at Cozy Little House

The Scoop at Cedar Hill Ranch

Knick of Time Tuesday

Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

Homework at The Everyday Home

The Shabby Creek Cottage

TTT at Stone Gable

The Charm of Home

French Country Cottage

Shabby Art Boutique

Rooted in Thyme

Craftberry Bush

Oh, and Happy Father's Day to all you wonderful guys out there!

we love you.

xoxo,

Organizing the Potting Bench and other backyard business...

This cold Spring has really put me behind in getting things cleaned up and functional outdoors. It's been the "domino effect" around here with chores and projects. Get the yard people out to do the Spring "clean-up" and shrub trimming, then a big job of painting our pool deck which my sis and nephew helped me do. I can't do much more until we open the pool, which is usually around Mother's Day. (If it doesn't warm up it might be the 4th of July!) Then, all the real work (and fun) will start.

So... under the deck, where we house all our patio furniture, (and the potting bench) looks a little like a bunch of homeless hillbillies have been taking up winter residence. But I did manage to get the potting bench scrubbed down and put in a little bit of order.

I'm just getting started, and I'm looking forward to a visit to the nursery for some cheery blooms. But right now the potting bench is just a clean slate, emphasis on "clean". Hubbs and I put this together a couple of years ago. I'd been looking for ways to create a place to organize my flower pots, plantings, garden tools, and soil storage. I ended up with this great worktable that had been used for a tool bench and an old bookshelf. I properly "married them", and it's been fun having everything organized together within easy reach.

In lieu of purchased plants, I did find a small patch of wild violets along the fence to use as a stand-in until I can get my hands on some storebought blooms.

just a sweet little gift from nature in an old McCoy planter

Here's my vintage garden cart that I also put together a couple of years ago. I just love creeping phlox, but I've never been able to keep it going in a bed or border. I'm not sure why, maybe not enough water throughout the year, but in here it's taken off like gangbusters.

This little area will get more attention when the white garden chair gets decked out with geraniums and some other annuals join in on the fun. It's still a little bare around here, especially since we've hovered around 32 degrees several times this last week.

Here it is when I first planted it two years ago. My husband had threatened to haul it out to the curb for the trash man if I didn't do something useful with it.

How could you pitch this little garden cutie?

OK, sometimes we don't ask those rhetorical questions,

for fear of an honest answer...

I'm really looking forward to have the time to get everything in shape.
Next to Fall, this is my favorite time of the year...
Has the weather been cooperating with your outdoor plans?

joining in for these parties:

Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style
Swing Into Spring at DIY by Design
Open House Party at No Minimalist Here
Transformation Thursday at The Shabby Creek Cottage
Tips and Tutorials at Stone Gable
French Country Cottage
The Charm of Home
Rooted in Thyme
Jennifer Rizzo
From My Front Porch to Yours
Amaze Me Monday at Dwellings

xoxo,

Make Your Own Vintage Seed Box

Vintage garden goods have always been a favorite of mine. Give me some old hand tools, a wicker floral basket, flower pots, and some vintage seed packets, and I'm a happy girl.

If you're into vintage at all, you likely know and share my love for vintage Seed Boxes. Even if you're not a gardener, the wonderful graphics that advertise the individual Seed Manufacturers will grab you, and soon you'll be on the hunt for these prized collectibles.

And that brings me to my post today...

where to find these treasures and then...

finding them at affordable prices.

I mentioned making our own Seed Boxes several weeks ago, but with all the out-of-town Ear Specialist visits for my hubby, anything DIY had to be put on the back burner. When I put this Easter display together my boxes were setting nearby; they've been waiting patiently for their makeovers.

In the past, many products came housed in a wooden box. Cigars, teas, and a number of other items could be purchased in bulk, contained in amazingly well crafted wooden displays. I think the boxes I found for this project might all be cigar boxes from the late 1800's, to the 1940's, but each one under $12. Much less than any Seed Box out there...

Authentic Seed Display Boxes run anywhere from $100 to $400 depending on their condition, rarity, and inside graphics. I have two vintage ones that I treasure and use from Spring to Fall in my vignettes, but they are getting harder and harder to find. Even ones in poor condition with no color graphics will set you back a pretty penny. Here's where we can come up with an almost exact "look" for literally a few dollars.

I'm a paper hoarder, and sometimes wonder why I keep all the stuff that I do. If it's antique or vintage ephemera, or even looks like it, it will go into my stash. I love calenders and for the last several years I've purchased ones that are reproduction images of Seed Catalogues. So I chose to use these reproduction images for my Seed Display Box makeovers.

As you can see the dimensions weren't quite large enough, so I decided to add on to the sides to give it more of a complete look.

I cut out pages of a reproduction ledger journal for the months of March and April. I have some old ledgers, but wanted a heavier stock of paper.

So here it is after I Mod Podged it all on the back.

Such a beautiful day on the sunporch.

Gotta show the helpers...

 Why is it that cats want to lay directly ON your project?

OK, back to work, now on a smaller box...

The outer lid of this one was pretty scratched up, so I used some "Old English" furniture polish on it and it cleaned up pretty well. I thought of painting it, but the original seed boxes were all wood, not painted. 

Since I had flowers on the larger one, I wanted veggies for this smaller one.

I used the calender graphics, but if you do a search on Etsy you can find tons of old Seed Box and Seed Packet images that can be used. The Graphics Fairy is another site where you can download your own, just make sure you have a heavier paper stock.

This is the third one I wanted to transform, but I wanted something with more ""Fall-ish" colors, so I could use it with Bittersweet and pumpkins later in the season.

Isn't this little garden-girl adorable?

I wish I could have used more of her image,

 but I wanted the "Burpee's" name to show.

Now you're ready to style your boxes and vignettes...

Have fun with this.

 I'd love for you to let me know

 if you try making your own "Vintage" Seed Boxes.

I think I might have started another "obsession"...

Also, don't forget that The Marketplace is live all week, so check back in to see new items being listed. Just scroll down to the previous post.

 Joining in on these parties this week:

Debbie's Pin Party at Debbie-doos
Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style
Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson
Open House Party at No Minimalist Here
TTT at Stone Gable
The Shabby Creek Cottage
Treasure Hunt at From My Front Porch to Yours
The Charm of Home
French Country Cottage

Redoux Interiors
Inspiration Gallery at Craftberry Bush
Romantic Home Show and Tell
Mod Mix Monday at Mod Vintage Life
Between Naps on the Porch

xoxo,

A good hare day on the sunporch...

I don't want to talk about what's outside at the moment, except to say there's nothing Spring-y about it. These last few days have been gray and snowy and altogether yucky. I bought some tulips, daffodils, and hyacinths last week that I was wanting to get planted, but forget it...they will have to wait until the snow goes away. So I'm choosing to boost my Springtime thoughts with what's going on out here on the sunporch.

 Yep, it's definitely Spring on the Sunporch!

Decorating out here always starts with different seasonal quilts.

Changing them out gets me in the mood for whatever the season may be.

 Then layering on the pillows, and bringing out the fun vintage goodies...

I'm not really a "blue" person, 

but this wonderful floral quilt has me almost there.

It was from my mother-in-law's stash

 that I think was from her mom back in the 40's.

I have the tail end of the paperwhites in that little USA yellow planter

and I've been browsing through my vintage Better Homes and Garden binder.

I can always count on it looking warm and Spring-like out here,

even if the outside temps don't agree.

This is another favorite quilt of mine in the Tumbling Block pattern.

My white paper mache buns is sitting 

on the little green chair from when I was a baby.

We won't talk about how old that rickety little chair actually is...

Vintage pink rabbit planter, birdie tin, and seed packets...

Hey, an old chalkware chicken is even roosting out here.

One more chance for snow this evening,

and then I hope we're done!

Just a housekeeping note...

I've just added the Bloglovin' follow option to my sidebar. If you haven't tried it yet, let me say it's my new favorite. It's so super easy and you can import all your favorite blogs that you follow from Google Reader at one click, not individually. I've actually been using it this week, and it's better than the old method. So if you're a follower, I'd love you to click and follow me there. You can get set up in half a minute! 

 joining in for these parties this week:

The Dedicated House for Make it Pretty Monday

TTT at A Stroll Thru Life

Between Naps on the Porch
Tweak it Tuesday at Cozy Little House
Nifty Thrifty Tuesday at Coastal Charm
The Scoop at Cedar Hill Ranch
Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

Hope you're having a wonderful weekend,