English Botanical Pillows

Posted on | November 30, 2011 | 3 Comments

I’m a huge fan of Abigail Borg’s textiles and was overwhelmed when I opened a newsletter from her this morning. Holy cow beautiful, I adore her English style with a modern twist. The new Laburnum and Yarrow cushion covers are available in a light and dark colorway. The teal Yarrow pillow jumps off my screen; making me dream of my den renovation being complete and decorating with beautiful textiles.

Category: pillows, textiles

Make A Holiday Wreath

Posted on | November 28, 2011 | 16 Comments

The thing I like most about the holidays is making gifts and decorating. I’m not into fussy things and I try to keep it simple. I made a wreath for my front door at the Christmas Workshop at Snug Harbor Farm in Maine over the weekend.

To start we cut tree trimmings into smaller pieces. Tony showed us how to arrange the greens and tightly wrap the stems onto a round wire frame. The key to a good wreath is keeping the floral wire tight. He recommended holding the wreath in your left hand, keeping the wire spool short, wrapping the wire around the frame and then allowing the coil to drop to the table. Dropping the heavy wire spool locks the greens into place. Give the wire a little tug and then continue to layer greens as you move around the frame.

I’ve always had a problem with the sides flopping out like wings on my wreaths. Going tighter made a huge difference. I added winterberry, boxwood, and eucalyptus into my wreath. The winterberries are so happy and festive.

I hung the wreath on my front door Sunday afternoon and layered greens, winterberry and boxwood in the urn planter next to my front step. I don’t think I’ve ever had my holiday decorations up so early! Below snapshots from my day.

Barn at Snug Harbor Farm where where I took the wreath class.

Tony showing us how to create steps and negative space in a wreath.

Bundles of winter berry, boxwood and eucalyptus for our wreathes.

A snapshot my wreath in progress.

My wreath with touches of winterberry, boxwood, and eucalyptus.

Category: diy, holiday

Paperwhites with Periwinkle Shells

Posted on | November 21, 2011 | 12 Comments

The tide was way out on Sunday morning and the periwinkle shells grouped together in a long curving band the length of the beach. I gathered a few in my hand inspecting all the different shapes and colors. I thought, “What could I make with these?” I dropped a few handfuls into my bag and kept walking. I spotted a group of perfectly round dark smooth rocks at the end of beach; dark grays rocks are a particular favorite. I have bowls with different collections scattered around the house.

When I got home I filled a large glass footed urn with gray rocks mixed with broken mussel shells. I nestled five paperwhite bulbs in a circle within the rocks and filled the container with fresh water; making sure I didn’t add too much because my bulbs could rot.

The tiny little periwinkle shells got a cold fresh water bath while I planted individual bulbs in dirt. I picked up the the terra cotta urns from a recent trip to Snug Harbor Farm in Maine. I scattered the periwinkle shells around the bulb just covering the dirt. I liked the contrasts of the rough bulb, tiny twisting shells, and smooth terra cotta. I added a few more and watered the bulbs. Hopefully by Christmas I’ll have paperwhites blooming in my windowsills and on my kitchen table.

Category: diy, garden

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