ok guys, im entering my yard in the local garden clubs annual 'best yard' contest.
im not shooting for 1st, but 3rd would be nice.
i am just looking for suggestions on what to do to make it the most presentable.
we have a (mostly) finished pond with flowers all around it, a walkway with stepping stones filled in with chunky sawdust (the crushed shale comes next year), a faily large garden, green house with plastic (no way can i afford plexiglass yet), huge maple tree, 2 sections of a latice fence done, the rest of the fence is still stanging, just not replaced, a fairly beat up picnic table, new bench next to the pond, a 'mound' of dirt next to the pond covered in flowers, and a hammock.
if we ever get the scanner working again i will post pictures, but until then, any ideas will be helpful.
Paint the table and bench white....throw in a white lattice "arbor" at the entrance way of your walk-way and have some vines climbing up it. Not sure if arbor is the right word I'm looking for...I'm talking about those "arches" "trellis" like things that vines grow up and around and back down. Yeah, I'd make an excellent Home and Garden reporter!
Good Luck!
Posts: 9192 | Location: Atlanta, GA, USA | Registered: 06-03-02
Place large flat stone on the edges of the pond into the water so that it looks more natural.. and less like an artificial unit.
Also, you can get an old wooden chair for next to nothing at an antique or junk store... cut a hole in the center of the seat and place a pot of flowers into it.
You can make the chair look "distressed" by painting it white, letting it dry and then taking sand paper to the edges in an artistic fashion.. you can also make your bench and picnic table look "distressed" in the same way.
In fact, the arbor that Georgia suggested can also be made to look distressed... make a theme of it.
Here are some examples of what I mean. It can make a very rustic appearance. With an OLD picnic table, even a coat of paint won't help totally.. BUT with a little creativity, it can look DELIBERATE!
Sher - I cannot believe that people pay good money for "distressed" tables. I was in "The Storehouse" at Lenox Mall...for those not familiar with that store it is an elite furniture store. Anyway, there were picnic tables, dining room tables, end tables...all painted too look like the edges had paint chipping off. And they were around $6,000 dollars! For a junky looking table...that one might find sitting outside in a trailer park...now THATs what's called having more money than you know what to do with!
Posts: 9192 | Location: Atlanta, GA, USA | Registered: 06-03-02
You can make your own, either with something from a thrift store, or something old you already have. I've done it myself, a number of times, and it always comes out looking "nice."
The key is NOT to go over the second paint application (after the initial paint and crackling medium are applied) more than once. Brush it on, and leave it alone. If you brush over it again, the cracks will be fewer and won't have such a nice effect. You can also use this technique on metal objects, you just need to be sure you prime the metal and use the appropriate type of paint, so it doesn't all peel off.
I wouldn't use just a hammer to distress the surface; not very interesting. Use a piece of chain, a nail laid sideways or on its point, a metal bottle cap, then tap on it with the hammer. Try it, first, on a scrap piece of wood to see what the effect is. You'll get different effects, depending on how hard you tap the hammer.
Posts: 2219 | Location: denver, co, usa | Registered: 07-22-02
Remember the basics in all this! Judges will be checking that there are no weeds, that the flowers are healthy with no disease and pruned as appropriate. The pond should be "clean", dirty water will lose you marks. And make sure that leaves and litter are swept away before the judges call.
First impressions count for quite a lot, and the garden should look well cared for even with the laid back theme. Good luck!
Posts: 87 | Location: Scotland, UK | Registered: 12-09-02
