Domesticated Nomad: June 2012

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Garden Path Redux

[UPDATE: click here for the final garden path update.]

Sooo. Y'all seem to love the Garden Path.

All time most viewed, and most featured. (Even contacted about a magazine feature, but alas, I live in the wrong region.)

Also, the source of a thousand and one questions. So, here it is: the complete, honest update.

I knew the wood would weather. Usually weathered wood is pretty. But before spring had completely sprung, I knew I was no longer in love with my path.

So sad.

A LOT of people asked about using polyurathane so that the disks would not rot. Well, they did not rot. If this was a more shaded and protected area, they might have even weathered nicely. But there were absolutely no rotting issues. There was just an ugly issue.

I decided to fix it, we would cut new disks and coat them, but I wanted something that was environmentally sound. The EPA recommended Shellac, and being natural, it seemed like a good idea. I've shellacked things before, so I knew the product.

I just brushed one side, waited an hour, flipped it over and painted that side. Time consuming, but easy.

I only did one coat, so I guess time will tell as to any regrets on that choice.

We also made these a bit thicker. The last ones were about 1-3 inches. I had talked last time about how they sometimes pop up when you walk on them, and some of the disks broke during the year, so we figured thicker might help. These new ones average 4-5 inches.

One major headache the first time was our darn hard clay. It was hard to scratch out the space to set the disks and then pack them in. I loved the rich dark soil color against the wood, but it did not hold them as it should. Many people wondered about using sand.

So we tried it. First we tilled the soil to make it as loose as possible and then we added a bit of sand and worked that in.

It was much easier to get the disks set in this time. I still don't love the color of the sand, but we planted ground cover, so hopefully that won't be much noticed soon.

Of course, last time the ground cover didn't grow in, so who knows? Maybe I'll just have to grow to love sand.

Another question I was asked A LOT was whether or not the wood was slippery when wet. Um, no. It's not like the disks are a smooth surface of wood. They are broken up with gaps in between and also not sanded or anything. They are smooth enough to walk barefoot on them, but no, they have never been slippery. Of course, the entire set up does not induce one to walk quickly in the first place. And, no, they are not slippery now that they have been sealed either.

I loved how the first path looked, so when I went and checked it last spring I was heartbroken at how it appeared. I was determined to fix it, and so we did. I am in love with it once again. I am pleased to say that the disks are not popping up at all. They are very solidly set in the sand, even after a pretty decent rain.

And, as always, I'll keep you posted about how this version weathers.

And, hey, firewood for the fire pit, so that's not so bad.

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Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Front Yard Change Up

We knew we wanted to redo our front planting beds this summer, so when our friends were over I asked if we could borrow their truck some time. The truck arrived in our driveway the next day. So, we had to get our butts in gear. :)

When we moved in, there were rocks lining the beds. I liked the rocks, but I didn't like the shape of the beds or how the rocks were lined up like little soldiers.

So first we pulled up the rocks and moved them around until we settled on a tumbled rock wall looking motif.

We were going to make different heights and more curves. The area behind the "walls" was filled in with dirt, but before that we had to dig out some of the grass. And by we, I mean...

Yes, Matt did the digging.

And the shoveling, and the planting, and the mulching. Where the heck was I?!

Actually, I kind of forget. I think I had stuff to do at school and with the kids, so Matt did all the heavy labor. I just popped in to say where stuff should go and how it should look.

Anyways. The changes in elevation are not huge, and in the pictures it's hard to even tell for sure.

We planted begonias where the rocks and ground sloped down. Those we bought from a fundraiser for Chi's preschool and that was $15. But I'm not really counting that since it was for a good cause. I mean other than my yard.

We bought two hostas and two Autumn Joy sedum from a garden club plant sale for another $15.

Those little guys in front of the rocks are sedum.

The new hostas are on the left and the hostas on the right were just divided to fill out the space.

And finally, a Japanese barberry for $4.

That's the little one in the middle. It has burgundy leaves.

The rest of our plants were pulled from places where they weren't thriving or were able to be divided.

The azaleas were on the side of the house and they were dying, but they like better here.

So pre-mulch we only spent $34 if you count the begonias. Which we aren't.

We went with black mulch. I love how it makes all the colors pop. Plus it reminds me of the way rich Iowa soil looks. I miss that soil!

We buy mulch in bulk at a local landscape supplier. Hence the need for a truck. You were wondering, weren't you?

We also mulched in our backyard, so we needed 3 cubic yards. That amounted to $100. It would have cost about $50 more to go buy the bagged stuff at a home improvement store. (That's 30% off.) I know you need access to a truck, but it's worth it if you have access to one.

The weigelas in the center look a bit sad. They were transplanted from our neighbor's yard and they did not care much for the move. But they are slowly starting to come back, so we are holding out for awhile longer on those. Keep your fingers crossed!

So...That's the yard. Better, right?

Monday, June 11, 2012

Da Bomb Cake

So, I actually kind of forgot about the cake tutorial, so sorry if any of you have been waiting for it!

This was the cake for the Spy Birthday Party.

I have this bread baker's bowl. It was a gift and it's from the Ozarks, so I don't know how common they are.

I also have a cake batter bowl from Pampered Chef that can go in the oven, so I know y'all are smart and can figure out something similar to use.

I fixed up my chocolate cake mix (yes, I used a box mix). Oh, if you want to flour your bowl but not have it white, save a little mix to the side when you stir it up. Grease the bowl, and use the saved mix to flour it. No white when it's done.

Unless you have two that are the same size, it will take awhile to bake because you have to bake half of it first and then the other half. Also, it took forever to bake. Don't panic, just give it time.

Once you have have your two halves baked, it's assembly time. My bread bowl made the halves mostly round, but they had a small flat disc on the bottoms. This is will be both good and bad. They also puffed a bit on the wide sides as cakes do.

I started by trimming this part off with a serrated knife so that they were flat surfaces. Save this cake.

I took a small smear of my chocolate frosting (from a jar. This surprises you?) and placed that on the center of my cake stand. Then I put my first half down. The frosting will hold it in place.

Frost the center like a regular cake, and then invert the top half onto the cake so that it makes a round ball shape. However, you still have that flat bit on the top now. It was a helpful place for the cake to stand on the bottom, but here on the top it just throws off the look.

But, your scraps should be somewhat rounded having been the puffed up part, so carefully cut some of the scrap and frost and place it on the cake until you are rounded.

Now you need the little "spout" bit that the wick comes out of. I just cut a circle out the the scraps and placed that on top of the cake, frosting in place.

Now, just frost the whole thing.

So, it was frosted, but not smooth. I filled a small bowl with hot water and I dipped my knife in the water, then without much pressure, smoothed over my frosting.

Some frosting came off on my knife, but I just scraped it off on the bowl when I dipped again. Basically this will melt the frosting just a bit which helps you smooth it and turns it a little glossy.

The last touch was a curly candle so it looked like a wick. I found them in the baker's aisle at the grocery store.

Just remember when you slice it, that it is tall instead of wide! You will want to cut narrow slices.

Saturday, June 9, 2012

Baseboards

New baseboards!!!

I'm just a wee bit excited. Can you tell?

We still have to touch up and add shoe molding, but I no longer have the ugly ripped up bottom of the wall look in my living room.

Woo-to-the-hoo.

This totally wasn't worth a whole post, but I couldn't help it. :)

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Boxed Up

I have a bit of an unusual piece of art in my living room. It's a side of a cardboard box. The only people who have ever commented on it are people who just outright ask, "Why do you have a framed box on your wall?"

Sorry it's so darn reflective...I hope you can see it well enough.

Well, you all know we've moved around a bit. When Matt finished grad school and we were moving...again...but this time for a job, Gabe was five years old and he was going to "help" me pack and label boxes.

One of the boxes was Keurig (the coffee pot maker) and their logo has a little coffee mug.

Gabe knew how much his dad liked coffee, so he decided to draw Matt holding that coffee mug from the logo. It was so clever and ridiculously cute! At the time I snapped a picture, but the box was in great shape when we finally moved in, so I saved it.

It was just put into a frame with no real thought to it. Spare frame + thing that needed protecting = done.

But the box blended in with the background. So I finally just took care of it. It was so simple, I don't know why I waited so long.

The background was just the frame backing. I took it out and grabbed some spray paint. I had about a quarter can of Oil Rubbed Bronze leftover from other projects, so I just used that.

I only painted the outside edges. No one will ever see the middle, so why waste the paint?

Ah, so much better. The box stands out more now.

I did tape it to the backer, just because it's an old frame and not quite tight enough.

And on the back, I also wrote down all the places we moved and when. I also wrote down how old Gabe was when he made the drawing.

Sometimes the best memento is the one you never expected. So, yes, I have a framed box on my wall. And I love it! :)

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