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Monday, February 28, 2011

austinmomof6: Texas Xeriscapes

austinmomof6: Texas Xeriscapes: "Now that we live in the country, we've got alot of landscaping to think about. I've thought about it all winter, actually. How lovely ..."

Sunday, February 27, 2011

Texas Xeriscapes

Now that we live in the country, we've got alot of landscaping to think about. I've thought about it all winter, actually.  How lovely it will be here, once Spring sets in.  In our other home, my sister and I worked on creating a blank slate into a lovely flower filled yard, with Crepe myrtles, Gardenia, a fruit tree...  It was so fragrant and wonderful.  Of course, we had a tinier yard.
In this home, our property is lined with around 10 wonderful pecan trees.  They're huge!  We have a Mimosa Tree, which I can't wait to see bloom.  In the back is a gorgeous Magnolia Tree!  My mother in law planted some Rosemary out front, which are thriving so nicely.  But still, I can't wait to add some of my own personal touches.  My thoughts are that I need some "no fuss" and drought resistant plants.  I found some very nice inspirational pics of Texas Xeriscapes and plants that I am loving!  I found some on the Sibley Nature Center website, Texas A&M Hotriculture website, Landscape Design and Consultation from Elizabeth Klein, MyHouse Magazine, and Greener Magazine.  I am posting some of them.


Gorgeous Bush Lantana


This is called Cigar Plant



  Ducher Rose


Not sure or their name, but I like them!


From Lauren Springer Ogden's website


I thought this was so nice, with the flagstone and bricks.

They're a little hard to see in this picture, but this picture is of Trumpet Vines.


Texas Mountain Laurel.  I've got to have this!


Xeriscape from Greener Magazine





Texas Redbud





Texas' State Flower... The Bluebonnet!
I do get some of these.  They grow wild.  I wish my whole yard was a field full of them... like this one!  

Thursday, February 24, 2011

An Obstacle

Hello, my Friends.  So sorry I've been away from my Blog.  I've been having technical difficulties with my internet service.  I recently switched to Wild Blue, a satellite internet provider.  I thought this would help me have better and faster service.  In fact, it's not working out at all.  I live in the rural part of Austin.  I'm only about 20 minutes from Downtown... still, it's very difficult to have any kind of good coverage at all... in my area.  I tried Clear.  That did not work.  I had Cricket, with a router connected.  Amazingly, that worked... just veerrry slow.  Anyway, I am working on my little dilemma.  Meanwhile, I will do my best to get more postings out asap.

Have a great day!!


(This is Aiden.  I feel just like this!  Hehe.)

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Black Painted Doors

I've been wanting to paint some of my interior doors.  I especially love the way French Doors look with black.  I'm building a case for my husband, as to why I think it's a good idea.  I've been looking through websites and blogs to show how good it would look in our home.  I think that once he sees my pictures, he might just agree.

These plain white doors are mine.  They're nice (could use a good cleaning, now that I'm looking at them through a picture), but they don't "Pop".

 








These are the doors that I would like to paint black.  Below, are my inspiration pictures.


I found this one on Just Beachy.  It's not a very clear shot of the door, but I hope you get what I'm talking about.





I just love this look from The Yellow Cape Cod.





Of course, one of my favorites, My Sweet Savannah.  This one was shown on HGTV's Rate My Space.

What Is Black & White & Striped all over? , This was your typical boring hallway before. In one afternoon and armed with 3 cans of paint I transformed it into something a bit more out of the ordinary! Now the space seems more open and airy yes even with black doors! The paint is jet black and the stripes are Ralph Lauren Roadster white and Behr Brown Teepee! Thanks for looking!, Bedrooms Design



These French Doors were nicely done.  I found this one also on HGTV's Rate My Space.
Glamour in the Kitchen, Black mirror backsplash and white painted cabinetry add a touch of glamour to a typical farm table in this family kitchen., We painted the french doors a chocolate black to give some weight to the left side of the kitchen. The charcoal mirrored backspash is unexpected with the cream painted cabinets.   , Kitchens Design



This one is also nicely done.



Two more really cool ones are from Arch Digest, Stephen Knollenberg.


So, what do you think about black doors?  Do you like them?

Monday, February 7, 2011

Industrial Bliss

I've always enjoyed the Industrial look.  It has this certain charm that totally appeals to me.  Many thanks to My Sweet Savannah, who I love to follow, for connecting me to some really cool websites that I am loving as well!  Check her blog out.  She's very talented!  Her February 3rd posting was about the giveaway for visitng  My Sparrow.  My Sparrow is giving away the coolest 3 tier basket, that I sooo want to win!  Below is the basket she is giving away.  Don't you love it?!




My Sparrow has the coolest things in her shop.  I found this really cool wire bottle holder, that is perfect to hold my wines.  After all, I am a Wine Consultant for Wine Shop at Home.  (See my website at http://www.wineshopathome.com)  This wire bottle holder would be perfect to hold all my fabulous bottles of wines!





Another item I found at My Sparrow is the Granada Oval Serving Tray below.  These trays fit my casual style perfectly!




In my quest to find more cool finds, I came across another website called Hudson Goods.  Below are some things that caught my eye.


This Industrial Metal Console could be used for many things.  I would like it in my kitchen or as a media center for the living room.

This Industrial Swivel Stool is fun, too!




When paired with something soft and pretty, industrial can make quite a statement.  It's like pairing salty and sweet.  They just go together.  Below is a picture I found from Dreamy Whites Blog.  This is a perfect example of industrial mixed with soft linens.




More uses for Industrial pieces.....

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Hope you enjoyed these pics.  I know I did.  Have a great week!