“And then my heart with pleasure fills, and dances with the daffodils.” Wordsworth
The calendar says spring and for a few days last week the thermometer, flirting with higher digits, fooled me. With snow again in the forecast, I may have gotten seduced a little too soon by all the spring flowers at the supermarket! Pussy willows, daffodils, pansies and some brave tulips and hyacinths came home with me and are greeting visitors cheerily at our front door, unaware of the fickleness of the weather. Here’s hoping the predicted storm tracks away from here and these shivering flowers prove resilient to this gardener’s premature spring fever!
I have photographed our entrance to inspire you to create your own spring welcome, weather permitting. With Easter still a month away, I focused on non-Easter themed décor to which I can easily add eggs and bunnies come April.
(Rug: Smith Hawkins, Target; planters, Tuesday Morning)
To the supermarket planters I added pussy willow branches for additional height and interest, and tucked moss around the bulbs for added textural dimension. 
This was an old wreath that I refreshed by adding 2 kinds of moss, a birdnest and new ribbon.
The supermarket hanging basket was just too high to be appreciated and seen so I transferred it into a more decorative metal planter lined with cocoa fiber(just plunked it right in, as is) and I hung it at eye level by the front door with my favorite hard-working, all purpose garden rubber twine from England. I order it from “The Best @ Dianne B”, a great online garden store which sells only a handful of quality garden products.
Continuing the bird theme, I added a nest to a planter of pansies to the left of the entrance and hung a bird house in the seating area.
I’m springing forward, but can it warm up already?
It’s certainly a springtime welcome and I hope spring will come right away and not delay. I want to visit and enjoy the blooms and your garden artistry. Thanks for the inspiration.
Dona
Looking forward to having you home!
J
Johanne: I am writing as it snows but when it clears I’m off to get a hanging basket of flowers. Thank you for wonderful ideas. I have a question. Is the bird sculpture on the wrought iron trellis between the shutters made with buttons? I might try something similar! Thanks again. Fran
Hi Fran,
Actually the bird house is decorated with weathered bottle caps! But you could easily use buttons hot glued in the same way for a similar effect. I found this at Homegoods last year. Have fun!
I brought in some of the frozen baskets and they appear to be bouncing back! It’s so hard at this time of year to wait! Spoken as the flurries start!
Johanne
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Hello Johanne- Beautiful flowers!! always enjoying your e-mails. Gd Blessed you guys,Bernadette Date: Tue, 25 Mar 2014 12:34:49 +0000 To: bernadettesweeting@hotmail.com
Thank you Bernadette! Think of you often andcalways have a chair on the porch for you!
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Rubber garden twine, huh? I have never heard of it, but I think I have to have it!!! That totally makes sense for a lot of projects around the outside of the house!
I wish we have a generously proportioned front porch such as yours! That has long been a dream of mine! I’m not sure what the builders are thinking when they come up with these dinky things that I refer to as a “stoop” rather than a porch! The UPS man can hardly hide my packages up here with this postage stamp-sized “porch”!!!
This is a beautiful example of bringing Spring to the doorstep without going all-out Easter. As you said, you can add in other stuff later. Very nice!!!!!!
You have such a way with words, Alycia! That twine is AMAZING! I tie my tomatoes with it, prop up whole rows of Abovitae damaged by a storm, tie my roaming clematis around the mailbox with it! It comes in a nifty mesh bag that allows it to be pulled out neatly, never tangled, and in desired lengths. I wish I had known how to link the site but I could only reference it( still a newbie!). Glad you read through and noticed. You will wonder how you ever managed without it! I also love their Japanese pruners. Read Dianne B’s bio…..very interesting, smart and accomplished woman, with a famous past career.
As far as the porch goes, you are welcomed to come by! I will serve you a nice lemonade when it warms up! I will post again on converting it into an outside room in May!
Warmly, Johanne Sent from my iPad
If you ever need help figuring out how to do something on WordPress, just email me and I’ll be happy to help. I’ve been with WordPress for about 4 years now, and I have slowly figured out how to maneuver. I know I appreciated all the help I could get when I was a “newbie”!!! 🙂 Have a great night!
Can I please have our email instead of posting my questions in the comments? Thank you, Alycia! Johanne My email is frenchgardener@comcast.net
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Hi Alycia Do you follow Stone Gable American Farmhouse Living? Such gorgeous tablescapes and very professional looking site. Did you find the Frenchone, Les tables de Stef? I managed to find her second book on Amazon and I am French so I could read it. She doesn’t post often but is very creative.
Hey, Johanne! Yes, I do follow Yvonne at Stone Gable. She really does have fabulous taste, and I enjoy/envy her great style! I saw the recent post with all the colorful Easter bunnies on the Les tables de Stef site. VERY pretty!!! I DON’T speak, read or write French, so I had to utilize the translation device. You’re right…she’s quite creative! I admire creativity in all forms!!!
Tres beau decor de printemps , tu es Chanceuse de voire et jouer avec des belles pensees de la verdure ..j aime bien tes pots en fer forges a ton entree…
Merci ma belle! Moi aussi j’aime bien ces urnes en fer forgé, surtout qu’elles sont plus hautes et permettent qu’on apprécis les bouquets au niveau des yeux. Je pense toujours à combien on s’amuserait ensembles si on étaient plus proches. Xxooo
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When I approached your porch last week, it just gave me such a lift ! There is hope that spring will stop toying with us!
If we keep thinking spring maybe it will really arrive and stop toying with us!
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très printanier beau décor