Makeover or Breakdown?

I’ve been moonlighting. Curious about my gig? A hint: I’m covered from head to toe in scratches. Have I been training alligators? Good guess, but no.

Okay, I’ll tell you. For thirty-one days, my moonlighting gig was in our front yard, making over the planter I built years ago. I’m posting about it because I like encouraging others who are considering changing their space on a budget. If you are a renter and don’t have outdoor space or can’t dig up a yard, you can brighten your world with a few potted plants. A cheerful splash of color does not need to break the bank.

The story starts on Saturday, February 21. I woke up and decided it was time for a change, so I marched to our front yard and started hacking away towers of Sticks of Fire, the orange pencil cactus. Some were almost as tall as I am. Thirty-one sweaty days later, I finished.

Sticks of Fire require almost no water, and their color is beautiful. But let me save you some trouble: if you get them, put them in a pot—not the ground. My Sticks of Fire forest started with a few small plants in the ground--which multiplied. Taking it down almost took me down.

Perhaps the story really starts seventeen years ago, when I designed our front planter. I measured a half-circle, bought concrete blocks, and created a semi-circular planter in our yard. I did multiple drives to get free dirt to fill my new planter and added succulents. Some were free, from Craigslist. It was a lot of work but satisfying. 

This is our front yard a few hours into demolition. The Sticks of Fire were five feet tall. The "before" was not bad, but things had become a bit too wild and I was ready for a change.

Fast forward to now, and the Sticks of Fire have multiplied and become trees, so I’m hacking away at them. I put out cuttings of the cactus and other succulents for people to take. It feels good to share these with others, since so many people shared cuttings with me.

Each day, my neighbors walk by, some with dogs. They ask about what the new look will be. “Top Secret,” I reply. (I love things that are Top Secret.) “Check back soon,” I say.

We broke heat records for February and March, but I kept digging. Some days I did an hour or two after working at preschool. A few days I wrestled stumps out of the ground for many hours. At times, I wondered if this was a breakdown of the stumps—or of me. (Maybe both.) 

My new garden plan involves mimicking the existing half-circle wall with two more half-circles inside. Here is the sketch I did, thinking the effect would be like a fountain. My final effect does not look exactly like this but I may add more plants. Who knows? Right now, I’m enjoying the change. 

On the hottest day, my kind neighbor Kat made me laugh when she walked her dog by our dirt installation. Her humor prevented a complete meltdown on my part (thanks, Kat). One neighbor offered help, and a few days later, another attempted to give help. I thanked them but explained that this is my mountain to climb. My sweet hubby definitely would have helped but I was determined to do it on my own.

Once the Sticks of Fire were down to stumps, it was time to remove them. The last two stumps were at least eight inches across, deep and stubborn. I used the electric saw, clippers, Japanese pull saw, and a shovel to loosen them. Mostly, I dug under the stumps to pry them out. I slipped on mud and tripped on slippery rocks. I fell into the 18-inch-deep hole I dug around the huge stump. There were tears and curses. Blisters and cuts. The preschool kids were impressed by my Band-Aid count (one day it was seven). I lift weights twice a week, but this yard work was a true workout. For all the upper body work I’ve done on this makeover, I expected my arms to look like Ronda Rousey’s by now. (They don’t.)

Day fifteen: I finally got the biggest Sticks of Fire stump out of the ground. The roots had formed twisty knots and wrestling them out was not fun. After a long labor, my bundle of agony was finally out of the ground. I'm exhausted but victorious!

Here I am, sitting in the hole that the stump was in.
It's 18" deep and almost as long as a bathtub!

.

The second big stump, Sir Stumps A Lot, came out next. 

Notice the weed cloth that did not prevent weeds. Instead, 
the roots grew through it, making the extraction...extra fun.

After that victory, I leveled the dirt and started building my walls. I’m using concrete blocks that I already had, repurposing them. I replanted succulents that I took out of our planter, as well as some I’ve had in pots. I'm putting down cardboard onto the dirt as a weed barrier (Sam, thanks for the tip!). Weed barrier fabric has not worked for me, so we will see if cardboard does. Next, I will add succulents, which I've been growing for years. They multiply, so this is great for my Small Budget/Big Impact plan. 

Progress shot...

I spent almost nothing on this project. I bought a bag of soil and nine extra concrete blocks from Craigslist. A lot of my materials we repurposed from my other projects. Back yard plants were moved into the front yard. I shoveled rocks we already had in the front yard into my new planter. Reusing is satisfying.

These wall planters were ones I moved from the back.
I already had mini disco balls and beads,
 so creating this area was free.

I enjoy the variety of colors and textures.
Don't be afraid to experiment...

This is a mosaic pot I made years ago.
Painting the rim with turquoise paint I already had
makes the orange flowers pop. I love contrast!

The flamingos were moved into their own area

so they can be a flamboyance of flamingos.

(That is what a group of them is. Seriously!)

Moving things around (indoors or outdoors) can give your space a refresh, often without spending a dime.

I love sharing these triumphs to encourage others not to fear DIY projects. This post is not about bragging—it’s about sharing tips and a few laughs. You can make your space beautiful without spending a lot.

To be honest, I’m a little conflicted about posting this essay. We have a lot of terrible things happening in the world right now, and I don’t want to be insensitive by posting a lighthearted essay on plants. Still, I’m going to post, and I hope that my readers get a boost from it. I won’t deny that our country and our world are struggling hard. But we also need breaks from our stress--moments of joy.

It’s Holy Week, the week leading up to Easter. Some friends will celebrate Passover this week. Whether you celebrate Easter or Passover or something else—I wish you a happy spring. I hope that you find beautiful moments each day and the sun warms your face. Until next time, be safe and shine on! 

Oh Boy--It's Koi!

Hello, and welcome back to another school year in Sarah’s Art Room.

As you rightly suspected, the summer raced by with lightning speed.

And so here we are, facing another fall—and I use the term lightly. It’s still quite warm but the retailers are putting pumpkin spice stuff everywhere, so apparently it’s fall.

How’s it going, you ask? My first day back teaching involved my losing my voice, at least partially. It seems that over the summer I got out of practice with my Loud Voice. And so another school year has begun. There are the kids who still wear a sweater even when it’s ninety degrees. There are the ones who think art time is break dancing practice. There were erasers thrown on day one. But all in all, it was a creative day and I got some sweet kiddo hugs and some banter with the teens. There are more kids than ever but I’m indestructible.

So what have my students worked on this month? I thought you’d never ask.

Kindergarden: these sweet kiddos did frog art. I gave them blank coloring pages I drew, and they filled them in with marker. We discussed the fact that frogs come in lots of colors, and I encouraged them to go wild with color. 

First grade also colored frogs, and we traced lily pads using paper plates as our templates. Two funny moments happened during first grade art class. A couple of girls returned from the bathroom to tell me there were ghosts appearing and disappearing. I raised an eyebrow. Ghosts? Hmmm…A few minutes later, we discussed sharing of art supplies, and I told them they can say, “Can I borrow your supplies, Mrs. Sarah?” One kiddo immediately chimed in with, “May I borrow them?” Touche. Mateo will be in charge of noting all manners transgressions on my part.

Second grade: there are about a million of them and they have the energy of Olympic gymnasts and the speed of hummingbirds. Good thing I’m indestructible. (But check with me in April.) Second grade began work on a project I’ve been contemplating for a few years: koi fish. Koi seemed like a great subject because their splotchy skin makes for good artistic inspiration. The kids enjoyed starting the project and I always like seeing what they create.

Third grade also made koi fish. Their approach was to cut out pieces of construction paper so that we could use collage techniques. I explained that the splotches on koi are irregular, and that they could think of the shapes like puzzle pieces, “wiggly shapes” as I put it—like camouflage shapes, one kiddo said.

Fourth grade made three-dimensional leaping frogs. We used cardstock, as it is stronger than paper, and this allowed us to fold and bend our frogs so that they appear to be about to leap to their next adventure.

Fifth grade also made koi fish and I love how much detail and shading they added to their koi.

Sixth grade had the privilege of being the only class that got to paint their koi. This particular class is very artistic, and I thought they’d have fun experimenting with watercolor techniques for their koi ponds.

Seventh grade painted frogs, peeking out from reeds. I like that some kids used the wet-on-wet technique. You apply water to your paper and then add paint, which causes the paint to feather out and blend in unexpected ways. Aren’t these frogs fun?

Eighth grade began with abstract art. I had them color in two spirals and experiment with interlocking them or layering them in different ways. I asked them to put pattern and color on their spirals.

That wraps up our first month back at school. I joke about how exuberant these kids are, and there are times when it is exhausting, but I really do feel lucky to teach kids and to see how their imaginations work. This reminds me of my first blog post after I began teaching, six years ago. I wasn’t even sure I’d make it through the first semester back then—teaching felt almost impossible! But now I know to expect a mix of challenges and happy surprises So if there is anyone out there, facing a new challenge, doubting your own ability—be patient with yourself. It takes time to adjust to something new. We are so much stronger than we give ourselves credit for. Just look at me—I’m a little older, and a little creakier, but I’m doing something meaningful, and those crazy kids make me laugh. So far their energy hasn’t crushed me. I’m indestructible!