Backyard Reveal

 The backyard project finally came together a month ago with the arrival of the outdoor furniture and rug.

 The wicker sofa and chairs are a little more traditional than a lot of the wicker furniture available.  

More of a Nantucket style.

 In fact, I could even use the furniture inside.  

Especially the chairs as they're wingbacks.  

The tent arrived a week later.

Needless to say, it was not easy to put together, even though the directions said assembly would take a mere 30 minutes.  

Right.  More like two hours!

Even Mr. A got involved!

Here it is all set up and ready for some serious summer relaxation.

Even though this area was fine without the tent, I love how the tent creates a room.

 Sitting out here in the evening is magical!

I can see why the previous owners built this elevated area.

It's been fun shopping for accessories like pillows...

...throws, plants and lanterns.

It's a private retreat to enjoy our morning coffee or a glass of wine when the sun is setting.

Sources:

Wicker furniture, rug, coffee table and side table from Pottery Barn

Tent from Safavieh, through Amazon 

Pillows and throw from Homegoods

Brass lantern from Pottery Barn a few seasons ago.

Other lanterns from OSH

Inspired By Roses

I owe my love of roses to my mom.

She also loved roses, collecting rose bushes like baseball cards!

Indeed, her rose garden was amazing!

While she preferred red roses, I prefer white, like the Iceberg Rose above.

I have planted these Icebergs in three homes now, in various forms.

I chose the standard version of Icebergs at our previous home's side yard...

...and New Dawn climbers in the back.

I remember how glorious this arbor was with those pale pink roses!

Just like my mom collected rose bushes, I collected rose paintings and featured them on the stairs in our previous home.


They now live in our garage where I appreciate them every time I park the car!
I just can't part with them, nor will I ever.


A few of my favorite paintings found their way inside our new home.
This one is in the laundry room.
The red roses in a basket remind me of my mom.

 When I created this bouquet years ago, I again was inspired by my mom's love of roses.
She often cut from her garden and created bouquets of mixed colored roses.
I remember how she mixed "Double Delight," "Mr. Lincoln," and her favorite, "Tropicana" to name a few in her collection.
Roses inspired her too, and she passed her love of them to me.
Thanks, Mom!

I'm joining A Stroll Thru Life for Inspire Me Tuesday.

A Is For Succulents

A few months ago, I visited the San Francisco urban nursery, Flora Grubb and purchased this form in hopes of creating a succulent "A" for the wall in our new atrium.  

Yea, that was more than a few months ago actually.

In hindsight, I really should have planted the succulents then, as it takes several months for them to root in order to hang on a wall. 

So, I'm a little late!  

Let's get started...

The medium that holds the succulents is kind of a fiber that at first needs to be soaked.

With tweezers, I made holes and inserted the succulents after their roots were trimmed.

Here is the work in progress.

I tried to vary the succulents to keep the arrangement interesting.

Ta-da!

My succulent "A!"

It's not quite as nice as this one which was professionally planted by the Flora Grubb crew, but I can fill in with small succulents later.

Hopefully, by the time we move in to the new house, the "A" will be ready to hang!

Exterior Progress: Paint and Landscape

 This week has been all about landscape--my favorite part of the remodel.

 That's because it is my own design and I get to see my vision come to fruition.

On Monday, 40 white roses, 3 Italian Cypresses, 100 boxwoods and 20 climbing ficus were delivered.

We couldn't plant yet because we had to wait for Tuesday's delivery of 14 olive trees!

 Bright and early on Tuesday morning, literally before sunrise, they arrived!

For the front and side of the house, six Swan Hill multi-branch olive trees were laid out for planting.

 I chose Swan Hill trees because they are non-fruit bearing and disease resistant.

They will be perfect for the San Francisco Marina which gets its share of fog.

 Inside the courtyard, I chose standard Swan Hill trees.  

That means that they grow from a single trunk and can be placed right against the wall.

 As soon as the trees were planted, Martin began planting the boxwood hedge which will border everything.

 What a difference!

Notice the exterior paint is finished too?

 The painters worked non-stop the week before to get it done, knowing the landscape was scheduled to be installed this week.

 The exterior stucco is Benjamin Moore's Chelsea Gray.

The white is a custom match to the new windows and I outlined the interior mullions in black.

 Copper downspouts also were installed prior to planting.

They will patina to a dark copper in a few weeks.

 This morning, I met Martin to finalize the planting.

The three Italian Cypress will punctuate the corner of the house and white Iceberg roses will fill in everywhere else.

 That may seem like a lot of roses, but I feel that to introduce too many different plants in such a small area would create visual chaos.  

Besides, white roses are kind of my signature!

 Finally, the entry is looking like I envisioned.

The copper lights were installed as well, even though they aren't electrified yet.

 The courtyard is looking pretty dramatic with the tall standard trees.

The small plants beneath are "freeway ficus" which eventually will adhere to the wall and create a living green wall behind the trees.  

The trees will eventually be trimmed after they adapt to their new home.

I have plans for a fountain, both in the entry and the courtyard.

It's beginning to look like a home!

This week has been so much fun, not only because I got to play in the dirt, but also have met so many wonderful neighbors who have been so encouraging and complimentary about the remodel.

We can't wait to move in!

24 Hours In Asti

 Asti has alluded us most of the month of May.

There was a wedding one weekend, and relatives claimed it for two other weekends.

We managed to carve out a 24 hour respite though last Friday.

The weather was perfect.

Not too hot yet and not too cold either.

Early in the morning, I walked around with my camera in tow, just like the old days!

I love this time of year.  It's not quite summer and spring is coming to a close.

The garden is abloom!

 The succulents are looking good, despite the fact that they only get watered every two weeks!

The Boston Ivy is taking over the house, as is the lavender!

Oscar couldn't be happier!

He loves Asti!

And so do we!

Looking forward to our sixth Asti summer.

Let it begin!

Planting The Kitchen Potager

 It's that time of year again.

Planting time!

The sweet peas planted themselves and I hate to take them out yet to plant veggies, so I'll give them a few more weeks.

Mr. A wants them out now because he has summer squash, cucumbers, tomatoes, arugula, basil, parsley, sage and more to plant.

 This is the herb section.

I asked him plant some Nasturtiums in this bed.  They're supposed to be good in salads.

Bear loves to oversee everything and soak up the sun.

Oscar is exhausted.

Planting a garden is hard work!

My favorite author Margaret Atwood once said; "In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt."

Mission accomplished!

The bamboo trellises can be purchased at Gemplers, here.