Tuesday, May 13, 2014

Cheap and Cheerful

Our deck is on the west side of the house...in full sun, most of the day.
I used to use cool color plants and accessories on the deck. I thought that if I used cool colors, then the deck would "feel" cooler. 

Who was I kidding? 110 degrees is 110 degrees!

So, this year I'm going with HOT colors on the deck...hot, hot, hot, and changing a few things that were sort of drab...like this watering can.


The hot pink Gerbera daisy that the grands gave me for Easter, is still blooming and added a lot of color, but the watering can...not so much. 

But, now it's cheerful. :)

OK, here's an easy and cheap idea~

For candle holders, I added Dollar Tree glasses to some of the flower pots, and used candles, that I've had forever. This one has an old floating candle...

...and this is a large wine glass in a pot of yellow Cannas...well, they'll be yellow, when they bloom. 

Of course, I'd never leave real candles unattended, and y'all know flameless votives could be used for safety. 

One more cheap and cheerful thing...a smiley spoon stuck in a newly planted pot of Lantana and variegated Liriope . 
The spoon was one of those freebies that came with Kool-Aid and Splenda, several years ago.

That's all I have to show you for now. I still have a few more things to plant and paint...plus, we're getting ready to have a yard sale...depending on when I get motivated and get things organized.

More cheap and cheerful things to come.

xo Babs


Let's Party 
    
The Tablescaper ~ Seasonal Sunday
           Dwellings ~ Amaze Me Monday
      The Dedicated House ~ Make it Pretty Monday        
     Between Naps On The Porch ~ Metamorphosis Monday
Creative Country Mom's Garden ~ Home Sweet Garden ~Tuesday
A Stroll Thru Life ~ Inspire Me Tuesday
Coastal Charm ~ Nifty Thrifty Tuesday
Our Home Away From Home ~ Tuesdays at Our Home
StoneGable~ The Scoop
Savvy Southern Style ~ Wow Us Wednesday
A Southern Daydreamer ~ Outdoor Wednesday
Ivy and Elephants ~ What's It Wednesday
The Style Sisters ~ Centerpiece Wednesday
A Delightsome Life ~ Home and Garden Thursday
Between Naps On The Porch ~ Tablescape Thursday
The Tablescaper ~ Oh, The Places I've Been~Thursday
Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson ~ Share Your Cup Thursday
Lamberts Lately ~ Create It Thursday
My Turn for Us ~ Freedom Fridays Blog Hop
The Charm of Home ~ Home Sweet Home Friday
The Thrifty Groove and A La Carte ~ Thrifty Things Friday
The Dedicated House ~ Anything Blue Friday
The Jenny Evolution ~ Friday Flash Blog
Rooted in ThymeSimple and Sweet Friday








14 comments:

Shirley@Housepitality Designs said...

Oh I know what you mean about the western exposure of the house...my front door/porch faces west and in the afternoons in the summer it can be brutal...sometimes the door handle gets so hot you cannot touch it...so I try to keep heat tolerant plants on that porch....your plants are beautiful and I love how you added the floating candles...the spoon is too cute!..

Brandi said...

Thanks so much for stopping by my blog, Babs! So far my neighbor's dog hasn't been a problem. I love all the flowers you have on your deck. The candles are such a nice addition.

Debbie said...

Giggled about giving up with any notion that we can make our Georgia summers anything but HOT. Yep. Just go for it and embrace the heat, LOL.

I absolutely LOVE the candle idea and will be stealing that. We're having some work done on the back of our house this summer, and when it's all over I want to celebrate with a deck party of some sort. I will be copy catting!

Liz@ HomeandGardeningWithLiz said...

I like the wine glass votives- cute idea and the yellow watering can! I like cheerful pops of color like that. I bought some blue to do that with on a little bike for my deck but haven't done it yet. Lol on the cool colors- wouldn't it be nice if that's all it took!

Linda @ A La Carte said...

That looks awesome! Love the wine glass with the votive. Fun porch flowers!

Linda

Olive said...

The candles are brilliant. We have five or six varieties of Lantana here. Two are as big as my car. We sometimes call the house Lantana Cottage as a kind of joke. Especially when we have to cut all of it back:} It is already hot and we need rain. I hope it is cooler in your area, olive

the cape on the corner said...

lantana, is that what that colorful one is called? gorgeous. enjoy your space!

Alycia Nichols said...

You just gave me a great idea to pass along to our neighbor for her open house on Friday!!! She needs to do something to block the driveway, but she wanted it to be decorative. She has a bunch of large movable floral containers that could be moved to the end of the driveway with those candles in them so that people will be able to still see that they're there after dark. GREAT idea, Babs! Thank you!!!

Shenita @ Embellishments by SLR said...

Oh, Babs, your garden accents are adorable! Love the wine glasses for votives! And I agree with you...when it's hot...it's just hot! But, those cheery colors should make it a little more bearable!

Suzan said...

Loving your lantana and yellow watering can!!!

Kelly said...

I like all of your bright colored flowers. I find bright colored flowers work best outside so you can see them in our bright sun! Our back deck gets super hot too. We can only use it in the early morning and late afternoon unless it's cloudy outside.

Light and Voices said...

We are having cloudy, grey days here in Chicagoland area so I really enjoyed seeing that happy yellow spoon in your garden.
JM Illinois

Pat said...

Babs,
I adore the idea of the glasses with votives tucked away in your outdoor plants, dear friend!!!
I, too, went with a bit more color on the front porch with our planters. Love the change!
Still needing to get my Herb Garden planted, then something to fill the pots on the back deck. This area gets the hot afternoon sunlight, so I have to be careful what goes there or it gets fried to a crisp!!!
"Mr.Ed" and I had a TAG $ALE yesterday and are now part of our City Wide Garage $ale!
Much $uccess is going on here, so I'll be sending it off to you come Friday evening!!!
Fondly,
Pat

Ivy and Elephants said...

Love the bright and happy look of your outdoor space!
Hugs,
Patti