Real Dipper Gourds

 The heat and rain the last couple of weeks have helped the gourd plants grow leaps and bounds. The top vines are about 12 feet off the ground and cannot be reached without the step stool.

 One twisted gourd has a long handle forming.

 Here is a smaller gourd that promises to grow and become a prized water dipper.

This is the gourd from the last post. It was moved higher to see if it will stretch down and lengthen.

Would you be willing to donate to our garden fund in exchange for a cured gourd? The gourds may be offered this winter to those who tour the house and grounds.

After three good hard rains

After three good, hard rains the dipper gourds have doubled in size from yesterday to today! 

Restored Urn finally in place

The final step to finishing the restored urn was to build the small 

plinth to raise it up and make it permanent and more visible. 

 The hole for the base was dug 

 The concrete base was poured, leveled, and smoothed. 

 Early one morning construction began on a six tier column. 

 Halfway there...

 Done!

The bricks were scrubbed and the restored urn has a permanent home. 

A new symbol for our garden restorations. 

Baby Dipper Gourds

 The Bamboo TeePee is full to the top with long twining gourd vines. In this drought I have watered it with the sprinkler about every other day for the last two weeks.

 On close inspection you can find thumb sized dipper gourds beginning to form.

It is very exciting to watch them change day by day. I hope to have enough to sell and raise money for our garden restorations.

The 1900's Kitchen Addition

This summer we decided to clean and update the 1900's kitchen addition. The room has only one original detail so historical accuracy is really not an issue. In the late 1950's or early 1960's the kitchen was given the "dutch blue" kiss.

The ladies had already pulled most of the wallpaper. Everything that was painted blue needed to be painted white - it took a minimum of four coats on all surfaces! The walls were unprimed wall board, so they had to be patched, primed, and painted. The ceiling and baseboards were painted - and the windows had to be repaired and then painted which took 2 weeks. 

Before - refrigerator wall

After

Before - oven wall 

After

This photo shows the one original cabinet (now painted black) with its original marble countertop. 

Hope you like the end result as much as we do. This room was not original it just needed to be freshened up and cleaned.