To be on schedule, we knew we had to finish the house today. We also needed to complete  the water feature. This is the only way that we would have time to complete the plantings, the "entrance sculpture," and all the details. By 2 am, we had met all these goals. And although many of the displays around us were really starting to take shape, our display still looks like it has miles to go.   We are not worried… Read All

Today was the first day of the flower show set-up and we had everything planned out perfectly. We were to meet at our shop at 7 am where we would load up a 20-ton trailer and 10-wheel dump truck with our 12 palettes of stone. Next we would load up a box truck with additional wood pieces, branches, and pine trees. We had loaded our trucks and trailers yesterday so we were ready. Imagine my surprise when I received a phone… Read All

Well, we can only control what we can control, right? I just received word from the greenhouse in New Hampshire who is forcing the majority of our flowering plant material that almost all the plants we chose for the show are NOT producing flower buds. Ummm, the start of the show is two weeks away!  As we normally do, we wanted to push the envelope with the plant selection and knew that this might pose a problem.

When I look around at our shop and see the piles of stone that we already have, and then hear Neil tell  me we need more stone, I just let out a sigh. Mostly because all I can think is, "How are we going to get all of this to the show, installed, and then removed?" We must have some good karma though because once again, we are blessed with people who are willing to help us out. This year, Scott Grenon, of Grenco,… Read All

Ha!Ha!Ha! I could not resist adding in this photo of our Dewalt hammer drills. I'm thinking if word gets out, maybe they could sponsor our display! In all seriousness, we've been splitting granite for what feels like days on end. I can't complain though, the drills are doing the hardest part of the work, and quite well I might add.       On second thought, I probably am complaining to myslef in this… Read All

As part of our winter marketing, we attended our first home show for the Connecticut Builder's Association. This year it was  at the Mohegan Sun Casino. I have to say, we were quite impressed by the place. It's like walking into a stage set. But we were there strictly for business so there was no time to try our hand at Lady Luck.           Since Neil is a licensed landscape… Read All

We were lucky enough to find some salvaged granite to incorporate into our structure. Although it will be a good amount of work to prep the pieces, using large pieces of granite will provide a great impact to the structure we are building.       We've drilled holes in the granite that we are moving, and using a hook that is normally used for moving trees and a forklift, we are able to set the large… Read All

I'm convinced that Neil is enjoyong this project so far because it's been an excuse for us to buy some power tools! With our new nail gun, we managed to build our frame components in one day. And although I too enjoy a good power tool, after I shot a nail in the vicinity of Neil's foot, we both agreed that perhaps that was NOT the power tool for me. So, back to the saw I went!       Our next step

What's a better way to start off the new year than to sort through stone piles in 15 degree weather? Ok, maybe sitting on a beach in the Caribbean with a margarita in hand would be better, but alas, that's just not in the cards at the moment. Instead, we have begun the process of building our display for this year's Rhode Island Flower Show. This year's theme is Timeless Gardens.  I won't give away our… Read All

  Winter is definitely here!Progress on our latest project has been slow to non-existent at this point. We're hopeful that we will get a few warmer days here and there to be able to keep working. In the meantime, we are gearing up for what will be a busy winter. We are prepping for home shows (three this year, we must be crazy) and the Rhode Island Flower Show. I thought winter was supposed to be relaxing in this… Read All