Hollyhocks

The Hollyhock....'Alcea Rosea', Hollyhocks stand for fertility, for ease of creation and abundance. These plants certain do know abundance when neglected and somewhat forgotten. I can remember my grandmother growing Hollyhocks behind her garage, in a very hot gravely alley in Wapato WA. There wasn't much draw to the alley other then the daily chore of emptying the garbage, but upon a closer look, towering walls of color would overwhelm you. Hers were pink and magenta, and never held onto rust. Originally Hollyhocks were a Chinese flower grown for the savory taste of its leaves. Brought to England in the sixteenth century, these once tastey tid bits now were sought after as fast growing beauties, showing off its stunning and various blooms. Make love a daily habit, the hollyhock seems to say, and something grand and imposing will arise.

Vintage Cards

Vintage postcards have always intrigued me. As a child, the pretty pictures fascinated me, as an adult the message lures me in. Perhaps, more then the message, is the memories that live on in the script found on the side of these tiny treasures. They were first known as picture postcards when they first swept Europe and then the US. during the first fifteen years of the twentieth century. Picture postcards celebrated landmarks, commemorative celebrations, even natural disasters and postcards were printed for every holiday including Labor Day and Groundhog Day. Postcard groups popped up and enthusiasts would conspire to shower loved ones with hundreds of cards. Like email today, postcards were attractive because they afforded a fast, inexpensive and relatively effortless means of keeping in touch with others. They were a way to send your best while writing the least. Many picture postcards were heavily embossed, sporting a structural relief while others incorporated gold and silver foils and some bits of fabric. A postcard wasn't simply a picture; it was a sensuous thing to touch and treasure, a democratic art. Even when postcards were new they were avidly collected. Most postcards sold in this country were printed in Germany.

Today the postcard inscribed with greetings from far-off, seemingly halcyon time are ever more seductive. But what intrigued me as a child still lures me today....that their message is timeless: It is important to stay connected with one another.

Daffodil Narcissus

The daffodil stood for chivalry in Victorian England, perhaps because it sometimes stood in the snow, waiting for the rest of the flowers of Spring.
The crisp bloom's name can be traced to Old English affodyle, meaning early arrival. "The sweet o' the year," wrote Shakespheare, "when daffodils begin to peer."
Garden Lore: Pointing a finger at a daffodil was said to prevent it from blooming. Reputedly, it is unlucky to take a daffodil into a henhouse. Never mix your cut daffodils with cut tulips as they do not agree.

Sweet Peas

This is the time of year we all long for more color in the garden, warmer temps on the lawn and dream of days that are to come. Being the optimist, I love arm chair gardening and sketching the early Spring containers and garden beds. But the one my favorites that speaks Spring loudly are Sweet Peas!
These old fashioned flowers, are once again in vogue. Breaking through the warming soil, these nuggets of sweetness are some of the best bloomers and most fragrant in the garden. Soon the sweet pea starts will be arriving. For those of us who fail to plant near Presidents Day, this is like striking Gold. Once you find them in the Nurseries...Plant Now! Here's a little forecast:
From the large petals of the 'White Diamond Wedding' to the darkest flowers called 'Black Knight' these flowers show off. Fragrant, mixed colors and marbleized blossoms dance atop curly stems. Names like Painted Lady, Old Spice and Knee High, conjure up strong images of flowers from days gone by. I'm especially fond of the Knee High variety as they act as a strong addition to any hanging container. Great color mix with long stems need little support as these beauties climb up the hanging container, but plant a few to hang down out of the container too. Using Sweet Peas as a trailing plant can bring pleasure to the passerby. Picking these flowers regularly for windowsill vases produce more flowers. Always let a few flowers create seed as they will assure your favorites for next year. Stay tuned cause the Sweet peas starts are coming.

Happy Anniversary

Four years ago this past week, Bountiful Home opened.... and what a ride it has been. Recreated in what was The Weed Lady house, Bountiful Home has found it's place...a modest and cozy shop filled with Old World Home Decor and Nursery. Throughout the past few years the shop has had some huge successes and a few failures along the way....but I'd rather rest on the good things which spur me on each day. Garden festivals and Junk Markets have exploded across the Nursery and scattered the front lawn. Classes up stairs in the attic have warmed the house with laughter and movement and exposes many to the shop. Vintage Markets, away from the shop continued to grow the shop with new friends and more opportunities.
The leaning back porch of the shop is my makeshift office with an incredible inspiration wall. Upon this wall sits business cards and ads, Thank yous and Invites, pages from torn magazines, badges, gift tags, awards and posters. These are all great reminders of where I have come from and ideas to spur me on to where I will go. As I write, the preparations for this weekends 4th Anniversary of Bountiful Home are under way. I'm excited. So drop in on Friday and Saturday and enjoy some tea and cookies and help me celebrate this wonderful weekend.
A dear friend wrote to me in a card the day four years ago, on the eve of Bountiful Home's opening.... "Its twilight outside....and its sparkling inside. As I turned off the lights and walked through for the last time ( before the hoards of people come running in ) I paused and realized I had just walked through YOUR dream come true. Its true I'm living my Dream....please come by and enjoy it with me. Best, Todd

A little Shakespeare

Blow Blow Thy Winter Wind
Thou art not so unkind
As man's ingratitude;
Thy tooth is not so keen
Because thou art not seen,
Although thy breath be rude.

Heigh-ho, sing, heigh-ho, Unto the green holly:
Most friendship is feigning, most loving mere folly:
Then heigh-ho the holly,
This life is most jolly.

Freeze, freeze, thou bitter sky,
Thou dost not bite so nigh
As benefits forgot:
Though thou the waters warp,
Thy sting is not so sharp
As friend remembered not.

Then heigh-ho the holly
This life is most jolly. William Shakespeare

A Christmas Jar of Twigs

After a lovely day off, I returned to the shop in the stillness of the morning to find a dear friend had dropped off a wonderful bags filled with treasures. Nestled proudly into a brown bag was a trove of eyes delight. Savoring the moment, I pulled the polka dot glittered tissue aside.... my eyes smiled. I lifted a well loved Kerr jar from the bag to rest on my desk. Filling the jar were Hollyhocks stems dried lovingly by the sun. Their creamy fuzzy pods cracking open while still holding the desired seeds of one of my favorite flower. Birch twigs held tiny images of blue birds and smaller wires wrapped tightly around branches held miniature silver snowflakes, now dancing in my vision. Old ephemera books laid under the treasures. My eyes focused on the many findings entrapped with in the jar....shells, leaves, more seeds and small terracotta pots began to blur as my eyes, now swollen with tears, blended them back to their watering home.
I was taken back by my response to the little jar filled with the promise of Spring....but moreover the thought and action from which it came. I have been blessed by some truly lovely friends.... I added a few tiny rose hips and some stray pheasant feathers to the already brimming jar of Christmas cheer. Bits of drift wood and shells, pods and leaves took my thoughts back to where they came from...the garden now at rest! The sender knows me well and she captured the art of giving more then she knows. This simple jar....what a JOY! Bound with a sumptuous striped ribbon, I will enjoy and await the moment this Spring when I can once again return the gift from the Christmas Jar of Twigs.