Home Wong Nga and Black Cty: June 2012

Saturday, June 30, 2012

Link Love No.80!

I had a relaxing yet pretty productive day. I have been working on a tutorial and some projects that I am going to share with you soon (wink), so stay tuned!

I am not going to list everything I did today, but one of my highlights of the day was watching "Kung-fu Panda" with my family... boy you gotta love that movie. Sometimes it's so nice to sink in to your comfy couch and just watch a fun movie, don't you think?

Well, are you ready for the link loves for this month?

I LOVE what Owen's Olivia did for her baby's nursery!! It is fun to see non-traditional style nursery. I love the colors she chose, and all the love, details she put in. So creative!

Do you have a baseball jersey you no longer need laying around the house? Sweet Bee Buzzings shared one of the fun ways to repurpose them... Jersey Pillows! I have some jerseys from last year when we signed up one of our sons for baseball. I think he will love to have a pillow like those.

We can always use some creative themes for parties, right? This very pretty and not to mention refreshing "Pink Lemonade Party" was shared by Cherished Bliss. There are a bunch of pictures on her blog, so head over to see all the details on her blog!

QuarDecor turned a "blah" office file cabinet into a stylish center piece stylish. This is a perfect example of how imagination and little bit of elbow grease can create something awesome. :)

The last link I want to share is the Peanut Swaddler by Sugar Tart Crafts. I swaddled all my kids when they were babies, and they slept very well. Although, I hated to unwrap them to check their diapers because they usually woke up. WHY DIDN'T I THINK OF THIS? How clever to have 2 zippers?! Check out her complete tutorial on her blog, you don't wanna miss it!

Thank you everyone for linking up your awesome creations. The next link party will be on July 25th. Mark your calendar and get ready, set… go! :)

Strawberries and cream - three little words that evoke summer, in all its deliciousness

Last week we were invited to a big lunch party, where the hostess was happy to accept some contributions for dessert. We were eating outside, milling around, fairly casual, so I thought that individual desserts could be the way to go.

I put together these little 'verrines' (French for mini portions in glass tumblers). They could not be simpler, all you need is fresh strawberries, whipping cream, tiny meringues and a sprinkling of sugar.

Having washed and hulled the strawberries, I took a handful and blended them in a bowl with some sugar to taste. This makes the fresh coulis that gives a pop of colour at the base of the verrine. Of the remaining strawberries, some were left whole and some were sliced.

I beat the whipping cream until it would hold in soft peaks. My meringues came from our local baker, who sells his home baked meringues in small packets, and they are so pretty and regular in their size and shape that I don't see the point in making them myself. For this dessert, some meringues are left whole to decorate and the rest are cut or broken into pieces.

To assemble the verrines, simply pour a little coulis into the base of the glass, followed by some broken meringue. Carefully spoon in some whipped cream, then a few slices of strawberries. Another dollop of cream, a final spoonful of coulis, a beautiful little strawberry and a perfect meringue sitting on the top and you are done!

These can be made ahead of time, they'll sit in the fridge quite happily for hours before your meal, they could even be made the day before if you are pushed for time.

So when it came to bringing my dessert to our friends I decided to have some fun, they all looked so pretty in a row. I laid them out on an old French teacloth, with a red monogram in the centre, to match the strawberries. The overflow of strawberries were piled into a small tureen from my collection, and I took them over with some roses cut from the garden just before we went.

What can I say? I have such fun putting together a few pretties, especially when I can gift them to a friend.

I wish you all a wonderful weekend, whether you are at the height of a hot summer or heading into fall, may you find something lovely to share with a friend!

First bloom of 'Little Lime' Hydrangea. June 28, 2012.

What's the most refreshing bloom color on a 100°+ summer day? My vote goes to the huge, cool snowballs of 'Little Lime'™ hardy hydrangea from Proven Winners®.

I know! I know! I'm obsessed with refreshing lime and refreshed light green garden benches to cool down my garden!

After seven years of waiting for shade, I finally have a spot for hydrangea, my favorite summer shrub. At previous homes, I grew so many different varieties, but here in my small cottage garden, the small sliver of all-day shade requires a small shrub. In late May, while on a plant shopping trip to Big Bloomers in Sanford, I asked for 'Little Lime' and they had it in stock! Fortunately, with deep watering, it is well-established in time for this run of triple-digit heat.

'Little Lime' is not that tiny—the height and spread will be between 36-60 inches. I'm totally okay with a bit of overlap onto my path and through the fence, but since it blooms on new wood, size won't be much of an issue. With a zone rating of 3a-9b, I'm also encouraged by the hardiness since I'm in 7b. My theory is that if a plant can handle at least two zones colder and two zones hotter, then it should be a stellar performer.

In my excitement to show you this hydrangea, I took photos before the shrub is in full bloom. None of the companions are in bloom, but my color scheme is simple—use lime-to-white with blue-lavender-purple flowers.

There's an existing clematis 'Jackmanii' on the right that blooms purple in late spring.

To the left (and not shown because the plants are newly planted and not blooming), I'm using white phlox 'David', white milkweed (asclepias incarnata 'Ice Ballet') to provide flower form similar to the hydrangea. The blue mist flowers of hardy ageratum 'Wayside' were transplanted to fill in around the perennials to provide some separation between the lime and white blooms.

In front of the tall phlox and milkweed, I've added purple/blue hardy geranium 'Rozanne' because this combination, with white phlox, is a favorite in another bed in the cottage garden. 'Rozanne' mounds and scrambles as well as provides another leaf shape.

For a bit of foliage filler in front of the blues, the green/white leaves of annual 'polka dot' plant echoe the white theme.

On the outside of the fence, the row of lavender blooming crepe myrtles (probably 'Muskogee') are assisting the weeping willow to provide shade.

What's your favorite color of cool?

Blue-purple geranium 'Rozanne' scrambles up the tall, white Phlox 'David'
in another location in my cottage garden. June 28, 2012.

Hardy ageratum (shown from another garden section)
is to provide filler between the white and blooms of phlox, milkweed
and the lime hydrangea.

A row of three lavender crepe myrtles outside the cottage garden
provide shade for the new hydrangea
(inside the fence and away from the deer). June 28, 2012

Words and photos by Freda Cameron, Defining Your Home, Garden and Travel. All company or product or patented names mentioned are registered trademarks, copyrights, or patents owned by those respective companies or persons.

Silhouette Fabric Ink Starter Kit

I LOVE being an affiliate for silhouette... look what I found on my door step the other day...

Fabric Ink Starter Kit! I have done fabric stenciling in the past, but I must say I love the results of this kit so much better. Because the see-through stencil material (thick like vinyl) sticks to the fabric, it is so much easier to put paint on, and the lines came out sharper because I don’t have to hold it down, it doesn’t slide or move one bit. It was easy to peel off.

Are you anxious to see what I mean?

I make tons of stuff for my little girl but not enough for the boys. When I saw some of the cool designs that came with the kit, I immediately knew what I wanted to do with them!

Camera shy?

Not for long, they warmed up pretty quickly.

I found these t-shirts at Wal-Mart for less than $4 each. My boys were so excited about the new "cool" t-shirts. Michael's only request was, "Mom, I wish you did the splash with red." Ugh, he is such a boy.

I kept on playing with this kit. I made a sassy pouch for me!

There are a couple things I need to mention though... I used canvas for this project, and it was a big mistake! The stencil design I used was such a detailed one, it was a bit tricky of a design to work with. Because the canvas is such a rough fabric, the stencil didn't stick to the canvas very well. So, make sure to choose smoother fabric if you are going to work with a more detailed design. It took me a while to complete the stenciling on this project, but I LOVE how it turned out!

Guess what I slipped in to this sassy pouch before I stepped out the door this morning with the kids... make-up? Some electronic device? Wrong!

Candies and granola bars, and they were mostly for me. I need extra energy to keep up with the kiddos all day. :)

Love Is In The Air

Love is in the air, everywhere you look around.

Love is in the air, in every sight and every sound.

That was Mr. Comforts and my song. We met 34 years ago and married 33 years ago.

So this weekend for our anniversary we are taking a little 2 day trip to Blowing Rock, NC.

See you all in a few days.

INTERLUDE ..........

Just a little update ....... my computer finally gave up the ghost and I am now getting to grips with my shiny new MacBook Pro !!!! Normal service will be resumed as soon as possible ....... please don't go anywhere..... I'll be back !!

Harper: "I don't want to be a Yankee"

If you had hopes that the Yankees would one day sign Bryce Harper, you may want to pull back the reigns a little. Apparently, he's pretty happy in DC:

“You look at Cal Ripken. You look at Derek Jeter. You look at all the greats that played for one team their whole career,” Harper said last weekend, sitting in the dugout at Camden Yards in Baltimore. “I want to be like that. I’ve always wanted to be like that. I’ve always wanted to play with that same team.”

“Having a community and fans like we do in D.C. that love our players, love everything about us, we deserve to give something back to them,” he added. “I want to do that. I don’t want to do anything else.”

Harper has told his father the same thing, that he wants to make Washington home and play here until he retires. “Bryce is as loyal as they come,” Ron Harper said. “He doesn’t care about nothing but winning a championship.”

...

Before the Nationals played the Yankees in mid-June, Harper told his father, “I don’t want to be a Yankee. I want to beat them.”

At least the Yankees won't have to fork up the $400 million it was estimated that Harper could get on the open market, so at least they can avoid that headache. That said, if Harper spends a few years in Washington and doesn't win, I wouldn't be surprised to hear he's had another change of heart.

Garden Benches Refreshed

Many, many years ago at a property that I no longer own, a neighboring farmer teased me when I was painting my old, weathered barn. He said "A little bit of powder, a little bit of paint will make it look like what it ain't."

It was true that the old barn had warped boards and a rusty metal roof. It needed more help than a coat of paint. Fortunately, my metal garden benches were showing only a bit of rust and faded color—easily remedied by a good scrubbing and a coat of fresh paint. After seven years in the garden, I was ready to use some color.

I bought the spray paint, Valspar® Satin Leafy Rise, as my color of choice. It's a pale green that looks so much cooler than the dark bronze of the cottage garden bench or the black of the gravel garden bench. I also painted a rusty metal plant stand and a pot.

I'll have a solid color deck stain mixed to match the benches to use on our two wooden bridges. One wooden bridge is in the cottage garden over the flowing stream and the other is over the dry stream in the gravel garden.

For the last few days and the last cool temperatures of June, we've enjoyed sitting on both benches. With temperatures soaring to above 105°F today and tomorrow, we won't be sitting outside on the benches again soon!

Cottage garden bench was painted from bronze to green.
The willow tree has matured over seven years. I removed a jasmine
from the stone fence column as well as two large shrubs on either side of the bench.
I've been replanting the areas with perennials and will finish the make-over in the fall.

The gravel garden bench was black (and rusty) before being painted.
I'm still using containers that I had on hand, but continue to look
for upgrades that I like (or paint all containers to match).
The lavender plants in the urns have just been trimmed and a
few annuals were added around the juniper.

Stay Cool

Wow. I actually love the heat.....but not this much heat.

What is a girl to do?

Cute idea from Eighteen25 Have a great weekend!

The Cottage Mama Custom Fat Quarter Bundle ~ Blogger's Choice

I just wanted to share something kind of cool with you. I was recently selected by Fat Quarter Shop to put together a 'Blogger's Choice' Fat Quarter Bundle for them for the month of September. I was supposed to choose 12 prints and 3 solids from any fabric lines to create a custom bundle that will be sold in their shop. Talk about a tough decision narrowing it down from all the gorgeous prints that are available. There were tons of different directions I could have gone.

Want to see my bundle?

Custom Fat Quarter Bundle by Lindsay Wilkes from The Cottage Mama

for Fat Quarter Shop

Do you like it? I hope so! I went with some deeper tones since this bundle will be available in September. There are several different lines included, most of which have yet to be released. Some Amy Butler, Tula Pink, Denyse Schmidt, Art Gallery Fabrics, Riley Blake....lots of my favorites. Pairing fabrics is one of my absolute favorite things about the design process so be able to put this bundle together was a complete joy.

I will let you know when all the fabrics are in-stock and the bundle is available for sale or you can sign up on the Fat Quarter Shop website to be notified when it is ready. They will be sending me my own bundle that I picked out. I'm thinking I need to do a quilt out of this selection.

What do you think? What would you make with this bundle?

Click HERE to check out the exact fabrics included in the bundle and click HERE to see all the 'Blogger's Choice' Bundles. I'm in some very good company.

Welcome Friends!
I am glad you could come because I want to show off our little rose garden today as the roses are at their peek in here.Some of our roses haven't started to bloom yet but these hardy ones are always early.. It is a small enclosed garden at the south of our Gardener's Cottage. If you are new here and would like to see inside the Gardener's Cottage click here and here.

I see you took your bicycle-it does look pretty.

Come on in and have a seat.

The vintage wicher pistachio green chairs are pretty comfortable.

The roses are climbing high this year.

My angel adds some charm.

I love this antique pitcher with a big bouquet and the sweet little birdhouse.

Have a cup of tea and enjoy a book for awhile.

It is a cozy little secluded spot-don't you think? This area is surrounded by roses(mostly Therese Bugnet) and a beautybush behind the angel.

Of all the pictures I took that day(last week) this is one of my favorites. It makes me smile every time.

I have been getting some garden questions lately and one day soon I will do a post on the making of our garden. If anyone has any questions-fire away and I will answer them in the post. We have a few more tours in the next five days and then a break so I will have a little more time then-although I confess it is hard to drag me indoors in summer!

I am joining My Romantic Home for Show and Tell Friday and The Rose Garden in Malevik for Show Off Saturday.

Take care,

Carolyn

chugging along

In the first few days of the kitchen demolition Aubrey pulled down the plaster ceiling and had Joe of Gallant Home Improvements (photo above) install a brand spanking new drywall ceiling. This allowed us to install pot lights and also get rid of the ugly bumpy plaster ceiling. Joe is one of the best so if you're in Toronto and need a drywall guy call Joe. Love his work. He's a hard to get a hold of, but once he's in your house he does the best work. (He also did our entire basement project)

In other news, our counter should be installed tomorrow (Friday) and with that in place Oscar and I are moving back in on Saturday. Although we're a long way from being 100% done, we're at a point where I think it's time I moved back home and I should also reopen my shop. The break has been nice (and needed) but it's time we regained some normalcy.

More (better) shots from the house next week since I'll be moved back in. :) I'll also give you a list of our trades that we have loved all in one post that hopefully will be helpful to our local readers. xo

Had fun preparing lunch for Trinidad and Johan from Atelier de Cmpagne to arrive today, these boys have been on the road for a little while now, so I thought they needed some home cooking and vitamins.

I'm so glad the sun has come out too!

I'll let you know how it goes

OK So here's the update,: it's official - Trinidad and Johann are totally charming, and it was a delight to meet them and spend a couple of hours over lunch together.

What you are not going to believe is that I forgot to take any pictures of them here - no really!!! I was so caught up chatting, questions flying back and forth, "and have you seen ...?"; "and do you know ...?"; and "don't you love it when ...?"

Such a shame they couldn't stay for longer

Next time they come I shall definitely take pics, I promise!