The Start of the Harvest

Here in South Florida my mid summer harvest is getting ready. Before you say anything, yes I know it's May but being in a tropical climate calls for earlier seasons. So when the North still has snow on the ground I am already planting my "summer" crop. One of my favorite ways to describe the climate where I live is that I live closer to Havana, Cuba then I do to the nearest town in the nearest state (Georgia). Much closer. Another reason for early seasons besides the heat is the pests. Southern Florida is where many pests go for winter, so we don't really get a break from that. For example, I didn't go out into my garden for 3 days and had an entire squash plant eaten by pickle worms. So I have to remain vigilant. I am in the process of buying some more ladybugs (I also bought them during "winter") in order to reduce and hopefully eliminate these hungry annoyances. I'm hungry too guys 😩. Anyways, today I worked on ridding the main garden of pickle worms and harvesting chamomile and some of the smaller garlic and onions. This means my bigger garlic and onions will be ready soon! Yay! I'm also getting close to harvesting my sweet potatoes and purple potatoes. I will update then. In the meantime, enjoy some photos of the recent garlic, onions, and chamomile. Talk to you soon!

Some chamomile before and after drying. The smell of chamomile is so amazing.

Quick garden update!

I made the wall facing the garden into a trellis wall! It was soooooo easy and also affordable! Once I completed the wall I planted several raspberry and grape plants and even a Marionberry! Here's some pics:

The items we used to create this was PVC pipes and connectors, white plastic trellis purchased from the Po ;), and zip-ties to hold it all together. I dug a hole for the pipes and the trellis to ensure they remain firmly in place. The plants are really enjoying the trellis and I am enjoying the additional space for plants added to my garden, especially for long term plants like grapes - which can live for 20-30 years! 

Budget DIY Chair Makeover - From Drab to Fab

This is a super simple DIY that had an amazing outcome. Did I mention this was all done with Rust-Oleum spray paint for about $5 a can? I bought the bulk six packs so I could have leftovers for other projects. Just look at this before and after picture!

These were bar stools that that came included with our house ;) We used them as patio chairs for the bar area on our back porch. They were already pretty rough looking, but being outside in Florida made them pretty gross. Here are some more before pictures:

 The first thing I did was take them apart. This was very simple, I just removed the screws! 

I then cleaned them with a bleach, soap, and water mixture. After they dried I prepped them for spray painting. I swear I am not a spokeswoman for Rust-Oleum, but they always have my favorite stuff. I used their hammered spray paint and their fabric and vinyl spray paint. I am super obsessed with this hammered spray paint and use it for 90% of my crafting projects. Basically everything in my house is this hammered color.

 Then I sprayed my little heart out. I did two coats of each and I used about 4 cans of the fabric spray and two cans of the hammered spray. I am known to be pretty heavy-handed with spray paint (just ask my husband) so you may use less. The fabric spray went on smoothly and I definitely recommend it for any of your projects.

 

 Pretty awesome right? Well, it has been about six months and the chairs are still looking brand new! Let me know if you have any questions or suggestions. I will leave you with some more before and after pictures. Bye for now! 

Garden Box and Containers Update

Here is the garden box as of today! I am happy these are finally planted. I had to cut multiple branches off of the cherry tomato plant because it was getting out of control and shading all of the other plants. I also planted Floradade tomatoes in the yard. These tomatoes were developed by the University of Florida to be extremely heat tolerant and disease resistant. I am excited to see how they do in our natural sandy soil. 

My Jersey asparagus has already sprouted after being planted last week! I have two sprouts. These are three year old roots.

My Luffa Gourd Plants! I put these in a hanging basket for the back porch.

 Garlic and Dutch Yellow Shallots:

 Broccoli (kind of looking sad):

 Sweet Onions:

Lemon/Key Lime and Orange Tree:

DIY Rustic Wall Mount Wine Rack

I am super excited about having this project finished. I did this one entirely on my own, except for the hanging (thanks babe!).

I started out with a pallet and disassembled it.

I then stained the wood with one coat of Wood Finish Minwax stain.

I played around with some pieces until I found ones that fit together well and also added a rustic feel. I ended up choosing the smaller pieces with some medium width pieces. I found some pieces that angled down and were perfect for the end pieces. I then used some left over wood to make the supporting back piece. I screwed everything securely and added wall mounts to the back.

Here was the hard part: choosing the actual mounts for the bottles. It was not nearly as easy as I thought it would be. However, I ended up settling on some rustic bed springs. The springs come in many shapes and sizes and are offered on many websites. You could also pull some from an old mattress or find some from craft stores or a used furniture store. I ultimately chose the largest ones that I could find on a website and purchased them for $10. I then spray painted them (since I could only find 'rusty' ones).

I tested the ability of the springs to hold a wine bottle and found that these particular springs would not stretch horizontally :( .  This left me with a look that I did not originally intend. After screwing the springs in I marked where the springs needed to be cut.

I used a dremel to cut the springs and my husband screwed a piece of wood for support into the wall where I wanted this wine rack hung. I am extremely happy with the way the the springs turned out and with the final look of this wine rack.

Here is the final result!

All of this was done for free, except for the cost of the springs, due to the products I have available at my home; but this project would still remain well below the price of a purchased rack if the products must be purchased.

Happy crafting! Feel free to comment with any questions or suggestions.