My Backyard Bubbler!!

I wrote a post last week on simple water features that you can put in your backyard, here.  Over ten years ago we made a bubbler in our backyard. It all started when I watched an HGTV show of a home in New Mexico. In their foyer they had a small water fall going into a stream and there was a beautiful bronze statue of an Indian Maiden dipping her toe in the stream. My wheels started turning! Obviously I could not afford a bronze statue or large water feature but I could do something on a small scale. Here is my little bubbler……….

I found the little statue,(which is actually black, but when wet, he reflects the blue of the sky) at a little garden boutique shop  in my town. We named him Little Jimmy. When you have grandchildren all statues that have a face must have a name!! It is hard to see the water bubbling up in a picture, but it is bubbling and gurgling and making a wonderful sound.

Let me show you some more pictures……….

In this picture you can see how Little Jimmy sits in the planter. The planter is only 27” deep and lines the patio and back side of my house. You will also notice one of my old wrought iron pieces. I actually have five placed on the wall throughout the planter as a backdrop for the plants and also for some of the vines to grow on.

You can see another wrought iron piece to the right of it. I am letting a little bit of ivy grow to cover just a small portion of the back wall behind the Mother fern. Since the backyard is so warm I like this nice shady area for ferns and shade loving plants. I use whites and pinks and a little blue to go with the color of the house and the cobalt window box and shutters.

This is to the right of the bubbler. The Japanese Maple has done so well in this over-sized cobalt pot. I added a wrought iron crane for another punch of black. Among the rocks I also have some stone globes as seen next to the pot. You can catch a glimpse of another wrought iron gate to the right of the maple. I have a pink camellia and another fern at the very end of the planter.

We enjoy sitting out here in the evenings. This is just one of three wicker chairs. I am on the hunt for a couple of new toss pillows for the back. I really like the cobalt with the cream. I am thinking seriously about ordering some custom cushions from the company I got my front porch cushions from.

This is to the very left of the bubbler. You can see a cobalt gazing globe and another black wrought iron fence on which the jasmine can grow onto. This is under my kitchen window and there is a heavenly fragrance coming in my window. I add little patches of rock to break up the plants and the dirt. It adds another texture to the flower bed.

 

This jasmine is grabbing onto the gate. It is like it reached out as far as it could to grab on. Nature is amazing!!

This is the little fairy garden in the green pot that I made with my granddaughter. I will show you the dinosaur garden I made with my grandsons in another post. These are really fun projects to do with children and I love having them in my yard. You can see the fairy garden here.

I think you can see the water splashing on the rocks in this image. This is so easy to make and it literally took a couple of hours to do. Obviously the plants have grown and the baby tears has filled in nicely so that adds to the finished look. Let me tell you how we did it.

We bought an approximately 14” round wash tub that was about 6-8” deep and a small pump from Home Depot. We placed a piece of metal screen on top of the wash tub with a whole for the water pipe to poke through. Make sure you cut the screen bigger than the width of the tub so it can lay on the ground around the tub. We placed rocks to secure the screen on the ground. Added river rock , filled it with water and plugged it in!! Instant bubbler. We added the ground cover and other small boulders to make a little haven for Little Jimmy. Put a rock in his hand so he looked as if he was dipping into the little pond to get rocks. I also placed a light that hangs over the bubbler so at night we can see it. I purchased the light at the San Francisco Garden show.

So there you have my little bubbler!! I hope this inspires you to do one for your yard. As you can see if you have a flower bed that is even just 2ft or so deep you can have one too. The actual cost of just the bubbler without plants, statue and light is less than $25.

“Enjoy the Process” Of: Adding a bubbler to your yard.

Kathysue

Ahoy! Mate!!

I love a nautical look in clothing and in a room. What I like is it’s casual nod to the ocean or life on a ship. The other thing I love is there are always stripes used with crisp white. I have a few pictures of rooms with a nautical feel to them that I thought would be fun to share since we are entering the summer months……

 

Great display of the oars above the white four poster bed. Look UP!!! A small wooden row boat hanging from the ceiling. That is totally cool!! I also love the striped rug and the crispness of the blue and white. A little extra storage under the bed with a vintage suitcase.  The view of the water is not too bad either!

Simple but definitely Nautical with the display of sail boats and use of a red, white and blue color scheme.

Another clever display of oars. Look at all the great texture in this room. The tables look as if they are made from old reclaimed wood. That is a great basket on the end of the sofa. I am in love with the two long pillows on the couch, I think the pillows and the oars make this room.

I am so in love with this room. What a clever idea to use fabric from a sail. It looks as if they used it on the lamp shade also. Notice the clever use of ties on the corners of the stool on the bed. I would love this headboard in a guest room.

This is a large tote made out of an actual ships sail by a company called Sea Bags out of Portland, Maine. Wouldn’t this make a great summer tote to take on vacation.

Another company that does recycled sails into totes and pillows and other items is called Reiter8  at Etsy.

This is a literal take on nautical. The bed is made in the shape of an actual boat. My youngest grandson has a bed very similar to this one. I wish I had a picture of his room, my DIL is one clever decorator.

This is a nursery designed by Candace Olsen. I love the ceiling mounted compass used as a medallion  for the light fixture. Be sure and notice the little light house clothes rack painted on the wall. Clever how they put the three little lights to make it more like a real light house.

If I had to pick just one outfit that would give me the nautical look that I love it would be this darling outfit from Tory Burch that I spied on a blog post by Laura Casey of Laura Casey Interiors. If you have not visited her blog be sure and go by, she has a real eye for design. I know you will enjoy your visit there.

“Enjoy the Process” Of:

Adding a touch of Nautical to your home or your wardrobe!

Kathysue

Houston We Have A Problem!!

It all began when I said let me sit on it before we cover the seat cushion. I felt two springs one on each cheek and I don’t mean my face!! Hubby and I looked at each other in disbelief, disgust and discouragement. He was ready to give-up,but I became determined.

Here is the back with the trim just pinned on. I am really liking the way it is eventually going to look.

He got the idea to take out all the springs so we did. He wanted to replace them with two outdoor cushions that we were no longer using. After much discussion, it actually worked. We wrapped them in polyfil and began the covering process. By this time, I felt wiped out mentally and it just was not working for me. Still determined not to give up, I did what any girl with Scarlett's personality, I took a nap!!

The dreaded bottom seat cushion, before the “I’ll think about it tomorrow”,nap. ( this was said in my most syrupy Southern Belle accent, of course)

After the nap I woke up more determined. I went right back in and started working on the front corner which had become my nemesis. I remember it was just folded like a hospital corner so that was what I was trying to do, but the  fold was not perfect enough for me. I finally got it right and stapled away. When Hubby heard me working he came in to help. The chair is covered,and now it has to have some touch -up painting and then the trim can be glued on.

Chair without trim or touch-up!

Rocker with trim pinned on. OH! NO!! I don’t like the trim. Yes, you heard right!! I don’t like the trim. I loved it when it was on just a portion of the chair but when it is on the whole thing I think it says too much. I know you hear me say that phrase a lot. When I say, “It say’s too much,” I am saying that it stands out too much. It becomes the focal point and for a less is more girl that is one step too far. The other thing about the trim is the way the light hits it, it shows to much shine for my taste. I told you I am a detail girl! I have to go and find the perfect, simple trim. I will have to order it so this might take a little longer than planned. Let’s face it the whole chair has taken a LOT! longer than planned. So, when I say Houston we have a problem, you now know what I mean.

I tell you, right now I definitely have a love -hate relationship with the chair, but it really does look nice. It is not quite perfect enough for me but it will be just fine. I am DONE!! I have learned my lesson: Let the professionals do what they know to do and my job is to tell them what I want it to look like.

“Enjoy the Process” Of:

Trying reallllly hard to make an older piece look new and fresh.

Kathysue