Local Outside

Garden Walks, 2009

Last weekend was filled with flowers. The Oak Park Garden Walk took place last Saturday, and I went by myself (very quickly) to six of the nine gardens included. Then on Sunday, I took Eleanor along to the Park Ridge Garden Walk where we met up with my mom and her two youngest, Ross and Francesca. We also saw six (out of seven) gardens on Sunday, but it took a little longer with three children under five along. ;) Here are a few highlights…

This was easily the star of the Oak Park Garden Walk. There were 50′ arborvitae surrounding the property.

Garden Entrance

When you entered the garden you felt like you had been transported to a different place.

Garden Entrance

There were glass spheres in the garden, tucked amongst the flowers. This photo doesn’t capture how beautiful they were — they looked like bubbles.

Glass Spheres

There was also a lovely potting bench and bicycle. I’m sure it looks like this all the time, right?

Potting Bench

Moving on to some of the other gardens, here’s an awesome bamboo fence…

Bamboo Fence

A fun bird topiary…

Bird Topiary

A striking white hosta…

White Hosta
(I want some of these in my garden too.)

An old bicycle as a planter…

Bicycle as Planter

And a tooth-shaped toy box that was turned into a planter for the garden of a dentist.

Tooth Planter

It all just makes me want to do more work to our little garden! Not so easy with a newborn, but at least the planning is almost as much fun as the doing.

p.s. If you want to see more photos of the Park Ridge Garden Walk, my mom has been posting them on her blog.

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  • Katie
    July 3, 2009 at 11:03 pm

    Love the topiary and all its quirkiness!

  • Brooke
    July 3, 2009 at 11:20 pm

    I love the bubbles! Makes me wish God had blessed me with more of a green thumb…and a back yard!

  • Bonnie
    July 4, 2009 at 6:12 am

    As I said, we have an old arts and crafts house in Crown Point, IN (just south of Chicago). We have a small “garden” but love trying new things. Thanks for sharing. Love those glass “bubbles”. Any idea where they are available?

  • John at This Young House
    July 4, 2009 at 8:39 am

    That garden walk looks awesome, Nicole. Thanks for sharing the pics. The glass spheres totally reminded me of you.

    Also, thanks for the link to your mom’s blog. The story behind “Tomato Drill” was cracking me up.

    Hope the great weather continues for you guys!

    -John

  • Making it Lovely
    July 4, 2009 at 10:18 am

    Bonnie, there was actually a lot of glass in that first garden and it all came from Prodigy Glassworks.

  • robin
    July 4, 2009 at 12:28 pm

    a garden walk?! i love that idea!

  • Aspirations of a Southern Housewife
    July 4, 2009 at 12:41 pm

    Great shots of the focal points! I love going on garden walks for inspiration…Lots of work to get a garden to that point, but so worth it I think.

  • Amanda Nicole
    July 4, 2009 at 9:20 pm

    Those glass orbs are absolutely magical! What a fun walk.

  • christina in nh
    July 4, 2009 at 11:28 pm

    glass orbs, feh. the tooth planter clearly wins the garden walk. i want one! :(

  • French furniture
    July 5, 2009 at 8:36 am

    The glass orbs are definitely great!

  • melissa
    July 5, 2009 at 11:40 am

    your mom’s blog killed my computer! so many full-sized photos! she should employ a cut-post or something.

    also, you have a baby and she has two four year olds?

  • Making it Lovely
    July 5, 2009 at 12:46 pm

    I know, I told her about the full-sized photos! And she has a five-year old and a two-year old (and a 22-year old also).

  • Christine
    July 5, 2009 at 1:54 pm

    Those photos are so inspiring! I’m working on my garden, but it is very time intensive (and expensive). But the results are so worth all the time. Thanks for the inspiration!

  • Tommy Bahama Bedding
    July 5, 2009 at 7:41 pm

    I love the old bicycle used as a planter – really cute idea :)

  • joanna goddard
    July 5, 2009 at 8:06 pm

    these photos are lovely. they make me want to go outside.

  • amanda
    July 5, 2009 at 10:31 pm

    Aw, wish I had known about the Park Ridge one! Great photos!

  • featherbed
    July 8, 2009 at 3:52 pm

    is that pot shaped like a tooth? :) This garden is beauuuuutiful!!