Flowers make me smile :-)


Well, here we are in the middle of Spring and the flowers are blooming everywhere!  I love it.  The grass is green, the sun shines down upon us daily now, and Summer is just around the corner.

I've never been much of a gardener.  I grew up in the "concrete jungle" of  Los Angeles and as long as there was green grass and sandy beaches, life was fine.  A few years ago, in my quest to make a plain home beautiful, I learned how to garden.  I read books, researched online, talked to other gardeners, and started getting my hands dirty and planting seeds.

Our little flower garden in California turned out so nice.   I was an English major in college and I've always loved English gardens.  My goal was to achieve something similar, not exactly an English garden, but something like it.

Now as I live all the way up in 5280 (the mile high city) I just haven't been inspired to get the garden going.  I'm seeing all the beautiful flowers taking over my hardware stores, but still don't have the desire to get out there and dig.

I decided to start small in hope that motivation would follow.  Maybe painting flower boxes would inspire me to get a few flowers going.  I chose these boxes which have been sitting in my backyard.  They obviously needed a little something.


I painted and two hours later had what I hoped for.  Bring on the flowers!

This was a simple project.  I spray painted the boxes green

I had this Eden color that I didn't like for any of my other projects.  For this project, the color was perfect!

I made the simple stripe designs by using painter's tape.



I also had this Royal Blue color on hand by Valspar.  The blue and green together brightened up those miserable boxes and turned them cheery.

Then I decided to paint words on the boxes, but since I don't have large stencils or a cricut I decided to use this method I used here.  I printed out the words on regular copy paper.
My font was called "kristen" in 200

Place the paper on your wood and with a pencil, push hard and trace the letters.
 

You can see the trace outline here.  Of course, maybe you can manage to keep your letters straight, unlike mine.

Fill in the letters with paint using an artist's brush and the boxes are complete.

I picked the only flowers growing in my yard and placed them in some old mason jars.

I think they'll make a cute outdoor centerpiece, with more flowers and larger jars of course.

Before

After.


Yes, I'm inspired and will be out this weekend looking at flowers.  This was an easy and quick project.  It took me about two hours total since I used spray paint, but I was doing a few other things while working on them- you know, the whole mom thing always takes precedence.

My favorite part about these was they were FREE since I had all the paint sitting in my garage.  I like Free!

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, friends!  I plan to enjoy the outdoors with my family and cook as little as possible.  We'll see how that goes!

Blessings,
Lisa

 I link all my projects with some wonderful blogs.  To visit them, go to the {Link Party Love} page found at the top of this page on the {Home} bar.
Also linking to:
Savvy Southern Style
No Minimalist Here
The Shabby Creek Cottage
Saved by Love Creations 
Miss Mustard Seed
Funky Junk Interiors
Coastal Charm 
Tip Junkie 

Comments

  1. Seedlings are a good way to go. Especially ones that come back each year .. Less work.
    Bulbs are great to plant in the fall, Iris's are great because they PROPOGATE(sp?). They do al the work, and you get more each year. Can you tell I love to garden? I'm one to "beautify " the outside of my house in the concrete jungle"

    ReplyDelete
  2. Those are so cute. I would never have thought to put words on flower boxes, but now that I have seen them done.. I don't know why it never crossed my mind!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Kim! The words were just a little something extra, but they were so easy to do.

      Delete
  3. What a clever idea! Seriously, I love this. I have some old weathered (and not in the good way) flower boxes on my porch that I was debating trying to power wash or replace ... I may just try this!

    Oh, and I pinned it!

    :)

    Linda

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Linda! My boxes were really weathered but I figured "why not". Love your blog btw.

      Delete
  4. What a fun project! It sure made me smile! Thanks so much for linking it up. I really enjoyed seeing it!

    ReplyDelete
  5. They turned out great. The colors are perfect. Megan

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Megan! I just happen to have those colors in my garage, but I like the combo too.

      Delete
  6. Very creative, love your project! Here from Delightful Order and now following. Would love for you to visit and follow back @ http://twelveoeight.blogspot.com/

    Hugs, Tanya :)

    ReplyDelete
  7. You sure made me smile with these NOW beautiful cheerful planters..

    Very creative indeed. Thanks for showing us.

    Sonny

    ReplyDelete
  8. oops .. I forgot to say I am your newest follower and I found you from Funky Junk blog party.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Hi Lisa
    That´s a great and smiling job :)
    and do not miss.....

    S
    A
    T
    U
    R
    D
    A
    Y

    S
    H
    O
    W

    O
    F
    F

    it is FUN :)
    WELCOME
    Håkan ( The Roseman)

    ReplyDelete
  10. Absolutely LOVE!

    Stopping by from Six Sisters and would love to have you come by and join up our Weekend Blog Walk at At Home Take 2. http://www.athometake2.blogspot.com.

    Jessica

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. thanks, Jessica! I'll will definitely come by and link up!

      Delete
  11. It sounds just like me. I have wanted to be inspired about being creative in the garden. Like you, I thought that I could start small. I just have to start yet. I have been thinking about painting projects etc.... It is coming up to winter in our part of the world.

    Kelly

    ReplyDelete
  12. Your plants turned out great and yes, I agree flowers do make me smile also. I am coming over from 1929 Charmer first time visitor, drop by for a peak. Kathy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks you, Kathy. I will drop by for a peak. Thanks for the invite!

      Delete
  13. Me too! I love flowers. Your boxes look so cute!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Those are really cute! Love the colors and the lettering! Thanks for sharing - I love them!
    Stacey of Embracing Change

    ReplyDelete
  15. These are so cute. We love the fun words and cute colors. Such a fun idea! We appreciate you linking up with us!! It's so fun to see all of the great ideas and recipes! We hope to see you back again soon! -The Sisters

    ReplyDelete
  16. So sweet! I love them and I have that same color green spray paint which is my current fave:) Thanks for linking up at Get Schooled Saturday!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Fun and fab! These flower holders look terrific :D

    ReplyDelete
  18. What a great idea. The flower boxes are beautiful! Thanks for sharing.

    Blessings~
    Shari

    ReplyDelete
  19. I love wooden boxes filled with flowers. And great color choices to paint these with while adding the cute words that just pop!

    ReplyDelete
  20. Flowers make me smile too! I love the boxes... Awesome!
    Blessings~ stopping by from OYHT

    ReplyDelete
  21. Kim is right. The colours are simple yet so cute. Having boxes is a better way to grow flowers and to focus more once they bloom. Thank you for sharing.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment