Friday, March 9, 2012

Are You Ready To Be Beguiled Again?

One of many displays in the nursery, Aspidistra.
All aboard! Jump on the Aspidistra Bus to continue our excursion to this quirkiest of quirky Western Cape (South Africa) nursery!

Sue Langley, author of the addictive blog, Sierra Foothill Garden and her latest and very exciting additional blog, Flea Market Gardening, tweeted about my last post on Aspidistra and mentioned it on her Facebook page, on Wednesday. As of this evening (Friday), that post has attracted in excess of 900 page views, skyrocketing itself right off the charts in terms of total page views, to date, of any other single post on Driftwood Ramblings.  The majority of these views can only be accounted for directly as a result of Sue having 'put the word out' on it. Thank you, Sue!




And thank you to all of those avid Flea Market gardeners, worldwide, who came over to have a look. I believe there are in excess of 9,000 of you on FB, eagerly sharing and experimenting with the exciting flea market and junkyard finds you source on your own excursions. By all accounts, you are a thriving community of like-minded enthusiasts.  
What a wonderful world we live in, with so many imaginatively creative folk, all determined to reduce, reuse, repurpose and recycle in their own individual attempts to make a difference to our largely throw-away and discard, ditch and replace, wasteful mindset. It's good that we all try to remember, every little bit helps. So, for all of you shining examples for the rest of humanity, here's another peek at the wonderfully creative genius of Willie Schmidt (incidentally, 'w' is pronounced 'v', as in 'very'), as seen in his beguiling nursery, Aspidistra.
Aspidistra is a haven for Willie's own pets. I love the way this old garden shed door is decorated, while the shed itself has been repurposed as a bird cage.
Another cleverly 'cobbled together' water feature using the scrappiest of scraps. Willie demonstrates that it's not necessary to spend very much money at all to enjoy the sound of water in ones garden.
These are made from tin and really delicately executed. I thought they were quite lovely. Not sure where they are from or who produces them, though.  Willie wasn't around to ask. He was busy in Swellendam at the kykNET Road Show, a South African TV Magazine Programme.
She's not genuinely old, but I loved her! I resisted making her mine, though.
This out-of-focus young boy, and the happy fellow below, would look good tucked in amongst the greenery in anyone's garden. A nice surprise element. See the old tables on which they are displayed? Everything in Willie's nursery is repurposed and adds to the quirky, rustic appeal that I so love about Aspidistra. 

This was quite striking! Those few thin shards of mirror picked up the light so beautifully. 
Clever beadwork!
Another of several attractive shoes on display, decoratively wrought from tin.
My Mum had an old tray just like this one. She tossed it out years ago.  With a touch of creative wire and beadwork, it becomes an object of rustic beauty and could be used as a bird feeder or shallow bath for butterflies. Note, also, the decorated river stone.
A tin and mosaic bird house, again incorporating mirror. I thought it was quite lovely! Aspidistra has several made along similar lines, each one different from the others. I couldn't choose, so left them all for the next person to deliberate over ;)
Again, something so utterly simple using a weather beaten piece of fencing fashioned into an arch, an old toffee tin and a couple of succulents. Attached to a section of  rustic fencing, it has an arresting charm, don't you think?
Rusty old baking tins and pots all find a new use in Willie's nursery. He has them planted up and tucked away all over the place. 
Willie has a knack of finding really old chairs. He says he's always on the lookout for interesting old things and has a bevy of eager smouses who go around scrounging on his behalf. He repurposes some to use as planters, others are given a role in a staged setting and others serve as stands for potted plants and ornaments. The nursery garden has chairs of every description here, there and everywhere. They all blend in so well and nothing looks out of place or "junky"! 
A section of old picket fencing, an old work bench, a rough bit of wood, an old galvanized pail and a couple of  potted specimen plants...instant eye appeal and, if this isn't quite to your taste, then at least it creates a conversation starter on the why's and wherefor's of using junk in the garden! 
This cat intrigued me. It seemed to follow me all over the garden :)
Here's another example of turning a tossed away item into an alluring planter sure to draw appreciative looks.
I still delight when I see these quirky Pot Men. I know they aren't unique and are available widely, but I think they are very cute :)
Give a rickety old cupboard a lick of paint, add your collection of dainty terracotta specimen pots, two disused finials and voila! You have a lovely backdrop for displaying a few pretty potted plants.
Willie sources rusty pails in all sizes and states of wear and tear. Some are fully planted up, others such as this one are used as receptacles for individually potted up plants, still others are used in the making of water gardens and water features. It seems nothing goes to waste when Willie gets his hands on things at which many others would turn up their noses.
Old wire and pliable twigs can be woven into animal shapes for decorative use in the garden or in the potting shed.
Never throw away bits of wood, especially not attractively aged fallen branches or pieces of well-aged root. Willie uses wood (root balls, planks, railway sleepers, aged driftwood) extensively and has an enviable collection that is not for sale. He says he's always on the lookout for pieces wherever he travels.
Bits of gravel lying around? Just drill a hole in each piece and fashion yourself a heart or whatever else you fancy!  Hang it up in the garden to frame whatever scene you wish to emphasize. The little boy in this picture stepped in without my knowing it. I only spotted him when I came home. I think he completes the picture rather nicely.
Another addiction of Willie's is really old wheelbarrows. He has them performing various functions throughout the nursery, with several planted up, as in the case of this particularly handsome example. Others are used very effectively as seductive water features.
These seemingly simple sculptural representations using bits of driftwood, to partly fashion what the eye suggests the shape might be, work superlatively, don't you think?  I loved those I saw at Aspidistra! Here, we have a goose in flight.

As shoe bags, these inventions were pretty useless unless your feet are the size of a child's, but planted up and hung in the garden (this one was hanging on a wire chicken coop), they perform not only a useful function but can add an element of surprise and beauty to an otherwise dreary spot.  Once the plants fill out, the shoe bag will largely be hidden.
This young male parrot is my husband's favourite pal at Aspidistra. He always gives him extra lengthy neck scratches and the bird seems to recognize him :) 
Willie has aviaries throughout the nursery, hence the No Dogs Allowed signage at the entrance.  All birds and fowl are his private collection. They lend such charm and melody to ones visit!
If you have old broom handles, make yourself a decorative plant hanger, to pretty up your wall, fence or even a chicken coop, as has been done here ;)
Here we have evidence that absolutely nothing is discarded. Even an old pot, broken right through the middle, finds a use hung up on its side as a planter on the chicken coop.
A driftwood duck taking a stroll among the plants, no doubt gobbling up any stray snails and slugs missed by the ever present and always busy team of gardeners that keep this nursery perfectly swept and groomed.
A broken statue is cleverly propped so you'd never guess.
I love these balls fashioned from bits of driftwood collected along the shoreline at low tide.
A cement angel, in the naive art style, saying a silent prayer beneath this bromeliad clad tree trunk.
Old urns, wirework birdcages, chairs, tables. All have a place at Aspidistra.
A seating area, shaded by a lovely old tree, is defined by the striking blue chairs and old tool trunk that serves double-duty as both foot-rest and coffee table. 
Another wheelbarrow planted up colourfully. The piece of decorative driftwood tucked in the middle adds sculptural appeal to the simple planting.
I really need to go back to get a better picture of this. Willie has used three, full-length railway sleepers to fashion a simple archway. Attached to this, is a piece of decorative trellising on which potted plants have been hung. It really makes a most attractive feature, completed by having lain large pieces of driftwood and chunks of root at the base and sides. Individually potted plants and a Buddha statue off to one side really enhance the overall feeling of serenity.
Odds and sods, so cleverly cobbled together. This, too, hung on an old Wendyhouse shed, converted into a cage for a pair of parrots.
This old drawer has found a brand new purpose to its existence.

Another of the brightly coloured mosaic globes strategically dotted throughout the garden at Aspidistra.
A pottery leaf tucked amongst a carpet of Peace-in-the home and filled with water for passing butterflies, frogs and geckos to refresh themselves.
A particularly attractive, homemade, cement water feature! Several of these, all different, have homes in amongst the plants. Being a nursery, just about everything is for purchase. Willie will quickly fill any gaps so you'd never guess anything was bought and frequently, he will utilize the space in a completely different way. It's this attention to detail that makes Aspidistra so enchanting. 
To some, just an 'ugly' chunk of root, yet planted up with greenery, it makes a bold statement at the base of a rickety, wooden bird cage on stilts, lending charm to this section of the nursery garden. 
Boring fence? Break it up by attaching prettily potted plants in quirky holders.
Although the watering can was old, this planter wasn't, but I really liked it! No, I didn't buy it. I was too busy taking these photographs to share with all of you ;)
This genuinely old cage provides protection for the veggies within, allowing sunlight and rain to enter freely, but keeping greedy garden visitors out!
An old oil drum, cut lengthwise, makes a very clever mini-vegetable garden and see how little space it takes up? 
I thought the colours of this little display worked so well against the backdrop of green foliage and bold blue sky. Notice the old garden/hay fork heads tucked into the strawberry planter?  
Now, this was the tiniest of tiny little 'lean-to' green houses, yet it was packed to capacity with all sorts of edibles and even a simple, small water feature fashioned from stone (centre). Here, Willie demonstrates how very little space is needed to create a fully functioning garden eco-system and an enchanting retreat for ones work-weary soul. Again, this entire structure has been fashioned out of toss-away items and could easily fit on a small balcony in an apartment block! Who says you can't have a garden?
Same space, showing what you can put into it to give it visual and emotional appeal.
In another section of the garden, this simple old shelf is turned into a free standing small garden for another tiny space. Using three old pots, Willie has fashioned a small water feature. This, too, could easily find a home on a balcony, and would take up very little space, yet provide the homeowner with a quiet retreat in which to escape at the end of a busy work-a-day week.


This combination really caught my attention!
How is it possible that a bit of rusty chicken wire, a very rusty old pail and a few chipped, cracked and broken pots could become so visually appealing? The idea is to allow these little surprise elements to meld almost completely within the surrounding scene, off set by plenty of greenery. What was really just junk, then becomes an art piece!
This formerly ugly, dented and rusted old paint tin now takes pride of place in the vegetable garden! No need to even paint it, although you could if you wanted to!
There really is no limit to what can be done when we allow our creative juices to run. Remember the teeny tiny greenhouse? This is in there, too!
This little space, neatly framed by clipped hedges becomes a mini-nursery area. Lavenders are grown up from cuttings and a water feature is incorporated to attract birds and butterflies. Once again, everything is old and repurposed.
Rita expressed some concerns about all the 'standing water' in the nursery and the prevalence of everyone's pet hate, mosquitoes!  All water features run daily and birdbaths and other receptacles holding standing water only are flushed daily.  This was the only green water I saw. 
Those rusty bird cages have so many uses in the garden!
Take a collection of disused, cement clad spades and make yourself a piece of decorative garden art! I love this one!
Toss some small pebbles lovingly collected on your walks into an old galvanized pail, pop it on to a repurposed chair and tuck it in amongst your lush plantings. The birds will love you for it and friends will stop and say, "Wow! That looks lovely!"


This wrought-iron daybed would look so good beneath my Gwenya (African Wild Plum) tree! Decorated with a soft, plump mattress and lots of colourful cushions, it would make a tempting retreat in the bottom of the garden.
I loved this grouping of urns.
Add an old plank, roughly painted in bright colors of your choice, attach it on the outside of an old aviary and top it with a few potted plants to add interest for the birds and your human visitors.
Depending on the amount of interest this post generates, I am happy to do one final post on Aspidistra, as I still have plenty of photographs to share. Besides, I'm always eager to pop around there again to see the new additions Willie will have added since my last visit. So, just say the word and I'm at your command!

And now, to all my wonderful, regular commenters/readers. Please pop along and acquaint yourselves with Sue (links provided at the start of this post). You will honestly wonder why you'd not done so long ago!





90 comments:

  1. What a great great and wonderful post !!..i enjoy it ...have a nice weekend darling......love from me...xxx...

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    1. Thank you, Ria! I hope your weekend is an enjoyable one, too!

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  2. i love his aviaries. how neat! his use of driftwood and metalwork are my favorites - wheelbarrows and bird houses, too. :) very nice, and congrats on getting your post facebooked!

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    1. Thank you, Theresa! It was a lovely surprise to see so many people had come to have a look at Willie's ideas. I can honestly spend ages there and never tire of the experience.

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  3. Good evening Desiree,
    What a lovely journey, I enjoyed each and every picture. The little cat on the shelf was so cute. These pictures makes me longing for the summer :) Fantastic garden photos. Thank you so much for sharing.
    Have a lovely weekend!

    Eva

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    1. I am delighted to know you enjoyed your visit, Eva. I know this was a very lengthy post and might be regarded as tedious by many, but I did it for those who really are interested. I guess you're painting as usual this weekend ;)

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  4. Funny how relieved I was to hear the water receptacles are flushed every day--LOL! My goodness! I spent so much time examining these wonderful photos and yet I didn't want it to end. I can see how you could visit there over and over and always find new things. I am just gobsmacked by his ingenuity! Another wonderful, wonderful post!! :):)

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    1. It delights me to know you had fun, Rita. I'll keep an eye on those water features, I promise ;)

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  5. What an extremely creative waste-not-want-not garden. Willy is an inspiration to all.

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    1. He certainly is, Pat, although I know many do not like using junk in their own gardens.

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  6. My dear Desiree, I feel quite exhausted after this wonderful walk around this incredible garden. (Over 900 hits on the first post on this subject. Phew! How fantastic.) I've never seen anywhere like this before. It's an inspiration to all of us that, really, we can use anything in our gardens, and make it look absolutely stunning! There were SO many ideas here for me to think about in my own garden. I don't think I shall ever throw anything away again, without thinking how I could make use of it in the garden! All the ideas were fantastic, but I really loved the tin mosaic bird house and, also, the heart made out of gravel stones. I am totally inspired with all these different ideas. Thank you so much for all the stunning photographs. We have a couple of rusty wheelbarrows, so they will definitely be planted up this year! x

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    1. Oh, Diane! I didn't want to exhaust you! You should have tapped me on the shoulder and suggested we take a seat in the lovely Tea Garden attached to the nursery. I'll be more conscientious next time, I promise! I have two rusty wheel barrows planted up in my own garden, too. I love them :)

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    2. To have sat with you in the Tea Garden would have been heavenly. I'm sure we would have had so much to chat about (and a few laughs along the way no doubt!), as one fellow Arian to another. Hugs.

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  7. This relaxes me again Desiree, you have this gift to take amazing pictures, I am so thankful for your posts!

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    1. Thank you for your lovely compliment, Claudia!

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  8. This amazes me, Desiree. I have never seen so many fine examples of recycling, reusing and repurposing. There seems to be a fine line between a junkyard and a garden of delight such as Willie's Aspidistra Nursery. It takes imagination and artistry to transform an unsightly hodgepodge into a cohesive eye pleasing display. I suspect that simply moving an object a centimetre or two or rotating it on its axis can often make a big difference in the way it is perceived and how well it fits the grand scheme. On a tiny scale I am already using Willie's techniques in my own garden where shards of clay pots, broken coffee mugs and old buckets are in use as planters and decorative accents.

    I am reminded of a huge and expensive ceramic urn that I purchased from a nursery ten years ago. Mrs. Shady and I had intended to cover the urn with a blanket and use a hand dolly to carefully transport it from the car into the house. My macho brother-in-law boasted that he had the strength to carry it in and so we allowed him to try. Bear hugging the giant pot my brother-in-law got to within ten feet of its final resting place before losing his grip. Upon hitting the floor the urn shattered into fifty pieces. In the weeks that followed Mrs. Shady carefully glued the urn back together. The glue had a brownish color and no attempt was made to conceal the fact that the urn was fractured and repaired. To our surprise and delight the strands of brown glue dried to resemble a pretty rope netting around the urn giving it character and charm that it never would have had otherwise. We have received many compliments on that urn and love to tell the story of how it got its distressed finish. Thank you very much, dear friend Desiree, for the time and effort involved in putting together this tremendous post dedicated to Willie's handiwork.

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    1. You are an incredible gift to all bloggers, Shady! You always come up trumps with knowing exactly what to say and you do so without gushing ;) I found the tale of the broken urn very entertaining! How fortunate that Mrs S had the patience of Jonah to piece it all back together and then for it to surprise you with taking on a whole new look! I'd say "marvellous!" but don't want to be one of those gushers ;)

      How I'd love to see some pictures of your garden!

      Thank you for your visit. I am always so happy to see your comments pop up :)

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    2. Love the reference to 'gushing' there!!!

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  9. Bloody hell I don't know where to start so many wonderful pictures you have share with us I loved beaded jug and kettle by far my favourite shot............

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    1. So glad to know you had fun looking, Jo-Anne! I hope you're feeling very much better this weekend.

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  10. I could look at these over and over again and find something different and unique in each picture. I'm also learning you can turn pretty much anything into a planter. What fun ideas!

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    1. It would certainly seem that way, Barb! Willie seems to find a use for everything!

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  11. Another amazing post with such beautiful images and great, thought-provoking ideas for garden decor! You are so lucky to live near this incredible, creative nursery. I would spend a small fortune there, but unfortunately, would then have no way to get it all home.

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    1. Spend all you want, Alison! Willie delivers free of charge (but limited to our immediate area, of course) :) He's one of only a handful who still do that at no extra cost. You'll just have to move to the Cape Winelands to get this benefit, I'm afraid ;)

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  12. I am very partial to full size human sculpted figures decorating gardens. Maybe you could have one in yours? A full size Des weeding perhaps?

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  13. You can never have too many posts like this one for me! Your photos are wonderful and I am an avid re-purposer (made up word!) in the garden. Old enamel kitchen colanders make perfect succulent containers; they drain so well. A collection of old tin and enamel funnels of various sizes hung on a tree trunk or fence post serve the same purpose - planters for small-leaved succulents. I am in heaven when I see/read your visits to Aspidistra, so, please, more, more more! Thanks!

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    1. Hi Sandy! How lovely to meet you and to know how much you enjoyed this post. I am more than happy to oblige with future postings of similar content :)
      You have shared some GREAT ideas with the rest of us. I have seen colanders planted up, but not funnels. Using succulents makes perfect sense. Thank you for the tip!

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  14. Every time I visit here I am amazed at how someone has reused/repurposed/turned into art, etc. found objects. I so wish people around here would do that but they don't. They just junk everything. There were so many things about this post I liked that I couldn't even begin to list them!

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    1. Maybe you should start a trend in your area, Pam? It can easily become quite an addictive hobby.

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  15. Oglądałam zdjęcia z tego postu trzy razy, bo chciałam zapamiętać, co mi się podobało. Jednak jest tam tyle wspaniałych pomysłów, że nie jest się w stanie tego zapamiętać. Pamiętam jednak wspaniałą gęś i kwiatki umieszczone w zardzewiałej klatce. Jeszcze raz powiem - pomysłowość tego Pana nie ma granic i to jest wspaniałe. Pozdrawiam Cię serdecznie . *** I watched images from this post three times, because I wanted to remember what I liked. But there are so many great ideas that you are not able to remember. But I remember a great goose and flowers placed in a rusty cage. Once again I say - the ingenuity of the Lord has no boundaries and that is great. I greet you warmly.

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    1. I am flattered that you viewed this post 3 times, Giga! Wow! I am glad to know you saw so many ideas you liked.

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  16. This was one of the more interesting posts that you have done my friend. Never have I seen so many uses of recycling for art and common sense use of materials. I can easily see how it could take you more than one blog to adequately go through this awesome place.
    The retirement party went very well and we all had a great time. I will be posting a blog on that event. Have a wonderful weekend.

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    1. Hi, Mr Newly Retired! So pleased to hear your party went off with a bang! Just think...when Monday dawns, you don't have to get dressed and ready for work! Not ever again!

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  17. I remember seeing the last post you did on this amazing nursery. I'm lucky to have found you long ago and personally I love all of your posts. Learning about where you live and you has been so fun.

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    1. Yes, Catherine. You are one of my very earliest followers and I do so appreciate the fact that you've stuck by me all this time. Your blog and magical garden were one of the reasons I got into blogging!

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  18. He sure is king of recycling. I liked the old cupboard and the driftwood birds.

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    1. And it all harmonizes so well in his nursery, Diane. None of it looks over the top or trashy!

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  19. I wish I could make something like the heart shaped rocks-
    Or the beaded pot-
    Perhaps a mosaic sign-
    But alas, I am a person who must view these works and enjoy them from afar.
    Thanks for the tour Desiree.

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    1. Nonsense, Eve! You don't fool me. I saw the rocks you painted so beautifully!!! You could easily do similar things :)

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  20. Now that was fun! Lots to look at! I enjoyed every minute. It inspired me to spend more time out in the yard and gave me some great idea's. Actually though, the one I am really anxious to do is gather some mirrors for my fence! Tomorrow I am off to looks some more. So far I have found no mirrors for my fence.
    I am so sorry I have been here more often, Desiree! My energy level runs low fast.
    I try but have trouble getting around. I need a method. :) Do you have one?
    This blog is one that no one should miss, as far as I am concerned!
    What a marvelous job you do! :)

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    1. Mirrors in the garden are my absolute favourite addition, Mona! I don't think I could ever have too many. My son thinks I passed the too many mark a long time ago ;)
      Holding thumbs you have success at this weekend's garage sales!

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  21. Dearest Desiree,
    Oh, how wonderful that your page in Facebook attracted in excess of 900 page views♡♡♡ And flea market in the page? Yes, really nice to know people have these consciousness♬♬♬

    Haha, at first I couldn't figure out the meaning of this post's title.
    Well, Willy's "Aspidistra" sure is amazing and stunning. Among the wonderful pictures of the garden, I loved the driftwood duck taking a stroll among the plants. Cute, isn't she!!!
    Love you always, xoxo Miyako*

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    1. Yes, Miyako! It certainly was a lovely surprise, all thanks to Sue! I also loved the driftwood duck. I have a driftwood owl in the garden. Some people are so clever.

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  22. Dear Desiree,
    900 views is stellar! This spring Richard and I are planning to break ground on our traditionally flat yard of grass and to build a real garden. We'll be making a greenhouse from windows from demolished homes. The idea of using flea market finds to add charm is very inspiring. We have a chainlink fence surrounding our little piece of property, and I've always wanted to make this look like a wall of green and blooms. The picture of the shoe organizer has me thinking!
    What a lovely, lovely part of the world to live in. And yes, I frequently gush, but who wouldn't?

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    1. By today there have been 1,023 hits! Astounding that so much interest is generated by this unconventional gardening style. Obviously, no one would have come to view these posts without Sue and now Melissa, also having published a link to my blog. We can all learn so much from each other! There are many very talented junk yard gardener's worldwide. They are passionate about making a difference and have a lot of fun applying their minds to being "green".

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  23. Oh! Oh! Oh! I just FOUND you. This is right up my "alley" - no pun intended.

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    1. Very happy to know that this is right up your alley, Rebecca :)

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  24. LOVE BUTTON JUST CLICKED!!!! "Keeping" this page!!!!

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    1. So glad you've enjoyed seeing what Willie does in his nursery!

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  25. Dear Desiree,
    Toward the beginning of your posting were these lines: "What a wonderful world we live in, with so many imaginatively creative folk, all determined to reduce, reuse, repurpose and recycle in their own individual attempts to make a difference to our largely throw-away and discard, ditch and replace, wasteful mindset. It's good that we all try to remember, every little bit helps."

    I"m so glad you reminded me of this because I looked with new eyes at everything I saw in your photographs. Willie's nursery is truly a school for all of us in thinking "green." I am so grateful to you for your last two postings. And yes, I'd love to see more.

    Peace.

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    1. It would seem this style of gardening is really catching on all over the world. There's no end to what can be done with a bit of ingenuity and breaking free of convention, is there?

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  26. I don't know why but that little guy with the hat laughing cracked me up.. Pr. P likes the flower pot man and says we can plant a garden like that. He ran straight ouside. I'm worried about how many holes he's going to dig! That boy! Thanks for sharing Des. Gotta go check on him. If you don't here from me in a couple of days contact the authroities would you?

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    1. Now isn't that simply wonderful! I am sure Willie would be delighted to know a little boy in Utah has been inspired to garden after seeing what he has done at Aspidistra!

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  27. I love the small bird and butterfly baths and the driftwood duck! One of the first few pictures has an old Singer sewing machine case just like the one my mother used to have!

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    1. That old Singer sewing machine case ally caught my eye, too. My Gran had one like it. Who would have thought to use it as a planter?

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  28. Holy Moly! I don't think there's a bad piece at all in this collection. All this recycled stuff looks incredible. My personal fav is the blue tiled fountain. I like tile and stone together which was a nice blend. I have lots of things that with some paint could look like a million dollars. Inspiring.

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    1. Willie has skill in knowing what works. He certainly does inspire!

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  29. Definitely ready for as many visits and photos that you want to share, this is the sort of place I would spend many happy hours browsing around.

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    1. So pleased you love Aspidistra as much as I do :)

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  30. It's interesting how particular posts can resonate. If you had a way of knowing which ones would do that, you could only write the ones that resonated :)
    Loved this one.

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    1. Or having a lovely friend who promotes a post ;)

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  31. I don't know what I like best - it's all wonderful. The bits and pieces featuring water certainly stand out. Most of all I love the imagination!

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    1. I absolutely agree with you! I wish he would bottle his imagination and sell that, too :)

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  32. How to choose - and this nursery must be huge to contain all these wonderful objects....I just love that tray with the beads and wire on it - mmm wonder if I can make one of those up myself. that mosaic birdhouse is also a favorite. There is definitely a knack for knowing how to display junk so that it looks perfectly suited to its use, and Aspidistra has it nailed.

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    1. On the contrary, it's not a huge nursery at all! In fact, it's one of the smallest in our area.

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  33. This place really is amazing. And one would think that it takes lots of work to maintain, but it doesn't. I am getting more and more inspired.

    As for the link love on Facebook. It does ones site the world of good when it gets featured on the right place.

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  34. I definitely wasn't looking to having my blog "exposed" anywhere. I'm very happy for it to grow organically, in its own time. I am not on Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest. I just put up posts for those who might enjoy reading them and hopefully like what I share. I have no ulterior motives beyond that ;)

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  35. wow!! (and yay...finally...time to do a bit of catching up....)
    what a place to wander through. i could get lost there for sure! i LOVE his use of all the OLD and broken...the tossed...and turning it into ART.
    i would leave there with my head spinning...so many awesome ideas!
    i love the mosaic globe!! beautiful!! i wonder what's underneath...giving it the globe shape? a basketball or what?!!
    everything is so cool...so quirky...unusual...LOVE it all! thanks desiree!! :)

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  36. I LOVE the pot men and that out-of-focus young boy. These pictures are so magical for me!

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  37. Hi Desiree,,, dear oh dear blogger lost my comment so here goes again... I am now totally sold on that potman and need it!! Also, I love those three large urns and your blog commentor Shady Del Knight's tale of woe was an added delight! ( I always enjoy reading his comments on your blog!)I would love to see your other pictures on this gorgeous place. so much inspiaration and you had a great time with your camera and brought us so many wonderful ideas. So, I am pinning up a storm on my gardening board to bookmark this post! Thank you so much... loved it.

    VEronica

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  38. Another wonderful post Desiree - your Aspidistra adventures are not only entertaining but jolly well inspirational. Oh dear! The things I've thrown out ... lol, not anymore. Thanks for taking the time to individually comment on each photo too, your comments add to Willie's special talents. I especially love the driftwood goose and duck :D)
    P.S. I too enjoyed Shady's account of the broken urn.

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  39. Desiree...I wanted to make sure and let you know how your kind words you left on my post for Holden helped ease our heartache. We are still missing her, I swear I still her her collar jingle in the morning and my husband and daughter have each thought they spotted her out the corner of their eye. We will miss her forever, but she truly had given us all she had and then some. Thank you again for being so loving and kind when we sure needed it.
    Your garden pictures go far in making me smile and enjoy all the good things in life.
    Hugs~

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  40. Hi Desiree, Congratulations on the page views! It is always nice to get a boost like that. This is a nursery full of a whole lot of creative things. For some reason, Willie Schmidt reminds we of my artist-neighbour. She takes stuff that other people pass over or toss away and makes art in the garden out of it.

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  41. Girl, I wanna pack my bags and move right in. I gotta tell ya it sure fired up a bad case of my OCFD (Obsessive Compulsive Flower Disorder)!!! Heeeheehhehe!!!

    What a grand place stuffed full of delightful ideas...a gal could go wild there!

    Thanks for lettin me tag along!

    God bless ya and have yourself a blessed and beautiful week sweetie!!! :o)

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  42. My first thought was. hey, that's my grandmas sewing machine case! What a fun post. So many neat idea I'll have to go back and check 'em out again. I don't do the flea markets but I do do the garage sales and guess what-I'm looking for gardening stuff. Love it all.

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  43. Hi, Desiree. Just wanted to add my compliments. I thoroughly enjoyed the nursery visit--so much originality and creativity. Thanks for the great photos! And I've marked your blog so I can visit often.
    best from Tunisia,
    nadia

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  44. Willie certainly knows how to reuse junk. Beautiful photos, Desiree. Congratulations on your well-deserved celebrity status!

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  45. Hope everything is alright. Missing your loveliness!

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  46. hey desiree...just stopped in to see what's happening. i hope all is well....and you're just going with the flow and enjoying life. sometimes we just need a break...

    take care! :)

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  47. I've come by a few times hoping for something new. Miss you. Hope all is well.

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  48. I can imagine you busy taking photographs somewhere interesting.

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  49. HI Desiree, Just stopping by to say hello and let you know that I've been missing you. Hope all is well.

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  50. So many photos that are so spectacular they could be a book!
    Hope all's fine out your way.

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  51. Just popping by again Desiree. You are such a bright spark amongst our blogger community that your absence is so widely felt.
    This is not a nagging to come back - our real lives are far more important and must take priority. There's a definite time and place for everything we do.
    I merely wish to say hi and that I hope life is being kind to you.
    All the best, Susan xx

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  52. Desiree,
    I have been missing your lovely posts - hope all is well in your neck of the woods.

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  53. Oh where are you Desiree...it's my turn to ask you this time. I haven't made a post since October but I always enjoying stopping by on occasion to peak at what you are doing in your garden. I hope all is well!

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  54. Stopping by again, hoping to see you've returned. Your presence is missed. xo

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  55. Just wanted to say hello again and check up on you, hoping all is well!

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  56. I was going through my old posts adding the "read more" button, when I saw the one I wrote for your birthday a year ago.
    So I came over to wish you a very happy birthday and lots of joy in your life!
    Although I know you don't post here much, I hope you still get this by mail. I miss your posts and hope you will return soon. Until then, take care!

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I would love to hear from you!