Reuse!

Here's another way to go green...reuse! I applied this method with the flowers that were used in my daughter's wedding last November. She chose hydrangeas, which are a wonderful flower to dry and use in arrangements. I chose to make a grapevine wreath with some of the hydrangeas left from her wedding. This is a shot of her bridal portrait that sits on our piano. Notice her bouquet of hydrangeas. Hydrangeas were used in all the floral arrangements throughout the wedding and reception decor, so I had a lot of flowers to work with.


After the wedding was over, I took the flowers and placed them in vases--no water--and allowed them to dry. Once dry, I took a grapevine wreath and attached the dried flowers. Here is a pic of the finished project. (That odd looking strip in the center of the wreath is actually the side of her bridal portrait. I have the wreath propped against the side of her portrait, creating a 'wedding' vignette.)

Do you have something lying around your house that can be reused, repurposed and given a new life?

Going Green...Renew

Going green is a fast growing trend right now, and a good one! In hopes of encouraging others to travel the 'green' route, this week I'm going to post some ideas on how I'm greening up my life. There are several ways to contribute to the green movement. My first example is one of RENEWING!

We are in the process of building an outdoor room. I have lots of outdoor furniture to use in my future space, but most of it is showing it's age. Rather than buy NEW furniture, I decided to RENEW what I already have on hand. Here is a pic of my wood patio furniture before I gave it the 'green' treatment.

See? I told you it was showing it's age! But check out how it looked after I gave it a fresh coat of stain.
And this is after only ONE coat of stain! I'm thinking I'll apply two, just to make sure all the dry wood is amply covered.

Stay tuned for more 'going green' tips!