All Aflutter; National Photo Month, Day 21

The Great Spangled Fritillary on a coneflower. Great is an understatement.


Make it a great day!

Linking to:
More the Merrier Monday
Macro Monday
Bloomin' Tuesday
Garden Tuesday
Tuesday Garden Party
Weekly Top Shot

Cool Blues; National Photo Month, Day 20

Old-fashioned bachelor buttons. An instant step back in time to:

Grandma's garden
On hot summer days

Chasing butterflies and
mystical fireflies

Brewed iced tea and
fresh radish sandwiches

Tire swings, teeter totters,
skipping rope and hopscotch

Windows thrown wide open,
Laundry on the line

Mornings in the kitchen
Evenings on the porch

Make it a great day!

Linking to:

Cure for the Common Monday
Simple Things Sunday
Cowgirl Up at The Farmhouse Porch

Perfect Imperfection; National Photo Month, Day 19

Aging is all about perspective. When I look in the mirror each morning, my attitude toward aging just isn't that positive.

But, take a lovely garden finial such as this one, and aging takes on a whole new perspective.

I found this concrete finial at an estate sale. I imagine it was still sitting there, lonely and overlooked, because it had a wounded foot and was cloaked in moss on one side. For some, those characteristics might have been viewed as flaws. Really?

I don't think so! To me, chips and moss are beauty marks.

Make it a great day!

Linking to:

Show-off Saturday at Nutmeg Place
Flea Market Finds at Her Library Adventures

Playing Around; National Photo Month, Day 18

This pretty, peachy iris just showed up on my garden doorstep this spring. She wasn't expected. Certainly wasn't invited. She just turned up, stayed and blossomed into a beautiful lady.

I've never had a "volunteer" iris before. This one has been quite a treat. Somewhere between a peach and a tan color, she adds a hue to the back garden that I believe is only possible with iris.

Today I introduced my son to the PicMonkey editing tool and had some fun playing around with Iris to demonstrate some of its features. Here are some of the results:

Make it a great day!

Linking to:

Cottage Garden Party at Fishtail Cottage
Shoot. Edit. Submit.
Weekly Top Shot
Sunday's Best at My 1929 Charmer
Flower Art Friday

Sack Full o' Frogs; National Photo Month, Day 17

Jackpot!

I went to a church garage and plant sale this past weekend. The church sales are a favorite of mine--great stuff and even greater prices. The best place to find those hidden treasures. You know, the kind that make you want to squeal with delight.

As if I weren't feeling lucky enough to have scored some wonderful and very large perennial shade plants for $2 and $3, I picked up some beautiful, but well-worn, old books. You can see a hint of them in a couple of the photos. I'll share more about them in a later post.

Most delightful, though, was a collection of nine vintage metal flower frogs. I think they speak for themselves.

The flower-shaped frog--all one piece--is an especially nice one. It's a type I didn't previously own.

The round metal one is all one piece with a rust red-colored band around the outside--also a style I didn't have in my collection.

I have a couple of these. While they're useful for holding pens, pencils, paintbrushes, crayons and, of course, flowers, they make me giggle when they're standing on their own. This one's had some hard use. Some of its wire arms are woefully out of shape and totally askew. So, why do these curly-que cuties make me giggle? They remind me of my wild hair on a humid day.

Another cute find: vintage silhouette bookends in my favorite color. Maybe it's just me, but I think I spy a modified Union Jack and a dog on a leash on her skirt. A poodle skirt, perhaps.

Last, but not least, I found this sweet, tiny cup and saucer in excellent condition.

I feel like I won the lottery.


Make it a great day!

Linking to:

Time Travel Thursday at The Brambleberry Cottage
Vintage Thingie Thursday at The Coloradolady
Simple and Sweet Fridays
Thursday Favorite Things Blog Hop
Feathered Nest Friday at French Country Cottage
Home and Garden Thursday
Sister Sunday at Sisters of the Wild West
Sunday Show Off at Twigg Studio
Knick of Time Tuesday

Roll Out the Red Carpet; National Photo Month, Day 16

This is exciting! Our back garden is mostly in the shade, so it's difficult to incorporate much bright color, other than the lime greens of several hosta varieties. You'll also find some cool blue blossoms, some whites and creams, the true blue of the hydrangeas, a pinch or two of yellow.

A narrow sliver at the very front of this space gets decent sun, so I decided to experiment with these Red Carpet border lilies. They're compact--about eight inches high. But, the blooms are substantial--about five inches across. And the color is brilliant. Love 'em.

This is a long-blooming variety and is supposed to naturalize over time. But, I like them so much, I don't think I'll wait for naturalization. I'm going to plant more this fall.

Make it a great day!

Linking to:

Rednesday at It's a Very Cherry World
Bloomin' Tuesday

What the Shrek? National Photo Month, Day 15

I've probably mentioned--a few times--that green is my favorite color. When I went for a recent pedicure, I found this shocking green polish on the manicurist's shelf. Of course, I had to get it.

It made me think of my "Guacamole," "Liberty," "August Moon" and "June" hostas. So, as you might have imagined, I fully expected the name of the color to be nature-inspired.

Was I ever surprised! Would you believe

Who the Shrek Are You?

Is that a playful name, or what?

Make it a great day!

Linking to:

Garden Tuesday