5 Tips for Planting Annuals in Flower Boxes, Planters and Urns.

Posted on May 15, 2010 by DishOnDesignGal

Cascading Flowers in a Flower Box

Every year around Mother’s Day I plant a few flower boxes, planters and urns with annuals for the deck. A gardener I am not, but I find that by following these 5 simple rules I always like the end result.

Start with Good Soil. Using a base of good soil such as Miracle-Gro Organic Moisture Control makes for happy plants. Plants will thrive in good soil making it easier to grow healthy lush plants all summer if you are diligent about watering each day.
Select Plants According to Location. My deck gets early to mid afternoon sun so I make sure to select plants that will thrive in that environment.
Create a Color Palette as you would when Decorating your Home. I wanted more of a wild flower look this year with a variety of colors and chose purple, pink, white, orange and red ones. It would be stunning to go with just one or two colors as well. It’s fun to change it up each year. The key is to stay true to your theme and be consistent throughout your yard.
Include Plants of Varying Heights. When planting window boxes place tall plants in the back, medium in the middle and vining/draping plants in the front and on sides. Round planters and urns should have the height in the center, then medium plants and lower vining/draping plants around the rim.
Consider the Texture. A mix of delicate flowers and large pedaled one’s work in tandem providing a great contrast. Add a tall sleek spike or two, trailing vines and greenery with interesting leaves to pull it all together.

Here’s what I planted yesterday evening…

It's about selecting a color scheme and adding varying height and textures. I planted two of these flower boxes for the deck rail.

The same principles apply to an urn...

and planters such as this one that sits on a table.

In a hurry? Place a pre-planted hanging basket inside a barrel or urn. Snip off the wire or plastic hangar and guests will never suspect it's not planted. I found this huge gorgeous basket for under $40.00 and couldn't pass it up. It's well over 3 ft wide and fits perfectly inside this great rolling wooden barrel I found last year at the end of the season for $5.00. I need to snip the wire off this weekend. Can you see it?

I think it took me about 45 minutes to plant these and I’ll enjoy them all summer long. I located them so I can see them when I’m washing dishes, eating at the kitchen table or watching TV. Of course the best view is when grilling and eating along side of them all summer long. Flowers = Happiness don’t you think? Plant some today! xoxox Amy

Step Two: Choosing Finishes – a Kitchen on a Budget

Posted on March 19, 2009 by DishOnDesignGal

paint-selections

On Monday I shared the begining thoughts from a few weeks ago for a kitchen project that my friend Lori and her husband Bill are ready to begin. She had found a window treatment that she ordered off the internet to use for inspiration and we were waiting for it to come in. It came last week and over the weekend, we selected paint for the walls above the beadboard and also decided what would be the best finish for the new wood floor. Here’s the things we talked about…

window-roman-shade

The valance that Lori ordered from Pottery Barn turned out to be perfect for the kitchen windows and worked extremely well to pull together the green stove and the red coffee maker. The only suprising thing was we thought from the picture in the catalog that it had a yellow/gold color in it that we could match the walls to, but it ended up having a tinge of orange in it. After much consideration, we chose a color by Sherwin Williams called Afterglow.

I have a photo that I created on Sherwin Williams website using the actual color, but it really looks much more orange on the computer than it does in person. I think it will be a great color for the kitchen and add a fresh new feel. Especially with newly painted white beadboard and cabinets. If you ever want to get some paint ideas, you can to to the Sherwin Williams website and using the visualizer tool, you can pick a room that is most similar to yours - I picked a bathroom since it had the beadboard. Once you choose a room, you can play with different paint colors to see how it changes the look of the room. It’s a great way to get some ideas, but do not…DO NOT ever choose paint from a computer. A computer does not show you color in true form and a shade that you see online will not look remotely the same in person.

They currently have an existing wood floor in the living room that runs up next to the kitchen. It would be next to impossible to try to match it and continue the same floor into the kitchen. Rather trying to make it look the same, I recommended installing the new floor in the opposite direction and matching the dark pegs that are part of their current wood floor which has a light colored finish. Their living room floor looks like this…

existing-wood-floor

See the round dark pegs? I’m thinking that if they chose a wood floor for the kitchen with a stain color similar to the stain on the pegs, that it will be a smooth transition. They agreed.

We also discussed how the colors will go with the rest of the areas that adjoin to the kitchen. This is where having a whole house plan comes into play. Since they want to continue the olive green color in the kitchen and solariam, the colors work well. The green will be a common thread in each area which will create a nice flow from room to room.

Lori showed me a picture that she bought and said she absolutely LOVES it. I loved it as well, and I think the apple itself goes really well with the roman shades and walls, but…I think that the background is just a little too much for valance. I asked her what she really loved about it, and she said the apple. With that in mind, she’s going to keep her eye out for another picture that has a large apple without the busy background. I think in the long run she’ll be much happier. If you find something that you LOVE, but it doesn’t quite work, figure out what it is that you love about and maybe you can find something else that will work even better. Here’s a photo of the picture she bought with the fabric below it…

dscn0355

window-roman-shade-cropped

What do you think? The next step is for Lori and Bill to dive in with painting the cabinets. When they get started, I’ll make sure to post some pictures. Hopefully, it doesn’t take as long as my dining room did – haha! Come to think of it, it’s not 100% complete. I need to get moving on that

Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder

Posted on October 13, 2008 by DishOnDesignGal

“Decorators should never insist on throwing out everything the client has. Even when they are far from perfect they add personality”

~Billy Baldwin

This quote brings to mind, my very first residential client many years ago named Don. He was a bachelor in his 60′s and had spent many years taking care of his aging mother. After she passed away, he decided to move into a one bedroom condominium and wanted a contemporary look that was fresh and reflected his personality. Everything was to be new and with $25,000.00 cash in hand to shop, it was a young designers dream!

Of course I had a vision for the space and he trusted me with any decisions and purchases I made for him. As a young designer, I prided myself on my eye for what worked and what didn’t and was very proud of the end result. On move in day, he had tears in eye as he walked in and saw his new home. it was even better than he had dreamed and I was thrilled that he was so happy – after all, that’s what it’s all about!

Then he said “Amy, I have one more thing for you to do – find a place for this. He handed me a very bad silk version of a red rose. Three red roses, in fact, that may have even been plastic. The look on my face was one of a deer in headlights. Are you kidding me? The entire house was done in jewel tones and the primary color of a red rose was definately not in the color scheme. “These are moms”, he said “and she treasured them- they need to be someplace special”.

It was a defining moment in my young career, because I realized then, that it’s not about creating a show place, but creating a home. For Don, the roses made his house a home. I could have hidden them in bedroom, or tucked them into a corner, but I put them on a prominent shelf in the living room so that he would see them every day. In the end, it’s not about what is beautiful to the designer, but what is beautiful to you. I am grateful for that lesson early on.

Update: Jayne wants to add that she made all the fabulous floral arrangements (she had a custom floral design business at the time) and that it was after she brought in and placed all her BEAUTIFUL arrangements, that he brought out the plastic or silk red roses. You should have seen the look on her face – haha!

Tissue Paper is Stuck on My Guest Bathroom Walls

Posted on April 27, 2008 by DishOnDesignGal

Really, tissue paper is stuck on my bathroom walls. Well, actually, I glued it to my bathroom walls and it looks pretty fabulous! If you’re looking for ideas to update your bathroom, here’s an alternative that is really pretty easy. All you need is some Elmers glue, a couple of packs of tissue paper, a coat of paint, bronze glazing, and voila!

I was inspired by a faux painter who used this technique for a client of mine a few years ago. It turned out so nice, I thought I’d try it out myself. Here’s step by step directions, pictures of the finished room along with my thought process, and some tips to help you out. Sorry, but I didn’t think to take pictures of tissue papering, but I do have a before and after picture. Next time I’ll take pictures alng the way – promise! I should note that we replaced the toilet and also the vinyl floor with tile before I started this project.

Note, that the picture on the left was how it was before we bought and moved into to our home.

Instructions:

Prime your walls as if you were hanging wall paper (you’ll be happy 10 years from now!)
Mix 1/3 cup of Elmers Glue with 1 cup of water. Will be runny.
Start in a corner and brush glue mixtrue on a 2′ x 2′ area.
Wad up 1 sheet of tissue paper, lightly straighten it back out and place on 2×2 area. Do not put too much thought into it or stretch. Tip: Start in the least prominent area of the room.
I found that it was easiest to put more glue on the brush and go over the top, smoothing, gently flattening and forming wrinkles. If I tried to do it with my hands, it ripped – you don’t want that. Brush over it until all bubbles are gone – wrinkles are what you want! Note that the directions I had did not say to put glue on top, but hey - that’s what worked best for me! If you get a ripped area, take a smaller piece, crunch and patch.
The best part about this whole process is that there is no right or wrong. I have areas with big wrinkles and some with less; the mix is what makes it interesting. This project is also something that you can do a little at a time. I did a wall, put the paint mixture in a tupperware container and went back to it the next day.
Once you have all the walls done, let them completely dry.
Next, paint the walls, just as you would any other wall with a solid color. I chose a golden cornbread like color that went well with the rooms that were nearby.
After the walls dried, I mixed some brown/bronze craft paint with glaze. You can purchase already colored glazing paint at Home Depot or Lowes. With a paint brush, I painted a couple of random X’s in a 3 x 3 area and then moved it around with a rag. I made sure to get the color in some of the cracks and crevices for added dimension. Again, there is no right or wrong, but it’s easier to go light and then go back to add. Make sure you get the corners – there’s nothing worse than corners that are not touched or too heavy. I actually went around my room twice and the second time aroun, I filled in areas that I thought needed it. Remember, less is more. Don’t over obsess or overwork it.

Finished Tissue Paper

After painting, the first thing I did was give away the plain old mirror and replace it with an oversized framed mirror that had some really interesting details and beveled glass. Always go with beveled glass – it adds some extra sparkle. I also replaced the yucky old light bar with clear glass globe bulbs and went with a bronzed wrought iron fixture with some interesting lines.

I chose brown, plum and a little bit of deep red as colors for accent. I found two sprays of flower for $5.00, put them in a ceramic container I had with a block of floral foam for a nice splash of color. The picture to the right of the vanity is a flavia print with a saying that I gave to my aunt the passsed away a few years ago. It reminds me of her and very special memories everytime I see it. On the left I added two candles and a soap dispenser. Groupings of three typically work better than groupings of two. Replacing the old silver fixtures with bronzed updated ones made a huge difference for less than $175.00.

I have to admit that I have an adversion to the typical bathroom rug. For the same price, why not use an area rug or even better a hallway runner to create some interest. Shopping at TJ Maxx or Homegoods always proves to be a successful venture!

My favorite thing in the room is the two bronze statues on the back of the toilet. Soooo much better than a box of tissues don’t you think? To the right of the statues I stenciled the word JOY as a reminder that we all need to live a joyful life. What I didn’t anticipate was the reaction to the men who saw it as they did their business. It’s turned out to be quite a conversation piece! haha!

Six months later, I finally found the finishing touch, and it was worth the wait. This picture is the first thing you see when you enter the room. I have 9 foot ceilings in a narrow area and needed a tall picture. This was the perfect size and the colors pulled everything together.