Saturday Shed Dreams

I blame my mom for this. Early this morning she sent me a pin from Pinterest of this...

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Now all I can think about is spring time and the fun plans we have for our beloved backyard.

First thing we want to do is get a shed. We really need to utilize the space in our garage more efficiently and right now lawn and garden tools (like the mower) are eating up precious space.

Here are a few inspirations I gathered on Pinterest this morning.

If we're dreaming big, I'd really love to be able to have a small greenhouse area within the shed for spring seedlings.


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The area of the yard where we're thinking about putting the shed is near the back of our brick fireplace. I think it might be fun to make it a secondary sitting area...maybe a little outdoor fire pit built around the back of the chimney??

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If we're being more realistic, then I bet we'll end up with something a bit more like these two. They are functional with just enough style. We can paint them to match the house and get some similar shingles. I really love the windows on each of these options. (Though I bet that will add cost, so who knows if we'll actually have the funds for that.)

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And finally, I found this great source for information about the foundation. I think if we pour a concrete pad, then we have to get a permit and more approvals from the city. However, if we level and build a foundation like this one, I think we can avoid the permits.

Love this site for tips! Source 

More to come later in the spring!

~Karli

Karli's Exterior Project Done...For Now

Ok, so here it is! The big reveal of our exterior project. By now you know all about the tree projects, the trim projects, paint choices and flower bed plans. It all came together in something I am really proud to call ours!

After all the old evergreen shrubs and bushes were removed (and the giant cottonwood stump was ground out), we started planting flowers. Finally, the flower beds are making all that effort worth it! The flowers are blooming and spreading and, hopefully, growing strong roots. I picked mostly perennials so those beds won't require a ton of work to look great year after year. Here are a couple of progress pictures of the beds.


After the sidewalk was poured we had an even larger space to fill next to the driveway.



 

Earlier in the summer, this pic was taken before we put in edging bricks to define the bed. We also planted a couple more things on the left part of the bed.

We picked Sherwin Williams Pewter Tankard for the body and it is exactly what I wanted. While we were painting my sister and brother in law kept calling it brown. I called it gray. PERFECT. I wanted a gray that didn't turn blue or pink. I wanted it to be almost brown.

This shows that side flower bed filled in. The plants are still growing.

We used Sherwin Williams Extra White for the trim for a really nice crisp pop. And then I ordered black shutters from Home Depot, so we didn't even have to paint those.

And I got my lime green door!

The bench mom made looks amazing on the front porch. As do the black chairs I picked up earlier this summer.

Love that bench! You can also see the door better here too.

I can't wait till the flowers fill out a bit more. (And it will be nice when we re-sod the lawn next year)

Here's the full "after" view with the before picture too. What a difference!

We still have all that empty space where the tree stump was. You'll probably see more posts about that next spring!

Just a reminder of where we started. It was all worth it!

Simple, Delicious Food: Canteloupe Salad

I won't often post about food, but when I do it has to be simple, delicious and beautiful. This salad meets all those requirements. I also tend to not make the same recipe twice (Brent wishes I would break this habit) unless it's easy and amazing.

I was inspired to create this salad when I was at a photoshoot for work a week ago. Our photographer always has the most unique yet simple food for us to eat. I arrived in time for breakfast and was greeted with a plate of tomatoes, arugula and ricotta salata. It seemed out of place at breakfast. But then I ate it and it all made sense. It was sweet, peppery, salty and creamy. So many lovely tastes and textures achieved in so few ingredients.

So I came home and made this salad. Now I can't stop!

It really couldn't be any easier! Here's the rundown:

• Baby arugula
• Cantaloupe cubes
• Blueberries
• Ricotta Salata (my store carries this in a section of special cheeses, near the fresh mozzarella)
• Pistachios
• Fresh Mint (from the garden)

Simply layer the ingredients in a shallow bowl. NO dressing is necessary on this salad. I love that!

And the reason I crave this salad is because it's perfect! It peppery (arugula), sweet (melon), tart (blueberries), salty (nuts and cheese), crunchy (nuts), creamy (cheese) and refreshing (mint). The combination of these ingredients knocks it out of the park. And each ingredient sings through as you make your way through the dish.

Try it, you won't be sorry. And remember: Simple foods are often the best foods. Don't mess with perfection.

You're welcome,
Karli

A Sneak Preview: Exterior Project (Almost) Complete

It's hard to believe it's been almost a month since my last post. Where did the time go? What have I been up to? (Eating bonbons and sun-bathing?--I WISH!) Let me tell you a story.

In my last post, I told you about our trim being rotted and needing replacement before paint could begin. I also told you that the work was going to begin the next day. Well, that "little" project turned into a not-so-little nightmare. The contractor we used was very late starting the work, very slow to get the "two day" project done and made a few mistakes along the way that delayed the project even more. It was all I could do not to rant on Facebook and complain on the blog, but my sweet husband kept me from it. (I still have to practice deep breathing when I think about it--and to be honest I did write a Facebook post about my frustrations and when I tried to post, my phone kept giving me an error message. I considered it a sign from God that I should remain positive.)

I don't want to bore you with all the nonsense, so I'll get to the happy stuff. Brent's sister and her husband paint houses on the side of their already full time jobs and lives. They painted our old house and I realized then that their attention to detail is just as strong as mine. Perfect. Needless to say, they did an amazing job on this house too. I almost cried when I pulled up the final evening and it was done.

A year's planning and saving resulted in something I'm proud to call my own!

Here's a sneak preview of a full blown post to come...



I don't think I'd even posted about this! We add a new sidewalk into the mix too. So happy with the results!

 

The first bit of paint going on the house! I was giddy like a little kid!

 

Lime Green front door?! I think YES!

 

Shutters going up (and that last bit of reddish brown trim)!

 

Here's just a little bit of the finished product. More coming in a couple days!

What do you think so far? Better than where we started? :)

Happy Summer,
Karli

Bushes Out, Flowers In

Ok, so the flowers aren't literally "in" yet, but I placed my order for just what I wanted from Burpee.com. I signed up for their newsletter, so I got free shipping on the order. Based on our zone and last frost date, the plants will start shipping April 15th. Mom is headed up here for the weekend with some day lily bulbs that we'll put in the ground right away where the bushes lived along the back of the house.

And because the bushes are being torn out tomorrow (yippee), I'll have the perfect space for a beautiful new front flower garden.  I got my inspiration for the layout and style from BHG.com.

I thought, because I can hardly wait myself, that I'd share my final flower choices with you. All the photos are from Burpee's website.  

Oriental Poppy, Allegro

Probably one of my favorite flowers!



Spiderwort

Noted as being good for novice gardeners. Sounds great!

Clematis, Jackmanii (this will grow up the mailbox post)

Sturdy climber and very hardy.



Echinacea/Coneflowers, Hot Summer

This is a Burpee exclusive. Love the vibrant colors. Will be great to cut and bring inside!



Foxglove, Rose Shades

"Blooms like crazy. Needs no care at all"



Rudbeckia/Brown Eyed Susans, Goldsturm

"Bright, bold and easy to grow"



Solidago, Fireworks

I'll plant this towards the back of the bed



Columbine, Lime Sorbet

These bloom lime and then turn white. I've never seen anything like them before!



Lisianthus, Florida Blue

Apparently these can tolerate lots of heat. Perfect for the front of our house. They're also supposed to be almost like roses--minus the thorns!

I still plan to purchase some annuals locally for planter boxes. I'll do sweet potato vine with purple wave petunias in those planters.

My sweet friend, Angie, volunteered to come over and help me plant. This is a fairly large undertaking, so you can bet I'll be taking her up on that!

Here's to finally having curb appeal at this house!

~Karli

Spring Fever: Flowers on the Brain

Last night I dreamt about flowers. Beautiful hot pink geraniums, tall black eyed susans, showy ice plants, colorful columbines and hummingbirds. I think it's a sign...I've got serious spring fever. Figures. Today it has snowed about a foot.

Our backyard is amazing. We had no idea when we bought it in the middle of winter that it would be so marvelous come spring time.


Sadly we had to cut down that large cottonwood tree, but just look how beautiful this is!

I told you earlier this week about how we're tearing out overgrown trees and bushes up against the house so we can paint the exterior. I mentioned that I'm going to transplant some day lilies from Mom's house in the back where we're losing two large bushes. I think between those and what you can see going on in that picture above, the backyard will be colorful and alive. But the front...



Sorry for the fuzzy picture. It's from the MLS listing. I never took pictures with my camera because I'm embarrassed of it.

We don't have a lot of space in the front. So I feel like a little bit of work and some colorful flowers will go a long way. But there's a lot of work to do (including exterior paint) before I can start planting flowers.

There's a cottonwood stump in the middle of that brick circle thing. (I wish the previous owners would have had the stump ground when they cut it down--now we get to deal with it.) So we're planning to do that (getting rid of the brick circle and the wood chips too) plus removing all the juniper bushes and the three deciduous berry colored bushes.

We'll basically have a blank slate at that point, minus the sidewalk from the drive to the porch, which I think will have to go too. We want to "widen" the driveway where you currently see the juniper bush row. We'll do a nice paver row and the extend that up to the front door.



Love the look of this walkway. I think we could use it to extend the driveway about a foot on each side too. From Houzz.com



We'll probably just place new sod over the place where the tree stump is. Then I can start thinking about flowers.

The front of the house faces southwest and it takes a beating in the afternoon sun. PLUS we're going to be in drought restrictions again. So I need to be smart about what goes in the newly found space. After consulting Better Homes and Gardens website and magazine as well as absorbing all I can from a friend's gardening book collection, I have some pretty good ideas.

Here's the basic layout I'm going to follow with these plants. Gotta love Better Homes and Gardens! Their free garden plans provide the names of the plants, how many you need, where to plant them, etc. Sort of foolproof. (Heaven knows I could use THAT...I really know NOTHING about flower gardening) 


"Low Care Sidewalk Garden" from BHG.com. (Sounds perfect!)

I can't wait to get started on the exterior. Finally our neighbors will start to see that we really do care about our house.

~Karli

Spring is just around the corner...

That means I'm thinking about my second year of gardening. (I think the topic fits in the scope of this blog, right? I mean, it adds to the beauty of our backyard landscape and impacts my style of cooking. Is that a stretch? I guess I don't care. I'm going to continue writing about the garden...)

When we moved into this house last winter, I was so excited about the garden that was already set up out back. They had a long plot of dirt, a few barrels and a drip watering system. My inner hippie was jumping for joy!

I consulted lots of friends who garden here in Denver to get some pointers, I checked the internet and basically just winged it. I think I did pretty well for just throwing my hat in the ring. I sure did learn a lot along the way and have plans for bigger and better this year.



You can see the garden plot in the section on the right. The barrels held the herbs. (Seriously, I can't wait for this yard to come alive again. It is so beautiful!)


Last year we had zucchini, butter lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, green onions, two green peppers, one jalapeno, one strawberry, parsley, mint and basil. That may sound sort of lame, but I was seriously thrilled. It was my first try, people! I was surprised I had anything!!



One of the first harvests. I made a zucchini gratin with a salad. Amazing how much better food tastes fresh from your backyard!


I think I may look into getting some large troughs to put in the garden, so things are up off the ground and I can control the soil better. Here's what I'm going to do this year:

One regular tomato plant

One grape tomato plant

One heirloom tomato plant

One zucchini plant

One yellow squash plant

One cucumber plant

One row of green onions

One sweet pepper plant

One green pepper plant

Butter lettuce (staggered planting)

Spinach (staggered planting)

Cilantro, basil, thyme, parsley, mint (all in barrels up closer to the house)

The blog, onehundreddollarsamonth.com, has been inspirational to me this month. Look at all she's doing with her backyard space! Because of her, I may just try out some kale and beans too!

Visit onehundreddollarsamonth.com and be prepared to kill about three hours.

I've also put a bug in my dad's ear that I think he should help me build a trellis for the tomato plants. Last year I had some fall over from weight.

Are you starting to think about your garden? What plans do you have this year? If you live in Colorado, what plants have done well for you?

~Karli