Lily Strikes Again

The evidence

The culprit

This is the 3rd spool of thread Lily has "appropriated". It seems I have a learning problem.

A Feng Shui Garden Design 3

This is the last post in a series of 3.

The property had a small triangle in the back, bordered by an unruly honeysuckle hedge, a neighbor's fence, and the garage. It occurred to me that there was enough room to install a "Secret Garden", where the clients could sit in a garden space to enjoy our beautiful summers. I strongly believe that we feel better when we are surrounded by plants, and always include a space for this purpose when I design landscapes. Sitting on a deck doesn't qualify, as it only makes us spectators of nature, not participants.

The "before" photos show the ball-shaped yew and the old spruce tree, both of which were removed. We were able to salvage the perennials and use them in the side garden.

Circular paved stone patio with raised wall. The wall was built at sitting height. The gazebo keeps out insects and provides an intimate sitting area.

The garden is a mass of easy-care Daylilies, with a ring of Amur Maple trees which will fill in and create a leafy canopy over the patio area.

The fountain is the focal point of the Secret Garden, providing the sound of trickling water to mask traffic noises.

This project was successful for the following reasons:

• Dream clients with clear design parameters and open minds (the Secret Garden installation was an additional cost)
  
• A competent contractor (Steve Elliott of Acer Land Developments in Sudbury) willing to work with Feng Shui principles
  

Many people only know landscape design through television programmes. Either the projects are hugely expensive, or the installations are a "surprise" for the unsuspecting home owner. I can't imagine coming home to a surprise garden installed in my property when I had no input. Good landscape design is a reflection of the owner's lives, the architecture of the home and the character of the neighborhood.

I'm looking forward to working on my new property. I have my own Secret Garden planned!

A Feng Shui Garden Design 2

This post continues from yesterday's post.

The side of the house had no pathway from the driveway to the front door. The foundation planting was too narrow and dry.

I created a wider garden with the owner's favorite perennials, as well as the appropriate Feng Shui plants for the owner's birth dates.

All paths curve gently.

This is the "before" photo of the area between the garage and the back door. Drainage was poor, and the old decking was rotten. The owner was also concerned about security and was reluctant to leave good quality furniture outside.

The "after" photos show the secure courtyard I created with dining area and herb garden. The wrought iron fence will be completely covered by the climbing honeysuckle within 2-3 years, creating a private area and attracting hummingbirds to the honeysuckle flowers.

The herb garden for the cook.

Tomorrow I'll post photos of the secret garden I created!

A Feng Shui Garden Design

I was a Landscape Designer and owned my own business for 15 years. The following photos are of a design I created using Feng Shui principles at the owner's request. The house is a lovely Craftsman style, but the property was shabby and in need of a complete overhaul.

The owners purchased the house using Feng Shui guidelines, and wanted a design that incorporated those while being sensitive to the architecture and period of the house.

I knew nothing about Feng Shui, but the owner gave me a pile of reading material and I immersed myself in studying this fascinating subject to prepare for the landscape design.

These are the "before" photos. The trees were dying. The rock wall was falling down. The grass slope was difficult to mow. The front door led to nowhere and was not welcoming.

These are the "after" photos for the front of the property. The dead trees were removed. All lines curve to direct the energy flow around the property, including the retaining wall.

The wrought iron arbor sits over the junction between the front and side paths, and each corner is planted with a different clematis that will eventually cover the arbor.

Tomorrow I'll post photos of the side garden and courtyard.

The Bed Quilt Club 6

Our 6th meeting was held yesterday. We were really happy to see our friend Gwen arrive to join the group! Gwen is starting a quilt pattern called Cafe Ole, from Jane Hardy Miller's book French Braid Quilts.

The beginning of Gwen's fabric choices

Pat showed us her adaptation of Nancy Daniel Brennan's
The Disappearing Nine Patch,which she calls Art Deco.
This is a beautiful quilt, and Pat's colour choices are wonderful.

Colleen has made progress on her quilt blocks for her Minnesota Backroads pattern from the book by Kathryn Squibb and Deborah Jacobs. We also had fun helping her with fabric choices with her blue, tan and yellow quilt.

Marg has passed the 1/2 way mark, with about 1050 half square triangles sewn. She needs 2040 of these units to make the 255 6" blocks required for her Friendship Star quilt.

These are the 35 blocks Marg has made up to this point.
The little red bits really add some punch to the quilt.

These are our 9 patch exchange blocks. We shared our extras with Gwen, and now she has to make a pile to catch up! How many more meetings will we need to get enough blocks to make a quilt? These are only 3 1/2" unfinished. Yikes.

Botanical Art Quilts Workshops

I've put up a new Workshops page on my website.

The first is called Bead Embroidery and Embellishments. I'll be teaching embellishment techniques with beads, buttons and embroidery suitable for any kind of project including quilts, wearable items and stitcheries. This will be a half day workshop. In the past I've taught this using my beaded bugs kits.

The next is Botanical Art Small Wall Quilts, which I have taught a number of times. Students will be able to choose from any of my flower block designs and make a small wall quilt in this one day class.

Leaf Magic Little Quilts will also be a one day class. Again, students will choose from one of six leaf designs for their project. I will also demonstrate how to preserve real leaves for use in these quilts, or in art journal/scrapbooking projects.

My lecture is called Healing Stitches, which will explore my stitched journey in life. I'll be explaining the concept of healing/protection quilts and the designs and symbols used to create them. I gave this lecture at the last Quilts on the Rocks show here in Sudbury a few years ago.

And lastly, my Trunk Show will be chock full of all kinds of Botanical Art quilts, embellished works, collaged quilts and even my bed quilts when there is room in the luggage.

Janet's Iced Tea Recipe

Today is a great day to be alive. The weather is perfect and I just made my first batch of Janet's Iced Tea for the season. Here is the recipe, which I developed about 30 years ago:

4 tea bags (full strength or decaffeinated)
12 c. boiling water
Steep overnight in glass jug.
Add 1/4 c. lemon juice + 1/2 c. white sugar or sucralose (Splenda or other brand)
Garnish with mint leaves or citrus slices (lemon, lime, orange).

It's inexpensive and delicious. Enjoy!