Weekend in the Garden

Hi all!  Hope you had a wonderful weekend and Mother’s Day.   We had beautiful weather which allowed my family to partake in our annual Mother’s Day tradition - planting our garden.

Saturday typically involves basic clean up, readying the soil for planting and purchasing various vegetables, herbs and other plants.   Sunday is planting day!

With the arrival of an early spring, we had already brought out the garden furniture and spruced up the fire pit area and back and side patios.

Over the years, our garden has evolved from haphazard to a bit more structured and symmetrical.  We have figured out what type of plants work best and what simply will not do well in the shortened growing season here in the northeast.

Tomatoes, herbs and cucumbers seem to thrive and have become a standard. Each year we try something new and this year’s “experiments” are eggplant and cantaloupe.   We also added peppermint to the herb selection.  I have been told mint can be quite invasive so it was planted in a separate container to keep it from overtaking the entire garden bed.

As you can see from the pictures, the garden looks a bit sparse as the plants are just getting started.  Hopefully within a few weeks everything will have taken off and the garden will be lush and green.  I will be sure to post pictures later in the summer.

Oh – in case you were wondering about the “tom junior” sign in the mint pot.  Years ago my kids decided to name all the plants in the garden.  (I am guessing this one used to be for a tomato.)  We have kept the signs and truly get a kick out of ourselves every year as we again use them to name our plants!  Silly I know but lots of fun too.

Adding a Little Green

I am not sure if it is the lack of snow this winter which has me thinking about spring or my constant need to rearrange (probably a little of both!), but last week I found the top of my family room built-ins to be looking a bit sparse. I decided some new plants were in order and headed to Lowes to see what I could find.

I ended up coming home with three succulents, a small ivy plant (1/2 price on clearance) and a funny looking plant which reminded me of un-mowed grass.

The succulents and a sprig of the ivy found homes in a white ironstone bowl and the “grass plant” was simply placed in a container I normally use in the summer outside.

I grabbed a few other plants from other parts of the house and within twenty minutes I was quite pleased with the new arrangement.

I now have a little bit of spring inside to tide me over until it finally arrives outside!

Are you thinking about spring too? Have you added any spring touches to your home?

Brabourne Farm - the Red Door Home February Blog of the Month

Today I am happy to introduce you to Brabourne Farm – the RDH February blog of the month.

Brabourne Farm is a beautiful Australian blog which features daily collections of interesting and inspiring design, antiques, flowers, photography, gardens and much more. The list is truly endless!

By Gina Sigala - Picture via Brabourne Farm

Each day Leigh publishes carefully selected photographs on a single topic.  Subjects vary greatly and range from colors to chairs to kitchens to chandeliers and everything in between.

  By Andrew McCaul - Picture via Brabourne Farm

It honestly is my daily dose of pretty!

By Beth Webb - Picture via Brabourne Farm

  Source Unknown - Picture via Brabourne Farm

Brabourne Farm is also a home and the blog chronicles the house and garden as it changes from season to season.

via Brabourne Farm

  via Brabourne Farm

via Brabourne Farm

The gardens are stunning and a great break from the white snow many of us are currently seeing outside of our windows.

  via Brabourne Farm

  via Brabourne Farm

To see more of Leigh’s daily collection of pretties be sure to stop by Brabourne Farm.  I know you will be glad you did!

Holiday Floral Photo Shoot – Behind the Scenes

Many people are curious to know what it is really like to be a part of a magazine photo shoot.  So today I would like to share my experience from the holiday floral photo shoot which took place at my house this past summer.

Better Homes and Gardens December 2011 / By: Amy Panos / Producer: Ariella Chezar

Photographer: Kate Mathis / Stylist: Ed Gallagher

I have been lucky to be a part of a few magazine photo shoots and each time I learn something new.  The thing which consistently amazes me most, however, is the amount of planning, work and attention to detail which goes into setting up just one picture.  It takes an entire team of professionals to produce just the right look for a story.

The floral photo shoot took place over the course of three days.  The stylist and photographer, along with their assistants, producer, and floral artist Ariella Chezar spent the better part of the first day unloading all their equipment, supplies, props, and flowers as well as preparing the spaces where photos would be taken. 

My mudroom and laundry room were filled with flowers, the garage became a props and supplies staging area, and the kitchen served as command central as well as where most of the flower arranging took place.  Lots of stuff and people everywhere!

The first day included lots of furniture moving and rearranging - basic set up for the upcoming two days of shooting.  The photographer looked at the lighting in the house to determine what time during the day the light would be best in each room and the floral artist created several of the floral arrangements based on what rooms would be used during the first day of shooting.

Better Homes and Gardens December 2011 / By:Amy Panos / Producer:Ariella Chezar

Photographer:Kate Mathis / Stylist:Ed Gallagher

The second and third days were when the picture taking took place.  The team arrived early and worked the entire day.  Since this shoot was not about my house or family, my kids and I did our best to just stay in the background and out of everyone’s way.  They graciously allowed me to watch (whenever I had the chance)  as they worked their magic.  Each picture appearing in the magazine and online was the result of a coordinated effort between everyone involved. The flowers, props, and lighting were all arranged and rearranged multiple times until everyone was pleased with how the picture looked – a very time consuming process.  After a picture was completed, rooms were cleaned up, put back together, and it was on to the next photo.

One of the funnier moments during the photo shoot occurred when I returned home to find two huge panels of MDF (medium density fiberboard) - painted red - in the garage.  My husband and I joked that it would be ironic if they ended up using them in our living room since we had changed the paint color from red to white.  Sure enough, they did use the panels in our “used to be red room” shown in the photo below.

Better Homes and Gardens December 2011 / By:Amy Panos / Producer:Ariella Chezar

Photographer:Kate Mathis / Stylist:Ed Gallagher

When the photo shoot was complete, everyone pitched in to return my home back to the way it was when they arrived.   They left almost all the flowers and greenery – which was a super nice surprise for me.  Since many of the flowers had been stored in various pots and vases which did not belong to me, I searched through my cabinets to pull out containers to use for all the remaining flowers.  Ariella was so nice in that instead of just putting the flowers in the vases, she spent time arranging them all into beautiful bouquets like the one shown below.

I have to say it truly was a privilege for me to host this photo shoot.  I had a wonderful time meeting the entire staff who put together this fabulous story.   It was a great experience – one which I would love to do again!

Better Homes and Gardens Holiday Floral Shoot

Back in August I had the privilege of having my home used for a background by a very talented group of people who put together the holiday floral arranging story which can be seen in the latest edition of Better Homes and Gardens.

Better Homes and Gardens December 2011 / By:  Amy Panos / Producer:  Ariella Chezar

Photographer:  Kate Mathis / Stylist:  Ed Gallagher

It was incredibly fun and a great learning experience to watch the creative behind the scenes process of the pictures unfold.

Better Homes and Gardens December 2011 / By:  Amy Panos / Producer:  Ariella Chezar

Photographer:  Kate Mathis / Stylist:  Ed Gallagher

I was amazed at the creativity and the attention to detail which went into each and every picture.

Better Homes and Gardens December 2011 / By:  Amy Panos / Producer:  Ariella Chezar

Photographer:  Kate Mathis / Stylist:  Ed Gallagher

My very favorite moments during the three day photo shoot were simply watching Ariella arrange the flowers. She truly is amazing!

Better Homes and Gardens December 2011 / By:  Amy Panos / Producer:  Ariella Chezar

Photographer:  Kate Mathis / Stylist:  Ed Gallagher

I must say I now have a new appreciation for the art of flower arranging and the artistry which is involved.

Better Homes and Gardens December 2011 / By:  Amy Panos / Producer:  Ariella Chezar

Photographer:  Kate Mathis / Stylist:  Ed Gallagher

Below are two of the pictures which were taken during the shoot and did not make it into print. They also can be found HERE.

I love the following idea.  Wrap a simple wooden box with a beautiful ribbon and fill it with a variety of citrus themed items.  Simple and elegant!

Better Homes and Gardens December 2011 / By:  Amy Panos / Producer:  Ariella Chezar

Photographer:  Kate Mathis / Stylist:  Ed Gallagher

Another gorgeous shot features a fresh boxwood garland and poinsettias draped along a mantel. 

Better Homes and Gardens December 2011 / By:  Amy Panos / Producer:  Ariella Chezar

Photographer:  Kate Mathis / Stylist:  Ed Gallagher

Which leads me to a discovery I made as a result of the photo shoot (many of you may already know this) - poinsettias make long lasting bouquets.  One of the benefits of hosting the photo shoot was being able to keep many of the beautiful flower arrangements.  For several weeks my family and I enjoyed having fresh flowers all over the house.  The arrangements which lasted the longest were the poinsettias.

I hope to post more about this story soon – including a behind the scenes look at the shoot and a feature on Ariella.

Built-in Cabinets and a Better Homes and Gardens Photo Shoot!

Happy Monday!  I Hope you all had a wonderful weekend.  Mine was very busy but super fun with what seemed like an endless whirlwind of activity.

The flurry of excitement began on Wednesday with the arrival of several people who were involved with a Better Homes and Gardens location photo shoot at my house.  (Yes, I know I kept it a secret!)

A few weeks ago my home was chosen to be used as back drop for a holiday floral feature.  So for three days my house looked like the photo below.

Lots and lots of flowers!  It was a tremendous experience and I am truly grateful for the opportunity to observe a very talented group of professionals as they all worked together to create the most incredibly beautiful flower arrangements.

Then first thing Saturday morning the carpenter arrived to install the built-in cabinets on either side of the fireplace.   After two continuous days of work there is still more to be done.  I am so pleased with how they are turning out and can’t wait to start accessorizing.

He will be back next weekend to do touch up painting and install the doors.  Until then, here is a little sneak peek as to how the cabinets look so far.

So that is just a little hint of what I have been up to.  I promise to share more information soon.

Details of My Garden and Fire Pit Information

When I wrote about building a fire pit, I had no idea I would receive so many wonderful questions and comments about our garden which can be seen in the background of most of the pictures. Thank you!

The sketch above shows the general layout of the raised beds and paths. The garden itself is about 20 feet by 20 feet, with the paths being about 4 feet wide. The 8 foot by 8 foot center square features a large urn surrounded by a formal arrangement of boxwoods, lavender and licorice plants. The four triangular planting beds are where we plant our herbs and vegetables. Our selection is somewhat limited as this space of our yard does not receive as much sunlight as a garden should.

Mr. RDH and I began creating our garden shortly after we moved into our house. After clearing the area of trees and brush, the first step was making a level surface. We built the retaining wall – shown above - and began the fill-in process one load of dirt at a time. Since we do not own a tractor the dirt was taken from other parts of our property the old fashioned way – with a wheel barrow, rake and shovel. Lots and lots of hard work!

Rather than having straight rows of planting beds, we thought it would be much more interesting and fun to have a center square surrounded by triangular beds. To create the beds we used 2” x 10” boards along with 4” x 4” posts and galvanized screws. The bed frames were assembled first and then attached to the posts with the screws. You can see the top of one of the posts in the photo below.

We put down landscaping fabric – to reduce weed growth – underneath the paths and then hammered the posts into the ground to secure the beds. The garden beds were then filled with good quality soil and the garden paths covered in pea gravel.

To make an entrance to we used large rocks we found on our property and an arch which was purchased through Walpole Woodworkers. There is a small space between the outside edges of the planting beds and the caps of the retaining wall because the original plan was to enclose the garden with a white picket fence. I am not sure if the fence will happen or not as we like the ability to walk around all sides of the beds and have not had an abundance of critters eating from the garden.

The space next to the garden where our new fire pit is located was initially planned for a garden shed. Mr. RDH has been drawing plans and I have been saving images for several years now. Overtime somehow our purely utilitarian building has morphed into something completely different and much more involved. We realized it would be years before we tackled this project, thus the fire pit.

The fire pit was purchased from a local landscaping company and included the metal ring as well as the blocks. The name of the manufacturer is Cambridge Paving Stones and I was told it is possible to buy the metal ring separately. As I mentioned before, we have already enjoyed enough s’mores for an entire summer!

I hope I have answered all of your questions. If I missed something please let me know. I realize Blogger has had issues with comments as I have tried and been unsuccessful at leaving comments on many blogs. If you tried to leave a comment or question and it did not work, I would love for you to try again!