A new day

Good morning Friends ~ We have somewhat gray skies to start the day, and have had a few sprinkles as well. Today and tomorrow I work at my part-time job, so will be having a break from working with our Etsy shop. Am having troubles with taking pictures of my pieces and having the color come out right. Really frustrating to say the least. Anyway, that's my problem, not yours.

Hope you all have a lovely day today and a great weekend.

This first picture is Plumeria against the morning sky.

Spicy Jatropha

Chrysler Imperial

Golden Sun

Pink Pet and Spiderwort

Our first Etsy piece, to jump in and break the ice,
while we still learn our way around.

*****************

Every morning is a fresh beginning.

Every day is the world made new.

Today is a new day.

Today is my world made new.

I have lived all my life up to this moment, to come to this day.

I shall make of this day--each moment of this day--a heaven on earth.

This is my day of opportunity."

~ Dan Custer ~

Zone 10 ~ s.e. FL

Trying to get back to normal, whatever that is.

Good morning Friends ~ Boy, setting up our Etsy shop, has been time consuming, and we're still not done. Getting the banner the way we wanted it, and the header for the blog have taken hours. We've still pictures to take and upload, then list each item, etc. We've been working on shop policies, bio, etc. I'll be so glad when this is all set up, and we can resume our 'normal' (whatever that is) everyday living.

Yesterday I had to get out and do something after being indoors for three days. I did laundry, got it hung out, mowed, weed-wacked, and trimmed the front hedgerow. I was pooped when I got done. I took a short nap then worked more on tweaking the banner and the header and got frustrated and even shed a few tears. I do feel better this morning. Now I need to fold and put away clean laundry, wash the dishes, and get some beans cooking.

Here are some pictures taken the last couple of days. Click on pictures for closer views.

Below is looking into the secret garden. On the lattice to the left of doorway, is Confederate Jasmine. I look forward to this blooming every spring. The scent is heavenly. Close ups of the blooms in the photos after the one below.

The next three pictures are of hibiscus blooms.

These are Hyacinth Bean vine blooms.

This is Maggie.

Spicy Jatropha

This is a picture of the main garden which really made me fall in love with our place yesterday morning. The spiderwort blooms with all the attending bees were our in full force. I love these blooms.

The next three pictures are Texas Sage blooms.

These are blanket flowers.

This is Chrysler Imperial.

I sure wish you could smell this deep,

luxurious scent and see the velvety petals.

That's it for now.
I'm too frazzled to look up all the correct garden names for my blooms this morning,
so their old fashioned garden variety names will just have to do.

Hope you all have a great day.

Zone 10 ~ s.e. FL

A new blog

Hi Everyone. It is warm and very humid here today, I'm afraid summer is here. It's breezy and partly cloudy, rain is expected tomorrow.

Since I'm about to open my Etsy shop we decided to change the name and you can read about that here. So this morning was spent in doing the logo and banner for the shop, and this afternoon spent in doing the header picture for the blog.

Here is a picture of Prosperity taken a little while ago. I may not have Plum Cottage Creations as my shop, but I certainly live, love and laugh here in our little Plum Cottage surrounded by our gardens, with my best friend and soul mate.

Zone 10 ~ s.e. FL

Butterflies and a Sale :-)

Hi Folks ~ It's a sunshiny day today, breezy and not too hot out. Windows are open for fresh breezes, it's a glorious day. We've had some rain the past few days, and that just makes everything grow like crazy.

I've been noticing more butterflies and that always makes me happy. The Zebra Longwing is our state butterfly. Which is pictured below. It is on porterweed, Stachytarpheta jamaicensis. I have the purple flowering one also.

The nest two pictures are of a Gulf fritillary. We have lots of those down here too.






Now for my big news. That little embroidery piece of the Eastern Bluebird sold yesterday. I'm still a bit in 'happy shock'. Sold my first piece before I even get my little Etsy shop open.

I might not be around much the next few days as I've got to get all my inventory photographed, numbered and entered into my computer, then upload pictures and info to my Etsy shop. I will announce my grand opening when it happens.

Thanks again all of your for your friendship, encouragement, kind comments and support.

Zone 10 ~ s.e. FL

I thought I was finished :-)

Ha, I decided the piece needed a little more added to it. I like it so much more with this little border.

Now onto the next piece, and I don't know what it will be yet.

Hope the rest of your week is great.

Zone 10 ~ s.e. FL

Finished at last :-)

Finally, this afternoon I sat down in my little room, and finished my Eastern bluebird embroidered piece. Hurray! I still have to buy some mounting board to mount it too, and the frame in the last picture is the one I think I'm going to frame the piece in. The overall size is approximately 5"x5".

Thank you Sweetbay for allowing me to use one of your photos for this piece.

Someone has already shown interest and if she wants it, I won't be putting it in my little Etsy shop. I'll let you all know when I have my little shop open.

Thanks for looking.

FlowerLady

Zone 10 ~ s.e. FL

Not what I thought

Well, one of the flowers bloomed on my found shrubs,
and it is not what I thought it was, Crepe Jasmine.
I smelled the bloom and no scent either,
unless it will smell at night.

Now I am stumped.
I hope one of you will be able to identify this for me.
The leaves and shrub do look like crepe jasmine,
even a gardenia, but now I don't have a clue.

I think the flowers are pretty and look like a pinwheel.



Here is the best looking shrub in one of the planters.
I don't want to show the other shrub until it grows out some more.

Zone 10 ~ s.e. FL

No roses today :-)

Good morning ~ I hope you all are having a lovely day.

I thought I'd show something other than roses today. Some of these are just now leafing out, and I have to wait for this to happen just like you all do up north. It is a real treat to see the green appear, and later a joy to watch the buds turn into flowers.

Below is a dwarf white orchid tree,
Bauhinia Acuminata, grown from seed.
I have two of these.
Info for these can be found here.





Star Jasmine, Jasminum multiflorum.
Info can be found here.





Below are two pictures of my Queen Crepe.
I've been watching this for new growth and finally,
last week was rewarded almost overnight.








Below is another bloomer that I have to wait until spring each year
to enjoy the delightful blooms and their wonderful scent.




Yesterday, on the way home from work I passed some brush on a street
where wealthy people live,
between the intracoastal waterway and a main road.
I didn't stop because the two shrubs I saw were pretty wilted,
but as I got up to the corner,
I decided to go around the block and I'm glad I did.
I was 'hoping' they were gardenias, but they're not. :-(
But, they are nice shrubs anyway.
In the same pile of stuff was a really nice looking bromeliad,
so I stuffed it and the shrubs in the back of my little old Mazda wagon
and headed on down the road.

We do have an ancient shrub like these in the main garden.
They are Crepe Jasmine Tarbernaymontana divaricata or East Indian Rosebay.
Info found here.

I put them into buckets of water last night
and this morning they have both perked right up.
I also trimmed off the dead growth.
We are going to put them into the two shell flower pots.



This is the other plant I found.
The only thing the matter with it is the flower looks past it's prime.


That's it from Plum Cottage.
I wish you could all smell the wonderful scents that are filling the air.

Oh yeh, I did get a book in yesterdays mail that I ordered,
called The Embroider's Handbook.
It has detailed pictures and instructions of over 150 embroidery stitches.

Have a great week.

Zone 10 ~ s.e. FL

Blooms inside our haven this morning :-)

Good afternoon Friends ~ The road work seems to be done for the day,
it is much quieter now. What a relief!
Here are pictures taken before all the hulabaloo started later.

This is a little sculpture we found probably at the flea market or a yard sale many, many years ago. Looking at it from this side, you see God's hand holding a lump of clay, and a leg and foot to the left.



This is looking from the other side, Adam and Eve created,
and still in God's hand.



This is St. Francis with Louis Philippe,
the Florida cracker rose.



Spicy Jatropha



Scarlet sage ~ coccina salvia


Four stages of Prosperity rose.


Mm. Laurette Messimy



Pink Pet or Caldwell's Pink



Main Garden



I've been waiting for this to happen.
This is our Queen Crepe Myrtle.



Popcorn Cassia



Mm. Laurette Messimy.



Louis Philippe.



I don't know the name of this hibiscus or the croton behind it.



Golden dewdrops ~ Duranta erecta



Fleabane daisy (Erigeron annuus) and
spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana)



Bon Silene roses.



Have a lovely weekend.

Zone 10 ~ s.e. FL