Green Thumb: Decks, Patios and Outdoor Entertaining

Floor Plans are my current obsession as we start the house scoping process. We've got our eye, maybe-kind of-sort of, on a summer 2017 purchase, which is both exciting and terrifying. One of the best lessons I learned about square footage came from my parents, who have a large backyard deck that they use for entertaining from April-October. It dramatically increases their hosting space all at a fraction of the price of adding an interior addition to the house.

Architecture: The Versatility of a Mini House or Garden Shed

Home? Or watermelon confectionary? So hard to tell... 

These days it's very hard to tell the difference between a garden shed, a guest house and a tiny house. Note, I'm certainly not complaining or anything, but Millenials are re-writing the rules left and right, and I do feel like this topic needs to be addressed in a much larger forum. 

In my Fantasy Life #3 (that one where I chill out in my brick/stone manor house in a clearing in the woods), I absolutely have a guest house in the back for long term guests. I love the idea of family and friends being able to stay with us for more than a few days at a time without falling over the tipping point to overcrowding. No one wants to be on your futon for 3 weeks, but your guest house? That's a come and linger all Summer or from Thanksgiving to Christmas kind of set up. 

Green Thumb: Statues

I don't know if it's because I grew up in a house with a moon garden, a black garden, an herb garden, and a giant unicorn statue in the middle of it all, but gardens just seem lazy and unfinished without the whimsy and personalization of ornaments.

So let's talk statues! People have been putting statues in their gardens for centuries. They do often lean towards the traditional and classical, but with a keen eye you can easily find a fresh and modern take. 

Green Thumb: Beautiful Order in French Gardens

When it comes to gardens, the prevailing preference these days seems to be for the romantic, natural paradise of an English (or "Cottage") garden. I like a storybook tangle of ivy, miniature roses and endless blooms as much as the next girl, and a garden that can go to pieces just a bit before it's in an obvious state of chaos has serious attraction. Most of us don't have a staff gardener maintaining the lawn after all!

But I do wonder if a lack of exposure to more highly stylized designs is the real root of our cottage garden preference.  These days, we love walking mandalas and find a small labyrinth beautifully meditative, but a French garden makes people think that you must be wound just a little too tight.