When I walked outside this morning, I was 
greeted by this lovely lavender bloom on my Passionflower vine. There are many buds on this vine, so I am anticipating a wonderful long blooming season. There is also a Dipladena blooming as well as a Bougainvillea vine … I will overwinter all the flowering vines and see if they will make it through our long winter.
As soon as I 
have finished one project, I come up with several new ones – all of which I want to accomplish this summer. Last week I made another trellis in the front garden, this time from bamboo and rope. The Bittersweet and Mina vines seem happy to have new places to roam.
For the past week, Bruce the handyman has been helping move back the fence so that I no longer have an unused driveway, Now I have a new sitting area. When Bruce removed the fence boards, I figured why not make yet another bamboo trellis. I did so without any nails … even though I bought another hammer last week.
After I finished priming and painting the new fence, I turned my attention to the garage wall. Removing the vinyl siding last weekend felt so liberating, even though I soon realised the wood underneath required a fair bit of work. I have lost track of the number of hours I have spent filling holes and sanding for the past few days.
Sanding is one of those activities that gives me a marvellous sense of accomplishment. By the time I came in this night, I had primed and painted over half of the garage wall.
Now the true fun begins … I will spend much of the summer stenciling lots of flowers on the wall – Delphiniums, Alliums, Roses, Wisteria and Morning Glories, among others. It will be my way of healing.
And I continue to listen to Norah Jones’ new album. Here are the lyrics to Rosie’s Lullaby, one of my other favourite tunes.:
And waited for a star,
To carry her away.
Feelin’ so small,
At the bottom of the world,
Lookin’ up to God.
She tries to take deep breaths,
To smell the salty sea,
As it moves over her feet.
The water pulls so strong,
And no-one is around,
And the moon is looking down.
Sayin’,
Rosie – come with me,
Close your eyes – and dream.
The big ships are rollin’,
And lightin’ up the night,
And she calls out, but they just her pass by.
The waves are crashin’,
But not making a sound,
Just mouthing along.
Sayin’,
Rosie – come with me,
Close your eyes and dream.
in the autumn light 
Your garden is a vision. I love everything you are doing and can see why it all helps your heart heal.The idea of stencils is terrific, they will compliment your garden and carry it on through winter.I’ve tagged you, check out my blog. Have fun if you decide to play.
You are one busy gardener! Everything looks great, Kate. And I love the Rosie’s Lullaby song too…thanks for sharing that. xo
You have created a perfect garden for you to ~close your eyes and dream!~What creativity making the trellis from bamboo! Good job! I could do that for my morning glory!! Hugs NG
Passion flowers are so interesting…they don’t look real, if you know what I mean…like plastic, but better. You are such an energetic person! Can’t wait to follow along as you stencil (maybe it will motivate me and show me how!). Your garden does feel peaceful, Katie…and that is perfect in my book.
Passion flowers are so interesting…they don’t look real, if you know what I mean…like plastic, but better. You are such an energetic person! Can’t wait to follow along as you stencil (maybe it will motivate me and show me how!). Your garden does feel peaceful, Kate…and that is perfect in my book.
Okay, I will have to quit while I am so behind…forgive me, two, no three comments! Freudian slip, I think, calling you Katie…sorry, attempted to correct it…too late! Yikes…I’m so sorry!
Hello Kate,It seems that a lot has happened in your life in the last few weeks while I was offline, some of it sad, and that you’re now immersed in music and restorative work. I like Nora Jones, but turned to Harry Nillson in the past, and found some comfort in screaming along with him on “Jump into The Fire”. Somehow that does not sound like your style of consolation ;-]Kate, your trellises and chairs look wonderful and it will be fun to see what you did with the garage wall… you’re so darned artistic and hard working! No wonder you have such a beautiful garden. In spite of your northern climate you already have passion flowers? My vine lives but hasn’t flowered in a couple of years – what’s your secret? Annie at the Transplantable Rose
Hi Kate! Wonderful photos! And I love hearing of your latest projects. The trellis’s are really cool — I want to get a couple going in my yard too. And I can’t wait to see your stencils! I know what you mean about sanding feeling like such an accomplishment — I also feel the same way about sweeping — I love doing it. Thank you so much for the words to Norah Jones’ song. I sending you a big hug.:)
Hi Kate,beautiful photos. You have lots of lovely nooks in your garden. The labor of sanding reminds me of the Karate Kid – wax on, wax off.
You are an inspiration with all your trellis building and stenciling projects. I love those trellises. The passionflowers are really interesting flowers aren’t they? Love the photos.
I can’t wait to see the stenciled flowers on your garage wall! Have fun making your garden even prettier (if that’s possible!)
Hi Kate – The garden looks lovely – the trellises add so much. Looks like a “crafty” person lives there. And stencilling the garage wall! That is a fantastic idea. Soon you will have nothing left to stencil in your midst!!Please be sure to post pictures of your progress – I’m really curious to see you masterpiece. I’m sure this is how Michelangelo got started.Talk to you soon,Alyssa
Your garden is lovely. You must be very proud of your trellis, it looks great. When I can’t find a hammer I use one of my high heel shoes. It works great, but mostly for picture hanging. I really only do it to piss my husband off.I’ll have to start listening to Norah Jones.
I am surprised you grow passion flowers that far north. I’ve never thought of growing it here but maybe I should. Passion flowers look so exotic and the taste of the fruit is wonderful too. Seedy but it makes a great drink.The amount of work you’ve done puts me to shame. Can’t seem to get going this year. Your garden looks great.
Love your vines – and the trellises you’re making are very cool. Can’t wait to see your stenciling on the garage wall. Great ideas for making a beautiful garden space even more fun!
Kate,Work is good for the spirit. So rewarding. You are so inspiring to me. Your garden is stunning and you deserve to have it.Let your spirit soar and show us more :o)
So glad to see another post by you, Kate!I can’t wait to see your finished wall.I’m a Norah Jones fan, too. 🙂
Hi Kate! you seem to have an all planned out and busy summer ahead. It will be exciting to see how things turn out in your garden with time.Norah Jones is my favorite too. She is one hell of a talent!
Music is balm for the soul…as well as keeping busy in the garden.
i feel that way about painting… it’s cathartic. your plans for stencilling reminded me of a friend who has a mug filled with watercolor pencils in her eenie weenie downstairs bath, and an on-going mural on the wall beside the throne. so far, it’s a stone wall with flowers and vines growing up it, and an arched window looking out on a field of wildflowers and mountains in the distance. visitors draw in a flower or a bug or a bird while they sit. every now and then she sprays a coat of fixative on it to keep things safe from smudges and make it wipeable.
Gardening is truly your art. You have a luscious garden, and a beautiful blog! Thank you for stopping my to visit mine…Karine
I love the pic of the passionvine! The garden is lovely…I love the trellis work you are doing!