Summer Outdoor Fun... Continued!

Okay, so I never said there would be a continuation of my previous blog post but it has been so amazing out at the front of our wee cottage since we knocked down the old vestibule/porch. We kept putting it off for so long thinking about what to replace it with when BAM... It hit us! (Well, hubby really though he claims it was my idea.) WHY REPLACE IT AT ALL?

Mind = blown. 

Moving on! We have basically now got a vintage-styled cottage garden at the front and are still reaping the benefits of having spent so much time on the back garden... Literally the best of both worlds! :) happy! 

Soooo, it hit me earlier that the back is the result of hard work and money, with a few exceptions on both counts. The front, however, is recycled, upcycled, thrifted, handmade JOY! And it's the most peaceful place ever to sit, too.

This blogpost will focus more in the individual decorative elements we made rather than the whole effect. We're still working on that! :) 

Here are some bottles I had collected. I love the Buddha ones as they were green (brand: lucky beer) but I really wanted them matt or shiny so the detail stood out. Cue a trip to halfords and the purchase of purple and oyster champagne spray paint. (We already had the silver.)

Next up was an old footstool I had in the spare room and we hadn't used for a while. It's got the perfect cushion cover to stencil or paint onto as it's a really thick and usefully neutral material. I used bright red fabric paint (just had a tiny jar, didn't need much!) and pritt-sticked the matryoshka stencils I bought in hobbycraft. The pritt stick is ok on fabric but you'll need to go slow and dab the paint while holding it a bit taut, rather than crazy brushing. 

Excuse the finger on the middle photo! :) 

Also, but massively not lastly, hubby made a table in a morning. Seriously, literally from 9.30 am until it was finished at 1! He had spare wood in the garage (insert own double entendre here...) and set about it. Needless to say his new table saw played a part in the construction. Happy hubby! :)

Summer Outdoor Fun!

Happy hot days, people! It's finally bursting out summer all over the place here in Scotland. Yay and also phew! Myself and my mr have been very busy in the garden clearing stuff away. He even found time to knock down our old, crumbling porch and it has just opened up the front so much. We almost need sunglasses to look at the white cottage walls! As usual, he does the practical stuff and I make it prettier! Ha Ha!

I've been painting old dining chairs and have nearly finished. I also use some - guess what? - chalkboard paint on some metal garden pots. Fun! 

And my summer feeeet! 

Hats Off!

Happy early summer! :) It's finally here and we're having a few days off to celebrate our first wedding anniversary and my husband's birthday. The weather has been so kind to us and we've been able to spend time outdoors in the garden and have even had a barbecue. Bliss! 

I needed a new hat for summer so got one at the Garden Show on Friday. It's just a cheap one but is exactly the style I have been looking for and replaces the one I got in Italy a couple of years ago. Here's the new hat:

But that's not very crafty, I hear you say! Well, I mixed it up a bit! I had bought the most recent 'Cloth' Magazine swayed mostly by the free swallow trim. (My sewing skills are still in quite early days but the projects inside inspired me too!)

Here's the trim:

I set to work ironing the trim and cutting a length to fit on top of the brown ribbon. After a few shots getting it lined up nicely, I got the glue out. It was just tacky glue so dried quickly and worked well. And ta-dah... Here's my quickly-updated summer hat!

I love it!