Lummis House

I went to the Urban Ranchero day at the Lummis Home last weekend, where there were talks on urban farming, beekeepng, chickens, and more importantly (to me), bringing wildlife into the yard.  But the real star was the house and gardens. 

Tiles

 

When I dream of my future estate, with its sweeping views and lavish grounds (a girl can dream...), it always involves some colorful tiles splashed around.  

DIY Small Fountain

  

I made a small fountain this weekend!  This is a really easy afternoon project, and you can follow my directions, or watch this video on the bettershelter blog.

I wanted a water feature to both add sound and encourage more birds in the yard.  Birds are drawn to water, especially in dry L.A.  I've been seeing a few scrub jays and bush tits around, and would love to see more.  I'll be sure to report back on who comes to visit.  Meanwhile, here are my directions on how to make a little fountain/bubbling bird bath:

Get a flower pot that is the size and shape you like.  I found this one on Craigslist for $10.  It's about 18 inches across and 7 inches deep -- just the right size for a bird or two.

Go to Home Depot, or your neighborhood hardware store, and get a small fountain pump and some epoxy putty.  I got the 60 GPH submersible fountain pump for about $20.  It's tiny and cheap.

Glue a few small tiles to the bottom of the pot to lift it up and make room for the pump cord.  I just used gorilla glue for this.  Put the cord through the hole at the bottom of the pot, and plug the hole with the epoxy.  This is where I had problems.  This stuff feels pretty toxic, and I have no idea how it works.  You break off a chunk of the putty and knead it until it turns a solid color.  Then you shape it where you want it, leave it, and in 10 minutes or so it's hard as steel.  I used gloves for this, and highly recommend it, although it does make it harder to work with.  It might take a few tries to get a water tight seal too, so be sure to test it and see if you need more putty.  Ideally, you use just enough to plug the hole and keep the cord in place.  Since I kept getting leaks, I ended up with a large wad of gray stuff on the bottom of my fountain, which makes it slightly tilted.  Oh well.

Once you have a water tight seal and the pump is in place, hide it with rocks or pebbles.  I harvested these perfectly smooth rocks from my grandmother's beach on Lake Erie ages ago.  They are special to me, and I love the way they look under water.  It reminds me of watching the soft waves lap against the rocky beach. 

 

Add water, plug in the fountain, and pour yourself a drink!  It's now time to enjoy the subtle sound of water and wait for the birds to come.   

If you want to see another super simple DIY, I also made a Patio Pendant Lamp to hang above the fountain. 

Wanderer

I have a soft spot for the feral cats behind our house.  Sometimes vicious, dirty, sick or ugly, they are not too different from the kitty I cuddle with every night.  Someone else feeds them but does nothing more to care for them, and I wish I could offer each of them a loving scratch behind the ears.  The most I've done is shovel up a dead one, and call animal services about an injured one.  And I let them sit in my garden.  This handsome marmalade is new, and I wouldn't mind if he lingered.

The Importance of Light

It's not hard to find amazing light in L.A.  Because the sun stays so low on the horizon here, we get golden colors that make great movies.  Casting shadows or spotlights, this effect also creates stunning moments in the garden, especially against a blank wall. 

Hello?

It's been kind of quiet here lately, but there will be more to see soon.  Garden inspiration, DIY projects, more bugs, and a review of the upcoming Urban Ranchero here in Highland Park.  I haven't just been taking photos of praying matids, although this guy greets me at work almost every morning lately.

Wish List

I am dreaming of when I can buy myself one of these hand-painted silk shirts by Rachel Rose.  What am I saying, one?  I'd buy them all.

Design Theory

My Design Theory class has me making small models out of anything I can find, as long as it is white.  I keep returning to working with paper, and paper just seems to want to look like Richard Serra sculptures.  Who am I to tell the paper what to do?

All images from Gagosian Gallery.  Found via even*cleveland.

Recent Acquaintances

The Praying Mantis was hanging out in the stairwell at work.  He's the third I've seen in that same spot, and the smallest of the three.  He was polite enough, but didn't like a camera in his face.

The Grasshopper was hiding out under the house, perhaps scared there by the gardeners.  He or one of his cousins tends to fly in my path as I leave in the morning.

And Mud Dauber.  I got to watch this guy in action which was really exciting.  It started with me finding a rather limp wolf spider tucked into one of my succulents.  After (rather rudely, I admit) poking at him with a stick a little, I moved him to another spot to recover from whatever was ailing him.  Then, from the left, I sensed a frantic flying thing and saw the flash of the black mud dauber.  What had I done with his paralyzed prey?  Never one to enjoy messing with the nature of things, I put the wolf spider back where I found him and left for a moment.  Both were gone when I returned, and I unfortunately did not get a picture of the spider being carried away.

Sometimes I forget how tropical L.A. is.  Then I find a parrot feather in the yard, and walk past sunlit bird of paradise leaves and it hits me.

Funny fact, bird of paradise is the Official Flower of the City of Los Angeles, but is native to South Africa.