Charlottesville Newcomers Club Tours Innisfree

Happy Newcomers Club Members during tour.

Yesterday members of The Community Outreach Committee of the Newcomers Club of Greater Charlottesville took a trip out to Innisfree Village in Crozet, Virginia.  Innisfree is a wonderful 550 acre community where intellectually disabled adults (coworkers) live with full-time residential volunteers and support staff.

The Community Center

Even though it was a sweltering day, it's just a little bit cooler at Innisfree which is located near White Hall in the foothills of the Shenandoah Mountain range.

Herbal Soaps wrapped in felted Lambs Wool.

We were greeted by Nancy who took us on a tour of the village and introduced us to some of the residents who were busy weaving beautiful blankets, placemats, and scarves or preparing to plant 1,000 Sweet Potato starts.  It's not all work and no play, there is a really nice pool and many residents were preparing to jump in to cool off.

A cooks dream, Bloggett Ovens.

We visited the Bakery where Granola and Bread is baked.  It's complete with two massive commercial pizza ovens.  We also toured the wood shop where beautiful handmade wooden utensils and cutting boards were being assembled.

I'm always drawn to farm animals and herbs so I enjoyed seeing the free roaming Lambs and Chicken Coops complete with lots of Chickens.

Eggs and Granola can be purchased at Rebecca's Natural Food in Charlottesville.  We toured the Herb House were soaps are made and cut flowers are bundled to resell at the local Grocery, and the smell was divine.  Residents grow crops and flowers to enjoy and also to sell (some items can be purchased online).  Innisfree is quite a busy place.

Beautiful Peonies ready for the market.

The organizational purpose at Innisfree is "...to acknowledge the reciprocal relationship between human and health and the natural environment."  I guess that's why I'm so impressed with Innisfree, the environment is respected as are the human beings.

-Rebecca

Online Shopping from Virginia Etsy Sellers

From my shop, Golf Greats Coasters

There are some really wonderful items to be found on Etsy.  If you have never purchased an item from an Etsy Shop, let me provide you with a little background information.  Etsy basically provides a central online storefront to individual shop owners that exclusively sell vintage, handmade, or supplies to crafters.

Some really unique items can be found on Etsy... just about anything old or a unique new handmade item.  Etsy sellers are known to have a high customer satisfaction ratings.  My personal experience is that Etsy sellers are professional and eager to please.  I'm featuring a few items from Virginia sellers that I've met through selling on Etsy that sell unique items.

I love this set of 5 oil cans from Billie with Vintiques and More.  Put a little sand in one and it would make the cutest paperweight.  Add a little wooden "L" shape stand and it would make the best bookend.  All sorts of things can be done with these shabby chic cans.  Hard to find the days but made to last, a great Industrial find.  Billie and I opened our shops around the same time and chat often.  She runs her shop from Radford, Virginia and one of her items may be published soon in a major publication.  How neat is that!

Truffle Pig Vintage is a local Charlottesville Etsy Shop owner that specializes in beautiful silver and turquoise Jewelry pieces.  Diana is coaching me on how to improve my Facebook Business page (and boy do I need coaching in that area).  She has a lovely shop with vintage items that would make lovely Gifts!  What a memorable and cute shop name!  A special offer just for my readers, FREE SHIPPING through 5/12, use coupon code FHFSHIP on checkout.

I just love the imaginative Oh So Smitten on Etsy who creates wonderfully quirky invitations and art.  Christina is also a local Charlottesville artist that participates in our Cville Collective pinterest Online Shopping Board.  Created for local shoppers to find wares, saving you shipping fees. Live local, buy local -  meet the seller - see your item before purchase and shipping is FREE.

Lastly, Vintage Renude offers a mix of collectibles and a little bit of this and that but I especially like her clothing and linens.  I just dare you to try and find a black top with a feather neck!  Another participant in our Cville Collective pinterest Online Shopping Board, Pam is on the prowl for bringing finds to you.

Etsy offers such a wide mix of items so the next time you need a gift, funky find, invitation, or party wear go to Etsy.  I go here first to support fellow small business owners creative minds.

-Rebecca

Historic Garden Week - Richmond VA Gardens

Whimsical garden on Kanawha

This week during Historic Garden Week in Virginia, we spent the day visiting 8 homes in Richmond, VA. The beautiful gardens and homes kept us entertained so we didn't notice the chill in the air.

Garden Club of Virginia Headquarters

We started our tour at the Garden Club of Virginia Headquarters at the incredible Kent Valentine House. Located downtown nestled in massive Southern Magnolia Trees that predate the house (1845)! This antebellum mansion was saved from the wrecking ball by the club in 1971 and spurred preservation in that part of Richmond. Completely furnished by members, it hosts wedding receptions and events.

Hydrangea

The bulk of the tour focused on the historic secluded Chatham Hills neighborhood located just minutes from the Country Club of Virginia.  Most homes were built in the 1920s so there are many majestic trees in a park like setting with plenty of privacy. This time of year offers Spring colors of pastels with touches of fresh green growth. It's a beautiful time of year to celebrate a new season.

Richmond's version of a "pool house" - WOW.

My favorite garden on the tour was the whimsical 7 Kanawha Road. We spent over an hour looking at the statuary, wall of masks, and plantings located right on top of the Kanawha Canal and behind what once was a pool house for a nearby mansion. We had a good laugh over Richmonders definition of a pool house as this was most definitely the biggest pool house on the planet.

Red Poppy w/ Pansies in the background

The last garden that we visited, 129 Brookschase Ln, obviously belonged to a plant collector because of all the plant varieties in the yard. I loved the shrub collection, Poppies and herb bed.  My favorite, must have plant, on the tour, was a Sinocalycalycanthus or Sweet Shrub Hybrid.  I also fell in love with a beautiful Holly that was planted at several homes along the tour coated with big yellow spring pom pom blossoms.

Rear of home on Kanawha Road.

The icing on the cake are the breathtaking Floral Arrangements designed by Club members. It was a beautiful tour and garden club volunteers were welcoming and kind.  I can't wait to see where next year takes me!  More photos will be posted on my tumblr blog.

-Rebecca

Historic Garden Week in Virginia

Peppermint striped Camelia, Academical Village Gardens, UVA

This week is the annual Historic Garden Week in Virginia.  We're heading to Richmond tomorrow as it seemed to have the most bang for your buck within our range of an hours drive from Charlottesville, Virginia.

Most important to me are extensive gardens.  Some tours focus more on the interior of the home than the exterior gardens.  I decided the Chatham Hills / Windsor on the James neighborhoods in Richmond tour to be described as being more heavy on the gardens.

We'll see - regardless, check it out, the tours go through this coming weekend and are always top notch!  I'll be publishing a follow up after the tour.

Old Oak on Forsythia Hill, Charlottesville, Virginia

Today is also Earth Day! Be kind to your planet, it has so much beauty and pleasure to offer. I'm proud to say that so far this year I've not accepted one plastic bag from any store! It's easy to carry a shopping bag once you get used to it.  Set a goal and you won't forget!

-Rebecca

Through the Garden Gate Tours 2013

Bold white Daffodil, possibly Mount Hood.

Yesterday kicked off the annual Piedmont Master Gardeners garden tour series, Through the Garden Gate.  Occurring the 2nd Saturday of the month from 9 - noon, hosted at a different garden each month. The immaculately landscaped gardens of Deborah and Sam Kellam were featured on this first tour.

Brilliant Blue Anemone

The Kellam home is gracefully perched on a small knoll in an open landscape with pockets of large trees and carefully designed beds. The minimal exertion required to walk the front yard is all but forgotten as you enjoy the peeps of Spring flowers dotted throughout. The yard and home exterior were kept very tidy and many plants were even labeled just for tour participants.

Trout Lily

Deborah and Sam have landscaped their entire property themselves over a 40 year period. Many boulders and rocks have been hauled in to outline walkways and create steps. I enjoyed the flower beds in the front yard dotted with pretty little bits of this and that ~ Daffodils, Anemone, Helleborus, Hyacinth, Magnolia, Japanese Maple, flowering shrubs, and several varieties of Cryptomeria japonica are woven into the landscape.

A cozy place to enjoy the garden.

Walking around the side of the house to the backyard, one of my favorite nooks was a Red Japanese Maple artfully framed by a black stone wall.  The Maple was just leafing out but in full bloom the brilliant red must pop in front of the black stone.  As you approach the backyard, you are confronted with an expansive stand of huge trees meandering down a long slop.  Noticing that other neighboring yards were basically unusable due to the slop, it was quite a feat for this area to be usable by something other than wandering deer.  Carefully outlined pathways that were sturdy and safe for passage wound through a deciduous forest with splashes of shade loving creepers and yellow Woodland Poppies.

The bottom of the winding path in the magical backyard.

As I exited the backyard, I noticed the wonderful back decks overlooking the forest and could imagine it would provide a great outpost for bird watching.  I also noticed a double sized greenhouse window on the back of the cute garage.  It gave me the idea of removing a ramshackle window in my house and replacing it with something I could grow my seedlings in each year.  I always seem to pick up an idea or two during the tours.

Solitary Pale Yellow Tulip

Hands down, this is my favorite Charlottesville area annual garden tour event and it is affordably priced at $5.00.  Hope to see you at the next one.  2013 Garden Tour Schedule

-Rebecca