to the new mrs. wolfe: a vintage-inspired bridal shower

friends, it's time to celebrate!

earlier in the spring, i co-hosted a beautiful shower for my dear friend, tori. 

this weekend is tori's wedding (yay!) so i wanted to honor her by sharing some of the details of her sweet afternoon with you!

together with tori's mama & my mom, we created a sweet & lovely space to celebrate the new mrs.! 

tori's mom & my mama made a spread of the most amazing food. we paired antique glass pieces with vintage platters to give the space that vintage charm we all love.

i purchased cardboard letters from the craft store & covered them in gold glitter & decoupage to create the "mrs" for the wall. i spent the evening making paper flowers for her shower & added handmade bunting for a pop of color.

throughout the shower, we displayed fresh flowers & potted bulbs.

the cake was custom-made just for tori's shower & we paired it with fresh strawberries, spiced nuts & petit fours to create a fun dessert bar!

when i first started this blog, tori was my first of (maybe) five blog readers. she's always been an inspiration & encourager of my creative life. it's amazing to see how this little online space has grown along with our friendship.

2006-present

i have been waiting for this exciting weekend for nearly seven years! nick & tori, we cannot wait to party with you!

congratulations to the new mr. & mrs. wolfe!

love,

natalie

may: currently

 

currently, we are:

+ harvesting baskets full of lettuce, radishes, beets, turnips, spinach, arugula & more from the garden

+ admiring our first farm fresh flower bouquet of the season 

+ learning a lot from our may spending freeze

+ enjoying the sight of baby bunnies in the pasture

+ savoring dinnertime on the patio

+ reading our favorite books late into the night

+ picking peonies from my mother-in-law's garden

+ making packing lists & preparing for our summer adventure throughout europe (!!!)

 + working long hours in the studio (n) & working long hours at the farm (l)

+ snacking on my new favorite - gluten free pretzels from aldi's 

+ bbqing with friends on the weekends

+ waking up early for a good run before the day starts

+ spending more hours out than in

what are you currently doing? please share!

love,

natalie 

may spending freeze update

if there's one big thing i've learned thus far during my may spending freeze, it's this:

i am really good at collecting crap.

without any real effort at all, junk begins to pile up & our home feels like it might bust at the seams. i spend money on crap i'll rarely use because it feels good to buy stuff. the thrill of that new thing begins to fade so i replace that dull feeling with another new shiny toy & of course, the cycle continues.

i've learned a lot about myself during this may spending freeze & actually, quite a bit more than i thought i might. 

for example, it's been hard to challenge what we need versus what i want. 

i've also learned that "consumer" is a large part of my identify, which in itself has been difficult to swallow. 

i've had quite a few wins so far, though.

i resisted the urge to buy new sheets after a large hole appeared in our fitted sheet. as i was sorting through donations from a friend, i found a lovely new set of blue sheets that matched our bedding & fit our mattress perfectly. win win!

i've organized & purged almost every corner of our home. it feels good to have more space to breathe.

the junk i collected from my organization/purging spree was put into a yard sale. my efforts paid off when at the end of the weekend, we made over $500 towards our europe trip. yay!

i've also been able to enjoy what we already have. i've read books & enjoyed a glass of iced tea on our patio.

& perhaps the biggest win is the time i've saved from not shopping. i knew i would save money during our spending freeze, but i never thought i'd save so much time from not shopping. it takes an incredible amount of time to drive to target, wander the aisles, buy that unneeded item, check out, drive home & put it somewhere to collect dust. 

we've still got a couple of weeks left in this month-long experiment, but i am learning that the reward is much richer than the perceived sacrifices. 

i'd love to read how you're doing in your spending freeze! please share in the comments & use the hashtag #mayspendingfreeze on instagram!

love,

natalie

growing greens: a beginner's guide

friends! as you all know, my cute farmer is sharing his knowledge of gardening throughout the summer on my blog! join us as he talks about greens today! yay!

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Greens such as lettuce, spinach, mustards, and arugula are some of the easiest garden crops to grow. Their fast growth and short time from seed to harvest make them an easy choice for a garden that is tight on space. Also, most greens can perform well in partial shade, which is a plus for urban gardeners who don’t get a lot of sun.

1. Lettuce

It’s hard to buy grocery store salad mix after getting used to garden-fresh lettuce. This is one crop we try to keep in the garden as year-round as possible. Lettuce performs best for us in the spring and fall, having a hard time during the heat of our Southern summers. The earliest I will plant lettuce is the first week of March, though I may need to bring out the row cover if we get a late freeze in April.

When it comes to selecting the right lettuce variety, you have to make one key decision—head lettuce or leaf lettuce? Think of how you like to buy your lettuce from the store. Do you buy it as a head or do you like to buy the box of pre-washed spring mix? We usually plant a mix of both in our garden for the variety.

2. Head Lettuce

Our favorite lettuce variety right now is butterhead (‘Nancy’ from Johnny’s has been superb). As a head lettuce, I will grow the plants out in the greenhouse and transplant them into the garden when they are 3-4 inches tall. I space them 12 inches apart in the bed, fitting 3 rows in a bed that is 36 inches wide. This lettuce is grown until it forms a tight head and then the whole plant is harvested at once. Usually 45-55 days from planting to harvest.

3. Leaf Lettuce

Although leaf lettuce can be grown as an individual plant and harvested all at once like head lettuce, we like to use the “cut-and-come-again” method. This involves planting the seeds as a 2-4 inch wide “band” or broadcasting the seeds over the entire width of the bed and harvesting the leaves when they are 3-6 inches tall. The nice thing about this method is that the leaves will grow back allowing you to make 2-3 cuttings per planting. This is a great way to harvest an instant salad. All you have to do is bring the leaves in and wash. Johnny’s sells some great lettuce mixes for this kind of planting (like the Allstar Gourmet Mix).

4. Spinach

Like lettuce, spinach can either be transplanted or directly sown. I’ve started growing spinach transplants so that we have a more consistent stand. This is more time-consuming than direct seeding, but makes better use of the garden space. The key to growing good spinach is planting at the right time. In our area spinach is planted in the early fall or spring. Spinach seed requires soil temperatures in the range of 65-80 degrees for consistent germination, which can be difficult. Soils may be too cold in the spring and too hot in late summer. I avoid this issue by starting my seeds in the greenhouse, which is consistently 70-80 degrees. As transplants, spinach is spaced 6 inches apart with 4 rows fitting a 36-inch wide bed. For baby spinach, you can directly seed at a closer spacing and make multiple harvests. At our spacing we will harvest only the largest leaves, allowing the plants to continue growing and setting new leaves. We really like the variety ‘Space,’ which sets smooth, richly-flavored leaves.

5. Mustards and Arugula

These greens are the easiest to grow of the bunch. Their small, round seeds germinate quickly in a wide range of soil temperatures and the seedlings hit the ground running. There is a wide range of mustard greens to choose from, but most of them have a spicy kick that can really make a salad spectacular. We usually plant a few rows of arugula and a few rows of our favorite greens mix (Premium Greens Mix from Johnny’s).  We plant in rows at 4 rows to a bed and harvest as cut-and-come-again. It only takes 20-30 days for these greens to be ready to harvest and they are a great compliment to a mild-flavored lettuce. Mustards are also able to tolerate the summer heat, making them a great green to plant in succession (every 2-4 weeks) all season long.

6. Container Gardening

All of these greens are great for container gardening if you are limited on space. As long as you have 4-6 hours of light exposure your greens will grow just fine. And because greens are shallow-rooted, you don’t need a deep pot. I recommend growing in a fertilized soil-less media (i.e. potting soil), so you don’t have to mess with fertilizers. But if you are adding fertilizer to the media, you won’t need much. A good multi-purpose organic fertilizer is liquid fish, which can be mixed in a watering can (1 oz per gal) and watered in as needed after the greens start growing. To plant simply scatter your seeds over the surface of the media and cover lightly with new potting mix. Keep the soil moist and you should have germination in a few days. Wait a month and you’ll have fresh greens to harvest from your patio.

Greens are such a rewarding garden crop. If any of this sounds too complicated or confusing, just take a handful of seeds (lettuce or mustards), scatter them over your garden bed, scratch them in with a rake, and water. In a week you should have a nice patch of greens coming up. Then just take the scissors out to the garden whenever you’re in the mood for a salad.

- Luke

p.s. check out luke's post on planting potatoes!

the may etsy shop opens on thursday, may 14th!

friends, my etsy shop reopens on thursday, may 14th, at 8am cst!

i absolutely adore the new birds of a feather happy flag sets coming to the shop!

some of your favorite reversible skinny bands are coming back! these are so perfect for those messy hair days when you're running out the door & need to look put together.

 i also rock my skinny bands at the gym! they're secure & stay put on my head for those long runs on the treadmill. they're versatile AND cute. love it.

we also have 8 new designs of stretchy bands launching on thursday! think summer at the pool!

i love throwing a handful of these in my purse for those pool days! 

they're only $4 each so they're perfect paired with fun nail polish for an end of the school year gift to your favorite teachers!

& of course, the shop is restocked with the reversible bow bands! yay!

these beauties sold out in just ONE hour last time so we're excited to have more sewn up & ready for you!

to celebrate, we're offering 20% off to blog readers with the code "NATALIECREATESBLOG" for all purchases over $10! just enter the code at checkout. yay!

what's your favorite product in the shop? i'd love to know! xo.

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p.s. just as a reminder, registration for the canning workshop at my farm is open!

we have just TWO spots left! register by emailing me at natalie.j.freeman(at)gmail.com! SOLD OUT! THANKS Y'ALL! see here for more details. thanks!

love,

natalie

the canning workshop registration is officially open!

registration for the 2015 freckled hen farmhouse EC canning workshop is officially open!

join us august 8th-9th for a weekend of canning, crafting, junking, campfire chatting, good food eatin', airstream sleeping & so much more!

please see here for more details!

if you would like to register for the workshop, please email me at natalie.j.freeman(at)gmail.com

overnight package: $700

one day package: $275

**DON'T FORGET: those who register & pay today (5/12) for the overnight package, receive 10% off!

we absolutely cannot wait to meet you!

love,

natalie

our spring front porch + registration opens TOMORROW!

don't forget! registration opens TOMORROW for the canning & preserving workshop on our farm! see here for more exciting details!! 

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we have a friend who jokes that money & nature are his love languages. forget quality time & physical touch, he wants dollar bills & a hiking trail.

i get that. 

because if i'm being real, happy porches are my love language. 

when i spot a good porch, i often slow down, backing up traffic, in an effort to take a few mental notes. chippy furniture, pretty wreaths, planters overflowing with flowers, ferns & cute welcome mats are indeed my drug of choice.

tell me i'm not the only one. 

so when i was at ikea last month & spotted these galvanized pots (for about $25 each, i believe), i danced in the aisles. i snatched up some pretty flowers from the nursery & a new spring porch was born!

paired with a happy metal initial (purchased at a craft fair last year), our new porch planters are my favorite!

& of course, in true natalie creates fashion, i couldn't help but add a sweet little salvaged shutter & chippy chair to the mix! 

up next on the to-do list - paint that trim!

do you love decorating your porch for the different seasons? please share your fun ideas with us!

love,

natalie