Front Yard Tour- More Flowers, Less Grass Project

Hi Friend,

Let's start here for a quick front yard tour.

We have a large grass area with flowers

that border the whole yard.

My husband does all the yardwork himself, I am his helper.

I love the grass, but it does need a lot of water.

In late SPRING we had a crazy idea.

We thought removing some grass would help to lower our water bill.

Most of our yard and side area has draught tolerant native plants.

My husband and I removed another huge amount of grass.

We divided some perennials that we already had-

Society Garlic is easy to divide. It is a good border filler.

We replaced the rock border.

Then filled in the area with shredded bark mulch.

By summer...wow !

We love the new look.

 

Everything continued to grow

We filled in areas with seeds.

Daisies around the mailbox.

Lavender does very well in my area.

We water by hand only when needed.

We like Mexican Marigolds and Mexican Sage

Lots of White and Yellow Yarrow

I love the orange and blue combination-

California Poppies and Nigella (Love-in-a-mist)

Salvia microphyll 'Hot Lips' and 'Baby Sage'

is easy to grow in my area, it can be

 cut back often to retain it's shape and size.

I grow lots of Calendula- Pot Marigolds to make salves and body butters

These Gaillardia- Blanket Flowers are so vivid!

On the hill, as we call it- I have Queen Annes Lace,

Rosemary, Calendula, Lavender ....it changes often.

It has helped to get the water bill lower!

Just in time for summer.

Here's the backyard project from a few years ago.

We are happy with the change.

Thanks for taking a tour with me-

xo Lisa S

Faux Marshmallows / Summer Picnic Campfire Vignette

Hi Friends!

Just about everyone loves s'more on a summer night

am I right ?

I know I'm silly with the faux food sometimes!

This was a fun one-

You only need a some air dry clay and a skewer or stick.

I had brown clay but I will be painting my marshmallows.

Take a pinch of clay. Roll between your hands

 and flatten the ends

 to make your shape.

If you want your marshmallows to look realistic, roll them smooth.

use white clay or paint them white. 

Pushed them onto the stick to create a hole.

Then removed them so they could completely dry

before painting.

You can leave them on the stick to dry if you are using white clay.

I painted them white let them dry and then glued

them on a rustic stick.

I wanted my marshmallows to be a nice golden brown....

even though I like to eat mine burnt all the way around!!!!

I mixed a few colors-

They look real so I'm a happy camper!

This plaid picnic tin was a thrift store find.

I use it to store all my patriotic decorations.

It gave me chance to share some of my red white and blue

thermos collection.

Just put the sticks inside a thermos and tin-

The faux 'Sparkler Boxes' are here

Let's party S' MORE !

Happy 4TH of July-

xo Lisa S

DIY Water Marbled Buttons

 

Hello Friend!

To make these beautiful Hand Painted

Water Marbled Buttons-

You just need a few things you probably already have on hand!

First find your old button jars or ask Grandma!

You will need some buttons-

I thought the bigger the better!

You will need an assortment of nail polish.

Any color you prefer.

I don't paint my nails ever, these are just for crafts.

The cheaper the better.

Dollar Tree has polish for $1.25

( If you are using old polish, you can revive it with a few drops of

polish remover in the bottle and shake well.)

Some bamboo skewers

I poked holes in a box to allow my buttons to dry.

A small glass jar or bowl, filled with lukewarm water.

Before you get started, loosen the lids on the polish so you can work quickly.

Add a few drops of the nail polish- 2 or 3 colors.

Use a toothpick to quickly

swirl the colors together-

Submerge your button, swirl and pick up the color.

Stir around the rim to pick up the left over color

Remove the film, wipe off on a paper towel

 before you add more color for the next button.

Stand your skewer up to dry.

Keep going it's so fun!

9

Don't forget to tighten the lids again!

I thought the sticks even looked pretty!

After an hour the buttons were dry.

I was so glad because I hate to wait !

They have interesting texture.

I liked the flat buttons best.

I didn't like this one so I just dipped it again.

This one also got a second dip.....much better.

This one was my favorite

and this was the back side.

I dipped both sides- then you can pick which side is best.

I picked this side for the front.

These are so easy to make!

Make a bowl full!

They would be perfect closures for Junk Journals, charms or used in jewelry making.

These beautiful button cards on marbled paper were made

by Dragana @ www.saacibo.com

She is a wonderfully talented designer who shared this

download for personal use.

Visit her website if you would like the button card.

I printed mine on cardstock and rounded the edges.

I used an awl to mark the holes and attacked the buttons to the card

with string.

The bow on the front didn't look good-

so I tied it in the back.

I like them on the card for now-

I'm not working on any journals but I can save them

for another time.

They fit nicely in a Pyrex dish-

In my craft room ready to be used or given as gifts!

Easy clean-up !

Aren't they pretty ?

Next time I'll try some small buttons and make some earrings.

Thank you for visiting!!!!!

xo Lisa S