Letters from the Garden

Cottage

How to create a weathered wood finish

I showed you the new kitchen tabletop on Friday and promised a tutorial on Monday, so it only makes sense that you’re seeing this on Tuesday (punctuality is not my strong suit). This weathered wood finish is not something I recommend for someone who isn’t prepared to roll with the punches a bit. The fact is, you just don’t know ...

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Cottage

A new old-looking tabletop

I’m not sure I’ve ever done a project in which I had no real expectations for the outcome. That’s just not the way I roll. So going into refinished the kitchen table with no real idea of what it would look like at the end was not something I undertook lightly. You may recall that we purchased our kitchen table ...

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Cottage

How to get FREE nautical charts

If you’ve ever wanted to do anything with a nautical chart, plan it now. What might you want to do with a chart, other than, you know, navigate? Allow me to give you a few ideas. Traditional Home Office by Concord Interior Designers & Decorators lisa k. tharp – k. tharp design Spaces Traditional Kids by Milwaukee Architects & Designers ...

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Other

Colorful fence proves a little gray is ok when it comes to rules

Rules set in stone have always irked me. I’ll admit, I’m not a big follower of the rules, to the point where I’m more interested in breaking one when someone makes a big fuss about how there are no exceptions. I’m not talking about laws here, just rules. I know this is perhaps a bit of an immature viewpoint, but ...

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Cottage

How to salvage a stained marble tabletop

I have been on the hunt for a marble side table for about two years now. I’m pretty sure it’s because secretly I would have loved a marble countertop in either the upstairs bathroom or the kitchen but I knew I’d lose my mind with a marble counter. Some people love marble countertops for their patina or are willing to ...

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Garden

A new bathroom was just the start

If you’re coming to the blog today from Hooked on Houses, welcome! I’m so happy you found me and thank you so much to Julia for featuring our bathroom addition. A couple years ago we ripped the top off half of our house and stuck it back on higher. We created tons of extra space without adding a single square ...

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Garden

The Garden Appreciation Society Week 19 — Challenge yourself and link up!

I realized a funny thing while taking pictures of this week’s Garden Appreciation Society bouquet: I enjoy the bouquets that are harder to come by more than the ones that I made when the garden was in full flush. There’s something about the challenge that makes me appreciate that bouquet even more. Or maybe it’s just that it forces me ...

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The Impatient Gardener blog was started in 2009 and its library of posts includes practical how-tos, plant guides, favorite garden gear, successes and failures and much more. If you’re looking for something specific, the search function at the top of the page can help.

Thanks to Longfield Gardens for partnering with me on this post.  You don’t need to look far on this blog or in my garden to know that I am mildly obsessed with dahlias and have been for a long time. And while I admire, and maybe even envy, those photos of a field with row […]

This post is sponsored by Troy-Bilt, maker of great equipment to whip your yard into shape and supporters of neighbors helping neighbors. As usual, all thoughts are my own. Isn’t it funny how we limit our gardens to the little square of land we own? Obviously there’s a reason for this, but if the only […]

My garden has taught me a lot of lessons, but one of the most important is that good enough is usually good enough. When perfectionist tendencies rise to the surface, the garden is the perfect place to tamp them back into place. There is only so much a control a gardener can have over what […]

Thank you to Longfield Gardens for sponsoring this post and feeding my love of dahlias. Over the next couple weeks I will go through all the dahlia tubers I overwintered and plant them up in pots along with all the new tubers I just had to have. Starting dahlias in pots works well for me […]

Spring comes painfully slow here, something that I’m alternately thankful for and tormented by. It’s nearly intolerable to see the beauty of spring, all fresh green and flowery coming to other yards in warmer areas when mine is mostly still brown. But the upside is that I always feel like I get a bit of […]

I found myself with a bit of extra time at home last summer (imagine that) and, inspired by the amazing floral designers who I see sharing their work on Instagram, I decided I would try to get a little better at making bouquets. Mind you, I don’t do anything with these bouquets other than enjoy […]

I always say that the best thing I do for my garden is get out of it. Visiting other gardens never fails to provide the kind of inspiration I can’t find anywhere else. What is always interesting is that the photos I take on these visits continue to provide inspiration long after I’ve left, as […]

Hello flower lovers! I’m partnering with Longfield Gardens on this post, but you know the drill: all words and dahlia obsessions are my own. We interrupt your regularly scheduled holiday activities to talk about something that is, dare I say, even more important. And if you know me, you probably know that the only thing […]

Traditionally the gift guides here have featured a wide variety of gardening-related items for a range of budgets, but this year I’m going a different direction. Everything here is from a small or independent business, and most items are hand-crafted.  You can still check out my Amazon storefront. (If you use that link I may earn […]

I’ve partnered with Garrett Wade to create a custom gift guide from their selection of high-quality tools, gear and accessories. I received some products to review to better inform my list (you know I’d never recommend something I didn’t really like) and compensation for my time. If there was ever a year that called for special