Make an Easy Obelisk 2

Are you DIY garden gurus ready for another version of my easy to build wooden Obelisk??

The purple clashed in my garden and I did not have enough to finish it off

~if you look real close you can see bare wood in spots~

So I transformed it with more cans of left over paint in my stash

then plopped it in the garden..

Where the self seeded morning glories promptly found it and wound their way to the top..

(in there somewhere is the cucumbers I had planted to twine up and I have even picked my very first cuke)

Now for a new version…

TA DA!

Don’t ya just love that apple green. 

I spotted an obelisk on a Better Homes and Gardens site and voila’ our second obelisk idea was born.

Since the basics are the same as our original obelisk I am not going to bore you with all the details but I will show you some photos of how he did the X pieces.

Note to make the X you put one half of the X on the outside of the frame…

and the other goes on the inside. 

And that is it….for a rough sketch of the original obelisk with measurements go here.

And once you are done you have this..

You can see the beginning of my Garden Room in the background, stop on over at that post to see the finished walls.

GARDEN ROOM

Do you think I should paint the first one green too? 

They will be in the same garden.

 

Happy end of Summer gardening. 

There is still a few weeks left of fine weather to be enjoyed before real chilly weather descends. 

(I hope)

Until next time…

Pamela

 

Feathered Nest Friday,Show and Tell Friday,  Friday Link party, Hookin Up, From the Farm Blog Hop, Funky Junk, Link Party Palooza, Think Pink Sundays

Build A Garden Room

In the Summer my back deck is HOT.  

When you would like to sit out there on a lovely summer evening, the sun is beating down making it unbearable.

So we put up a canopy, I had used this long ago when I did shows and events

so it was just lounging lazily in the garage…

It sort of worked but you see how the sun comes in at an angle?

That made it uncomfortable, still. 

So we need to so something about that.

Here is where these come in…

Cedar Fence boards are so versatile…

we built my ‘oh so handy’  potting bench out of them..

And now they become a shabbilicious garden room wall

I had guesstimated it would take twenty 7.5 inch wide cedar fence boards to cover the space….

I was wrong, that was not near enough…

                                                      (see my studio peeking out down there…go here to see it all)

So what to do…what to do…

I did not want to spend anymore $$$ so we had to be creative…

and when I spotted some rusty, crusty metal roof panels in the alleyway behind my mom’s house I knew I had hit pay dirt!

So instead of all fence boards we added sections of rusty old tin roof panels…

                        (I use the term ‘we’ rather loosely since I really only supervised and explained by vision to my ever helpful builder hubby”

He had to cut the panels down to 6 feet as they were originally 8 feet, he used what he called a ‘nibbler’.

Gotta love a man with ear muffs on,

safety first. 

That nibbler worked like a charm, it cut thru that tin like a hot knife through butter but it sure was noisy!

Now to move all the plants and furniture back into place...

The furniture is all still ‘works in progress’…

I have to finish painting the bench, you can see some white still on the one side…my paint ran out and I have been too buried in work to finish..

and the paint for the table is on order..it is going to look “maaaaah-ve-lous”

 

I absolutely love how my garden room turned out…

half the time my bright ideas don’t turn out as I had envisioned but this one surpassed my expectations.

Now to build a sturdier shed roof over it so it can be used in winter….

I expected an eye roll when I mentioned that to my handsome builder 

but I was pleasantly surprised when he thought it a great idea..

Stayed tuned, it may be a good year before it happens but now that I planted that bug in his ear we will get a roof.

 

Enjoy your day…still smoky here but I have yet to check the progress of the fires today.  I wonder if they are getting a handle on it?

 

 

Pamela

 

August Flowers in a Smoky Garden

Good Morning.   Everyone up?

We woke to acrid, throat burning, eye stinging forest fire smoke this morning.

Anne Boleyn Rose

 

Actually, we have gotten up to thick smoke most mornings this week. 

The Rim Fire is wreaking havoc in Tuolumne county. 

So sad, the little historic town of Groveland is now under evacuation.

Candy Cane Rose

And the fire is only 8 miles from Tuolumne, a quaint historic logging town.

Demitasse

So, being that a bit of smoke is no comparison to an entire town full of family homes, lovely historic places and farm animals being obliterated….

I won’t complain of it.

I will just just share some of my garden photos I have been snapping every morning this week before rushing off to work.

Graham Thomas

Though I have been neglectful of my garden this summer through no fault of my own…

it has still flourished and is rewarding me with the most delicious roses.

Happy Chappy rose

And tons of them…

                                                               spilling over rock walls,

Petal Pusher rose

Arching up and over arbors…

Tess D'Urbervilles

And soon to climb our easy to build Obelisks…

We have a new version of this Obelisk I will share soon,

very soon…

Funny thing is, I put that obelisk out there for my cucumbers to climb, and the Morning Glories took over.

There are cucumbers in there though and I saw a tiny little cucumber on one plant last night. 

That reminds me, I need to go put the soaker hose out there today.  They need some water.

 

I will leave you with one last rose, always a favorite of mine..

Queen Elizabeth rose

Now off to work I go.  

It has been crazy busy on the mountain, even with the choking smoke and sooty afternoon thundershowers.

All of us that have been up there during the storms have vehicles covered in grey crusty mud from the raindrops collecting the ash in the air and depositing it on us in thick gloppy drops. 

On that cheery note…

Ta Ta…and have a clear air day, wherever you may be!

 

~Pamela~

Buried in Basil….The Best Homemade Pesto Recipe

What do you do when a fantabulous friend plops a huge trash bag of fresh picked basil,

(from her very own stupendous garden)

into your arms???

I mean it, a big ol black trash bag!

Here it is, AFTER, I have processed a good portion of its contents already.

PESTO!

(of course)

I have a delicious pesto recipe that I whip this into.

I stand at this sink, look out the window and watch the sunset as I strip leaf after leaf from their freshly rinsed stalks..

filling the house with its pungent aroma that not even the fresh garlic can override.

I toast the pine nuts to a golden hue and as they cool I peel the garlic, measure the olive oil and prepare the cookie sheet.

 

My food processor makes quick work of blending all the luscious ingredients into a glorious green paste that will make plain ol’ noodles a tasty delight.

It will give bland sautéed veggies a punch of flavor.

And served with cream cheese and crackers it makes a fantastic appetizer.

Would you like my recipe for Pesto??

Okay here we go.

 

Pesto Recipe

Ingredients

4 cloves of garlic

1/2 cup Pine nuts (I toast them in a frying pan, watch them closely they burn easily)

2 cups fresh basil (packed tight, tight, tight)

1/2 cup olive oil

1/4 cup fresh grated parmesan (Asiago is great too)

3/4 tsp. of salt

1/2 tsp. pepper

 

I use my food processor to make mine but some people like to use a blender.

 

I double the recipe to speed up the process when I have a lot of basil.

I put the basil and garlic into the processor first, turn it on and pour in the olive oil, then I put in the rest of the ingredients. 

Let it blend until it is a green paste.

I cover a cookie sheet with wax paper and measure out 1/2 cup plops of the pesto onto it, I freeze it then wrap each pesto disc in plastic wrap for wax paper and store in a freezer bag.

I also use little canning jars to put it in if I wish. 

When I want to make some sauce for my pasta or veggies I heat 2 tablespoons of butter in a sauce pan and add the pesto disc, sometimes I also add a bit of water so the sauce will coat the pasta easier. 

 

I love my pesto, it gives me a taste of summer all winter long. 

Enjoy!

 

Pamela

Some Family Time

How is your weekend going? 

I started mine out in the garden. 

That is a very good thing.

I admired my Grandpa Nute rose that just keeps on blooming. 

It even greets me as I descend the stairs.

The sweet scent of Oriental lilies fills the cool morning air…

and makes the garden walk even more delightful.

The garden is still producing a fabulous show..

and is even better when you get up close and personal.

Nearly Wild

Princess Diana

Echinacea with some fading Delphiniums.

I only had a wee bit of time to enjoy the garden.

We had a date…

A date with a couple little boys.

...to build Dusty the plane.

Uncle Dave is the best plane builder.

Is that a happy face….

or what.

Dad was helping Jackson…

who took a quick second to give his Auntie Pam a smile.

Benjamin kept Auntie Pam company.

He wore his special shirt just for me.

Has anyone else seen ‘Planes’? 

We really enjoyed it, even more than Cars.

After some shopping and then a late lunch we headed on home…

with these.

More on that later, I already love how this project is turning out.

I promise to share, not sure when but I will.

 

Until next time…

Pamela

Build Your Own Crafting Cottage or Garden Shed

Do you have Happy Place? 
If not…
Got a spot in the back yard??? 
Build yourself one….

My husband and I built this lovely little cottage together and my brother in law helped too in setting it up on site.
If you wish to see this being built, click on title below
My Fabulous Creative Space!
It has been my favorite place to get away to ever since it was built in 2005, even when it looks like a tornado has struck inside.
(like now)
It has weathered all sorts of trials and tribulations..
From frigid snow…and lots of it..

to Trees taken down around it and one large log nipping the roof’s edge

And my jungle of a garden trying to over take it…

When we first set it up there was nothing much around it but the tall, tall trees..

What a difference the years have made.
Did you believe me when I said it looks like a tornado whipped thru???
I guess a picture is worth a thousand words…
okay here gooooooes…

I’d wager you did not expect THIS!
I confess, I need an intervention.

Actually, what I really need is a full week at home with no one calling me needing me to do something else.
Truly.
Today I will be working in here, though I cannot spend the time needed to tidy it up. 
I have a boat load of orders I must get filled and I only have today and tomorrow off and tomorrow is filled with other responsibilities.
So today I must paint and ignore the mess,
once again. 
Soon I plan to have a post ready of this looking spic and span. 
(but then I have had that plan all summer long)

Even when it is buried in clutter my little cottage/studio is still one of my favorite places to be.

I have included to plans to build yourself one. 
To find plans to build yourself a cottage just like this CLICK HERE

If you build one, I would love for you to share your photos with me. 
Off I go, to paint and create. 
Until next time…

Pamela