grace grits and gardening

ramblings from an arkansas farm girl

  • Home
  • Biography
  • Media
  • Privacy Policy
  • My Thoughts on Publishing
  • SHOP!
  • Garden
  • Food
  • Crafts
  • Farm
  • Reading & Books
  • Sunday Letter

Summer Favorites: Porch Time!

June 26, 2017 By Talya Tate Boerner 8 Comments

Porch Time!

This is the first in a series of posts (irregular at best) about my favorite summer things. I’m starting with PORCH TIME!

I think of our porches as additional rooms, the best rooms, rooms that provide extra space and extra peace, whatever we need in the moment. A bit like Hogwarts’ Room of Requirement. In case you truly have been living beneath a rock, the Room of Requirement only appears when someone has a true need. It stands to reason that porches are always there because we always need a spot to rest and read, write and think, and watch the world go by.

See how that works?

I like my porches to reflect each season and holiday, and Independence Day is one of my favorites. Fourth of July is the brightest spot in summer, the top of the Ferris wheel, the cherry on the hot fudge sundae, the pre-party to my birthday shindig. And in my patriotic opinion, a splash of red, white, and blue goes with everything. Seriously, there’s no better place to drink coffee in the mornings and wine in the afternoon. Continue Reading

a simple Lavender Nosegay

July 28, 2015 By Talya Tate Boerner 6 Comments

make a lavender nosegay

Nosegay is one of those silly sounding words that back in seventh grade would have given my best friend and me the extreme giggles. During those Keiser Junior High days, everything was extraordinarily hilarious and something as simple as a funny word (such as nosegay) would often push us over the edge earning us a trip to the principal’s office for classroom disruption. I call those the Giggle Box Years. And though I may seem to be rambling, I do plan to tie all this together, you’ll see if you keep reading. Promise.Continue Reading

Patriotic Decorating Ideas for Home and Garden

June 26, 2015 By Talya Tate Boerner 3 Comments

Today I’m sharing a few of my favorite patriotic decorating ideas for the home and garden. While patriotism never goes out of style, the 4th of July calls for extra red, white, and blue flair. And I prefer to think beyond the typical and decorate using things I already have or flea market finds.

Like vintage marbles. Red, white, and blue marbles displayed in blue depression glass adds a touch of Americana without being too obvious.

Patriotic Home and Garden

One of my best sources for patriotic decor can be find stored inside my Christmas decoration box. Those red and silver stars that are so perfect at Christmas and New Year’s Eve work quite well come July 4th. I use this simple string of stars all summer.

Strung along the mantle, it makes a primitive sort of bunting.

String craft stars along the mantle for a patriotic look

These flags are fun to make with craft or vintage paper, straws, glue, glitter, buttons and whatever other supplies you have on hand. Stick them in flower pots to brighten your kitchen windowsill.  This is a GREAT project for the little ones.

Simple Flags for the 4th

Small vintage vases are handy in holiday decorating. This white star vase couldn’t be any more perfect for Independence Day. If you don’t already collect vintage vases, you can pick them up at flea markets for a few bucks each. Also, they come in great colors that just happen to be trendy now. Colors like chartreuse and turquoise. It’s true. Old often becomes new again.

vintage star vase - perfect for 4th of July!

Those quilts you have in the closet? Display them on a bookshelf or draped across a chair. They may be too fragile to actually use but they’re too beautiful to hide. To me, handmade and vintage is another definition of patriotic.

Display your quilts for a patriotic touch

Patriotic summer snacking is easy. Strawberries and blueberries in a vintage colander, and there you have it! Watermelon is another of my favorite. Maybe in another life I would have cut pieces into cute star shapes like those I see on Pinterest, but not now. My colander has a star design though, and that works for me.

strawberries and blueberries in vintage colander

If you can sew, whip up a patriotic pillow using fabric scraps. I found this one at a flea market for $5. It’s small and perfect for my vintage child’s rocker. (It was actually my chair when I was little, and yes, I need to shine it up a bit.)

small patriotic pillow

What do you think of my (mostly) red and blue patriotic book display? While I’m not one to arrange an entire wall of books according to color, I thought a small grouping would be fun. Patriotic summer reading anyone?

books arranged in patriotic colors

Planning a party? Hang a red wreath (again, Christmas?) on a shepherd’s hook for instant festive garden decor.

patriotic decor for the garden

That’s it for today, but stay tuned for my next patriotic installment…Patriotic Porches. Coming Monday!

Grace Grits and Gardening

Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

[tweetthis]Simple patriotic ways to decorate for the #4thofJuly. #Repurpose #Reuse #PatrioticDecor[/tweetthis]

Recap, Pin and Share!

Patriotic Decor for the Home and Garden

Pin again:

Simple Flags for the 4th of July

Musical Pairing:

Sandlot 4th of July w/ Ray Charles (not great quality pic, but one of my favorite 4th of July movies/songs)

 


Hi! I'm Talya Tate Boerner. Writer, Reader, Arkansas Master Naturalist / Master Gardener, Author of

THE ACCIDENTAL SALVATION OF GRACIE LEE (2016)

GENE, EVERYWHERE: a life-changing visit from my father-in-law (2020)

BERNICE RUNS AWAY (Now Available!)

Never miss a blog post! Subscribe via email:

Prior Posts

Tags

A to Z April Blog Challenge Autumn BAT Book Reviews childhood Christmas creative writing prompt Dallas Desserts Eureka Springs Fall Fayetteville Food Gracie Lee Halloween Hemingway-Pfeiffer home humor Johnson Family Keiser Lake Norfork Lucy and Annabelle Mississippi County Mississippi Delta moving Munger Place Nana nature Northeast Arkansas Northwest Arkansas Osceola poem Reading Schnauzer simple living simple things spring spring gardening Summer sunday letter Talya Tate Boerner novel The Accidental Salvation of Gracie Lee Thomas Tate Winter Wordless Wednesday

Books by Talya Boerner / Purchase in Grace Grits SHOP

Talya Tate Boerner books
Gene, Everywhere

Food. Farm. Garden. Life.

THANKS FOR READING!

All content and photos Copyright Grace, Grits and Gardening © 2023 · Web Hosting By StrataByte