For the past two days, nothing but sit in front of the fire looking through my Improvements catalog. I am going to order a couple of lattice screens for our deck at the beach. Love my neighbors, but our homes are very, very close! I could easily snatch their steak from their grill and throw it on our grill before they could even blink.

Here is a link that might be useful: My new screens...as soon as I order them

Instead of envisioning sugar plums, I'm thinking of new junk for the garden since I will FINALLY have a garden to junk in. lol!

My father-in-law died more than a year ago and he was quite the hoarder. The family is still cleaning out his house and garage. I was so thrilled when my brother-in-law (who is doing most of the cleaning) gave me a great big copper kettle that I'd love to use as a planter and he promised me another one that is full of Ball jars. I was eyeing up a few other things I saw in the garage.

When we are finally moved and settled in, I'll be going through my collection of "junk" to see what I can make out of it. I have plenty of pieces for totems and to use for mosaicing. I'd like to try my hand at hypertufa projects too. Our house is on a fairly busy street with lots of foot traffic and I'm not sure how safe pots of flowers would be on the porch. I figure hypertufa pieces aren't that easy to run off with. lol!

Nancyjeanmc, I really like those screens. It's nice that there are shelves for planters on it. Maybe you can grow a vine and completely cover the screen for extra privacy. Now you have me trying to figure out how to make something like that from scratch. Hmmmm...

LOL, Luna. You sound like my DH. He keeps saying he can make them, but I'm not sure he could do it much cheaper with really hard wood. Plus, he won't. He means well ... but no more unfinished projects.
I am going to try to find some fast climbers that would look good on both sides. I really have nice neighbors.

I am converting 2 mailboxes into tool holder for my garden.
I am working on a GIANT flower as well, It is a fan from a semi truck. So big and it will make a great flower. Then I will take Dh's bowling ball and paint it up to look like a Bumble bee to go with the Giant Daisy. Winter Sowing as I go alone. Come on SPRING! When they are all done I will post them in my gallery for all to see.

Here is a link that might be useful: Gallery

wow. I love that privacy fence, nancy. Would look great on my back deck... and my birthday's coming up in April!

Luna - I just tried my first two pieces of hypertufa yesterday. Hope they turn out okay.

aquawise - I'm jealous of your yard. Especially the wishing well and teepee.

Keep the ideas coming!

Love that screen! AND Aquawise, LOVE all your beautiful flowers!!! Eye Candy! I will definitely be going to your gallery a fw times, so much inspiration! I am gathering items to transform into garden art, one thing that is really cool, is a box made out of neon orange plexiglass, it is just so Zowie!! Gotta figure out how to cut it into flower petals. Just finished planting 300 spring bulbs, with another 100 more to go, bought a big lantern to mosaic up for hanging at my pond(I have a wooden gazebo/arbor over the pond and it will hang from there. Along with the 3 boom chains I just scored when I went to the local Habitat for Humanity store, where I bought some edging pavers(.50/each). I have a bunch of gardening books and my DD just gave me a sub for Birds and Blooms mag!!!YES! I am looking forward to this next gardening/Junking year!

--I want to try some hypertufa and/or papercrete.
--Finish some totems and glass flowers that are partly done.
--Try some mosaics. I have boxes of stained glass that was given to me a couple years ago.
--We have a boring metal storage shed. I have an idea for jazzing it up a little. I want to put a trellis on each side of the end door and fill them with flowers and leaves made of glass, metal or whatever.
--Think of a hobby that won't take up as much room as the totems, etc. (to please DH) and that will sell well on etsy. Haven't tried that yet and we really need some extra money for the medical bills that have piled up over the last year. Any ideas???? On ebay I can see what's selling and what isn't, but haven't figured out if there's a way to do that on etsy.
--Thoroughly clean house. (Notice that's the last on my list of priorities).

Here's to a great new year of junkin' to all of you!

I made my first hypertufa project a week ago. It turned out different than I planned but still looks good enough to be a keeper. There's a huge learning curve and it makes a big mess, but I am encouraged enough to keep going.

I have a old deck fountain to mosaic but first I have to decide which direction to go. It's a large globe shape and the water comes out a small opening in the top and runs over the sides. One day I think stones set on edge are the best option, then I really want to cover it in broken china and beads. The two looks are so different and I love both ideas. So many choices....

I have some faux millstones on the to-do list along with some hypertufa projects. (For any of you 'tufa newbies-hypertufa doesn't like to freeze while it's curing.)
I have some major garden work to do in this new yard. We're past the damage control stage and DH just finished taking down the last of the yucky trees-Mexican elders, ugh-so now I can make some progress. Things will start to break dormancy here in about 5-6 weeks, our winter lift & transplant window is small and closes quickly. Gotta move fast!
Have some junk projects cooking on the back burner but they'll have to simmer some more.
All this plus making sure I don't get sunburned while doing all these outdoor chores. (Just had to rub it in)

laura - I bet if you really get into the hypertufa, you can make some great things to sell in the spring/summer locally. Probably shipping costs would eat into profits on ebay and the like. I actually just did a few of mine (during the winter!) up in a ventilated spare bedroom and they turned out good. I'm going to hopefully wire brush them tonight. Already have ideas for making more...

I have been an absolute couch potato all winter and absolutely must get going!! Need to make at least 60 hypertufa pieces to get ready for the spring sales. The call of the couch and the afghans has seduced me too much during the dark, cold nights to go out to the garage and get started. No more putting it off after January 1st lol

muddypaws4ever - The buyers pay the shipping on ebay and etsy. Whatever I decide it needs to be something that clutter the house and something that DH won't have to help me set up and take done at shows. He will help if I twist his arm, but this really aren't his projects.

nmgirl - Pretty funny on the sunburn comment.

I've also read that hypertufa doesn't like to get too hot while curing either, maybe 85o max. That means I would need to get any projects done by early February to beat the heat. I keep the pot I made in the garage and brought it indoors during a freeze.

Hope to yet find a cement woman for this project..>I've collected lots of shells & such...looked last summer for this gal or a big woman bust statue...no luck...but I'm sure I'll come across something...at least this pic is my inspiration for in pool garden:

{{gwi:201076}}

Make some more cement face rocks & woodland spirits ... like these I've done before:

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And enjoy the birds out my LR windows...these Cardinals taken just a few days ago:

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Happy New Year & GJ'ing in 2011! Jeanne s.

Rock_oak_deer,
You're right, 'tufa doesn't like to get real hot but I make it until we have consistent temperatures over 95. That it's usually too hot for me too and when it's that hot it's not a great time to be planting here either. It's hard to keep containers watered during the summer without drip.
Back to 'tufa, we do have cool nights and I think that's what saves me. We can get a 30-40 degree temp. swing between day & night. I can also keep the 'tufa shaded while it's curing. Every little bit helps.

Jeanne, the cardinals are beautiful!! We don't have those out here in western Washington state.