A botanical oasis in Stoney, Texas

Variegated Yucca in bloom.Mom had been telling me about this place since she visited last fall. It is the home of restoration expert Bill Marquis in Stoney, Texas. Bill's wife June is an avid gardener with immense knowledge of native Texas plants. The couple was holding an antiques auction that day, which is why we headed out there. However, I spent most of the time looking at and taking pictures of the beautiful gardens. June said that she doesn't water for the most part, plants have to be drought tolerant and fend for themselves!

Poppies!

Mom planted seed of this Standing Cypress and I hope to get some seeds after her plant blooms. So pretty, and apparently evergreen as well.

Mother's day brunch in Austin

I finally got the mother's day pictures from mom and had to share. My brother had the idea to make brunch for mom, her friend Kathy, and his girlfriend Celeste who is a soon to be mom.

Elliott and I in the kitchen. I made the French toast.

Celeste, Frank and I did the shopping, and it was a delicious spread!

Kathy, Karen, Ken and Phil enjoying brunch.

Celeste, Dad and Frank

My peeps (and pets)

Silly bro prepping for mimosas!

Karen and Ken enjoying the hammock which was Celeste's mother's day present.

Coffee and Crochet

Two of my favorite pastimes rolled into one enjoyable and relaxing afternoon. I'm making the Baby it's cold outside cardigan for my friend Jennie's baby boy who is due in July. I made the 12 month size figuring he could wear it next winter and spring. The six month size looked really small to me. I think my guage was off a bit anyways. This yarn is Bernat Cottontots Solids that mom helped me dye a while back. If I have enough left over I plan to make some matching booties. Next I need to get busy on my nieces baby blanket. She is due in July, so I have a little while, but I know how time flies.

Back to work...

It is back to work for myself this week, but here is where I have been for the past two months.

I finally took a picture of the gym that I was working in. Here it is all set up with the Fort Worth ISD middle school art show. We did the High School art show first and it was even bigger than this. Each show had 2,000 plus pieces of art!

I am back to work for myself full time, for now. I am looking for a summer job, well planning to look for one. I hadn't realized how much I liked working for myself on my own schedule until I had to be somewhere at 9am again. I really did enjoy the job though, and met some really interesting and nice ladies.

Mom's Birthday

I got this letterpress birthday card from Smock Paper on etsy. It was really lovely in person!

Me, mom and dad at Pappadeaux after the birthday dinner.
I hadn't been there since my 20th birthday (when we took a picture in the exact same spot), and it was super yummy!

Weekend before last we celebrated my mom's birthday. She had mentioned wanting hanging baskets for her front porch. I got the baskets, dad got a drip system for them, and mom and I shopped for plants together (one of my favorite pastimes). We did four colorful sun baskets and they look great! They have already grown since I took these photos, and the drip system seems to be working well. I'm planning a drip system on a timer for my veggie/cutting garden now.
I'll be sure and take more photos when the baskets are full grown!

I saw this bleeding heart at a nursery and it reminded me of my Granny. She always had the white and red version. I have never tried to grow one, and you don't see them around here too often. Now I'm wishing I had gotten it.

A big thank you

This is Lena and I hamming it up. The Vanity Stand was right next to us at the Etsy Dallas Spring Bash, and we couldn't resist getting a picture made! I have to give a big thank you to Etsy Dallas for putting on such a great show. The turnout was phenomenal, and from what I heard lots of vendors agreed. Good job Etsy Dallas, keep up the great work.

One of my favorite parts of doing shows is meeting my fellow vendors and getting to know them. Cheyne of Cut Out and Collect gave me a sweet gift, that I am really enjoying. Check out her shop, her bags and fabrics rule! Here is a clutch from her etsy shop:


Another new favorite is Color Box Design. I am a big fan of letterpress prints, and she has some gorgeous ones to decorate your walls. Here is her Coneflower Limited edition print.

Celebration Sale!

In honor of being done with my temp job and returning to work on jewelry I am having a sale in my etsy shop! I am offering free shipping on all items and 20% off orders of $50 or more through Monday. Take advantage of this great opportunity to own a unique piece of handmade jewelry. You can either check out and wait for a partial refund of your discount, or wait for a revised invoice. I will also be adding new items throughout the weekend, so be sure to check back.

Where I have been

black hollyhock in bloom

Well, it was back to work this week after an unexpected vacation. We were off for over a week due to the swine flu scare. I got a lot done around here, and we left last Friday to camp in Austin for mothers day. I was terrible about picture taking, but will share some when I get them from my mom.

larkspur and lime green oregano

the veggie garden all ready for planting

I have been working in the yard in my spare time (which isn't much). I still have plans to plant my veggie garden, though its getting late. It will probably be more of a cutting/herb garden, especially since I just bought a ton of zinnia seeds! I can't help myself, I love them and they grow so well for me.

I started on a little boy cardigan for my friend's baby. I had hopes of finishing it for this weekend, but with a show tomorrow I don't know if that will happen. Its super cute though, stripes of green and blue made from the cotton yarn that mom helped me dye a while back.