happy memorial day...

In honor of those who fought for our freedom,

simply...thank you.

Arlington National Cemetery

Wishing you all a safe and happy Memorial Day!

my boxwood mistake...

Tonight I was re-potting my boxwoods. :(

I'm sharing the silly mistake I made ~ I was so anxious to get them potted 

last weekend when we had our marathon boxwood planting that I mindlessly started

in, and I didn't make any adjustment for the height.

So...if you're going for the more formal trimmed look on the right remember to sink

 your plant down in the pot about 1/3 lower than the typical height of the pot on the left!

  

The rain started in before I could finish...

one of these days our deck is going to be ready for summer! 

How's your progress ~ BBQ ready yet?

fresh, simple vignettes...

Simply...branches from our yard in a vase. 

Remember the knock off Riad pillows from Costco?
I chose green, and they'll be outside on our deck soon.

I couldn't help but add a dose of freshness to our mantel as well.

My uber sweet blogging friend, Lisa @ Shine Your Light, just happened to do a great
 post yesterday on how adding something green to your space brings it to life!
 I agree!

She also shared a helpful list of Hard to Kill Houseplants, if you're in need. :)

ikea barometer floor and work lamp...

Ikea Barometer Floor Lamp and Work Lamp are
not only favorites I've used several times, but they're on sale!
Barometer Floor Lamp - 57" - $49.99
Barmoeter Work Lamp - 19" - $29.99

Both are nice sized and available in nickle plated or red finish.
I'd make mine gold in a heartbeat!
They're sturdy, timeless, and you can see the industrial look adds character to
any style...

Ikea Barometer Work Lamp            Ikea Barometer Floor Lamp

ikeaspotting.tumblr.com

McAlpine Tankersley

House Beautiful

Ikea

 ikeaspotting.tumblr.com

ikeaspotting.tumblr.com 

ikeaspotting.tumblr.com

babble.com

Ethan Allen

Other Ikea Favorites, click on title to view.

The Borby Lantern
Bravur Clock
Songe Mirror
Black & White Pillow Collection
Byholma Rattan Chest
Julmys Twine
Lack Floating Shelf
Tobias Lucite Chair
Ektorp Sofa

hodge-podge to happy...

I've been smitten with the classic look of boxwoods for about a year,

the tidy, formal plantings were more and more appealing as our cottage style gardens

had taken on a messy hodge-podge look, and I wasn't a fan.

We spent part of the weekend doing yard work, and the beginnings of a

tidy yard are starting to take shape, yay for progress! 

Long story short, we dug up and relocated a lot of plants before planting 

a lot of boxwoods. (In my excitement I forgot to take a photo till midway.)  

Ahhhh....

On the opposite side a longer bed, that was even more of a jumbled mishmash cottage-like! 

I haven't got them neatly trimmed yet, but already I feel like it will be so much

 more manageable. It doesn't look so bad in these photos because it's still early and

 everything isn't up yet.

The little boxwoods I bought last year didn't escape relocation...

now the beginnings of a more formal grouping around the base of our birdbath...

Even my cute girl was whipped, we all felt like this, but she was far more photogenic. :)

Thank you Mr. Simple and Detail Boy, you're the BEST!

Btw, I found these boxwoods at Home Depot for $12.88 each, a good price,
but I still haven't seen a repeat of last year's great deal at $3.33.