Coastline Treasures

Like most gardeners, I’m quick to take credit for my green thumb when in fact my true talent is for organization. It took me a while to figure out that no matter how gorgeous your blooms and blossoms might be, the effect is wasted unless you know how to arrange them artfully. I like to plant complementary colors and styles in the same vicinity of the garden.

On top of that, I like to further organize the garden area with some metal yard art. Without these stylish accents, observers don’t know where to look or spend time in the garden. The key is to create a natural line of sight from one landmark to another with the flowers serving as a continuous presence along the way. Over the years I’ve had many guests over to the house and in the spring and summer they are always complimenting me on the garden.

Have you ever thought about spending a night in a lighthouse?  Lighthouses contain so much history, if only they could tell their stories.  Just imagine the families that have lived there and protected the seamen from the rocky shores.  Lighthouses are numerous along our Atlantic and Pacific Oceans as well as the Great Lakes.  They come in all shapes and sizes too.

There are several dozen lighthouses that can accommodate guests in the United States.  They are along the west coast; Washington, Oregon and California.  Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and New York along the east coast; as well as Michigan and Minnesota around the Great Lakes.  By today’s standards, some have rustic accommodations without refrigerators and a simple one burner stove with a solar heated shower outside along with changing your own linen.  Others are elegant Bed and Breakfasts serving champagne and spectacular meals.  No matter which way you want to experience an overnight stay at a lighthouse, there is one just for you.  Don’t forget to visit the gift shop and bring home a lighthouse décor souvenir.

While visiting a friend, I was amazed at the glass animal figurines that she had collected.  She had a large curio cabinet where she displayed them.  Not only was this a great way to display them but smart as well.  They all stayed safe inside away from the daily chaos of kids and animals.

She told me that when she was young and on a trip with her family, she bought her first glass figurine.  That started a tradition.  Every time she goes on a vacation, she brings back a glass animal figurine to add to her collection.  She said that sometimes it is an animal that might live in the region and sometimes she gets it just because she likes it.  Either way, she does not see this tradition changing in the near future.

Many years ago I started to collect decorative wall plates.  They were part of a signed and dated limited series.  I had so much fun with them.  Each month I would receive one and it was always a surprise.  Of course I knew it was coming, but I never knew which design would be next.  I never looked ahead because that would ruin my surprise.

Once I received the entire series of 12 plates, I laid them all out.  I used a wall in my dining room creating a pattern that really showed them off.  I love entertaining and having these beautiful plates decorating the wall.  I get joy out of each of the designs and it reminds me of the joy I had opening up each one as they arrived.

When decorating a room, adding flowers or greenery in decorative vases brings in a touch of the outdoors.  Consider the area that you have for your vase.  Is the area round, square, rectangle or oblong? Would it been seen from all sides?  Once you know where you are going to put your vase; you can then determine its shape.  A round table would be enhanced by a low round vase that can be seen from all sides.  A tall vase would fill a corner table nicely.  Displaying a fan shaped vase on a mantle would add a bit a drama and color.

Decorative vases come in glass, metal, woods, ceramic and more.  Some are smooth, some with texture, some with color, some have embellishments; the shapes and designs are endless.  Vases can add some fun to a room too; how about animals such as birds, dolphin décor, cows or pigs.  Colors can be classic or dramatic such as plaids and polka dots.  Whatever you choose, make your vase stand out.

I remember our trip to San Francisco when my children were young.  The sounds, smells, street entertainers, the sea lions, China Town; there was so much to see and do in this beautiful hillside city.  Trying to decide what to see first, we walked along Fisherman’s Wharf.  To my surprise, there they were; huge ships from the 1800’s on their own pier.  As we got closer, I discovered that it was the San Francisco Maritime National Park.

Here there were a half dozen or so ships from yesteryear.  Dating from 1886 to 1914 were real ships that had been used and restored.  There was a square-rigger, schooners, steam ferryboat, steam tug, and a paddlewheel tug.  We had a blast as the kids went running from ship to ship to walk aboard and explore.  The seaman that sailed these vessels had to have been brave to cross the seas in them.  Seeing these wooden model ships was such a wonderful surprise. 

Much to my wife’s never-ending consternation, I’m a fisherman through and through. It’s really the perfect hobby for me as a natural morning person and outdoors enthusiast. I relish the opportunity to roll out of bed before the crack of dawn and saunter my way down to the lake, tackle box in one hand and rod and reel in the other. If I’m lucky, I’ll sneak in an at least an hour of quality angling before it’s time to go to work.

More recently I’ve started a new project – building an addition onto the back of the house. My wife has been clamoring for a screen room for years, and I’m finally going to appease her. Of course, there’s one catch: I’ll be decking out the entire room with fishing home decor. The decorations will run the gamut from mock wooden lures to witty wall art. I would fill my wife in on those minor details, but I think I’ll go fishing first.

Birds are fun to watch and who doesn’t like the chipping sounds that they bring to your yard?  You have hung your decorative birdhouses and now are waiting for visitors.  To get our feathered friends to pay us a visit be sure to have fresh water available at all times.  A simple bird bath with two inches of water is needed.  If the bath is brightly colored it can actually confuse the birds and they won’t stick around.  Next, be sure to have food close by where predators cannot get to it.  Birds will not come if they feel threatened or their food is gone!  Try to make the area as safe as possible.

Once you have done all these things, sit back, relax and watch to see who comes for a visit and maybe will even stay for awhile.

In the 1800’s people of Europe began to add pieces of fruits, nuts, and paper streamers to evergreens; a symbol that life would return in the spring.  Germans started adding foods, such as cookies in all sorts of shapes like stars, hearts, angels and bells.  In America they started adding long strands of cranberries or popcorn along with small gifts that would be hung by a string or a piece of yarn.

In the1880’s various German entrepreneurs began making ornaments that were mass produced solely as Christmas ornaments.  Known for their glass making, the area around Lauscha, was central for glass ornament production.  Soon these popular glass ornaments were exported all over Europe and to America.  Today we still adorn our Christmas trees with glass ornaments, bows and tinsel.  Make your tree special with your own theme; angels, bells, cowboys, lighthouse décor, doves.  You choose; the ideas are endless.

The Sandpiper is abundant in North America with their population in the millions.  These small birds are a familiar scene running along the seashore and in mudflats.  These wading birds have long legs with slender bills to forge their food in the sand or mud.  They mainly eat insects, small crustaceans and mollusks.  These migratory birds fly to both North America and South America in large flocks.

These birds are so common upon our shores; a trip to the beach would be incomplete without them.  I love watching these small birds as they run around looking for food.  If you are lucky you can see them as they nest in local vegetation as they incubate their eggs and eventually care for their young.  Bring home a memory of these special birds with pictures, souvenirs or metal yard art, to name a few.