With the weather so nice the other day, I decided to get some much needed home improvement work done. I posted way back in June about how I planned to get several DIY projects completed, including staining a weathered wood ramp that leads to our outdoor storage shed. My husband and I had the ramp for the backyard shed installed more than a year ago, and unfortunately, we never got around to staining and weather protecting the wood. So with the kids back in school, and the weather bright and sunny, I decided to tackle that project last week. I started out by purchasing a gallon of Continue reading...
Shade Garden Complete For Now
Thanks to my setback, where I accidentally sliced through a Verizon cable while preparing my side yard's shade garden, it took me longer than I expected to complete a new shade garden for my home. The garden is nearly complete now, except for a small patch that I've left exposed, without a covering of red garden stone, because I am still waiting for Verizon to come in, take out the temporary cable that they installed, and bury a new permanent cable . But, I am happy with what I've been able to complete so far. I've lined my shade garden with a red gravel, and have planted the bed Continue reading...
Day 3: A Setback and a Learning Curve
Progress on my home's new shade garden is slow and sure -- with only a few days left to my daughters' summer vacation before school starts, I've been squeezing in as many hours in with my kids as I can. Well, progress on the garden was going well, until I made a major mistake late last week. Many of us have heard the warning to "call before you dig" before setting a spade or any other type of shovel into the earth at one's home. I learned that lesson the hard way late last week when my spade sliced a Verizon wire. Even though I was only digging about 6 inches into the earth to remove the Continue reading...
Day 2: Planting a Shade Garden
Despite the light drizzle here in Central New Jersey, I managed to plant three boxwoods and my two perrenials (lilyturf varegata) in my newly dug shade garden. I am happy with the progress I'm making so far! I still have a lot to do. I'd like to mix in topsoil to my garden (I already mixed in a little when I planted the boxwoods and perrenials), add some small red gravel, and perhaps add some edging like these red brick pavers: My kids don't feel like going shopping today because of the rain, but I think we'll hit the garden store later today anyway! Continue reading...
Day 1: Digging a New Shade Garden Bed
I while back, I posted about my plans to put in a shade garden on the north side of my home. Well, this past weekend, I got started earlier on the garden than I thought I would. Saturday morning I drove past a garden nursery that was having a 30% off sale for all of its plants. I had to take advantage of it! So, I wound up purchasing three boxwood plants for about $11 each. So, later that day, while the kids were playing outside, I decided to try to get started on the bed. I started digging up the sod, and the grass came up easier than I thought! I guess I have all the rain we've Continue reading...
Weeds Be Gone!
I spent yesterday at a family member’s house, so I decided to give him a hand and get some of the weeds out of the brick walkway that leads to his home. The walkway is covered with crabgrass and clover – so much so that the weeds look like they will soon take over the space. The problem is that this family member doesn’t want to use chemicals or a commercial weed killer on the weeds, so getting the weeds – which are quite large – out from between the bricks is very tough. I thought about spraying on some weed killer on and not telling him about it, but because he has pets who might inject Continue reading...
Planning a Shade Garden
Lately, I have been dreaming about starting a shade garden in my home’s side yard. With a playground behind our house, our backyard can sometimes be noisy, and the side yard, which is on the north (and shadier) side of the house, is a lot quieter. Also, my kids love to use the Slip ‘N Slide in the side yard, which has a wide expanse of grass. So, I’d love to create a rock garden in the shade next to the house, to provide a pretty place for me to sit when I am watching the kids play, or if I want a quiet spot to read a magazine or a book. To jump start my plans, I did some research on Continue reading...
Pallet Furniture
Lately, I’ve been obsessed with pinning images of DIY wood pallet furniture. Just search “pallet furniture” on Pinterest, and you’ll find really creative ideas for homemade wood pallet coffee tables, patio furniture and even home theater seating. The pallets most DIYers are after are made of wood and are used to pack goods while being shipped. The wood pallets can be often picked up for free in parking lots or dumpsters – just be sure to check that the pallets are being discarded before you start loading them into your car! Repurposed Pallet Furniture One pallet furniture piece I Continue reading...
Finishing Unfinished Business
Walk through my home, and you’ll find a bit of unfinished work. In the garage, there are the unfinished stairs the builder put in that could still use a coat or two of stain. Outside, there is the ramp that we had built for our backyard shed that now, two years later, could use some stain. The wooden perimeter (at the bottom of the shed) could also use some stain. Then, there’s the unfinished pine stairs that lead to our unfinished basement. The stairs have never been stained and are now a bit dirty. Because I hope to improve my home's unfinished basement this summer, I Continue reading...
Feeding Finches in the Backyard
Until recently, I was a very sad birding enthusiast. I had a few birdfeeders in my backyard, but all they seemed to attract were noncolorful blackbirds and morning doves. That was until I purchased a very simple and inexpensive netted sock bird feeder ("thistle sack") from a local grocery store. Filled with nyjer/thistle seed, the sock has been attracted beautiful black and yellow Eastern Goldfinches (New Jersey's state bird) to my backyard daily. The birds are so colorful that it looks like wild canaries are flocking to my backyard. The great part about the new finch feeder in my Continue reading...
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