gifts for gardeners 2

Hi everyone!

Here is a second group of etsy gift ideas...

1. Hand sewn tote and tools , may be monogrammed

2. a pack of 30 wood markers

3. an adorable 2015 wall calendar

4. a handmade journal for taking note of successes, failures and garden designs

5. love this test tube vase that is flexible

6. a vintage watering can with a great shape

7. cute raffia tied fruit gift tags

8. holiday cards in a botanical font

9. great linen garden dungarees 

For some more ideas I posted the other day, go here...

Thanks for visiting!

Cindy

etsy gifts for gardeners 1

Hi everyone!

The holiday season is upon us. 

Here are a few ideas for handmade gifts for gardeners found on etsy...

1. pretty vegetable gift tags tied with raffia made in the UK, so charming!

2. beautifully made garden tool and rack, birch handles, carbon steel, great reviews, what gardener would not want this special gift? 

3. a batik kitchen towel in the happiest color for grey winter days

4. vintage French enamel pitchers make perfect indoor watering cans for houseplants, this one is such a pretty blue

5. By Golly Bard is one of my favorite etsy artists, love this maidenhair fern print

6. gardener's soaps with cornmeal, shea, coconut oil, all the good stuff

7. an assortment of micro green herb seeds includes dill, radish, cilantro, flax, mustard greens and clover, ready to plant with instructions in reusable metal tins

8. a pretty linen pinafore apron is great for gardening, this one is made in Canada, it criss-crosses in the back

9. these embroidered veggie linen kitchen towels come in pairs and are made in Asheville, NC, a perfect hostess gift!

Happy gift giving! 

I have some more ideas for gardeners, will post a second group soon.

Thanks for visiting!

Cindy

two books for gift giving

Hi everyone!

Time to start the holiday season with some gift ideas.

Our daughter works in advertising at the digital magazine Apartment Therapy and its sister site, The Kitchn. The Kitchn released its first cookbook this fall and it makes a wonderful present for a new cook, a young couple or anyone wanting to reorganize and update an outdated kitchen with modern recipes, design ideas and equipment. It is so much more than a cookbook. 

Here is the description of the book by authors Sara Kate Gillingham and Faith Durand....

"The Kitchn Cookbook is not just a big collection of recipes (as much as we love them). Half of the book is devoted to all the other things that make cooking so essential and engaging, like principles for organizing your kitchen effectively, and the best tools to buy. We include 10 real-life kitchen tours, from sleek and modern to worn-in and friendly, and we offer tips and natural solutions for keeping the kitchen clean and tidy.

Only after your kitchen is ship-shape do we dive into food. We talk ingredients — meat, seafood, produce, pantry, and beyond — and we include 50 essential techniques for developing your own cooking skills and learning how to cook without recipes.

The 150 recipes are of course a big chunk of the book — but they're not just recipes brought over from the site. There are some perennial favorites, retested and rewritten (watch for some new flavors of that famous banana ice cream!), but most of the recipes are all-new, offering you healthy, homey cooking with little splashes of elegance."

It is stylish and practical with inspiring photographs throughout, I highly recommend it. Also their daily email updates are fun to receive, always great ideas and recipes. You can purchase The Kitchn Cookbook here on their site, also available at West Elm stores here and all the regular book sellers.

Next up is Inspired by Tradition/The Architecture of Norman Davenport Askins. It features fifteen homes by Atlanta architect Norman Askins. Known in the South for his traditional residential designs, he designed the remodel of our cottage 10 years ago and we are working with him on some ideas for an addition.  

It is a beautiful book! His architectural styles are quite varied. A Caribbean inspired home on Sea Island, GA

a mountain home in North Carolina

his in-town Italian villa in Atlanta 

and many more. The details in his designs are inspired and make each home unique. Here are just a few of my favorite images I took from my copy... the book has beautiful interior design and garden inspiration as well.  

This is such a pretty work space.

A perfect mountain porch.

 The most cozy warm mountain kitchen...

He uses metal doors in a traditional sunroom.

I love how an alcove becomes an elegant dining room in this Atlanta bungalow.

Photos from The Kitchn, West Elm, Norman Askins and my iPhone.

Thanks for visiting!

Cindy

not your average hardware store

There are not many shopping choices in a small town. We have Savannah, Bluffton and Charleston nearby so we can head in those directions when needed.  

But the local hardware store in Beaufort has been a nice surprise.

This unassuming exterior in a beautiful parking lot of oaks is a fun place to shop.

Grayco Hardware is on Sea Island Parkway, Lady's Island, in the commercial district in Beaufort where we do our errands. Downtown Beaufort also has nice shops, just across the river.

 Grayco offers all  the regular items found  in a hardware store but there is so so much more! 

So rather than describe, you can just see for yourself...

(in fuzzy iphone photos though, my phone is so bad indoors)

They have a nice garden department. You can order fiddle leaf figs here, they are not available anywhere else in town.

So if you are ever in Beaufort or heading to Fripp Island and need beach supplies, make sure you stop in at Grayco!

Thanks for visiting!

Cindy