a little bit of summer

Here are a few things we've been working on so far this summer. I hope to go into a bit more detail on some of them in future posts, but with all the play dates and swim lessons and backyard quicksand making, I'm having a hard time settling down to update the blog. The weather's too nice, the days (as long as they are) are too short. We're filling them full.

I hope you're enjoying your summer too!

My booth at the Eugene Mini-Maker Faire in June.

Getting good use out of the studio; the kiddo tells me this is a picture of a queen.

We're going to have so many grapes this year. So many!

Tie dyeing with fabric paint for a special quilt project.

Watching a juggler on the library plaza at the Summer Reading kick-off.

A booth at Black Sheep Gathering where the kind people told me how to fix my spinning wheel.

These b&w dragonflies are all over the place this summer. I love them.

Mashing up the u-pick strawberries from the organic farm to make jam.

Sunset roses.

Sun printing on fabric (it's really easy).

W is for watermelon, if you're eating the alphabet.

Red flowers and pool blue chairs.

Hanging up the ride-on toys on the back of the shed.

A peanut plant.

Yup. We're growing peanuts as a science experiment this summer.

Croquet cart from the thrift store . . .

. . . with some new stain and tightened screws for long life.

Painting the patio bricks with washable tempera paint is fun with kiddos.

Did I mention we also camped out at the beach for a few days, and spent some time at the ballpark, and played mini golf, and have been to the pool like a dozen times (at least)? Yeah. We're totally summering it up over here in the PNW.


Thanks for reading! I'll be back soon with a little post to explain sun printing in six easy steps, because now is the time, people! You crafty folks out there probably already have what you need on hand.

backyard sink!

I've been thinking for awhile that it might be nice to have a spot to wash hands and clean sandy toys and shoes in the backyard, aside from the hose. After pinning a few backyard sinks on Pinterest, I brainstormed what I might build as a sink support structure. We have a scrap pile, of course, that I regularly dip into for building projects. I considered building a counter top on legs (with a bucket underneath to capture what drains out of the sink). I considered attaching a shelf to the house with a sink imbedded. And then I thought about how already full of stuff our yard is, and where I'd put whatever contraption I came up with.

It made sense, really, to use something we already had back there, and this hardwood outdoor bar was a logical choice. We've had it for about seven years now; we use it occasionally for backyard barbecues, but not much else. I talked it over with the Mr., deciding finally that adding a sink wouldn't ruin the bar's usefulness, but add to it.

After measuring the bar to determine sink size, the next step was to scavenge for a sink. Bring Recycling was my first stop; they have dozens of sinks over there, and the kiddo and I considered several hefty porcelain-coated cast iron antiques before finally choosing a simple stainless steel bowl sink for its light weight. We picked a faucet, too, then headed over to the hardware store for various connectors, a length of hose, and some plumber's putty.

It had been suggested to simply cap off one of the brass water supply hoses to avoid the added plumbing work required for two; it was a suggestion that made sense, since we wouldn't be running hot water to the backyard anyway.

Capping it off is pretty easy. We found the right size threaded cap at the hardware store, put a little plumber's putty on the threaded brass water supply line, then screwed the cap on. Easy peasy.

The hose coupler is equally simple. It has two female ends, one that fits over the other brass water supply, and the other, larger end to fit over the hose. We eventually used plumber's putty on this area as well.

I cleaned the wood with a scrub brush, water, and some spray cleaner, then I used the sink turned upside down to trace the hole we'd have to cut.

To support the lip of the sink bowl, I traced a second line about 3/4 inch inside the first. This was our cut line.

I wasn't too worried about perfection; as long as the lip of the sink bowl covers the hole and is well-supported, I'm happy.

I'm not too fond of the reciprocating saw as there's a bit too much motor movement to use a blade that big with a kid running around in the yard with me. I waited until the weekend and the Mr. ended up cutting it out for me. And it looked awesome, set in place, like it was meant for this bar.

After testing for fit, I popped the sink back out and stained the top, since the weather had really worn down the previous finish. Then I put the sink back in place so we could get the faucet lined up right.

The yellow paper is one of the paper templates that I made up for each of three faucets to test for fit, and to help drill the holes in the right places. The original faucet I'd picked out had been too wide at the base, and the faucet was a little on the short side (sad trombone).

We tried out a couple more, finally settling on a faucet that fits pretty well. It doesn't have the two-handles I'd prefer, but the base is a tiny bit narrower and the faucet is a bit longer, so it works out pretty well.

This is what it looks like underneath. The hose lead connects to a y-splitter at the house (so we can still use another hose to water the garden). The black drain pipe drains into a bucket for the time being, to be used for watering plants, etc. The Mr. has some big ideas about adding more plumbing under there and a run-off hose, but I'm happy with this set up for now.

I caulked around the sink and faucet, and also some of the crevices along the surface. It's clear caulk, but it hasn't fully cured yet. I'll try to get an update shot in here once it's fully cured, but in the meantime, here it is, all finished and useful.

 

Thanks for reading!

Linking up to:
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free mulch? sign me up.

I'm sure there are other communities out there where this is a thing: the public works department chips up downed tree limbs and trimmings from parks and public lands, and makes the chips available for free. Research to see if your community offers the same.

 

There are several of these stations around town. We stumbled upon one while out for a bike ride a couple of summers ago. Now when I need mulch, I pack the kiddo, a shovel, five plastic bins and a couple of Ikea's big blue bags in my car and head off.

It's been a pretty awesome resource for our yard. Thanks Public Works Department!

mammoth sunflower seeds

My sister-in-law packaged up some seeds a couple of Christmases ago and sent them out to all of us. Over that summer, she and my brother and the kids had grown the Mammoth sunflowers (possible varietal name Russian Mammoth) in the backyard, and we were assured that they'd been HUGE.

They sprouted well, even after more than a year of waiting to be planted. The above photo is from early May, when the seeds we'd started got transferred into the beds.

This one is from late August, when the sunflower stalks surpassed roof height on the studio.

I've grown some sort of Mammoth sunflower in the past, but I don't recall the flowers ending up quite as huge as these. A twelve-foot stalk and a sixteen-inch head were the largest we measured this year; most of the heads were in the twelve-inch range!

I'll be passing them back around this year; I know my sister-in-law is looking forward to keeping the seed swap going!

I have a seed packet design I'll be sharing in a future post, so check back soon if that's your thing!

Thanks for reading!

updated: seed packets? right here!

pinterest challenge: vertical hanging planter (upcycle!)

Pinterest, I've said it before and I'll say it again: you'll be the death of me.

On the other hand, I'm lucky enough to get to participate in the Young House Love/Bower Power Blog completely unauthorized Pinterest Challenge because of you, so maybe it's a draw?

Okay, fine. I love Pinterest. I've found it an endless source of inspiration and ideas. The only trouble I have is in distilling the content; I want to do everything. Like vertical gardening, for example. Wall pockets, hanging planters, cinder blocks, you name it, I want to make it.

original pin here

inspiration board dedicated to vertical and hanging planters and gardens here

Distill! Distill!

I took all those inspirational images and tutorials and made this: an upcycled wall planter homage to wall gardens. It wasn't exactly free, but it was pretty inexpensive, and mostly used materials (and plants) I already had on hand.

Materials:

Old iron planter basket (sans chains)

burlap coffee sack remnants

soil

pine shavings

hardware cloth or chicken wire remnant

awning remnant

hens & chicks

wire

thyme

heavy coat hook 

Get an old iron planter basket (mine cost $2 at Bring). You'll need to acquire this first, as you'll use it to determine how large to cut your burlap and hardware cloth. You could also use an old bicycle wheel; one of the pins above makes a spinning planter with one. (Note: Bring marks prices with a paint pen; I've had good luck removing their prices with a Magic Eraser.)

After testing placement, replace your chintzy picture hanging hook with a nice, sturdy coat hook.

Sew a "pillow" from old coffee sack burlap, using twine pulled from the sack to sew it up. Turn it inside out and fill with a mixture of potting mix and pine shavings (to make it more lightweight).

Stitch the pillow closed and stuff it into your planter basket.

Cut some hardware cloth to the approximate size and shape of your container's back using tin snips. I had a large piece leftover from an old playhouse we tore down awhile back; chicken wire would work well, too. Cutting it down to an approximate size first makes it easier to work with when you're ready to do more exact cuts later.

Set aside your hardware cloth for the next step.

If you'll be hanging your vertical wall planter on a surface you want to protect marginally, you should add a waterproof layer so that the dirt and water don't soak through the burlap, causing stains and rot. You can use an old piece of tarp, or one of those poly pet food bags, or (like me) a piece of an awning destroyed in a windstorm. Cut it out and place it on top of your dirt pillow.

Trim down the hardware cloth to fit, then tuck it in place over the waterproof layer and use wire and some needle nose pliers to attach it to the basket.

Turn the pod over and lay it flat to begin filling in your plants. 

                               

I trimmed some of my hens & chicks plants down, and also added a divided thyme seedling and a whole lotta moss. (We'll see what survives!)

Poke or cut holes in the burlap and thread roots or runners into the holes.

 Fill in around plants with moss.

I hung mine up right away for photos, but pretty much universally, it's agreed you should water it and leave it flat for a couple of weeks to allow the plants to take root. So after taking some pictures, I took the planter down again and laid it flat to do exactly that.

Patience is a virtue.

Thanks for reading, and thanks to Sherry and Katie for issuing the Pinterest Challenge! It's always good to have the chance to mark a project off my list . . . especially one that first caught my attention over a year ago. 

Linking up to:

Young House Love

Decor and the Dog

Bower Power Blog

The ReModeled Life

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