stuff i’ve made

Weathered barn wood looking night stand

our landscaping is complete. the fall veggie garden is planted. the play house is seeing a lot of action from the kids. i’ve been noodling over how best to store sandals by our back door, while avoiding looking like your typical Chinese household…shoes all piled up so that no one can get in the door.  […]

Using wood glue to get a chippy paint look

i’m back. good grief…i’ve neglected my blog. boooooo….. but…. my boys are all on a camping trip and man have i taken the opportunity to do a bunch of projects around the house. i decorated our living room for halloween. stay tuned for that post as i’ll detail how i painted the mantle to look weathered. […]

painting an Ikea Malm dresser w/ASCP to get a Restoration Hardware finish

    when one of your closest friends decides to move to another state, first you cry.  then you dry your tears, get out the paint brush and start painting everything she’s got stashed in her garage.   my buddy had these two Ikea Malm dressers that she picked up at Goodwill for $5.  i […]

your grandma’s dining set has left the building

you’ve all seen this old maple dining set at your grannie’s house, right? most people cringe when they see this type of furniture. i start to twitch and try to hide my excitement.  yup, i’ve got issues. my client just moved back from a mission trip abroad.  they inherited some amazing furniture from friends and […]

garden love

spring flowers

remember that day last fall when i rode my bike around cutting hydrangea clippings from my neighbors? you don't remember? it's ok, … [more...]

artichokes!!!

look what we saw in the garden today!?!? it only took 9 months.  :) anyone have the recipe for the Bandera/Houston's artichoke? … [more...]

Harvesting and germinating rose seeds

I just love roses. I don't know their varieties or names, but instead, I'm the gal at the nursery going around sniffing all the roses to see which … [more...]

summer flowers :: hydrangea, roses and lavender

i LOVE my garden, and particularly love the flower arrangements that come directly from the garden.   the hydrangea is quite … [more...]

so cal garden explosion

we've got rogue tomato plants all over the garden.  take exhibit A.  i didn't plant this one and look how amazing it is! i'm sort of insulted, … [more...]

a gorgeous, romantic, Napa wedding

we just returned from the most gorgeous and romantic wedding....ever. the setting was idyllic with the changing leaves and warm breezes. i wanted … [more...]

spring has sprung. hyacinths are popping already!

the first signs on spring are here...trouble is, we haven't really had winter.  and as i write this, the temperature is dropping to the high 30s here … [more...]

[more]