Welcome To My Potting Shed ~

My potting shed is my favorite place to hang out. I not only use it for gardening but also as a place to do projects, read books, listen to music, etc... My husband and I each have our own special creative spaces ~ I have my potting shed and he has his workshop! We love searching for vintage pieces for those areas and also for our home. Welcome to my potting shed!

 

This is the small porch area of my potting shed. The potting shed is 11ft. x 22ft. so it gives me plenty of space to work on projects

 Morning Glories & Hyacinth Bean flowers climb the trellis of the porch on the potting shed.


This old scale planted with Lobelia hangs outside the potting shed door.

There's a little bench along the one side of the porch which is used to display vintage pieces and flowers. I usually change it out several times during the summer

These two benches provide a large work surface for projects and potting plants.

 

I love this little nook area in my potting shed. It has a drying rack for my flowers and a wash tub table in it.

 

I used an old window frame to make a drying rack for my flowers. I simply suspended it from the ceiling and hung flowers from the grids. It works great!

These double galvanized laundry tubs are a favorite of mine! I used a porcelain top from a Hoosier that I'm not using right now and placed it on the tubs to create a table. I store items in the tubs and the top makes a nice space to display some gardening items.

A display on the laundry tub table ~ an old kitchen scale, plants, vintage nozzles, a couple of my favorite old garden tools etc...

Every garden shed needs a comfy chair to read or relax in!

Old telephone insulators are displayed above three of the windows.

A pretty tin bucket hangs from a vintage cast iron coat rack

Trailing Ivy, planted in an enamelware pan sits atop the old kitchen scale.

There are four large windows and one small one that provide a lot of light for my potting shed. I used vintage hankies on rods to make valances for them.

I took an old wooden box that my dad had once stored nails in and used it to display a few of my flower frogs. I turned it upright and placed it between the two studs. It fit perfectly!

These shelves under the end work bench provide space to store pots.

 

 

In this corner hangs a picture of lilacs, some graniteware, old tools, lavender hanging from an antique pulley, dynamite box, ball jars, etc...

I turned my Grandpap's old wooden dynamite box on it's side and set the Ball jars on it. Ball jars are the prettiest shade of blue!



 

These are a few of my vintage brass nozzles that I collect.

 

 

A few of my flower frog collection are displayed in this old wooden box.

 

 

Some of my watering can collection ~ I scatter them throughout my potting shed, gardens and porch in the summer.

 

 

 

 

I like collecting old garden tools. They were made in so many colors and interesting shapes.There are vintage garden tools hanging throughout the potting shed and also displayed in buckets.

 

 

 

An old double galvanized bucket holds old garden tools.

 

These double porcelain laundry tubs are used to store potting soil. The small enamelware pans hanging above them are used to scoop out the soil.

 

 

 

I save any broken terra cotta pots and reuse them by using the shards in the bottom of pots for drainage

An enamelware salt keeper holds twine and string.

I use this old graniteware strainer to store garden gloves and paper towels.

 

 

 

The old seed advertisement hangs above a small washboard.

This old Hoosier bottom stores vases and other floral supplies.

These shelves are used to store flower pots.

 

Back out on the porch of the potting shed sits an old milking stool along with a couple terra cotta pots planted with geraniums.

 

 

 

My Grandpap's coal bucket, planted with pansies found a home on the porch this summer.

 

 

 

Every garden can use a little humor! ~ This old enamelware bed pan is planted with ivy & hangs on the outside of the potting shed.

 

 

Thanks for stopping in to visit my potting shed! ~ Judy

 

 

Peonies ~ Pretty & Pink!

I always look forward to the Peonies blooming in the Spring. Although their flowers are short lived, there is nothing that compares to their large showy blossoms

Their sweet fragrance drifts through out the garden, especially early in the morning. Gorgeous blossoms and sweet fragrance ~ who wouldn't want that as part of their garden?

Beautiful pink frilliness!

A Peony - in waiting!

 

Peonies exude a sweet sap that ants love!

A partially opened bud

Sad Iron

I was always curious as to why these were called sad irons. So I did what I usually do when I'm curious about something ~ I googled it! I found out that apparently sad is the old English word for solid or heavy ~ And solid they are! I can't imagine ironing with these ~ they are so heavy! I found this vintage sad iron at an auction a couple years ago.

Transforming Our Downed Tree Into A Bench ~

Our huge old Mulberry tree was brought down during a bad storm. We loved this old tree and miss seeing it's silhouette on the skyline at night. The Mulberry tree was a favorite of the birds because it was always loaded with berries. It's the reason my kids, growing up always had purple stained feet in the Summer.

My husband decided to make a bench out of part of the tree. He collects antique tools and thought it would be a fun challenge to use only those and no power tools to make it.

He used an axe & wedge to split the log. Then the bark was removed with a draw knife. A hatchet was used to rough shape the top. The top was then smoothed by using wood planes & the draw knife. Then lots & lots of hand sanding!

He enjoyed the challenge & satisfaction of making it with tools that craftsmen of the past would've used. It's nice to have a little piece of our tree displayed in our home.

The color and beauty of the grain needed no stain ~ only a couple coats of poly to protect it.
 

Chisels were used to inset the legs. I love the interesting looking knobby legs!

Three of tools that were used to make the bench, sitting on top of an old carpenters box.

This old wooden plane is a little work of art in itself ~ love the horn shaped knob!

These draw knives were a very useful and versatile tool used by early craftsmen.

Miller Falls #22 wood plane used to smooth the top

A carpenter himself, my husband collects antique tool boxes also. This old carpenter box is the one that the tools were sitting on.

 

 

 

I love the decorative brass handle and the copper nameplate on the old carpenters box.