Archive for the 'Garden Therapy' Category
We are so proud to announce the launch of Garden Therapy Handmade on Etsy. This labour of love involved combining the passion for gardening, photography and home décor into one unique project: Studio Blooms.
But a harvest? Why, yes! Flowers were grown in our home garden, photographed in studio, then enlarged to mammoth proportions in order to showcase the magnificent details of each individual flower. The photographs were digitally designed to be giclee printed on a beautiful linen-cotton canvas and sewn to perfection. Little details like expensive hidden zipper closures and feather/down inserts were taking into account. Then each one was hand washed, dried, and ironed, ready to go to it’s new home.
Was it easy? Um, well, no. There were months of prints and reprints to get just the right detail to each inch of fabric. There was wash testing. There was cuddle testing (that was a particularly tough one). In the end, it was so worth it. We think these soft but durable pillows are the perfect art for the home. We hope that you agree!
Please visit the Garden Therapy Handmade store to check out all the designs, 9 in total. Favoriting, liking, tweeting, or any other social media sharing would be greatly, greatly appreciated and happily returned in kind. And thank you for your support.
November 14 2011 | Flowers and Garden Therapy and Photography | 14 Comments »
For the Halloween weekend project we put together a variety of festive planters and used some DIY rock spiders to dress them up.
We designed our planters with a colour scheme of purple, white, and orange plants along with various spooky additions that are nods to the holiday season. The supply list can vary depending on what you have or can find. Hover your mouse over the photo for a list of what was used in each planter.
Organic materials showcased in the four photos are ornamental kale, Filius Blue hot pepper, heuchera, aster, crocosmia seed heads, Cinderella pumpkin, warty pumpkin, artists gourds, butternut squash, and buttercup squash.
Other items you’ll see are a witch’s broom, rubber hand, Boo sign, rubber bats, and DIY rock spiders. Most of what we added was readily available in any store carrying Halloween décor. When the holiday is over, we plan to take the kitsch out and leave the gorgeous planters for some festive fall colour. We’ll definitely keep the spiders though!
For more Halloween decorating ideas check out our Halloween Hop Wreath and Jack-o-Planterns. Have a wonderful and festive Halloween; may it include some garden therapy.
October 28 2011 | Garden Therapy and Gardening and Projects | 5 Comments »
Not long ago I saw some very cool, modern concrete planters that I added to my DIY To Do List. Not long afterwards the lovely folks over at Timber Press sent me a copy of Concrete Garden Projects: Easy & Inexpensive Containers, Furniture, Water Features & More
to review so when I had a crafty friend stop by for a visit + a sunny afternoon, I needed no more hints to dig into some projects.
The projects in the book are great starting points for concrete projects that will suit many different garden styles. In addition to modern planters we made some leaf print stepping stones: some in moulds with pressed leaves and one where we used a giant hydrangea leaf as the mould.
The authors, Malin Nilsson and Camilla Arvidsson, layed out each project in six simple steps which were easy to follow, especially easy given each step has a beautiful photograph. The best part was the ease and speed at which you can create concrete projects; we had seven planters and seven stepping stones curing within an hour of arriving home with the materials.
For the planters, we used a variety of different sized plastic tubs that we collected. I filled my three square tubs with concrete and used round tubs and cups for the holes. I then filled the some of the larger hole-spacers with concrete and a small cup so each would produce yet another planter.
I particularly loved how this one square planter turned out when planted with sedum.
The stepping stones were also formed in plastic tubs, but larger, shallower ones. We pressed interesting leaves found around the garden (lady’s mantle, Japanese maple, and hosta) and weighted them with small stones. When un-moulded, they have depressions that will hopefully fill with little pools of water or perhaps moss.
Near the end, we took the left over concrete and piled it in a mound on top of a giant hosta leaf. When nestled into the shade garden it is right at home with the hosta who donated a leaf for the mould.
It was so surprisingly easy to make stepping stones that I’m happy to say that my days of hunting for rocks in rivers and back alleys might just be over (insert grinning husband here). I would certainly recommend the book to anyone looking for a fun and creative way to spend a sunny afternoon in the garden.
October 01 2011 | Garden Therapy and Gardening and Projects | 13 Comments »
Tonight the mosquitoes have decided that it’s time for a feast and, not one to give up a fight, I made citronella CANdles this year to keep those buggers away.
DIY: This easy project can be simply done in an hour if you have some cans, some wax (old candle nubs will do just fine), and some citronella oil. The most difficult part is finding the right wick for your wax. There is a science to this, so it is best to visit your local candle or craft store and ask for the right combination for proper melting. I like a large pool of wax and a good amount of citronella aroma so in the larger cans I added 2 or 3 wicks.
So far it is working perfectly. Enjoying the garden in the evening without swatting those pests away is a lovely thing.
August 05 2011 | Garden Therapy | 6 Comments »
A friend sent me this quote today. I love it.
“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and to endure the betrayal of false friends. To appreciate beauty; to find the best in others; to leave the world a bit better whether by a healthy child, a garden patch, or a redeemed social condition; to know that even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.”
~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
February 16 2011 | Garden Therapy | 6 Comments »
This year I haven’t made any resolutions. What I have done is set some goals, or maybe let’s call them proposals = less about achieving something and more about focusing the crazy which lives in my mind. I originally started writing about gardening on this blog but for those who follow will know I get on some tangent and run with it for a little while. I wish that I posted more about what I’m actually working on, but I find it difficult to muster up the dedication it requires to sit at the computer and write.
Proposal #1: Write about all the stuff I do. I take classes, learn new art forms, invent recipes, make things from scratch (like soap), learn how to grow stuff, etc, etc, etc. I need to write this all down somewhere and perhaps I’ll slow down enough to actually think about what I’m working on.
I think that staying still long enough to write down what I’m working on will help me also corral the ideas stampeding in my head. This brings me to another proposal:
Proposal #2: Connect Four. Have you ever played the board game Connect Four? The idea of the game is to build a line of four tiles on the board before your opponent does. I have a boatload (Titanic maybe?) of projects that have three tiles all lined up just waiting for that fourth (aka: the finishing touch). The plan is to start digging out projects once a week and FINISHING THEM. What I’ll do with them is another story, but I do see an Etsy site in my near future.
That’s it. Two proposals. And I started this week. Progress so far? Well, it’s been a bit like trying to catch a hyper, slippery fish. I fight against sitting at the computer (it’s sunny out/I should go to the park, I need to make cupcakes/the shower is on Friday, I feel like ginger ale/I bet I can make some from this gingerroot) and I’m not overly eager to pull out 3-tiled projects (where’s the excitement? The drama of something new?)
I did start to catch a few fish though. I’m sitting here writing now and I’ve been getting back in touch with some of my abandoned projects. Not a bad start and it’s so very interesting to me how difficult it is to channel my focus. I’m looking forward to more self-discovery as I work through these proposals because after all, I did enjoy writing this when I finally sat down. Perhaps a little discipline and structure will help this slippery fish.
January 06 2011 | Garden Therapy | 6 Comments »
I’ve been contacted quite a bit lately by people interested in the therapy part of Garden Therapy. Most of my posts contain the results of therapy as the gardening, cooking, art, and writing are all about connecting with myself and others and that is the healing path for me. I have touched lightly on therapeutic benefits of gardening for me but I often feel so full of joy when practicing these art forms that I don’t focus on the journey of hardship and suffering that has led me here. So when Virginia from Container Gardening Made Easy asked to interview me, I found it a great opportunity to share a bit more.
There is much to be said about the healing magic of digging in the earth and I plan to share more of my experiences—both the joy and the pain—as well as the stories of others like me who find gardening gives them back something they couldn’t find elsewhere. In the meantime, if you would like to read the interview you can find it here. And thanks, Virginia, for asking.
March 06 2010 | Garden Therapy | 5 Comments »
I’m pretty freaking excited that it’s so warm here and everything is growing (sorry to those who are still under snow or that terrible Cali rain). I feel all the excitement of a new gardening year ahead. But when asked about my favourite season, I wasn’t sure I could choose.
Perhaps early spring is my favourite. The excitement of season’s change, the new growth, the possibilities. Each seed carries enough energy in it to burst into a new plant and it feels like that energy is rumbling beneath the earth ready to explode into eggplants and coneflowers and sage.
Then again in late spring it’s a joy to have so much lettuce that I’m forced to eat a 10:30 salad daily, and drop off bags of spring greens on the doorsteps of neighbours.
In early summer it’s wonderful to get my big seedlings out to their forever homes in the garden beds while the lush green foliage of perennials are filling up every corner of the garden.
And then in mid summer there’s the wonderful days spent resting in the hammock chair under my deck while the bees and plants do all the hard work to fruit and flower.
In late summer there are the new recipes I’m forced to create to use the masses of veggies that are ripe to be picked.
In fall there is the sound of canning lids popping in a chorus that sings about the freshness captured in each jar to be enjoyed in the colder months.
And in winter rest in the garden gives way to bustling emotions around family and change.
I can’t choose. I love them all. So what is your favourite season? I’d love to know.
January 28 2010 | Garden Therapy and Gardening | 8 Comments »
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