Raised Garden Bed Tips & Free Supply List

If I wasn't a difficult person I would have settled with having a garden the good ol' fashioned way... in the ground. However, I like what I like and I am blessed with a hubby who has construction skills and entertains all of the ideas I throw at him.

I did a LOT of research on raised garden beds earlier in the spring. I wanted to make sure it was built the right way (for us) without cutting out the most important tips. If you are looking at building a raised garden bed, there are many benefits that come with it.

Part of the process is laying down landscaping fabric which cuts back on the weeds that come through. I don't like to weed, do you? Even though we built a ledge on my raised garden bed, the height of one without it will still prevent back sprain! Although I am in my late twenties, I get bad back pain if I'm hunched over too long and pulling back muscles is a common occurrence. I liked the idea of being able to garden at a more comfortable height! Also, the confined space is pretty sweet, my daughter's won't be accidentally trampling the garden over or be motivated to run through it!

Download the list here

Raised garden beds can also be inexpensive! I have created a supply list and you are free to use it to your hearts content! This is for a simple 4'x4' garden bed but you can adapt it to any size you would need.

The important thing to remember when building your garden bed is to make sure the wood is untreated and unstained. Cedar is the best option for this project! The chemicals from the treated/stained wood can seep into the soil and poison your crops. We would not want that!

For our garden, we went off of the methods above but visited our local landscaping company for organic soil. We topped that with cow manure as well as miracle grow. For our garden bed and all of the plants included, we probably spent about $150. It's a lot  more than the list above, but it comes with a ledge, it's taller, and it is a 4'x8'. That's what I love about these raised garden beds. There are so many ways you can make it your own!

Cucumbers!

The majority of what I buy at the grocery store is produce. That stuff aint cheap! So I know we will get our money's worth. If you are just wanting something simple, easy, quick, and inexpensive, the list is a great way to go! You will still have an adorable enclosed garden bed and will be producing your own crops! It can be as fancy or as basic as you want it to be. The list is more as a guide and gives you an idea about what to expect in the price department.

If you make a garden bed using my list, please link back with a picture! I would love to see how yours look :)

I hope this is helpful! If you have any questions, please ask.

Thanks for visiting,

Amanda

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Raised Garden Bed

We have high plans for our backyard and a garden was one of them! So for Mother's Day and our anniversary, my hubby built me my very own. We finished it over the weekend and I am so excited and already looking ahead to when I can start canning! I have never done that before either but I am excited to learn.

It was his idea to add the ledge and I love it. It makes for a great seat. Oh and never mind our patchy yard, we have plans to level out the entire backyard which is why the garden bed looks uneven!

I am not one who likes to sweat and be around bugs. However, I have wanted a garden for about two years now. I think I can push through the bug issue when the garden gets further along. I already have plans on buying gloves so I don't have to pick anything off barehanded. Hopefully. I am a beginner, so we shall see. HA! I love it so far. My daughters love going outside with me every afternoon to check on the progress. I was worried about overcrowding so the other day my hubby built a lower level off of the garden bed and this is where we planted watermelon, spinach, and pumpkin. My cherry tomato plant went down there as well!

Up top we planted: red, yellow, and orange bell peppers, carrots, romaine and iceberg lettuce, roma tomatoes, better boy tomatoes, zucchini, and yellow squash.

We walked out this morning and saw our Better Boy tomatoes starting to flower! I also have an issue with ants. I sent out a plea on Facebook and a friend soon brought over cayenne pepper which i sprinkled all over the garden. I had tried cinnamon but it didn't work!

Recently, I created a budget list as one of my final projects in school that was for a raised garden bed. So I know these can be done inexpensively. I will share with you the supply list for a basic raised garden bed and what we spent for ours later this week :).

Thanks for visiting!

Amanda

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Target Inspired Photo Frame

So guess what? I just finished my 20 credit hour semester and... I survived! I am currently on summer break although I am taking one summer class. It is online so it doesn't really count. I am looking forward to more blogging and relaxing. I have a lot to share with you, we have been busy!

First thing's first. I was at Target awhile back and saw these frames:

Come on.  I mean. So cute right? I started to picture where I would put them in my house when I thought, I could totally make these! So... I did. Sort of. They're not an exact replica but I love them, and I love how Target continues to inspire me to make decor on the cheap!

Here are the supplies I used:

I also used Mod Podge, binder clips with magnets (although the magnet serves no purpose, it is just what I had on hand), mini alphabet stamps ($1 at JoAnn's), black ink pad, and scrapbooking paper ($1 at Target!). There's a lot I left out of the photo! :)

This is the part where we pretend I have step by step pictures.

First I painted my wood frames (I keep a stock of these but they are $1 from Michaels) with the silver acrylic paint. I painted the sides of the frame as well as the inside part of the center frame. I didn't want any bare wood to show through the burlap!

I placed the burlap on top of the frame and cut out where the center would be. I used Mod Podge to adhere it together and to be honest, I wasn't sure if this would work. I did like how easy it was to line up the cut center of the burlap to the frame so it'd be straight! Luckily, it adhered nicely and I haven't had any problems with it peeling off.

I took my alphabet stamps and stamped "I love you forever and ever." onto the burlap. This part was a little frustrating. The stamps were too small so I had to carefully stamp over each letter to make it readable. I'm sure with a larger alphabet this would be easier too accomplish!

I also took the twine ($1 at Target!) and framed where the picture would go and inserted a piece of scrapbooking paper from a paper pack that was also at the Target dollar spot.

I hot glued the binder clip above the frame and printed out an Instagram photo using my Canon Selphy.

My stamping is a little crooked but I like it that way! I think it turned out super cute. While it's not an exact version of the two at Target, it is my own. The best part is I used up some of my stash to get it finished! My craft room is still under construction so any chance I can craft, I'm going to take it.

I have a list of posts I want to share with you so be on the look out!

Thanks for visiting,

Amanda

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