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At The Picket Fence with Vanessa Hunt

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June 6, 2013

A Potting Bench Love Story

dressing_up_potting_bench atthepicketfence.com

I’ve always wanted a potting bench. Just typing out the words ‘potting bench’ makes me feel as though I should be walking through my peaceful English garden wearing a long, flowing dress, wide-brimmed floppy hat and carrying a basket over one arm filled with cuttings from my flower beds. I would take them over to my hand-crafted potting bench, select the perfect vessel for them and create gorgeous arrangements without ever getting a speck of dirt on my long, flowing dress.

But, I don’t have an English garden. And the last time I wore a long flowing dress I kept tripping over it when I had to climb stairs. I have some rose bushes but I wear flip-flops to snip their blooms and I have yet to be able to put plants in a pot without winding up covered in dirt.

And, my potting bench comes from Big Lots.

wood_potting_bench atthepicketfence.com

But, as in all good love stories, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

And sometimes a few accessories help to enhance that natural beauty.

Like mason jars filled with lavender.

potting bench decor www.atthepicketfence.com

 And a variety of pots waiting for the right plants.

potting_bench_accessories www.atthepicketfence.com

Maybe a vintage galvanized bucket could be used to hold soil (It makes me sound more gardener-y to say ‘soil’ instead of ‘dirt’ right?)

vintage galvanized bucket atthepicketfence.com

And a metal scooper-thing-a-ma-jig that reminds you of something Laura Ingalls would have used to drink water from Plum Creek.

vintage scoop atthepicketfence.com

My potting bench might not be nestled in the English countryside, but it still brings a touch of simple beauty and nostalgia to my little corner of suburbia.

lavender in mason jars atthepicketfence.com

 Now if I could only figure out how to keep it from getting dirty….

potting_bench_and_garden_accessories www.atthepicketfence.com

And my potting bench and I lived happily ever after!

1553F4F30A9801A6AFB3E9C624118E7B

15 Comments Filed Under: Decorating, Gardening Tagged With: potting bench, wood potting bench

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Comments

  1. Anne@DesignDreams says

    June 6, 2013 at 6:54 AM

    Beautiful! and for the record, I always wander around my garden in a long sundress with a floppy hat and a basket for putting clipped flowers into. So Pride and Prejudice of me.

    Well, at least once every summer I do that – the rest of the time I look like the farmer in the dell, or is it Elmer Fudd? Big rubber boots, paint stained carpenter pants and a tank top are more like my usual garden outfit. LOL

    Enjoy your pretty potting bench!

    xox

    Reply
  2. Kim says

    June 6, 2013 at 6:54 AM

    Big Lots? Cool. Oh, you know it is supposed to get dirty.

    Reply
  3. Sandy says

    June 6, 2013 at 7:50 AM

    One day, some day, my potting bench will appear. I have a special place for it, so if you dream it, it will come…something like that, ha, ha. I do have the lavender ready:)

    Reply
  4. Tonia@thegunnysack says

    June 6, 2013 at 8:27 AM

    Beautiful! I need to get to work on doing some planting. It has been so cold here in MN this spring that I haven’t really felt like planting yet.

    Reply
  5. Cynthia says

    June 6, 2013 at 9:28 AM

    This potting bench looks so lovely. That galvanized bucket is just beautiful, I really like the patina!

    Cynthia

    Reply
  6. Miss Charming says

    June 6, 2013 at 9:43 AM

    Cute styling! It’s nice how fresh and pretty flowers can transform an item.

    Reply
  7. Heidi @ Decor & More says

    June 6, 2013 at 11:12 AM

    I’ve always wanted one of these! Who’d have thought of Big Lots? Love it, Vanessa!
    xo Heidi

    Reply
  8. Angela says

    June 6, 2013 at 11:58 AM

    I love that it’s from Big Lots!! LOL!! You’ve dressed it beautifully! Have a great day!~~Angela

    Reply
  9. Judy says

    June 6, 2013 at 2:09 PM

    I love your potting bench. You certainly have dressed it up.

    Reply
  10. Karen says

    June 6, 2013 at 2:53 PM

    I am cracking up with the long dress reference. That would be me. That is the loveliest Potting Bench! Please come over and stage mine because it looks nothing like this, AT ALL.

    Reply
    • At The Picket Fence says

      June 6, 2013 at 4:18 PM

      LOL! Frankly this one only looked nice long enough to get those pictures! Now it’s a true “working” potting bench but I just think that adds character, don’t you? 🙂

      Reply
  11. susan says

    June 6, 2013 at 5:51 PM

    Vanessa I love your Big Lots potting bench. It is beautiful as is or a great starting point for paint and bling… I love your bench!
    susan

    Reply
  12. Bruce Johnson says

    June 13, 2013 at 7:53 AM

    Great project! I still have a cedar one I assembled years ago. I give it a coat of Teak Oil once a year to protect it.

    Reply
  13. Shirley@Housepitality Designs says

    June 19, 2013 at 5:41 PM

    What a great potting bench…Big Lots??..I need to go there more often…I just created a potting bench a couple of months ago…I am hinting around for a garden cottage…I may have to wait a long while for that!….Beautiful bench Vanessa!!!..and when you find out how to keep it from getting dirty…let us know!!! 🙂

    Reply
  14. Jasmine says

    February 24, 2014 at 10:08 AM

    The potting bench looks great!

    Reply

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