Budding and Blooming Spring Curb Appeal

Budding and blooming spring curb appeal lawn and garden enthusiasts know the beauty and the value of curb appeal.

First impressions make lasting impressions.

Curb appeal traditionally is the topic of buying or selling a home conversation, but what about the value of curb appeal between the bookends?

I want the ooh and aah effect of gorgeous curb appeal to impress me, the homeowner, first and foremost.

Spring motivates home improvement.

The first day of spring rollout makes it official, and by the look and buzz of things around the neighborhood everything’s coming up roses, azaleas, marigolds, verbena, zinnias, impatiens, begonias, sago palms and hanging baskets of fern.

We’ve got this budding and blooming spring curb appeal covered.

Heydt Designs

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Consulting the buds and blooms bible aka the LSU Ag Center Bedding Plants for Louisiana Landscapes for plant this, grow that advice confirms we are a go for grow.

Succulents make a lovely showing, and the decorative box Dave the Builder made for me a couple of years ago is the inspiration for a container garden.

Color leads the way when orchestrating palette and planting.

Barn Nursery’s Fool Proof Color Guide to Container Gardening gives color combination advice for creating beautiful color combos, height and size suggestions and recommendations for low-maintenance blooms.

Speaking of budding and blooming spring curb appeal gorgeous DIY projects, here’s an idea for an address number wall planter from HGTV.

This Violet Hydrangea Oilcloth Fabric from Online Fabric Store is marked oh. my. gorgeous! for outdoor pillows.

Southern Patio Sonoma Urn Planter

Regardless if you are sprucing up your already in place exterior features or adding new, the budding and blooming spring curb appeal is rooted in the lawn and garden details.

Better Homes & Gardens

Painting the front door instantly adds a zip of spring spectacular color. Decorative stepping stones walk the garden path walk of function and curb appeal style.

Outdoor planters have come into their own, stylishly speaking.

Making the spring curb appeal gorgeous gotta have it list is the alligator door knocker by Michael Healy Designs.

Regional designs and decor accessories reflecting regional attributes impress a touch of home.

Dave snapped a shot of the new recessed LED retrofit downlight with his cell phone. The yard and beds show winter wear and are no where near spring ready, but you get the idea.

Looking at the house from the street/curb/sidewalk, the light is not as bright as it appears in the photo.

It’s a very pleasing choice of exterior accent lighting.

Dresser Homes

Lamp(s) on a front porch create such an inviting ambiance. Isn’t that the idea?

From season to season, garden statues benefit from a quick cleaning, paint touch up or even a color change.

Our side yard factors into the curb appeal equation. In fact, it gets more lawn and garden attention than the front yard.

It has quickly become a bird bathing-bird feeding-bird watching neighborhood attraction.

Budding and blooming spring curb appeal goes a long way in making the right first impression.

Tidbits Of All Things House That Make a Home Information

Today I am sharing tidbits of all things house that make a home information.

A design, decorating, dish and detail show and tell resource of information is what drives us here at Places In The Home.

And away we go!

Jackie Gleason

In a recent survey of home decor consumers, the colors blue and purple top the list of color preference when selecting the decorative throw pillows to decorate their humble abode with.

Consumers tastes and preferences also trend toward patterned throw pillows.

Sir Kitty Kat

Fleas drives me crazy.

What a swing in subject matter, but into every household an unwanted guest of the bug species will creep in.

We’ve been fortunate over the many years of our pet ownership to only contend with fleas inside the house once.

That is until last month when I noticed we had company.

Sir Kitty Kat aka the culprit gifted the entire house with fleas.

Flea bombing the house with unwanted chemicals was out of the question, and calling an exterminator would be an option of last resort.

After conducting a quick google search for help, I decided to go with a natural, safe and inexpensive alternative.

Is 20 Mule Team Borax a detergent booster or is it a miracle flea be gone treatment?

It’s both!

I used 2 boxes of 20 Mule Team Borax over a two week period.

Patience and persistence paid off.

We treated Sir Kitty Kat with a topical flea treatment under our veterinarian’s advisement.

Kitty was scratching to take up residence outdoors for a few days, and admittedly I was happy to oblige him.

I purchased a plastic storage container, a broom, rubber gloves and a box of disposable face masks from the dollar store.

You’ll need two(2) new empty vacuum cleaner bags- one to use during treatment and a fresh new one for after treatment.

Perform a discoloration test by selecting a small area and applying the Borax to rule out the possibility of discoloration.

I only treated the carpet, rugs and floors with the Borax.

I did not use it on fabric or upholstered furniture.

What You Do:

Fill the storage container about 3/4 full per room with 20 Mule Team Borax.

Lightly dust floors, carpets, and rugs with Borax along baseboards, under furniture, in closets.

Use the broom to work the Borax into the carpet.

The Borax dries out the fleas and larvae.

I let the Borax do its thing in the carpet for one week.

Overkill for sure, but we were on a flea killing mission.

Vacuum up the Borax, discard the vacuum bag into a garbage bag and immediately place outside, and pop in a new vacuum bag.

I’ve got the hem tape thing down to a science!

I’ve been called a lot of things in my lifetime, but seamstress is not one of them and rightly so.

All those years ago in high school home economics class I aced the cooking part of the semester.

Sewing cooked my goose.

I come from a long line of no-sew seamstresses.

Button detail and hem tape I’ve mastered, but that’s it for my sewing prowess.

Pincushion curiosity struck while staring at the tomato pincushion that was my mother’s mother’s mother, trying to decide if I really needed the button to be on the pant and not in the drawer.

After consulting with the fountain of information guru that is Google, the what and the why a strawberry is attached to the tomato pincushion mystery was solved.

Emory powder is the filler source for the strawberry.

The powder is an abrasive, and serves as a cleaner of rust and sharpener of pins and needles.

Glad that’s answered.

I was on pins and needles.

Crazy cake is crazy easy and crazy good.

Do you ever look at recipes and projects and wonder if they really are that easy, that tasty and worth the effort?

You now have it on good authority that this easy peasy crazy cake is.

One pan and no eggs- I love this concept.

Crazy Cake

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups white sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking soda

½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

3/4 cup vegetable oil

2 Tablespoons distilled white vinegar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups cold water

Directions

Sift flour, sugar, salt, soda, and cocoa together into a 9 x 13 inch ungreased cake pan. Make three wells. Pour oil into one well, vinegar into second, and vanilla into third well. Pour cold water over all, and stir well with fork.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes, or until tooth pick inserted comes out clean.

To frost or not to frost.

That is the question only your personal preference can answer.

I did not frost the first chocolate crazy cake and it was delicious.

I did frost the second chocolate crazy cake with Duncan Hines Salted Caramel frosting topped off with coarse sea salt, and it was scrumptious.

Choices and caramel make the world go round.

Tidbits of all things house that make a home information does too.

Summer’s Almost Here Happy Dance: Outdoor Living Entertaining

So many of us love the outdoor living entertaining time of year when the hot summer days and nights meet hot styles and cool looks.

Our Canadian snowbird son will be moving to a new house in a couple of months which means he is dialing in for styling consultations, suggestions, and outdoor living entertaining tips.

Curb and yard appeal primps and preps the outdoor living entertaining area for the season.

Outdoor living loyalists take their outdoor living seriously. How we utilize our outdoor living spaces is an interesting fact.

When it comes to outdoor living decorative accessories, I want comfortable, durable, lasting, and affordable style that stands up to the season.

Patio, porch, terrace, balcony, rooftop and deck accessories must pass the past one season test.

Style is important, but if the big ticket items such as outdoor furniture and performance fabrics can’t withstand the elements or normal outdoor living wear and tear, what do you have? A repeatable, avoidable, and unnecessary expense.

Outdoor furniture and accessories made from treated wood, weather-resistant plastic, aluminum and wrought iron products are the preferred material choice in the get the most bang for your buck game.

Cambridge Casual Lowell 5-piece Teak Wood Patio Conversation Set

SunGuard UV Protectant for garden decor comes with four star customer reviews.

Outdoor living spaces share a design commonality with their interior living spaces counterpart- essential pops of robust color.

Seasonal keep it summer simple sensation eats and outdoor lovin’ decorative accessories presents a brilliant and bold opportunity to color your world.

Fire pit tops the millennial homeowner’s gotta have it list for outdoor living function, comfort, and style.

According to a Casual Living Millennial Outdoor survey, Millennials consider the most integral outdoor living entertaining products to be the five-piece dining set, grill and chat set.

Rocksprings 30″ Wide LP Square Fire Table

Our son, a millennial homeowner, explains to us, his Southern fried and humidity steamed parents, why a fire pit will be in his outdoor living space future.

“Guys, it’s not Louisiana. It’s Canada. We use a fire pit year round.”

Well, that explains that.

S’mores anyone?

How about an artisan wood-fired pizza baked in a blue fish terracotta pizza oven?

Blue Fish Terracotta Pizza Oven

Don’t forget to apply sun protection with an SPF of Stylish Parasol Fun.

Place a bundle of these in a super cute decorative container or basket for sun and heat sensitive guests to use.

Other options include summer soiree parting favors or focal point decorations.

Style Me Pretty

One of the best pieces of outdoor living entertaining advice I can give is to keep the theme, design, food and drink menu super summer simple!

I’m convinced more and more the move toward the trend of taking purchased prepared foods to the next level via the presentation factor is a gift from the outdoor living entertaining powers that be and your local grocery store and farmers market.

Eyes set the “seen” when it comes to food, and easy always makes the perfect party guest.

Add a splash of nostalgia to your outdoor living decor with vintage or vintage inspired accessories.

Tattered Tiques

Gosh, this vintage style beverage dispenser evokes memories of summers spent in East Tennessee at my paternal grandparent’s house.

Better Homes & Gardens 2 Gallon Glass Beverage Dispenser with Glass Clamp Lid

Granddaddy stocked the basement with a generous supply of original Coca-Cola (col cola as they called it) in the small glass bottles.

In fact, when the formula changed to new Coke he saved my brother and me a carton of the original Coke.

1stdibs

Still have mine to this day, and wouldn’t take a million dollars for this priceless memento.

Like a scene straight out of The Andy Griffith Show, we loved sitting out on the front steps sipping ice-cold original formula Coke (cold cola as my Tennessee family members say) watching the fireflies light up the summer night.