Summer Mantle

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Well, Summer is here and my mantle was in need of a make-over that was worthy of hot, summer days.  I decided on a beach theme using lots of shells, sand, and other natural elements. 

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Here's what my fireplace looked like before I started:

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Everything I used to decorate were things that I already had.  Most of the shells I used I have had since I was a child.  Most of them came from family trips to Florida.  I'm so glad I have all of these beautiful shells - who knew I would be using them years later to decorate!

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Here's what the mantle looks like now:

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I purchased the apothecary jars from TJ Maxx and Marshall's a few years ago.  I'm glad I have them - I keep them up on my mantle most of the year.  I just switch out the fillers for the different seasons.

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Two of the jars are filled at the bottom with sand and shells on top.

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The third jar is filled with dried sea bark I purchased from Pottery Barn a few years ago.  I think it is actually dried cactus.  I recently saw it for sale at Michael's.

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I bought both of the star fish on the island of Capri in Italy.  Every time I look at them it reminds me of our great vacation!

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I printed out the sea horse and shell print for free from Vintage Printables.  I first found out about Vintage Printables from Rene of Cottage and Vine and now I can't stop printing out things!

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I have two frames hanging near my fireplace.  I switched out the photos I had in the frames for more shell prints.

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Not bad for free prints!

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I added beach grass to a vase filled with sand to set in front of the fireplace.

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To complete the Summer look, I added a hurricane filled with sand and shells to my coffee table.

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Thanks for reading!  I hope you are inspired to bring a little bit of Summer inside your home.

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I'm linking up to these great parties:  Toot Your Horn Tuesday @ Silly Little Sparrow, Table Top Tuesday @ A Stroll Thru Life, Show and Tell Day  @ Blue Cricket Design, Strut Your Stuff @ Somewhat Simple, Transformation Thursday @ The Shabby Chic Cottage, Frugalicious Friday @ Finding Fabulous, Mantle Vignette @ The Stories of A to Z.

Big, Fat Failure

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If you've been around here for a while, you might remember back in March when I posted about my seeds from Italy.  I always grow tomatoes and herbs and lots of flowers, but I had never started anything from seed before.  Well, everything started out good enough.  The seeds were planted and watered and looked after everyday.  They sprouted and started growing!
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See - they were growing!  And then, they just stopped.  The seedlings didn't get any bigger and they started to turn yellow.  I'm not sure where I went wrong - Not enough light, too much light?  Too much water, not enough water?  Not warm enough?  Maybe I should have re-potted them to larger pots? 

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I did manage to salvage a few of the zinnias.  They are slowly but surely getting larger.  No buds yet, but hopefully soon.

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A few of my basil seedings also survived.

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But the mint and oregano never had a chance!  I ended up buying plants from the nursery.

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I also bought basil to get me by until my basil seedlings are large enough to use.

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I couldn't live without homegrown tomatoes, so I bought those at the nursery too.  They have really taken off in the last couple of weeks - I think they have already tripled in size.  I have one Roma plant and one called Santa (a grape tomato variety).

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I'm hoping for lots of tomatoes soon!

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I'm pretty disappointed with my seedlings, but who knows, I might give it another try again next spring. 

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Free Font Art

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I got the idea for this project after seeing something similar in the Pottery Barn catalog.  Find different fonts, type out the alphabet, and frame - It couldn't be any easier and I already had all the supplies on hand so it was completely free.

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The first step is to determine what fonts you want to use and what size your print will be.  If you are looking for interesting, free fonts try dafont and Free Scrapbook Fonts from Kevin & Amanda (The font I use for my post titles and on my sidebar came from their site).

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The frames I used have a 5" x 7" opening.  Using MS Word, I changed the layout size to 5" x 7" so that my letters would fit in my frames.  Then I played around with different fonts and sizes until I had three that I liked.

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Then I printed out the fonts on white paper to test the sizes and make sure they looked OK in the mats.

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Once I was happy with the size and spacing I printed to my final paper - an olive green card stock.

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I framed them up and now they are hanging in my home office.

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***Fonts, L to R:  dear joe 4, Vineta BT, AR Bonnie.  I can't remember which site I used to download these fonts, but I'm pretty sure all three came from dafont.

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I'm pretty sure it took me longer to write this blog post than it did to make my free font art! 

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I'm linking up to these great parties:

Making the World Cuter Monday, Modern Craftswoman Monday @ Tools are for Woman Too, Motivate Me Monday @ Keeping it Simple, Toot Your Horn Tuesdays @ Silly Little Sparrow, Get Your Craft on Tuesday @ Today's Creative Blog, Show and Tell Day @ Blue Cricket Design, Remodelaholics Anonymous @ Remodelaholic, Frugalicious Friday @ Finding Fabulous, SNS @ Funky Junk Interiors, We Can Do it Cheaper @ The Virginia House.

Guest Posting Today @ Remodelaholic

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I'm guest posting today over at Remodelaholic. Head on over there and check out my post! You can see my guest post right here.

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Thank you Cassity for having me as your guest blogger today! 

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Weekend Kitchen: Spring Linguine with Basil

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This pasta has so few ingredients, I wasn't sure if it would have much flavor.  Boy, was I wrong - it is light, flavorful, and delicious!

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Ingredients

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- 9 ounces uncooked fresh linguine ( I used whole grain; it makes me feel a little better about the massive quantities of pasta I consume. . .)

- 1 cup shelled fresh green peas

- 4 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter

- 1 clove garlic, minced

- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

- 1/2 teaspoon salt

- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 1/4 cup thinly sliced fresh basil

- 2 ounces shaved fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

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I'm a fan of pretty much any recipe with fresh basil.

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Have I ever mentioned how much I love my juicer?  It's definitely one of my favorite kitchen tools.  And a tip I learned from Martha - before juicing a lemon or lime, place in the microwave for 20 seconds.  Heating up the citrus will release more juice.

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Preparation:

.1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Add peas to pasta during the last 2 minutes of cooking time. Drain pasta mixture in a colander, reserving 1/4 cup pasta liquid.
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Unfortunately, I ended up using frozen peas because the ones I saw at the grocery store didn't look that great.
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2. Heat oil, butter, and garlic in pan over medium heat 1 minute or until butter melts. Remove from heat; stir in pasta mixture, reserved pasta water, juice, salt, and pepper; toss well.
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3. Divide pasta mixture evenly among 4 bowls; top each serving with 1 tablespoon basil and about 2 tablespoons cheese and a drizzle of olive oil.  Serve immediately.

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I really, really liked this pasta and will definitely be making it again.
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Recipe adapted from Cooking Light Magazine, May 2010.
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I've linked up to Tasty Tuesdays @ A Beautiful Mess.  Check it out!
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In Bloom

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I love this time of year.  Being surrounded by things in bloom makes me so happy.  Sometimes I think I may have missed my calling as a owner of a garden center.  I would love to work in a greenhouse all day!

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My peonies did really well this year.  I had so many huge blooms and my house has been full of peony bouquets for the last week.

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To say I'm obsessed with my peonies may be putting it mildly.

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My Siberian Iris plants were also in bloom this week.

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And these pansies are growing in a pot on my porch.

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These purple petunias are part of a hanging basket on my porch.  I didn't realize how many purple flowers I had until I started looking through these pictures.

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I'm really enjoying the view from my front porch right now.

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Soon my hydrangeas and roses will be blooming.  I can't wait!