Erin Go Bragh

 We are having another "call to the outdoors" kind of day so, before I listen to the call, I thought we could head into the family room.

I am still loving this piece of furniture so much. I know that the trend right now is to have your TV mounted on the wall ( and, believe me, I have thought about that. Especially if I was able to get it over the fireplace giving me just one focal point in this room but, with all of the issues I have had with Cox, I just don't have the strength to go through having them rewire to an outside wall ) but I also think I would miss all of the shelves that give me room for all of my seasonal decorating...and CANDLES...lots of candles! I will admit that this piece is a bit tricky to decorate because the shelves are so deep and dark, but I'm starting to catch on.

I think I may be getting tired of the St. Pat's banner that I found in TJ Maxx many years ago...at least on the mantle. If I can find a greenery garland that doesn't look totally plastic, I might be up for a swap out. We shall see.

And, I'm happier with the sign now that I outlined the letters with gold.

So that is it for the family room this year. I recovered the seat cushions for the chairs in the gazebo - always a yearly task - so I am off to put those in and then see what I can tackle next. It is beautiful out there and I am going to soak in every bit of that beauty before we hit the long dog days of summer. Stay safe and stay tuned.

Where Have You Been All My Life?

While we are having our gorgeous spring weather, I usually try to make the best use of the days outside. We never know for sure how long we will have this weather and it can go from spring to heat of summer in the blink of an eye.

Of course, this also coincides with one of the most demanding yard seasons of the year. We get tons of leaves coming down from the huge oak trees and then lots of yellow pollen and "squiggly" things everywhere. I happen to be one of those weird people who can not sit out there and just enjoy when there is so much to be done around me...the "pretty" has to come first.

And so, with that in mind, I decided that I would start some of the tasks - others are best left until they are done making their messes for the year or I will just be doing them again next week. One of the most noticeable - at least to me - was the mold on my chaise cushions around the pool. I have four chaises and I bought new cushions for them early last spring. Two are at the shallow end of the pool where they are covered by large trees and get hit with irrigation water twice a week and the other two are at the deep end where there are NO trees or irrigation hitting them. The funniest thing is that the two "umbrella-ed" by trees and hit with water are fine. The other two are FULL of both mold and mildew.

I had noticed this months ago and actually bought some "Wet It-Forget It" (or something like that). The directions said to spray on liberally and leave it alone...and soon, it would be clean. Well, that never happened...not on the cushions or even on a few other places and surfaces I tried it on. The only thing that was gone was the almost $20 that I spent on it. Lol

I had pretty much given up and, to be honest, if I could have found the same cushions anywhere, I would have already bought new ones - at well over $200! But, I could not find them so I put it on a back burner...until today.

The cushions were my task on hand and I googled homemade solutions not using bleach. The fabric on the cushions is some outside fabric that is supposed to resist fading and mold (ha!) so I wasn't sure how it would react with bleach.

In any case, I found one calling for dish detergent, Borax and water - all of which I thought I had...until I remembered I used up my Borax making some concoction with my grand daughter. But, I did have Biz. I first learned about Biz way back in college when I got black ballpoint ink on a favorite white blouse. I thought it was a goner but that stuff got every bit of that ink out. And so, I used that instead.

I so wish I had taken a before picture of just how horrible those cushions looked. They truly looked like I hadn't thought about them in years. I just got down on the deck in the sun and used a pretty stiff bristled brush and went to town. I honestly could not believe how quickly the mold was gone!

Now, I am not making any kind of claims about this mixture other than it worked for me...and it was at no cost!

As soon as they're dry, I will be anxious to put them back. Maybe then I can enjoy sitting outside with a book for the rest of the afternoon...after I pull just a few weeds...and maybe blow the leaves off of the deck...and probably skim the top of the pool...Lol Well, at least I won't have to worry about running out of things to do to keep me busy for the next few weeks! Stay safe and stay tuned.

Another Week!

 I seriously can't believe how quickly "Fridays" seem to roll around. I really don't know where the time goes these days but I'm not complaining! I have had a very busy week. I had two appointments that kind of eat up the days and then, by sheer accident, I was able to book and receive my first covid shot within about an hour!

I am on a list with our state that will put me on a list with my county when if they ever open up their registration again. I have been sitting on the Publix site every time they opened up...watching the page refresh every 60 seconds until, hours later, they were gone. I have also been checking back on a few other sites that have had no shots to offer but said "keep checking back". On a bored whim, I checked one and not only had they gotten some shots but you could sign up immediately and go down and get your shot! And, the medical center where they were being offered is literally 5 minutes from my house - if you hit red lights and traffic Lol

I was so excited, I called my friend and was able to book her one as well. As I was in line doing paper work, I realized truly how serendipitous this was. I had actually considered trying to book appointments in far away counties but just never quite got that far. I really felt like it would all work out and, oh my goodness, it could not have worked out better. No traveling and I knew exactly where I was going so no worrying about driving in places I don't know...with my "not too sharp" eyes these days. In any case, that brings me up to this morning and I am having a lazy day so far so let's head to the dining room.

 

So that is the dining room for this year. I did change up a few small things but, for the most part, I think it is pretty much like it was last year. Definitely heavy on the green more so that the St. Pat's...but I'm OK with that.

I am off to get ready to head to daughter #3's house this afternoon. My grandson is 16 today and I am heading to dinner with them. I love it when the kids pick their birthday dinner restaurant because it is usually somewhere "fauncy" and tonight is no exception. The boys almost always pick Mark's Prime Steakhouse downtown. They have a lovely outdoor area so we will be there and I am looking forward to a delicious dinner. Even though I am not a meat eater, their seafood is fabulous so I intend to go hungry! Stay safe and stay tuned.

Kitchen, Here We Come!

It has been a bit since I posted so I have a few things to share. Let's start back with our St. Pat's decor tour and head to the kitchen.

I had planned to hang my "shamrock envelope" from the cutting board but, it ended up in the dough bowl arrangement so I had this small shamrock wreath that I wasn't using this year and put it here in a pinch...but, I like it so it has found its home.

I have been finding lots of little, inexpensive pots of greenery that I am snatching up. It isn't because they look exactly like a real plant - although some do - but, I have so many little areas that just need the pop of life that a plant brings but that get no natural light, so I can't use a live plant. Since I love green and greenery so much, plants tend to be a large part of my "background" for all of the decorating that I do. Seems like I can never have enough.

I loaded up on lots of natural flower pots at Michaels last year so, if the little faux plant comes in a container that I'm not all that fond of, I just swap it out. I am always drawn to things that look like I just dragged them in from the garden. 

The shelf sitter found a new home here.

I think the last time I posted I mentioned that I would probably be spending the next number of days outside - and boy was I right! I started by cutting back some of the frost burned things, then moved on to weeding...why doesn't the frost seem to kill all of the weeds as quickly as it does the plants? But, I digress. Lol

Once I was done with all of that, I looked at the far side of my yard and spied my three crepe myrtles. Every year I have the debate with myself whether or not to trim them back. The master gardeners tell you they are crepe myrtle trees not bushes and should not be cut back. Apparently I have listened to them the last few years and now mine were literally shooting 30' into the air. Right now they don't have their leaves but thanks to my neighbors very large oak trees (we took all of ours down on this side of the yard to put in our pool), mine were now hung heavy with Spanish moss. I know I live in the south and I know most everyone loves that stuff but, I am not one of them. The only time I have any use for it is at Halloween. That is all I see when I look at it...it is creepy. And, with no leaves yet, those crepe myrtles looked just too sad!! And, as I often do, before my brain could process, I was out there lopping off those 30' branches.

Some of them were not difficult to handles-others were so thick that even with my almost brand new loppers, I was struggling. I'm just glad no one saw me because I was leveraging the lopper handle against anything I could and then going into them like I was trying to break down a steel door. Then, they were falling where they wanted and, most times, I was right under them as they were!

It took me forever, but I got it done...well, I got the branches all off. By then I was too tired...and sore...to do anything else so I left the yard looking like Paul Bunyan had just come through.

I had appointments on Monday and Tuesday so I just got back out there this morning. I can't believe how much more cutting it took to finally get the branches all contained! I have filled all 6 of my garbage cans and dragged them to the street...and I am done in the garden for a bit!

I also thought I would share a quick - or so it was supposed to be - craft that should be subtitled "I need to get a life". Lol You know I love to craft and I love to stay busy - or at least be busy with something I want to do. The windows, wash, etc. can wait until I'm in the mood. So any way, I saw a crafter do these cute carrots with little plastic carrots that are filled with that sugar powder candy. I do like the pop of orange that carrots give an Easter vignette so I thought "why not"?

I found the candy at $ Tree, emptied them out and gave them a quick wash. Then I got going.

My plan had been to wrap them in the yarn but it was just too thick for these little carrots and the hot glue got everywhere...including all over my fingers. Ouch! I quickly moved on to covering them with jute twine.

Then, I watered down some orange paint and gave them a quick coat that I was hoping would soak in and not be too bright.

It took over night to dry but then it was a simple matter of just hot gluing in some greenery at the top of the carrots. I put them in a bowl for the big reveal but I really don't have any idea where they are going to go. With all of the bunnies that I have, I'm sure I will have no trouble finding a home for them. Could I have lived without them? Definitely. But, they did fill some time...and, doesn't everyone need 8 LITTLE jute twine carrots? Lol

And one more thing to share before I call it a day. I was wondering why my yard smelled so yummy. The tea olives are just starting to bloom so I knew it wasn't them but the smell was faint but familiar...until, I walked to the other side of my pool. Oh my goodness. Look at this beauty.

My lemon tree is loaded with blooms with many more to come and the smell reminds me of growing up amongst the orange groves along the Indian River in south Florida. There is nothing like that smell! Stay safe and stay tuned.

Dreary Day

We are having a wet, dreary Friday...but, it IS still Friday so I am not complaining! I actually really enjoy a rainy day, especially this time of year. It not only gives all of the plants some much needed water but it also helps wash some of the yellow pollen off of everything-and that is no easy task!

I had fleeting visions of me maybe doing a bit of vacuuming today but, when it is dark and dreary outside, nothing looks clean to me anyhow so that little idea quickly went on to the back burner.

I don't really have a lot of ideas or supplies for any new crafts to begin but, I did have some soap squares and a shamrock shaped silicon mold so I decided that I just might need some St. Patrick's soap. I have always enjoyed making soap. No pun intended but, it is such a "clean" craft...and super simple. In the old days, I did do a lot of multi-level and fancy embellished soaps but those days are gone. Now I just do the poured shape soaps and I don't seem to have as much trouble actually using them. The ones that took hours to do were hard for me to use. Lol

In any case, in no time at all I had these little cuties.

I had some soap dye that was actually called "shamrock green" but it was also kind of old. Even though I shook it a lot, it must have had some specks that just wouldn't dissolve causing the green spots on the soap. I actually like them and wish there were more. If I make any more, I think I will make them an even darker green. I held back a bit on the dye because I didn't want them too dark but I think they lightened up as they hardened.

While we're in the guest bath, I'll share the rest of the decor...before soap.

And a quick peek at the nod to the holiday in the master bath.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. I will probably end up outside for the next few days but I will be back to show you more soon. Stay safe and stay tuned.