Out and About - Home Goods Again

Hi on this chilly grey Sunday evening, or rainy Monday when you see this. 

Last week I went back to Home Goods for their 99 cent tote bags to make another, more coordinating cover for my deck table. I love the blue pineapples I made and the project seems a success. Only time will tell me if the plastic holds up. The previous cover was a heavy cotton blend tablecloth, cut down. It worked well but faded and frayed over two summers. I use the deck every day and want something I can leave outside except in heavy storms. Hence the plastic tote idea. But no, there were only elephant totes and something like a closeup of Monet's brush strokes. Oh well.

I did rummage around a bit; the store was nice and quiet. Masks were mostly being worn.

The main ''story'' of interest was all the bright yellow with a dash of coral being shown. You may recall I searched in vain for something, anything, in bright sunny yellow, a few years ago when I made the yellow  spring cushions. Not a speck of yellow to be had in 2019. I was ahead of the look.

Love the blue coastal pillows. [but no]

Patriotic shelf or two, I expected more.

You know how I love bowlies.

Wonderful selection of summer candles....

including these Flag lidded ones.

I love the idea of the scent, Sand and Fog, smelt like nothing at all to me though.

Darling hand carved Pineapple box. I might have bought it to be a small sewing box, but it was a puzzle box and hard to open. Not efficient when one needs one's thimble or thread right NOW!

Garden decor [no polka dot planters, too bad!]. Fun tin giant sunflower.

Art glass stakes, long lilies and round orbs, both with solar light cells.

And this little, well not so little!--guy made me smile. A tin and other metals folky Bug. Is he a cricket or an ant? or? Such a sweet face!

Mel said last week that at first she thought my wooden ladybug was metal! 

Well here's a metal bug for Mel and he could be Ladybird's boyfriend..

And this chair! I know it's tacky but I love this chair. It's so retro, so Florida Golden Age. 

So green though, you know how I hate green.

Lovely silk flowers. Orchids. No need to coax to rebloom!

And an ironstone pitcher with silk hydrangeas, looking like a posy I would make. 

 So that was fun, though in the end I bought nothing. I'm being very budget careful right now. 

I'm pretty sure no one but me will ever notice that my blue plastic table cloth clashes with my green and coral tropical cushions out on the deck. I did do a bit of searching online too. The classic picnic table cover is oil cloth. Fabrics.com has a wonderful selection and being part of Amazon they deliver efficiently and promptly. OILCLOTH

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Back home, Mo and I had a long gentle stroll. 

The pollen and humidity makes it hard for him to breathe sometimes, so we just amble along. Inspecting the hydrangeas. This blue is  amazing, isn't it. Like a tiny shard of heaven.

Have a great week!

love

lizzy

gone to the beach...

other years/old pics

PS Is this not the most adorable summer bag! It's also available on Amazon. Pineapple bag

Celebrating Mo! Seven Year Adoption Day

 

Good evening friends! As another band of icky June showers rolls through our beach area, Baby Mo is sleeping happily on his big boy bed. [Usually he sleeps in the little donut bed and uses the larger bed as a pillow, sigh.]

What would I do without my little faithful companion? Life would be lonesome and dull; I am very grateful that this little being shares my life and world with me. And so each year on June 8 I make a little party for Mo, in recognition of the blessing who came to me seven long  changing years ago. Sweet and curious, all big eyes and huge spaniel ears, he walked off his chartered pet flight and into my heart.

This year we had ice cream.

Twice!

And he wore his pretty blue bandana from the spa lady.

Then we had our quiet hours outside, one of Mo's favorite things to do. Mo had a jerky stick, another favorite.

His gift is a new special tag, for my magical sweet boy.

He snoozed under the zinnia pots 

and just this once he was allowed to bark at some workmen in a big pickup truck.

I love you, Mo!

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June is a quiet time here at the beach. Despite record 90* heat in the city, it is cool here, almost chilly. The water is still very cold, I think. I'm wearing shorts but a cashmere winter turtleneck on top.

As mentioned before we often have afternoon rain, ugly dark and dreary,

Two days in a row....

The deck garden enjoys this weather. I found out what the bright blue flower is, Blue Globe Gilia, a western wildflower. It and the coreopsis are attracting wasps. I wonder if wasps pollinate like bees do.

Globe Gilia

The Blue Gilia was a seed in a packet I sowed two or three years ago, and must have laid dormant until its moment to shine this spring. seed packet

After my quilt gift fiasco last week I felt a bit uninterested in sewing, though Silent Night's central Snowman is now hand appliquéd. Lots of little fussy pieces, coal mouth, carrot nose. Next up is the House.

Instead I'm doing mingy little household chores. Too much joint pain these damp days for much needed jobs like curtain and slipcover washing, instead I removed and laundered the flannel sheets, put crisp white percale instead. And I repainted my ladybugs that are part of my garden art collection.

This sweetie has lived on my deck for about, oh 20 years? She had entirely faded to just grey wood and rusty legs. I replaced her marble eyes awhile ago, with found marbles and now did a paint touch up. Yes it ruined her original paint and patina but trust me, in a year or two she'll be all weathered and folky again.

This is something new! Wonderfully bright, very graphic and eye catching signs that mark the Oystercatchers' nests. Kudos to the wildlife people. I love the design, would like a poster or a beachcombed sign.

This is the usual kind of sign posted. Pretty sure the rowdy kids and scofflaw unleashed dog owners NEVER read these dull if informative signs.

More soon. Please forgive the photos, I am having majorly awful blog-killing photo issues. And the situation just gets worse and worse.

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btw if you follow me by email, and most of my readers do, that will no longer be an option provided by Blogger. So maybe bookmark Gone to the Beach until I figure it all out. I'd be sad to lose you guys, my friends and readers.

love

lizzy

gone to the beach....

old pics, celebrating World Oceans Day