My little garden helper!

Forget-Me-Nots

Hosta, Brunnera, Ferns & Forget-Me-Nots

Coral Bells & Forget-Me-Nots

Trillium

Columbine

Bleeding Heart

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Okay so it isn’t quite May yet, but the April showers and warmer weather have really helped all of the plants sprout! It seems like in the last day everything has grown at least 6″. There are of course quite a few plants still hiding in the dirt (including my Hibiscus, Joe Pye Weed and some of my grasses) but the trees have started to leaf out and the garden is starting to luck lush (in spots) again.

Speaking of plants, I will be posting some plant selections for Stacey’s garden later.

I hope everyone had a lovely holiday. We have finally gotten over the stomach bug (knock on wood) and had a good weekend seeing family and eating tasty treats (including some delicious brownies from my sister in law). We are trying to get back in the rhythm of things this week.

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In honor of Earth Day here are a couple of Outdoor Chairs made from recycled milk jugs. I am considering a pair of these Emmet Lounge Chairs for our backyard in blue. They are a quite pricey but I love that they are recycled, American made, super low maintenance and come in fabulous colors.

Emmet Chair available through Room & Board $399

Here is also a more traditional option also by Loll Design:

4 Slat Curved Back Adirondack $546

Here is another Adirondack option made from Polywood:

 

Polywood Adirondack Chair from Brookstone via Amazon $270

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Brunnera with Forget-Me-Nots in foreground

Close Up of Brunnera Flowers

Typical Mound of Brunnera after it is established

Brunnera Macrophyla
(False Forget-Me-Not, Siberian Bugloss)

 

Type: Perennial (Zones 3-8). Looses it leaves in winter.
Light Requirements: Part Shade to Shade
Moisture/Soil: Average moisture. Doesn’t like dry shade.
Blooms: Mid spring.  Little blue flower similar to Forget-Me-Not.
Leaves: Green heart shape. Many of the other varieties have silver or white highlights. They have a rough texture.
Size: Height: 12-18′ (including flower height)  Width: 12″ (larger if you let it clump)
Additional Info: I have been growing these is part shade to shade conditions and they do very well for me.

Pros: This plant does very well for me in part shade and shade and in clay soil.  The advantage to these over Forget-Me-Nots are that the heart shaped leaves remain all season while the Forget-Me-Nots reseed and then die back by the middle of summer. Also deer and rabbits don’t like them! They also don’t require any maintenance unless you want to divide them.

Cons: They do self seed (I don’t really see this as a con though). Mine are all from a Plant Exchange where they are either self-seeders or divided. One thing to keep in mind that the variegated varieties may not produce true plants from seeds.

Origin: Eastern Europe.

Varieties: There are several variegated varieties to choose from. 

‘Jack Frost’ – Well known for its silver leaves. Very beautiful! I remember when this was introduced about 10 years ago. My mom has quite a few of these. Fortunately they have become much more easy to find and are not as expensive as they use to be.

‘Looking Glass’ – A more silvery version of Jack Frost

‘Kings Ransom’ – Similar to Jack Frost with a creamy yellowish edge

‘Emerald Mist’ – Has silver spots near the edge of the leaf. I just realized that I have a couple of these. (top left photo there are some on the left side)

‘Langtrees’ -  Looks almost identical to Emerald Mist

*The Plant of the Week is based on plants that do well in my 7a/6b garden in SE Pennsylvania.

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Bob's Sketch of Mother's House

 

Mother’s House is the building that put Robert Venturi (Bob) on the map as an architect (along with his writing). Built for his mother in the early 1960s, it is considered a (post) modern masterpiece. They even put it on a postage stamp in 2005! It is so iconic because in an era of architects creating modern boxes of glass and steel he returned to using symbolism and based the exterior of the design on the simplest childhood sketch of a home. The play of scale is everywhere. The oversized sloped roof, chimney windows and entry stand out, even though the building itself has 5 rooms. The house is small but generous.

The house was designed for Bob’s aging mother (Vanna) and needed to allow for her to age in place on one floor. The first floor consists of the living/dining room, kitchen and 2 bedrooms (1 medium size for her and 1 small for a caretaker). The second floor only has the “master” bedroom which was actually designed for him (he lived their briefly before moving elsewhere with his wife Denise Scott Brown). After his mother’s death the house was sold (although Bob and Denise did consider moving in, but didn’t think it would work with a small child). The same family still owns and occupies it. They have taken such lovely care of the building and still call the office when they need to repair or replace something.

It is interesting because after all of this time it still feels remarkably fresh to me. It was very gray and raining while we were there but the house felt very bright with no lights on. I first visited the house about 14 years ago and now that I am older I am more in love with it then ever. The open living/dining area has such a pleasant scale and is the perfect size for a small gathering. The kitchen is small but has a beautiful bank of windows that makes it feel much larger. The stairs to the second floor shift beautifully around the fireplace and chimney. The second floor bedroom is just right, although I think it would be perfect if you could see out to the backyard while laying in bed. The closet space and bathrooms are very tiny in the house.

The house is not open for regular tours because it is still a residence and located on a quiet street in Chestnut Hill.

View from Entry Drive

 

Front Elevation

 

Front & Left Side

 

Entry w/ Split Pediment

 

Rear and Right Side Elevations including Covered Patio

 

Entry

Fireplace w/ Large Copy of Postage Stamp

 

Living/Dining Room

Kitchen

Looking at the entry drive from the window on the stairs

Stair to Nowhere

Second Floor Bedroom

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I had a good time visiting my old office yesterday, seeing old colleagues and taking a tour of Mother’s House (the last time I was there was about 14 years ago). Unfortunately it was raining during our visit but I still managed to get a few outdoor photos.

Here is a quick peak (more to come later)…

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The King Post

April 18, 2011 — Leave a comment

King Post Before: Rotted Horizontal Member

Replacement piece being installed

Restored King Post!

 

I should start out by saying that a King Post is a decorative truss. In our case we have two and they are located in the eaves of the roof.  When we bought the house I didn’t know what to call them (they don’t teach you this kind of stuff in Architectural School). Anyway, both of the King Posts on our house are rotting. There are no two ways around it. When we had the house re-sided and painted 5 years ago we had them patch it up as best as possible. However after less than 2 years they really started to deteriorate. Unfortunately, getting to them is VERY difficult. So last week, I was surprised when the chimney contractors showed me that you could get to one of the King Posts via the crane. Fortunately, the stars aligned and my neighbor/carpenter agreed to come over and fix it right away. He also miraculously happened to have a piece of wood that was a full 2″x4″x8′ to work from. A modern 2×4 is only 1 /2″ x 3 1/2″. It is pretty difficult these days to get good dimension lumber! So he showed up in the morning, went up on the lift with the chimney guys and took down the rotted horizontal piece. Later that day he came back with a new piece cut, chamfered  and already primed piece. He then went up and installed it and painted it. He even added a nice little detail in the middle (to help hold the whole thing together).

The second King Post on the front of the house will be more difficult to get to (because of the slope of the ground and the bay window). Our carpenter is going to see if he get there with a ladder. Otherwise we will have to devise some kind of scaffolding to get up there. He is also going to work on my front porch (lots of little repairs to do) and add some steps to the side. Very exciting!

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The ruts in the lawn from the crane.

Sam spending some time with his favorite thing!

 

The crane is gone! It left at 8 am sharp this morning. The guys will be back tomorrow to try and help repair some of the ruts to the lawn  and replace the 2 broken pieces of flagstone (from the weight of the crane). They are still trying to coordinate putting back in the fence & fence post (hopefully this week). Then they should be all finished! Sam is sad that the crane is leaving us and has requested one of his own for his birthday. We also got to enjoy the new gas fireplace on Saturday evening (while it was POURING outside).

We are a little discombobulated here today. Maisie is under the weather and is home with me today and school is closing early today and will be closed tomorrow.  But I have an exciting day tomorrow! I am meeting up with some old colleagues and Bob Venturi (my old boss and mentor) is going to take us on a tour of the Vanna Venturi House (aka Mother’s House). The house is a famous post-modern masterpiece designed that Bob designed for his mother in Chestnut Hill in the early 1960s. I have been there before (many years ago) but never with Bob. I will try and post the tour on Wednesday.

 

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IT IS ALL FINISHED!

The chimney from yesterday afternoon. Patching complete and Chimney Pots installed!

Close up of the chimney from yesterday afternoon.

Chimney from this afternoon. All Painted! (try to ignore the rotted King's Post on the front of the house)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finished chimney from this afternoon.

 

Yes, I am jumping up and down! Plus my carpenter managed to use the lift today to remove the rotted piece of wood on the King’s Post, fabricate a replacement (a full 2″x4″), prime it, install it, patch where required and paint it (separate post coming)! Plus it is a beautiful day! I am going to ignore the giant divots from the crane in the backyard for the moment and pretend all is perfect in the world. I hope it is this nice where you live!

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Welcome to Sam's Room

 

New Stained Dresser & Old Ikea Chair

 

The LeMans Car Bed

Car Bed with "Aerial" Carpet

 

Old Chest with Toy Storage (use to be the changing area)

Vintage Globe, Hess Truck, Framed Tim Biskup/Gary Baseman Postcards and Hanging German Pull Toys

Vintage globe with Slot Cars (track is stored under the chest)

Close up of Dwell Kids for Target Sheets and Custom Comforter

Vintage Scarf with Dwell Kids for Target Pillow

Felt Banner (originally in his baby room) & a needlepoint originally made for my brother

When my son turned 2 we turned our guest room into his new big boy room (his new sister also needed the baby room). When it came to choosing a theme, it was easy! My husband and I both come from car families (we met at Watkins Glen) and as a child I always wanted a car bed (yes me, not my husband). A lot of the other things we already had and just re-purposed. Furniture placement was tricky because we have 2 radiators, 3 windows and 2 doors. And we also wanted to give Sam some floor space. The room still could use some small touches, but Sam loves it (after all Jenson Button is his idol)! I will be sad when he outgrows it.

The Stats:

The Car Bed:

The Inspiration: The LeMans 917 Porsche in Gulf Livery

The 1971 LeMans Movie Poster

The Car Bed: Masked and Primed

All Painted!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Modified Little Tikes Twin Size Car Bed (It is pretty easy to find these on Craig’s List) painted to match the LeMans Porsche 917 Gulf Livery Paint Scheme (also seen in the 1971 LeMans movie staring Steve McQueen). We masked and spray painted the orange striping and added the Gulf decals. My husband would still like to hang a picture of Steve McQueen above the bed (I’m still not sure how I feel about this). I also sewed the striping details and number onto the Comforter.

The Dresser & Nightstand: We decided buy a new dresser and nightstand. I tried finding something on Craig’s List but I really wanted a dresser with easy open drawers and we had limited floor space. We bought them unfinished (American made) and stained them gray.

The Chair: An old Ikea classic that use to sit in our Living Room (it reclines). I added the vintage scarf with classic car emblems to the back. I have had the scarf for years but never had a good place for it until now.

The Aerial Rug: I LOVE this rug. It is called the Flyover Rug from Land of Nod. I think it is interesting (it could be because of the years I spent drawing/making colorful planning maps) without being overly “kiddy” feeling but it is still good for pushing matchbox cars on.

The Sewing Desk: Okay so this really shouldn’t be in his room, but it is pretty convenient to have it hear for when I need to sew. He actually likes watching me sew and has never bothered it (knock on wood). This use to be my husband’s grandma’s desk. The funny thing is that my grandma had the same exact desk! It will eventually move upstairs to my future craft room, but for now it works out well being here (plus I can look out the window while I sew).

Accessories: The pillow and sheets came from Dwell for Target Kids (no longer available). I bought a blue comforter and sewed on the orange fleece and piping.  The curtains were clearance shower curtains (cut in 2) from CB2. I made the bunting for the baby room originally.

The To Do List:

Add a little more artwork (possibly some of Sam’s). I am looking for a different piece of art for above the bed. The race poster is from the baby room and the colors don’t work as well as I would like. Move the sewing table. Clear out all of the old chest to make space for more toys and clothes.

Maisie’s Big Girl Room:

Now to decide if Maisie should get a matching pink car bed (w/ LeMans Porsche 917 Pink Pig Livery color scheme)!

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Kerria in Part Shade

Kerria: Close up of Flowers and Leaves

Kerria in Full Shade

Kerria in Early Spring (currently hiding in the compost pile while the chimney is being worked on)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kerria Japonica
(Japanese Rose, Kerria Rose)

Type: Perennial Shrub (Zones 5-9). Looses it leaves in winter.
Light Requirements: Part Sun to Shade (in sunnier locations the yellow flowers tend to bleach out)
Moisture/Soil: Average moisture (although does okay with less once established). Neautral to slightly acidic soil.
Blooms: Mid spring.  Lots of Yellow blooms that last for several weeks.
Leaves: Green w/ nice bright green stalks in winter.
Size: Height: 5-7’  Width: 3′-5′ (prune the top if you want it to be shorter & if can get wider if suckers are not controlled)
Additional Info: I like to grow this along the fence. It can get a little top heavy  but I like the shape of the thin arching stems hanging over the fence. I think it has a nice romantic feel. I also cut mine back fairly aggressively after it flowers since I prefer it to look tall and lean over super bushy. Also by cutting it back I usually get a smaller bloom in the fall. I also like to cut out the woodier stems. Also I have noticed that it grows much slower in shadier locations.

Pros: This plant does very well for me in part shade and shade and in clay soil. It seems to do well where other plants might not. The beautiful yellow flowers are very pretty in the spring. A good alternate to Forsythia (which I don’t care for).  In the winter the bright green stems are a nice contrast to the snow.

Cons: The plant will sucker at the bottom. I usually cut these out in the spring. Mine is cut from my mom’s yard (she got some from a friend).

Origin: China and Japan.

Varieties: There are several varieties to choose from, I appear to just have the “common” variety.

‘Golden Guinea’ – Notable for the large flowers (to 2″ wide) that bloom for a long period.

‘Picta’ (probably the same as ‘Variegata’) – Smaller form with leaves edged with a thin white margin. It is a weaker grower (to 4′ tall) and prefers a
shaded spot. The flower performance is also inferior to the species.

‘Pleniflora’ (also listed as ‘Flora Pleno’) – Features double, ball-shaped blooms that are an orange-yellow hue. This cultivar appears to grow larger and
more gangly than the species, to 8′ tall.

‘Shannon’ – This vigorous plant is becoming more common in specialty catalogs. It grows to 6′ tall and offers larger blooms that appear earlier.

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