Gone to the Birds--The Screened Porch is Ready for Summer

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Planting flowers certainly make me feel ready for summer, but we’re not really ready for summer at our house until the screened porch is hosed down, everything is dusted and cleaned, and our wrought iron shelf is accessorized. What activities are must-do on your list to feel ready for summer?  Mulching? Painting a fence or other garden accessories? Getting the grill ready?
This year (well, for now anyway), the shelf ended up with a bird/birdhouse theme:

We bought this shelf several years ago at a wonderful antique shop near our home.  We thought it was a “keeper” that would work no matter where we lived (even Florida!), and though we haven’t moved, it’s still a keeper.  For one thing, I love wrought iron.  I love its filigree designs that contrasts with its rusty spots and the strength it conveys.

  Birds/birdhouses and shells…some of my favorite things.  The shell houses were a bday present from my coworkers years ago.  They made them for me, and they’ve held up really well!

This chicken-wire cloche was a purchase late last year from Bombay (see my Bombay Company post here), and I’ve already used it several times for various vignettes.  Good purchase.  Love it.

The lighthouse candleholder?  Another nod to beach and shells.  I suspect there will be a switch mid-summer to a more beachy theme.

This tray is not tole, but I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE IT.  It’s so sweet, and so detailed.

 

I have a “thing” about houses…well homes.  Log homes, bungalows, doll houses, decorative houses, bird houses, beach houses, farm houses, big houses/little houses, twig houses,…  I bought this one years ago, and I’ve used it in a million different ways.

  Now, THIS ONE…this tray IS a tole tray…the hand painting is exquisite.  A gift from my mother several years ago.

I’ve had the blue enamel spatterware coffeepot for many years, but I don’t remember if I bought it new, or if it’s old.  That’s okay; I’m not planning on making money off of it.  :)  It’s the perfect watering can!

According to eBay posts, the “object” on the right is a minnow bucket… :)  (I knew it had to do with fishing…as in holding the fish once caught, I thought—quite the fishing expert I am).  All I know is that I like it, and it was my husband’s grandfather’s, and so it holds a place of honor where we can enjoy it. 

Ahhh…how I love this timeworn watering can—it was a bday present to me from our youngest son.  It has a lovely, now-faded Marjolein Bastin (what else?) CHICKADEE decal.  How sweet is that?  This gift came loooonnnnnnnnnnggg before our own little chickadee came along.

Another corner of the porch also has gone to the birds!  The birdcage is the one we used for our son’s wedding back in November as a card holder.  Now, it’s put to another good use to bring back happy memories.

The plants in it are an Italian parsley plant that’s perfect for stepping right out onto the porch to snip a bit for dinner, a miniature African violet, and of course, a CHICKADEE.  A chubby robin sits nearby, keeping company to the many that hop around our yard.

 
What makes you feel like you’re ready for summer?
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