Bricks and Rocks

Good evening!  I hope you all had a great week.  As you all can tell by many of my pictures, I love to flower garden.  But not only that, I also grow many veggies from seed in my raised beds.  Since there is never a shortage of rocks here (I just have to put my shovel in the ground and clang!)  I outlined eight beds with rocks and stuffed them with whatever will grow... beans, beats, tomatoes, carrots, pickles, many kinds of lettuce, potatoes, herbs, peppers, onions, and lots of flowering annuals.

  But what I really want to show you is my new brick patio that I laid out between them.  My friendly neighbor gave them to me when I stopped by this spring to ask if she had any plans for the big brick pile next to her shed.  She said they were mine so I excitedly hauled them all home (with Karl's help and it took two truck loads!)  I couldn't decide what design to lay them in but after several tries, I ended with this circle style.  What do you think?

Wasn't that nice of her to let me have them?  I think they add so much to the plot.  A big THANK-YOU goes out to her!

Alyssum smells wonderful.  In spring, I sprinkle the seeds everywhere!

 

The dew was still fresh on these petunia blooms.

Nasturtium is another favorite to start from seed.  It comes in all bloom colors and even with a variegated leaf.  I have heard that if you put it in your vegetable garden, it attracts the bugs away from your edibles.  Might be true, I don't know!

Black-eyed Susan Vine climbs up one of the cedar obelisks.

 

I love growing Swiss Chard Bright Lights in my beds, they put on quite a show with the colorful stems and they are great to cook with too.

I really wanted wooden raised beds but rocks will have to do for now.  I have so many rocks I could outline our whole property and then some!  Maybe someday I will switch them out.

 You can't have a veggie garden with out tomatoes.  I did several kinds this year, including Early Girl, Beef Master, Yellow Pear and Cherry.

Cherry tomatoes are my favorite.  I eat them like candy!

I let Cosmos reseed anywhere they desire!

We can eat out of these beds all summer, Oh and there is nothing better than the taste of fresh vegetables!  Do any of you like to garden?  Edible, ornamental, or both?

Thank-you for all your sweet comments!  You guys really make my day!

Have a wonderful weekend,

Maria ~Rusty Hinge 

A Birthday Surprise

Good afternoon!  What a beautiful fall day here in northern Michigan.  After a day of rain, the sun is out again and it is beautiful.  The trees are starting to change color and there is a fresh crispness in the air.  Even though saying good-bye to summer is hard, Fall is a favorite time of year for me.  I love all the colors, smells, sweaters, hot chocolate, cozyness, and warm family memories that come with it!

I just recently celebrated my birthday, and I want to share with you my special surprise.  I came home to beautiful flowers on my table and dinner in the oven!  My husband, Karl, rushed home from work to prepare it all perfectly for me.

Aren't they beautiful?  He said he picked them because they looked like "fall"  flowers to him.  He was right, Chrysanthemums are the flower of fall!

Look how bright and vibrant the colors are!  I love the red and yellow contrast.

He did good, didn't he?  I certainly think so!  Thank-you very much, Karl, you put a smile on my face.

I hope you all enjoy your week as well!
Take care,



Maria ~Rusty Hinge

Flea Market Finds...a Vintage Upholstery Factory Cart and Wooden Ironing Board

Good day, how are you all doing?  As promised I will show you some of my flea market finds!  I had a wonderful Labor Day at Burley Park and an overnight stay at the family cottage up at Torch Lake.  I picked up several wonderful treasures at Burley Park and I would love to show you a few.  The best find of the day, a vintage upholstery factory cart.  I snagged this from Diane Passi.  She is my favorite and specializes in vintage industrial.  She really has an eye and her space is always so adorable.  I never know what to pick, I want to take it all home with me!  She sells at several flea markets, including Kane County St. in Charles, Illinois. , Allegan Antique Market, Michigan, and Antiques at the Fairgrounds Petoskey, Michigan.

This wonderful upholstery cart is on casters and I think it will look great on my new deck with flower pots or inside displaying stacks of vintage linens!

All these gorgeous roses and flowers were given to me by my friend.  They were left over from her beautiful daughter's wedding.  She had ordered over 500 hundred roses for the special day...Oh, and they all smelled so good!  

Like I said, Diane is a talented antique seller.  Here are a few more of her items for sale...

{all photos courtesy of Diane Passi}

To see more check her out on Facebook...click *Here* to view

Another wonderful treasure I picked up Labor Day weekend came from one of my favorite stops, the Elk Rapids Antique Mall.  Sadly, I found out that they closed their doors, September 10.  Good thing, I popped in before then to say good-bye!  Upon one final peek around, I spotted this antique, wooden ironing board.  I have never seen any like it before and I knew I had to take it home with me!

 

 

I have already put this fabulous piece to work up in my guest room to display stacks of vintage grain sacks.  It works great getting them up off the floor.

I love the texture of these old, antique German grain sacks with all their patches and signs of use.

 

I catch them all in an old French market basket that I found at Great Stuff by Paul.

I also found this cute, little store display at the antiques mall.  I love the green color.  I find myself drawn to anything in green and aqua paint.

I am not sure where to put it yet...maybe next to my potting bench to display vintage watering cans, or inside for books, magazines.  What do you think?  Any ideas for me?

Well, there you have it!  A couple of my flea market finds.  I can't wait to show the rest soon!  I am sorry that my posts are so few and far between.  I will try to post more often.  Thank-you so much again for checking in.

I hope you all have a great weekend,

Maria ~Rusty Hinge