Ready for Fall

This past weekend was the official start to Fall.  This and the touch of cool in the air has me ready to celebrate Fall.  Today I purchased some pumpkins when I was at the grocery store.  During my boys' naps, I took a "past its prime" planter with some grass and petunias from the backyard and relocated it to the front porch.  I pulled out the nearly dead petunias and surrounded the grass with the decorative pumpkins.  This is a little start to my sprucing things up for Fall.

Lastly, I also purchased one of the last seasonal watermelons at the store.  There is still a part of me that wants to hold on to summer.




Poor little planter "Before"

 

 

 





 

 

A Home for the Dog Bowls

I am not sure what other dogs are like, but ours is a bit messy with his food and water bowls.  After years of cleaning up drips from our tile and/or wood floor, I finally have a solution.  I have been eyeing some dog bowls and rubber trays from both Ballard Designs and Crate and Barrel.  I pinned these to my Kitchen and Laundry Room Accessories board on Pinterest click here to see more. 

Crate and Barrel

 

Ballard Designs

Each of the above rubber trays is in the $25-30 price range.  This isn't really that much money, but it is more than I have been willing to let go of for this purpose.  A little over a week ago, my family and I were shopping in Lowes (this is a weekly and sometimes daily event for us). I rounded a corner and on the end cap display spotted this boot tray with a price tag for less than $5.  This tray is a bit larger than I had planned, but so far it is working out just fine. 

 

Along the lines of small upgrades, I found this new dish soap dispenser at Target.  Right now Target is featuring "Method" products with "Orla Kiely" designs.  I am a fan of both, so I couldn't pass up the dish detergent.  This detergent has a great smell and gives my counter a little pep.

 

 

It truly is the little things that make me happy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aloe finds a New Home At Last

I have had this aloe plant for going on three years now.  These plants are very low maintenance and it has done well over the years.  It has been doing so well that it has outgrown its old little yellow planter.  I have been eyeing some nice square ceramic "Allen & Roth" planters at Lowes for quite some time.  These planters started out at $19 dollars and then they were reduced to $14.  Last week, I saw where this one had been marked down to end of season clearance for just $9, so I bought it.  I love finding end of the season bargains.  Has anyone else found some good items on clearance lately?

Mama's Got a Brand New Bag

My New "Birdie Sling" Bag (Pattern: by Amy Butler)

Sorry...but I couldn't resist the cheesy title for this post.  I always try to get a lot done, but there are definitely times I procrastinate on projects.  I usually put things off for good reasons, i.e sleep deprivation (most common) and also a lack of confidence in my skills.

The pattern and fabric for the bag shown above has been on my shelf begging for attention for over a year.  To put things in perspective, I bought the material and pattern months before my youngest son was born and he is now almost 15 months old.  I have done several sewing projects, but believe it or not this was my first time to use a pattern.  I don't know why, but the  "sewing" terminology and formality of a pattern was intimidating to me.

Well early last week, I decided that I shouldn't buy anymore fabric for projects until I finish the ones I have "waiting in the wings".  I was extra motivated to get into this project after seeing an article in the September issue of my Better Homes & Gardens magazine which featured the house of the pattern's designer, Amy Butler. You can see the Better Homes & Gardens feature on designer, Amy Butler by clicking here.

I opened up my Amy Butler "Birdie Sling" pattern and got to work.  About 8 hours later (spread out over a week), I can now say I have completed a sewing project from a pattern. I picked the fun "Giraffe" fabric, because I plan to use this large bag as an easy carry "diaper bag". 

Yard Flowers

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Zinnias from the Yard

August is winding down and the first chill of fall can be felt in the evening air.  I love fall but I also hate to see summer end.  One of  my favorite things about the summer is the beautiful flowers and vegetables you can grow in your garden.  The above floral arrangement is from some Zinnias I planted next to our new paver pathway in the back yard.  You can see the full details on that by clicking here.

The zinnias and marigolds I planted have really grown well. Here are some before and after pictures of this little garden area.

Newly Planted Zinnias and Marigolds (May 2012)



Area before pathway completion and flowers.

August 2012.



 

Pop Goes the Yellow!

A project that has been on my "to-do-list" for a long time now is to recover the outdoor cushions for my bistro deck chairs.  The bistro chairs and table came from a season-end clearance at  Lowes about three years back.  The set was outfitted with bright red seat cushions.  The cushions were never my favorite but after just one summer of sun-drenched days the cushions were in really pitiful shape. Last week, I found some bright & cheery yellow outdoor fabric 50% off at Hancock fabrics.  I only had to purchase 1-1/4 yards of fabric for this project.  With the discount, that was only $12 worth of material.  



Faded Out Cushions

I used the old fabric as the pattern for the new cushions.  The cushion fill and ties were in good shape (practically brand new actually) so I was able to reuse them.

(Original Cushion Fill) In great shape and ready to be reused.

I love this outdoor fabric.  It is from the "Dwell Studio" collection by Robert Allen.

I was able to reuse the black ties from the original cushions.

The original cushions had "tufting" which gave them a more tailored look.  The "tufting" was done by pulling yarn through and knotting it.  I am considering adding this detail to the new cushions, any thoughts?

Picking Flowers and Laying Pavers

This morning, I took my oldest son to go pick some wildflowers in the backyard (the other baby boy was still sleeping). We picked the flowers, brought them inside, and together we trimmed and arranged them.  The flowers are now brightening up the main floor bathroom.

This past weekend, the big project was operation "De-Weed" the yard and make a new paver pathway.  The new pathway is a shortcut to circumvent the long row of boxwood that lines the sidewalk to our front door.  My husband is an ole` pro now at laying a paver stone pathway.  You can see his first paver project with all of the "how-to" details by clicking here.



Our new shortcut to the front yard!



Digging Out the Path

Stomping Down the Paver Stone Bed



Adding the Sand



The Pavers are Down!

Digging Up Some Liriope from the other side of the yard.

The Liriope used to reside under this Hemlock tree where they didn't get much notice.

New Home for the Liriope aka "Monkey Grass" next to our new pathway.

Who knows what projects we will get into this coming weekend!  Hope everyone enjoys their weekend!