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A Fairy Garden House from A STUMP!

You have probably already seen the Fairy Garden in the old birdbath….but if you haven’t…

Well I was at Tonkadale Nursery the other day….and I was lusting after the Fairy Houses….

and
I think I have the perfect spot along the front entry walk for a Fairy Garden.
Maybe I would splurge and actually by a Fairy House….
Well…that’s what I thought until I saw the prices…
Where else would you go to shop for a fairy house than eFairies.com?
Appropriately named “Mary’s Cottage”….this one was only $227
Even cuter,,,,this one for a mere $314
So pretty obviously….that wouldn’t be happening at Sweetwater!!!
I wanted cute….
I wanted rustic…
I wanted CHEAP….
What could be cheaper than an old tree stump….
We have plenty of those…

I found the perfect one….

It even has a little moss growing on it…

And a little root extension….

I was ready to get started…

The stump was perfect….it was the darn roof that was the problem!!

 

I had an old cocoa mat….and thought that would work…..
Mr. S:  “that looks like a really bad toupee!”
Me: “Well. do you have a better idea?”

Mr. S.: “Can this wait until later?  I just got home!”

a little later……

Mr. S: “Okay…how big does this thing need to be? What angle do you want for the roof?  Have you measured the stump?  I can cut some of those wood blinds and you can attach them like shingles”

Me: “Well….no….I thought I could just eyeball it.”

Mr. S:  “sigh…..I’ll go get the tape measure.”

Goody Goody….it was time to use the power tools…

Mr. S ran the saw….

Mr. S ran the tape measure…

Mr. S did the math

 


I did the power

stapling…
I love me my power stapler/nailer!

It worked perfectly….

 

 Except……The roof was really, really UGLY!

 

NOT what I had in mind…
But they do say….Love is patient…Love is kind…
 Mr. S just shrugged his shoulders….put the tools away…and went to get a beer!!
I was NOT giving up on this thing….. but it could wait until the next day….so I went to get a glass of wine!

Maybe the wine was inspirational….
The solution was in the wood pile…..

I could just attach some pieces of bark to a piece of log that was split to have a peak…
Like a roof!

Well…that plan was working great…until I melted my glue gun….arghhhh….
I went to the store the next day and got a new glue gun….
 The roof looks very rustic…just like I wanted….
The doors and windows….thank Mr. S for that….
he knew there were windows in the old box of LEGOS…perfect after a coat of spray paint!
The side door is made from the piece of log with the moss growing on it….
I have been having fun adding little bits of moss and some plants.
I even found a tiny “pine tree” seedling growing in the rocks by the woodpile.
Anyway:
Me: “Isn’t this the cutest fairy garden?”
Mr. S: “Well, I guess, if you like Fairy Gardens….”
The END
Have A Great Day!

 

Sweetwater Garden Party!

“A garden should make you feel you’ve entered privileged space — a place not just set apart but reverberant — and it seems to me that, to achieve this, the gardener must put some kind of twist on the existing landscape, turn its prose into something nearer poetry.”
― Michael Pollan, Second Nature: A Gardener’s Education 
 There really is something about a garden and gardening that makes you feel “really rich”!
June in the Sweetwater Garden is a time to celebrate….AND PARTY!
Take a peek at the fun get together I hosted on Monday!
A few friends from school with the admonition that we WOULD NOT talk about school!
And Kudos to my “Guest Photographer” who came with camera in hand!
It was pot luck…..

I love friends who bring tasty goodies to share!!!!

Fruit, vegetables, cheese and crackers…..

Plus a “little” decadence with the desert!

My contribution was my knock-off Chicken Cherry Pasta (click here for the recipe) 
It really is delicious….pasta, dried sweet cherries, rotisserie chicken and a sweet tangy dressing!
and
look how the Fitz and Floyd Rooster Plate makes the perfect serving dish for Caprise Salad!
Yum….Yum!
Then it was out to the garden to stroll around….
These good friends oohed and ahhed in all the appropriate places….ignoring the weeds!
And the “guest photographer” only took photos of the flowers…not the weeds!
Bless their hearts!
The wild and stormy weather has taken a toll on the peony bushes….so they don’t look quite as beautiful as other years….
 But the individual blooms are pretty anyway!
 When we were in the back woodsy area…..look who was watching us!
 Maybe this is why the chipmunk population is decreasing…..
oooh….I think Marvin will need supervision when he is on the deck…
although as you can see….he might be more than a mouthful!!!
All in all….a great time was had by all!!
The teacher in me just can’t stop the informational lecturing!
And thank you all for coming to my “virtual” Sweetwater Garden Party….
just sorry you couldn’t share the tasty food!
Have A Great Day!