The end of the summer is the time for abundance and celebration. Catching the last few weeks of summer, families are filling days with those last-minute activities that we don’t want to miss before getting ready for the school season to start. It’s an ideal time for home and garden Do It Yourself (DIY) projects, from simple to advanced. Our favorite home and garden DIY projects require only basic materials to create inspiring displays. Home and garden DIY projects can make use of all the different themes, from animals to flowers to home grown foods. Natural elegance and charm will shine through all your end-of-summer home and garden DIY projects. Here are a couple of great ideas to get you started:
Drying Herbs:
For the home herb garden, the end of the summer is the perfect time to harvest leaves and stems, drying them for savory use in the winter cooking season. A beautiful home and garden DIY project is an herb drying wreath. Start with an embroidery hoop or ring for a nursery mobile, which can be purchased at any craft store. For a decorative look, wrap the ring with garden twine, stringing favorite beads onto the twine along the way. Gather cut herbs into small bunches, with fresh leaves and stems intact. Wrapping the ends of the stems with the garden twine, about one inch from the tip, hang the bunches in a display around the ring, upside down with stems towards the ring and leaves hanging down. Place each bunch hanging at a different height. Experiment with different lengths and see what looks beautiful to you! Using 4 pieces of twine at an equal length, about 12-18 inches, tie the 4 twine ends evenly to the 4 quadrants of the wreath hoop, and gently pull the twine strings taut to tie a looped knot at the opposite end. This home and garden DIY herb drying wreath has a classic style and will spread a comforting fragrance to the kitchen, pantry or porch where it is hung.
Garden Flowers:
For a home with flower gardens, the end of summer is a tremendous time for a beauty and satisfaction! The possibilities are endless for using flower blossoms in home and garden DIY projects. Edible petals, such as violets, roses, lavender and nasturtiums, can be frozen into eye-catching ice cube trays and served in beautiful summer drinks with a spring of fresh mint and a thin slice of lemon. A bowl of fresh water, with a few glass beads or river stones at the bottom and a couple of large blossoms floating atop, looks gorgeous in any home’s front hallway, living room, or bathroom. Unique vases can be a satisfying project for any age: simple glass vases can be purchased at any craft or dollar store, decorated uniquely with papier-mâché, magazine and catalog photo clippings, or acrylic paint, and protected with “Mod Podge” or another similar sealant. For flower arrangements designs, experiment with different themes, colors, textures and heights. Fresh flowers can be crafted into wreaths that can hang on a door or wrap around the bottom of a vase, the edge of a basket, as a charming ring around a home baked cake, or nestled safely at the base of a beautiful unlit pillar candle.
Let your imagination and inspiration guide you! There are no limits to the home and garden DIY projects that can bring your garden into your home at the end of the summer.
