Divine Theatre

Today was a good day. I woke up to Sage kissing my eyes and my cheeks and my forehead and lifting my hands to kiss them and telling me that he loves me. He was hungry but okay I'll take what I can get.
Then Handsome Husband brought the children to daycare to play with their friends and Gracie made me this glorious breakfast! It's 2026 and we take pictures of our breakfast now. Don't we?

Sage quietly helped me frame these lovely dog paintings to add to the salon walls this morning, as the rest of the house slept.
The hammer and nails won't come out until mid-afternoon. Since Handsome Husband was promoted to sergeant, he works midnights.
We are experiencing a lethal level of summer, children and sleeping husband.
Please send chocolate.

englishcountryhousestyle frenchcountry g designonadime facebookmarketplacefinds blueandwhiteporcelain

AFTER and BEFORE

The only change? Furniture, rugs and pretty secondhand things.

One of the neat things about AI is that you can envision your projects more vividly. As you know, plants take time to grow. When a gardener plants a shrub they understand it's going to look far different in 10 years than it does on the day that it was planted. The boxwood parterre in the front parkway is no different. The right is what it looks like today, after several years of growth. But with the power of AI, I can see the circular and geometric boxwood sections knitted together and the full force of the mature annabelle hydrangeas, as I envisioned them, even before I put the shovel in the soil.

gardenverdure

I was going to trim the boxwood parterre today but I had a change of heart after laying five tons of mushroom compost yesterday. I probably should have bought a wheelbarrow but I managed without. I had no idea how heavy it was until I looked online. I feel strangely fine and that worries me. lol
I don't think you have seen this view before. It is the view from the side Gardens into the driveway and the boxwood parterre beyond.
Gardening is my therapy and something of a church to me. I have had so much peace, listening to the birds and watching God's creatures working on their own little plots of land.
I hope you're not intimidated by any of this. If you only knew how easy it was. Draw your plans, dig trenches, plant your shrubs, water them and watch them grow. Trim occasionally.

gardenverdure

I believe that one of the secrets to making a patio or as in my case, a driveway, look like a secret garden, is to facilitate the use of perennial flowers, rather than annuals. I place them in iron and terracotta pots. Also a few shrubs here and there to give it an anchor. It feels more established. I typically purchase perennials when they are in bloom and keep them in the pots surrounding the seating area, then plant them when the blooms are spent. Lord knows I throw money around like I have it, but I find it difficult to spend money on flowers that die at the end of the season. Many people use folding lawn chairs in their driveways. Why not use the pretty stuff?? Really. Why not?

gardenverdure

A quick after and before of our builder grade family room. The second image is from the real estate brochure. Nothing a little second hand shopping can't fix!

frenchantiquefurniture formalgarden maximalism englishcountry englishcountryhousestyle frenchcountry grandmillenialdecor diy designonadime designonabudget facebookmarketplacefinds blueandwhiteporcelain facebookmarketplace stylishliving interiordesign

This was my workout yesterday. These iron Medici urns are taller than me! I had to heave seven, 50 lb bags of mulch over my head into each one and two 40 lb bags of soil per planter. The trees are actually Phantom hydrangea standards. They are the kind of hydrangeas that have the conical, huge blooms that start out white but turn toward pink in the fall. I am so excited to see these bloom!
Our front yard is on a slope so I planted the taller specimen in the pot that sits lower on the slope and I also planted the shorter standard in the pot that's higher on the slope, a little lower in the pot, ( less soil) so they are level to the horizon. It fools the eye into believing that the pots sit level.
Now I just need to trim the boxwood parterre, yew and privet hedges!

gardenverdure