Grass Watch Week 1

You know that saying about watching paint dry? Well, I may have found something even more boring and eye roll inducing...waiting for grass to grow!

But, after a week, I have some shoots sprouting up between my patio blocks.

I'm checking daily and will keep you posted...I know you're just dying for updates!

Grass and Block Patio (minus the grass)

I wanted to do something a little different for my front yard so I scrapped my plan to do a large raised planter in front of the window and, instead, I'm going to create a seating area and pergola.

Genius, right? Please...hold your applause.

I measured off the area for my patio. I will have a 3' planting bed between the house and the patio, and the patio itself will be 103" x 123" (about 8' x 10').

I dug down the area of the patio so it was a total of 5 1/2" below the grade of the yard. This will allow for a 2" layer of gravel, a 2" layer of sand, and the thickness of my patio block. My yard has a steep grade so I had to build a frame from pressure treated lumber. Not the most desireable option, but I can eventually diguise it with landscaping so it ended up being no biggie.

I layed down my base, then my sand and had Mr. Mel tamp both down nice and tight. These two layers create the base for your patio so it doesn't settle and become unlevel.

I started laying my patio blocks. My blocks are 18" x 18" and, based on the size of my patio I decided to have 3" spaces running between them.

By now, my sunburn had reached epic proportions...so much for SPF 30.

To fill the spaces between the blocks, I mixed up topsoil, compost, and CIL Grass Seed and packed it in the spaces.

Then I gave it all a good watering and crossed my fingers that it'll grow grass. I'll be sure to post photos when it's all green!

Backyard Gazebo - Part 1

One item I was determined to get in the backyard somehow was a gazebo. Not huge. Big enough to accommodate a few friends and our bevies if we were unfortunate enough to be caught in an evening rain. Or big enough for Mr. Mel and I to veg out in with a couple of books to escape the hot afternoon sun. Although Mr. Mel insists that it's sole purpose is to host his weekly poker game! Men...ugh.

I had a wish list:

• built in benches
• electricity for lighting
• privacy screens

We're lucky enough to have a couple of friends who are journeyman electricians, so one came to help me along to get the power pulled from the house, trenched, and connected to the gazebo.

I found a free plan for a square gazebo online (I am all about the freebies). I found this one at Treated Wood.

I called on my cousin to help me out with this project. He's built a gazebo for himself, and is pretty much an ace at anything carpentry, so I knew he was the right man for the job!

Our gazebo will sit on grade, instead of on piles or footings. We created a base at each corner, filled and tamped, and used concrete blocks that the corner posts will rest on. We have really stable, sandy soil so this base will work well.

All our supplies have arrived, and we set up shop. I was in power tool heaven!

We followed the building plan and, slowly, the gazebo started taking shape. We did end up making some modifications to beef up the structure as the wind out here can gust at 80 km/hr (that's about 49 mph for my American friends).

 

 

 

Installing the roof and shingles was definitely not something I wanted to do as I am totally, absolutely terrified of heights. Mr. Mel was excited to participate in this build, so took this on and he and my cousin did  a great job! 

I decided to switch up the railing design a bit to allow a bit more privacy. This involved using many wicked awesome power tools. It made me a happy girl!

It took a full weekend and a week of evenings to get this built, which was much longer than I thought it would take. But it's finally done! I can't wait to get to work decorating this space and use it as our little backyard hideaway. (P.S. those are, indeed, my deck stairs in the background...more on that later)

Lots of activity going on here lately. I'll post an update soon!

The Start of Our Landscaping - The Plan

Like most things these days, my landscaping plans have been just another ball in the air. I have to remind myself that trying to do too many things at once usually means nothing ever ends up fnished, and you're probably not focusing enough on any one thing to have it done to it's fullest.

Now that I've put some business and personal stuff on the back burner, I can refocus on getting the yard started and on it's way to being my little piece of paradise.

I did a sketch of the yard as I'd like to have things laid out. Now might be a good time to consult your neighbours (if they, too, are doing their landscaping) to compare plans and make sure that your yards will compliment each other.

I made an accurate drawing of my yard plan with a trial copy of Smart Draw available online. It took some time to get the dimensions of everything right, but it was worth it so I can have a really  accurate plan moving forward. I could have used a local landscape planner but I wanted to save some $$ (they average $700 - $1,000) and, I'm not gonna lie,  I wanted the satisfaction of having done it on my own; but there is no shame in consulting a pro!

I revisited the plan every few weeks and changed things, tweaked things, added and omitted until I had a plan I was happy with and could work from. The plan is a general layout, and will likely have some items moved around, but it's a great jumping off point.

Now comes the tough part...prioritizing! If you're like me, the budget may not allow you to get the entire yard banged out in one summer. I had to decide what I wanted to do first, what was most important, and what could wait and be done next year, or even the year after that.

Priority #1: Hardscape. I decided that a must was my paved patio. It's a really large piece of the yard. Combined it will be about 700 sq ft. and is definitely the space we'll use most.

Priority #2: Fence. We don't need a fence, our neighours are pretty awesome, but you never know who may end up moving in next door. Good fences make good neighbours! In the end, it'll be easier to install a fence now, before all of the plants have started to mature, rather than later.

Priority #3: Gazebo. Because this is a large piece in the yard (approx. 8' x 8') I wanted to have it in place before I planted sod or worked out the exact dimensions of my perimeter planting beds.

Priority #4: Trees (and shrubs). I selected a variety of trees for our yard. Some are faster growing than others. Some will serve as shade trees, and some will be wind breaks. All, though, will provide privacy (something we are currently lacking) so I wanted to get these plants started as soon as possible. Be sure to make a list of the types of trees/shrubs you'll be using. This will help to avoid impulsive purchases which can not only be expensive, but may end up requiring you to rethink parts of your landscape plan.

That's basically the planning out of the way. We got to work pretty quickly, so I'll be posting progress pics soon!

Delish - Easy Peasy Veal Saltimbocca

I love this recipe! Veal saltimbocca can be fiddly to make, depending on the recipe. This one is so simple...and tastes amazing. Perfect for a weeknight dinner.

Dairy Goodness

1 lb veal cutlets, cut into thin strips (substitute chicken if you aren't a fan of veal)

Salt

Pepper, to taste

1 tbsp butter

2 oz (about 4 slices) prosciutto (I used smoked b/c it's less salty), cut into thin strips

3 cloves garlic, minced

1/3 cup dry white wine

1 1/2 cups 35% whipping cream

12 oz linguine or fettuccine

2 cups chopped asparagus

grated zest of 2 lemons

1 tbsp chopped fresh sage (or 1 tsp of dried)

Sprinkle veal with 1/4 tsp each of salt and pepper. In a large skillet, melt half the butter over med-high heat; brown veal strips, transfer to a bowl.

Add remaining butter to skillet. Add prosciutto and garlic; saute for 1 min. Add wine, scrape up any bits stuck to the pan. Stir in cream; bring to a boil. Reduce heat and boil gently, stirring often, about 3 mins or until slightly thickened.

In a large pot, cook pasta according to package instructions. Stir in asparagus and cook for 2 mins prior to end of cooking time. Asparagus should be tender-crisp. Drain and return to pot.

Return veal to skillet with any accumulated juices; add lemon zest and sage. Cook, stirring, until heated through. Season with salt and pepper. Pour over cooked pasta; toss to coat.

I hope you enjoy this as much as we did!

Saturday Somethin' Somethin'

Hello and happy weekend, everyone!

I am so groggy this morning from all the Good Friday dinner goodness I indulged in last night with my in-laws. Appies, pork tenderloin, and all the fixins...plus dessert! I think I may have actually slipped into a food coma afterwards!

This Saturday I share with you my love of the double staircase. Are these not the most dramatic way to welcome folks to your home mansion, or what?! Now, I am not so delusional to believe that I will ever actually have a home to accommodate such a staircase, but a gal can dream.

I am usually a fan of the traditional, so I tend to be drawn to ones with lots of wood and maybe ornate iron railings.

SimplyBrookes

The Foo Dog Ate My Homework

L'Archivista

We've all seen this staircase in the news over the last few years. It used to belong to Candy Spelling, widow of Aaron Spelling. She recently sold her humble family home, Spelling Manor, to 24 year old Petra Ecclestone (daughter of a...wait for it...multi-billionaire) for a measly $85 million. If that isn't enough to make you hate this girl, she spent $millions$ more renovating!

Here is the before and after of Petra's new staircase.

Daily Mail

I also stumbled on a few examples of more contemporary double staircases. Not my style, really, but a funky take on traditional.

Jondes

Mega Builders

New Home Trend

I thought this version was really neat. It's at the Museum of Islamic Art in  the Qatari capital Doha.

Gotta a colossal budget (and house)? Take the double staircase outside!

Luxist

I suppose it's possible to do a double staircase on my budget...

Oh, who am I kidding? THIS is likely more my budget!

And while it's not technically a double staircase (more like a split staircase) I thought I'd throw in the grand staircase from the Titanic, seeing as it's the 100th anniversary of it's sinking. The original and the recreation for the James Cameron's movie).

Thanks for stopping in. I hope you enjoy your Easter!