Happy August sweet friends! I hope the last weekend of July was a wonderful one for you and your family. RM and I enjoyed a refreshing and relaxing getaway last week to our favorite mountain destination, The Swag. Bordering the Great Smoky Mountain National Park and located at five thousand feet, the temperatures were twenty degrees cooler than home…what a delightful treat. The accommodations and cuisine are outstanding, as well as the scenery!
“Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.”
Psalm 90:14
Not only is it the first day of August, but also the first Monday of the month which means Monday Morning Blooms with my lovely friends, Lidy and Mary!
You will find the links for my talented friends at the bottom of this post!
Our common theme is a door arrangement. The wreaths on the French doors of the Sunshine Cottage Porch received a small makeover!
I purchased the wreaths last year from a local shop that I love, the Alabama Gift Company. I am using them once again this summer season. With the doors being very old, I have to be careful what I place on them and these wreaths are light weight and held by a command hook. I ordered the small baskets from Amazon to place inside the wreaths for fresh flowers.
Zinnias are in bloom in the cottage garden and were the perfect choice to add lots of color. Water was placed in plastic cups which were inserted into the baskets and the zinnias were added to completely fill the space. My Renaissance Man foraged the woodlands for ferns which were easily found. I simply added fresh fern fronds to the wreaths to provide texture against the faux greens.
My beloved Mother’s glider found its way to the cottage porch in 2020 when the cottage was built. It sat on her screened porch where she spent many happy hours enjoying family, friends, and especially her three grandchildren.
The small garden table holds a watering can filled with a few snippings of this and that from the garden! An April Cornell tablecloth of “April’s Village” is a water-color inspired design with butterflies, hummingbirds and a rendition of April’s actual home. With butterflies, bees, and hummingbirds enjoying the zinnias in the cottage garden, I thought it most appropriate. The blue and white striped rug was a recent purchase from Home Goods.
A pair of matching pillows from my blogging friend, Jenna at The Painted Apron’s online shop landed on the glider. The pillows are a copy of her painting of my fence and limelight hydrangeas. Aren’t they beautiful?
Potted flowers in front of and on the Sunshine Cottage porch add pretty summer color!
The flower caddy sitting on the rug was a surprise gift from a precious blogging friend. It is ideal to use when I am cutting hydrangeas and carrying them inside to arrange. Don’t you just love sweet surprises?
In case you missed my recent post on zinnias, you can read it here!
“The month of August had turned into a griddle where the days just lay there and sizzled.”
~Sue Monk Kidd
The Schwinn adult tricycle, I call it a three-wheel bicycle, found a summer home in the Sunshine Cottage garden!
Zinnias were planted behind the Adagio maiden grasses…a pair of Sioux crape myrtles are in the background!
Easy to grow vinca fills the the bicycle’s basket!
Our first and most likely last time to plant cosmos. However, I do love the blooms with the armillary in the background! Unfortunately, the wind and rain wreaked havoc on the cosmos’ tall and weak stems.
The cottage garden is still a work in progress, trial and error it seems!
This photo was taken a couple of weeks ago when the sunflowers were still blooming behind the fence. The zinnias have grown at least a foot since then.
You will definitely enjoy Lidy’s and Mary’s arrangements. Just click on their links below for gorgeous flower therapy!
Lidy ~ French Garden House
Mary ~ Home Is Where The Boat Is
Thank you for your visit and gracious comments. Wishing you a joy-filled day!
Linking with:
Pieced Pastimes, Between Naps on the Porch, Katherines Corner, Follow The Yellow Brick Home,
Imparting Grace,Life and Linda
Happy August Pam! I love your pretty basket and zinnia filled-wreaths framed with the ferns on your cottage doors! Zinnias are such happy flowers that thrive in the summer heat. I love all the pretty details on your porch from the pillows on your beloved mother’s glider, AC village tablecloth, blooming watering can, and lush petunias! Your three-wheeler 😉 looks so pretty planted too! So glad and you and Butch were able to enjoy a getaway and escape the heat. We are a tiny bit cooler with the rain and storms pushing through over the weekend but the heat is ramping back up this week. As always it’s a treat to share blooms with you, stay cool. ♥
Thank you, Mary. We received over 3 inches of rain over the weekend with rain predicted every day. We certainly have needed it. Stay cool!
Excellent
Thanks
Thank you for your visit!
Happy August dear friend! Your wreaths came out absolutely gorgeous! Adding your very own Zinnias to the baskets had to be quite enjoyable as picking flowers from your own gardens is so soothing!
Your Sunshine Cottage front porch filled with such Welcoming accessories of flowers and Jenna’s pillows is so very sweet. My heart runneth over with Joy!
Happy August my friend!
Good morning, Nancy. Thank you for your sweet visit and comments. You are a treasure, dear one!
Pam, such a treat this morningI to see your MMB post. The twin baskets on your cottage doors are beautiful and you can change them so easily with the seasons. Great idea. Your zinnias are so pretty all arranged and growing in your garden,too.
Your porch looks fantastic. I love all your flowering plants. You have been busy watering!
How beautiful Jenna’s pillows are and how special. I love your flower caddy full of limelights, also.
Your August quote gave me a chuckle.
So glad I had time to view your post and comment before the grands woke up.
I always love your visits, Bonnie. I left the baskets attached to the wreaths and I can change seasonally and even use faux flowers. August days do seem to sizzle. Enjoy your sweet family!
Pam, this is just exquisite! I love every single detail. The color of your doors with those beautiful wreaths is so soothing in the summer heat. Your mother’s glider with those beautiful pillows could not be more special. I love S.M. Kidd’s quote. Did you read the latest Rick Bragg in Southern Living about polyester clothes? He nailed it!
Thank you dear one! I always read the last page of SL first because I love Rick Bragg and he nailed polyester clothes. I may have told you this before, Rick Bragg is from a small place that is only about 20 miles from us. Are you familiar with Sean Dietrich, he is also a great Southern writer. Have a wonderful day!
Pam, your arrangements are just gorgeous on the antique French doors of Sunshine Cottage! Your porch has so many pretties adorning it for summer. Jenna’s pillows are beautiful on your dear mother’s glider. It looks like the perfect spot to enjoy an iced tea on a warm summer afternoon. I’m envious of your breathtaking gardens. Everything looks magazine worthy. I am having terrible luck this year with unwanted guests (deer, armadillos, Japanese Beetles), triple digit temperatures, and drought like conditions nothing seems to be going right in my gardens. Can you believe the deer came on my front porch and ate all my beautiful flowers right out of their pots? They have an entire wooded area to eat from, but chose to eat everything from my yard. Maybe, I’ll have better luck next year. For now, I can always enjoy seeing your beautiful gardens that you always so graciously share with us. It is always a treat to visit. My dear friend, I hope you have a most wonderful day!
Thanks so much, Shannon. I feel your pain with having to deal with unwanted guests. It is a weekly battle for us. Gardening is not for the faint of heart. Wishing you a wonderful week!
Your dual zinnia filled wreaths are just gorgeous Pam! Such a great idea to add baskets to the center of a wreath and the fresh colorful blooms are so cheerful and welcoming! It was a great treat to see the hydrangea pillows on your glider, thanks so much for the shout out 🙂 I love all the flowers on your porch, it is in bloom just like your garden!
Thank you, Jenna! I keep the hydrangea pillows in the sunshine cottage during the summer months. I love using them!
Your Zinnias baskets are just beautiful. Love that sweet bike in the Sunshine Garden. Happy New Week.
Thank you so much, Kris! Happy first week of August!
Pam, I love zinnias and they do make great cut arrangements. Using them in your door wreaths is a perfect way to display them. Great paint color on the doors of the Sunshine Cottage, so nice to have your mom’s glider on the porch of the cottage and those pillows are so beautiful.
Thanks so much, Judy. Happy first week of August!
Pam, Your flowers are all so lovely and healthy! Your MMB wreaths are so pretty. They’re perfect for your doors. Your Mom’s glider with special colorful pillows is inviting. I know you have precious memories of her and are making precious memories for the grands as well. Your table is also colorful and looks so cool and crisp. I loved seeing The Swag! I got busy yesterday and never had a chance to comment. Your trike is all decked out too! A stroll around The Sunshine Cottage is always delightful! Happy Monday! Clara❤️
Thanks so much, Clara. I enjoy changing up the cottage porch, but the glider has been there since the beginning. Wishing you a lovely day♥️
I love the casual mix the Sunshine Cottage delivers, Pam! Not just the flowers, but the glider, the pillows, the rug (great find, looks like Dash & Albert), and the AC cloth – all of it is very relaxed and welcoming style. The wreaths and your baskets are a perfect summer touch. I’ve been eyeing slim baskets for my front door (I gave away both of my Adirondack baskets to family in my downsize purge, but they were too big anyway). Trial and error in planting, I think, is even more fun than the maintenance of a mature garden. Now you get to do some more planning since you weren’t keen on the cosmos. It’s all really pretty, Pam. We’ve had so much rain, and August is already starting off much the same as our July. Happy Monday and Happy August!
Thank you, Rita. It is fun to play on the cottage porch and inside. The cottage garden has been a comedy. I had to convince RM to place pea gravel. He is never stubborn, but he had certain ideas and I let him go with it. Eventually, he agreed we needed the pea gravel. It started raining last Friday and we had a lot of wind, which we always have here on our hillside, but the stronger winds and rain collapsed the cosmos. It is actually protected behind the maiden grasses. However, the wind came from a different direction. It is ok, I have other ideas for next spring! Have a lovely week.
Happy August Pam! Oh, your sunshine cottage is at her best for summer! I love the French doors dressed up, those wreaths are beautiful and the sunny baskets filled with bright colored flowers? Divine. I absolutely love your Mother’s glider, what a sweet spot. I imagine you and your Renaissance man and the little people in your life sitting there lots of times over the years. I love your garden, it’s always an inspiration to visit you dear friend. xo Lidy
Thanks so much, Lidy. The glider will probably always stay on the cottage porch, it is very special. Have a blessed week!
What a way to begin the month of August than seeing your beautiful porch of the Sunshine Cottage…the baskets are so beautiful and the wreaths are such a creative touch!!….Always in awe of your flowers!! Love love the April Cornell tablecloth…I have always admired the Village pattern…Everything is so special with your creative touch; however, I go for the items with the most coveted memories…how gorgeous the glider is as you decorate it for the summer months…your mom is so loving it…if you see it gliding on it’s own…it’s not the summer breeze..it’s your mom enjoying what a beautiful space you made for her….
Thank you dear Shirley for your sweet comments. I will always miss you at MMB’s. I am so glad you had time with your precious mom and family. Happy August!
What a sweet thing to have someone paint your fence and garden flowers on two pillows and gift them to you.And they are pretty right where they are. I love your mothers glider, they are old fashioned and my grandmother had one on her front porch where I spent many summer days rocking back and forth. Your flowers survived your week long vacation and not only survived but look beautiful.
Thank you, Alice. You are right, gliders are old-fashioned and I remember sitting with my grandmothers on their front porches on an old gliders. Sweet memories!
Your wreaths and floral baskets filled with zinnias are really beautiful against the blue doors. Love your Mom’s glider and beautiful pillows. Your gardens are extraordinary. Happy August!
Thank you, Dianne. Wishing you a lovely week!
Pam your flowers are lovely…you know how i love zinnias and your baskets are beautiful and inviting any and all into the Sunshine Cottage. Love the three wheeler and basket of flowers, so charming. I am sure you sit on the glider and reminisce …what wonderful memories for you. I think our grandmothers all sat on their front porches during the summers…I know both of mine did and I cherish those memories as I would sit with them! Each house we have ever bought had to have front porches for that very reason. I love sitting outside.
I am needing a rug for our foyer…having double doors can make that task challenging but not impossible as you have shown us. I will check out Home Goods. Jenna’s pillows capture your fence and flowers beautifully. She is so talented isn’t she?
Matthew 6:25-34 ASV
Have a great and Blessed day my friend.
Kari
I hope you can find a rug, they are not easy to come by for double doors. Thank you, my friend. I think we could all use more porch sitting. Wishing you a blessed week dear one!
Pam the porch on Sunshine Cottage is beautiful with all the flowers and lovely accents. The baskets you made for those gorgeous French doors are perfect! Your flowers are obviously very happy there – and who wouldn’t be? Love the hydrangea pillows and the Schwinn! Happy first day of August!
Thank you, Kim. I really appreciate all of your visits and comments!
Wow those wreaths are so beautiful! Love seeing your flowers! I know what you mean about cosmos. Love the zinnias and that Schwann bike! Great start for the month!
Thanks so much, Liz. Cosmos are pretty, but too easily destroyed.
The cottage is so lovely — and what could be more fun than zinnias in a door basket! So cheery! I love the cosmos and the beautiful urns you have, so lush and full. The the prize? That Schwinn!
Thank you, Jeanie. Gardening has its rewards!
Everything looks so nice. So glad you enjoyed your trip and mercy…20 degrees cooler sounds lovely to me!!! I know you are so happy to have your mama’s glider. What sweet memories I bet you have. Happy August to you. Hugs and blessings, Cindy
Thank you, Cindy. The cooler temps were wonderful. Happy week to you!
Amazing post… Such beauty and inspiration… Thank you for sharing dear Pam!
Thanks so much, Maristella!
I always love your beautiful posts. Have a blessed and beautiful August!
Thank you, Cindie. Wishing you a lovely August!
Pam, this is such a beautiful post. This may be one of my all time favorites. I say “may” because there are so many beautiful posts through the years. I look forward to catching up soon and hearing about your trip to the Swag. Love to all.
Thank you, my friend. Your sweet comments are most appreciated. Love and hugs!
Pam, I’m in awe of your wealth of colorful, healthy blooms. My garden more closely represents the quote about sizzling on a griddle! Austin is on track to be the hottest summer on record. We started with triple digits in May!!! And almost no rain this summer. So, my friend, it is a welcome vision to view your gorgeous flower filled post from the darling door baskets filled with zinnias to all those overflowing containers. Your garden always delights. Happy August!
Sarah, you all have definitely suffered through an extreme heat wave this year. I doubt I would even venture outside. Thank you and have a wonderful weekend indoors!
Pam, such beautiful baskets filled with your bountiful garden. Love the pretty colors. Lovely cushions, a glider, tricycle and so much more to enjoy. I am missing some beautiful blooms because it is so hot here. It is a pleasure to visit yours virtually.
Thank you, Linda. The heat definitely wreaks havoc on flowers! Happy Weekend!
A sizzlin’ griddle is a GREAT way to describe what we’ve been through this summer! My goodness! I’m so sick of this ghastly weather!!! Not ready for fall just yet…just a more temperate summer would be nice. One that doesn’t’ steal your breath away every time you open the front door!
I LOVE the baskets within the wreaths! I’d planned to do something similar for fall, and now having seen your rendition know I’m on the right track. My husband gets all weird about me attaching things to the glass of the storm door, but I try to keep it light. With your French doors, the look is unbeatable!!!
I’ve not had any luck at all with zinnias, but yours are gorgeous…as are all of your blooms!
Have a safe and happy weekend ahead!
Thanks so much, Alycia. I feel the same way about sizzling. Autumn is my favorite season!
Your gardens and porch look so beautiful! Those wreaths are amazing. I Love how you added the baskets to them. Everything is so bright and cheerful.
Thanks so much. I love color and embrace it in my garden and my home!
What a delight of Summer colour Pam!
Bless you sweet friend ❤️
Jennifer
Thank you, Jennifer!
First time visitor, coming from Imparting Grace Link Party. What beautiful spaces, everything is so lovely! Happy August
Thanks so much, Regina for you visit and comments!
I love the basket wreaths! How clever and so beautiful! God bless you and your family, dear Pam.
Thank you, sweet friend!
Your porch is fabulous. I love the pillows from The Painted Apron!