This post was originally published January 1, 2008. During the busy holiday time we thought a trip back in the time machine mirror would give newer readers a chance to catch older posts they might have missed. Television refers to this as reruns. We prefer to think of it as recycling. Enjoy. (As always, the photos are clickable to enlarge). ~~~
We are remodeling maniacs. As soon as one project is completed a new one is being contemplated. This is the story of the stone facade for the addition joining the house to the garage. The space was measured and the amount of stone needed was calculated, perhaps erring on the side of too much is better than too little. A trip to the stone quarry showed this lovely Tennessee mountain rock. It was ordered, paid for and delivered. Yea! .jpg)
Hmmmm. This is not what the vision held as to the placement of the lovely material while waiting for the masons to begin their work. Someone will have to move the eight tons to a place out of the middle of the street. A car was parked behind the pile to prevent something bad from occurring. In truth a trip to the doctor resulted from the wheelbarrowing done.
Work has begun. It is looking so good. Love it, love it, love it.
The addition is covered and there is a lot of rock left over. How about a nice raised bed? What you don’t see in this photo is three more piles of stone much larger that this one. But there seems to be quite a bit of debris inside the bed area. Someone is going to have to remove that, add nice soil, tamp and rake. We are up to the task but will take it slowly. Do not put too much in a wheelbarrow at one time even if there is room for more. Injury can result. 
This looks good. It was decided to turn the stone on its side to go around the garage door and the foundation of the house. But we are not using up very much from the large piles blocking one garage bay.
Who cares about the car that is blocked inside the garage? Look at this great space to plant!
At the back corner is a chamaecyparis ‘Boulevard’ with a mature size of eight feet tall by two feet wide. Four juniperis squamata ‘Blue Star’s outline the front edge. In the fall many bulbs, daffodils, tulips and asiatic lilies are added.
A japanese maple is planted. It did not survive to see its first birthday however. That nasty late April freeze required replacing it with a crepe myrtle. But the fall blooming crocus speciosus are charming. The remaining stone, it is reported happily, has been used in the back garden for walls, paths and pond recontruction. More about that later. Some stone was given to lucky recipients for their own wall, path and pond. There is a small surplus of stone surrounding Ferngully I, for emergency stone transfusions. In love with stone, Frances
Fairegarden 
Added: The crepe myrtle maple replacement was moved to a sunnier spot, an edgeworthia was planted and also moved out to another spot, another Japanese maple was planted and is doing well in this raised planted bed.
Frances
Re-run, recycle … phooey! That’s what’s called great memories. I for one enjoyed seeing these photos. Somehow I think I missed the original screening.
Are you sure you’re not related to my husband? He buys interesting-looking stone by the truckloads and then tries to figure out what he can possibly do with them!
No… I dont think you’re that far gone 😉
Hi Sunita, thanks. I think your husband might be related to my husband, on the overbuying what materials you need for a project school! There is no such thing as too many stones. I can tell by the comments that very few people saw this, I had not signed up for the sitemeter yet to tell for sure though. Glad you enjoyed the rerun.
Frances
Hi Frances, very exciting post and wow what one can do with a few tons of stones. Very nice! I love stones and rocks, not necessarily my finger I prefer them in my garden/ Tyra
Hi Tyra, thanks. Very funny about the stone on a finger, too, I agree with you, better in the garden! HA
Frances
The stone looks wonderful and works so well with the blue paint you have used. I agree entirely about not worrying about the car either, who needs one when there are new planting opportunities at hand!
Zoë x
Hi Zoe, thanks. That was pretty exciting and still is to have that new bed right at the front of the house to plant up. I can sit on the wall and piddle there happily. There is nothing like an empty new bed, is there? 🙂
Frances
A nice rerun Frances. I would be jumping for joy if a big truck like this was delivering stone to my house. I would love to have a raised bed with stone edges.
Hi Lisa, hope you don’t mind but here is your original comment: OMGosh Frances. I have stone envy. I love stones, rocks…however you want to describe them. I love ‘em. Your project looks great. The planting is going to be marvelous when it fills out. Gee… if you can’t think of anything to do with your surplus, I could think of a few things…tee hee…
I appreciate all the comments you have left on my posts, sometimes you were the only non family member who did and I thank you!
Frances
I think this was like the first post I ever read here. Still a very good post too! As always:)
Hi Tina, of course you sent me on the hunt for your first comment, it was the rosemary post on December 22, 2007 seen here. 🙂
Frances
I looks just wonderful! I know all about over loading a wheelbarrow, (not the smartest thing I’ve done) I love the fact that you are letting us newcomers catch up, been wondering how all of your wonderful gardens came about.
Hi Darla, thanks. We do have to fear the wheelbarrow, I have stopped using it altogether, it really is too large for me to handle. So glad you like the flashback! 🙂
Frances
Although I’ve been blogging since early 2007, I didn’t find Blotanical until August 2008. Therefore, I really appreciate these earlier posts so that I can catch up on the gardens!
cameron
Hi Cameron, thanks for going back in time with me! 🙂
Frances
Do you know how good that stone looks to me now that we live in the land of sand? I am nearly drooling into my tea cup. Thanks for the walk down memory lane and chuckles (“emergency stone transfusions”).
Hi W2W, thanks. I do know what it is like to live in the land of sand, in southern CA and Houston. I love the mountains here, and the stone they are made from. The stones have been used for so many projects, from walls to paperweights. 🙂
Frances
Frances, Good Morning…Italian Roast consumed, sitting here thoroughly enjoying this post. I love remodeling stories and I love stone…What a wonderful marriage of my loves! Can you ever have too much stone…I think not! You’re stone work is perfect. It’s so warm here today I have the doors open for the breeze, too bad it’s raining! and your weather? Have a delightful weekend! Gail
Hi Gail, thanks. I agree, there is no such thing as too much stone. It is very cloudy, windy and warm here, I am working outside and coming in for short rests. Got to take advantage of this weather while it lasts. You too have a great weekend.
Frances
I enjoy your recycling much better than TV reruns, Frances:) I didn’t see this post in January, so I enjoyed seeing where all the lovely stone around your beds came from. This must have taken quite a few trips with the wheelbarrow!
Hi Rose, thanks so much. The wheelbarrrow got a workout and so did the Financier. I hurt myself so was cheering him on from the sidelines. The stone sat in front of the garage door for many months!
Frances
Frances, Since I hadn’t found you last winter I’m delighted with this re-run. Besides, we all like to reread favorite books – this is like finding a favorite passage marked with an old shopping list. Thank you.
Hi Pat, I didn’t have very many readers back then so this should be new to many. I love rereading my favorite books too, and I really really love your analogy! Thanks so much, it makes me smile to think of that old shopping list too.
Frances
When I saw that pile of rock my back went into spasm;) You’ve done a wonderful job with your stone. I don’t have much. I wander the fields in the spring and drag home fieldstone I find.
Marnie
Hi Marnie, I think you feel my pain! Stone is precious in the garden, I’ll bet your fieldstones are wonderful, thanks for the sympathic back spasm! 🙂
Frances
Ohhh this is WAY better than reruns! I love remodeling projects (especially when it isn’t me having to live with the chaos!) What an outstanding job you did with that stone! I love the raised bed espcially. I would love to see pictures of the bed this spring to see how much its grown! Thanks for sharing the memories, Kim
Hi Kim, thanks, I will be showing this bed in the spring for the bulbs were sort of rearranged this year with better spacing and colors so I have high hopes for it. Glad you enjoyed the repost. 🙂
Frances
Hi Frances, that was quite the job especially stacking the wall horizontally. Personally I love stone walls and paths in a garden creating boundaries and enticement to follow wondering what will I happen upon. Thanks for reposting.
Hi Cheryl, thanks for stopping by for the rerun. The stone masons were artists and very interesting to talk to while they took their breaks. It took over a week for them to do the big stacked wall and the foundation of the main house so we got to be friends. Stone and gardens just go together.
Frances
Wow, that’s a lot of stone to be hauling around. I don’t know if I could do all that myself! But it really looks beautiful. Today I saw some beautiful Arkansas stones that were recently delivered to the feed store/nursery. Wish I could figure out a place for them…
Hi Jean, thanks. It was a tremendous amount, so much more than we needed. The pond took a big portion, so did offspring Brokenbeat! As for the Arkansas stone, if you got them, I’m sure you could come up with something to do with them. I have reused mine all over the place with the dry stacked walls, taking them apart to do a better job or just making another wall someplace else. The stone never wears out! 🙂
Frances
I love the rock wall. You must just love it every time you pull into the driveway. Also, when you arrive by car, the planting area would be so cheery. I love the crocus and the Juniperis squamata color: it looks so rich against the stone and house.
I am a firm believer in orering a little extra. I am always getting teased that if I go to the store I always come back with more than specified. I believe in generosity in all things!
Now you have extra for emergency stone transfusions!( or another project!)
🙂
Philip
Hi Philip, thanks so much. It really did dress up our modest house and the color is perfect since it came from nearby mountains. Those blue star junipers are a staple planting here, used heavily in front, side and back gardens. You are most generous with your comments, so full of support and sweet words, thanks for that!
Frances
Frances, Thank you for sharing this piece of great inspiration… it definitely “rocks!” 😉 Seriously, you did a super amount of work and the most fun is that you have a flower bed to enjoy with the wonderful background.
Hi Shady, thanks so much, glad you enjoyed it. The work we did was to move the rock to the driveway out of the street! The stone masons laid the wall and built the bed for us, thank goodness. We did mortar the stone around the base of our deck in back, and learned a new appreciation of the art involved in rock wall building. I do love having the nice bed in front by the steps to the front door.
Frances
Oh, such a beautiful wall you got there. And the raised planted bed. I like that. On our back yard we have nine pallets filled with stones ment to be our “gardenwall”. By garden wall I meen a rised planted bed. I’ve already digged outfor the ground and when spring comes we will fill up with sand and then it’s ready to build the wall. I’m very exited about that! I’ll be a really big bed about 70 squaremeters. We also love stones and rocks in the garden. Our next project will be a pond surounded by rocks and plants. As you see we also have plans to full fill one by one =) gittan
Hi Gittan, thanks, we do love it and feel it was well worth the expense of the rock and the labor of the stone masons. Your garden plans sound delightful, what a beautiful large bed that will be for you to plant and ponds add so much to a garden. You certainly like to do big projects too. 🙂
Frances
I love stone; it’s so expensive here though. Is that your Saffron growing in the picture or is it something else?
Hi Randy, thanks for stopping by. We traveled to a place in the mountains about an hour from our home that is a major supplier to stone suppliers far and wide. We cut out the middleman and saved quite a bit, but it was still not cheap. The crocus is C. speciosus, not the saffron. It had its first bloom this fall when I did the post Mad About Saffron in October.
Frances
Wow, the finished result (on the house and as a raised bed) is lovely, but I admit the delivery piles leave a little something to be desired! Good idea recycling posts, btw!
Hi Monica, thanks, glad you liked the rerun, there are a couple of months of posts, before I figured out how to get going on Blotanical, that were seen by very few, but loyal readers. I thought I had signed up on Blot, but had neglected to do the final step about the feed, I had no idea what a feed even was! LOL
When the guy dumped the rock in the street in front of the house, there was nothing I could do about it except park the car kind of out in the street to keep people from running into it, especially at night. Luckily there is a street light right in front of our house, but a driver still would not see it well until they had ruined their car or worse! We had to hurry and move it, or the part that was really out in the street quickly and did so. Whew, what a job it was.
Frances
Nothing the matter with good reruns, Frances. Always much to learn that was missed first time around … and I love stone!
Hi Joey, thanks, glad you feel that way. Sometimes real life needs tending to! 🙂
Frances
Wow! I wish I didn’t live in earthquake country; I’d be afraid to do such glorious rock facing! The beds look absolutely gorgeous; like they’ve been there forever. That’s the beauty of rock, I guess – you get that sense of timelessness. Lovely!
Hi Genevieve, thanks so much. I know that the earthquakes and masonry don’t mix from our time living in southern CA. Rock does add permanence to any structure or garden and is indigenous rock to where my home is too, another reason we like it so much.
Frances
I picked your post this morning and forgot to leave a comment, lol. Got distracted. 😉 Thanks for reposting this today. I love the way the stone looks on your addition and the use of it in the planter bed as well. Even my non-gardening hubby was amazed! 🙂
Hi Racquel, thanks for coming back to comment, but I don’t ever check that stuff anyway and would never have known. Things are a little busy for me right now and I am falling way behind on picking at Blot and visiting other’s blogs. I do hope to catch up at some point. 🙂 My husband wanted the stone facing, I didn’t argue! And there was more than enough to build that bed and redo the pond and still have a lot left over. The stone masons that we hired were artists and love stone and fitting the right pieces together, we are more than pleased with the way it turned out. Glad your hubby recognized their artistry too. 🙂
Frances
Ah yes, the shower door and the southwest Tennessee gaffe. I should’ve remembered those two and known this was not the first post since I started reading in December and this was initially posted in January. Thanks for finding it! I am very glad I am still talking with you and still learning from you daily. hugs, tina
Hi Tina, hope you aren’t mad that I put that link up, but I thought it fun and just shows that you and I are both human! 🙂 Hugs back at you!
Frances
What a great idea Frances – replaying previous posts during a very busy time of year. I love the stone work, and I’m glad you recycled this post, as I missed it the first time around.
Hi Linda, thanks, glad you don’t mind a rerun, it gives me a little break and only a handful saw it originally.
Frances
I’m jealous, I neeeeed a pile of stone like that too. 🙂
Hi Lythrum, it is indeed very worthy of jealousy! 🙂 The leftover stones have been used all over the garden, so useful and lovely too. They never wear out! 🙂
Frances
Oooh, I love a good stone story. Thanks for recycling this one.
Hi Susan, thanks for dropping by. The stone speaks to gardeners and non gardeners alike and this stone is from our nearby mountains, we love the colors of it.
Frances
What a great re-run. I missed the original. We are somewhat of remodeling junkies ourselves so I like to see what other people do.
I can totally relate with the wheelbarrel advise, except mine was dirt instead of rocks. Luckily I’m fairly young and could just sit and rest the injury off since it wasn’t anything serious.
Hi Cinj, thanks. You do seem to have that remodeling bug too. 🙂 I have sworn off the wheelbarrow, dirt or rocks, it is just too much with my arms spread so wide apart like that, from now on it is buckets and not filled too full either.
Frances
I don’t envy you all the lifting and moving but the final results are superb. I assume the car is now able to leave the garage (not that that is at all important) 🙂
Hi EG, the moving of the rock was a huge job, there was a pile in front of the garage for many months and over to the side for over a year. I was so glad to see the last of it moved to the back and the driveway cleaned up. It was the view from my kitchen window over the sink, arghh! Yes, the car is out, we gave it to the kidney foundation last year about this time.
Frances
This is just lovely!
Recycled posts work for me.
I too am wild for stone.
Hope you and yours have a very
Happy Christmas.
Looking forward to getting to know you better in 2009.
Sherry
Hi Sherry, what a nice thing to say! Same to you. 🙂
Frances
Frances, Your stone siding is lovely. That’s a lot of stone you have there:) I have a few palates in our backyard, to encircle a garden area. But not enough, in my opinion! One can never have too much! I’d LOVE to buy more, but hubby’s not too into that right now…it does get pricey! Merry Christmas, Jan
Hi Jan, thanks, it was so much stone, but we have ended up using all of it in one way or another. You can never have enough, I agree. Really, it was a good thing that we got so much to be able to redo the pond, only one delivery cost which was a big expense. Have a merry Christmas for you and yours too. 🙂
Frances
i do remember the mirror. very nice. is it fogging up>?
nice bit of a renovation on the wall. i have been a little crazy with my renovations and have put them all on hold for a while, it actually feels good. don’t work thru christmas!
Hi Marmee, thanks for visiting. The mirror was not originally with the stone purchase post, I added that to be the time machine vehicle to go back in time, it is covered with frost! Christmas is not a good time for renovations, although we have done some then ourselves. Oh that Financier, don’t get me started!
Frances
That came out really nice. Looks like too much work for me but the end result is very impressive.
Hi Mr. Brown Thumb, thanks and welcome to the alternative universe of wordpress. The stone masons did the artsy work, my husband and I were just the rock movers! Still loads of work. We are tickled with the way the facade and planter came out too. It sort of reminds me of water. 🙂
Frances
My what nice flat rocks you bought. Why don’t they come out of the ground that way. At least I don’t have to rush them out of the middle of the road. Was the driver having a bad day?
Though a few days ago there was some loud activity on the highway just below me. I don’t know if there had been a rockslide or if they were doing preventative maintenance. They dumped a bunch of big boulders at the pull off below me.
There is always some snafu, even in gorgeous projects like your stone walls. Trust me I know. Good thing all the hard work and troubles fade away when the finished project emerges.
Hi Christopher, thanks for stopping by, so nice to see you. We saw how those rocks are found when we went to the stoneyard on the side of the mountain. Locals in pickup trucks hand pick them on the mountains and sort them on a scale into pallets by size and flatness. We wanted the thin smaller ones for the look on our mortared dy stack wall. The mortar is only on the back and does not show, a true artistic triumph. They had stone of all sizes there, including ones as big as your cabin! Very large machinery to move the stones around and deliver them was abundant too. I wish I could go back with me camera, and might still.
There has been an incredible amount of rain here, we are cutting down the water deficit in good order. Hope your ground is stable, offspring Semi’s hill is a muddy mess, we worked on planting it again yesterday and could barely stand without sliding down slimey red clay.
You are so right about the snafus, one of my favorite words BTW! No project is complete without several. 🙂
Frances
Recycled? I love it. May I use that term someday? Your project is beautiful. I love stonework, and we are perfectly horrid about one project after another. Merry Christmas.~~Dee
Hi Dee, thanks. One of the beauty of words is that they are free for all to use, right? 🙂 I know you are a family of large projects too, how fun. Merry Christmas to you and yours.
Frances
Of course I am not mad. Anything I comment on the web is always there, so it shall be and that is no problem for me. I am a poet and don’t even know it;) Have a great day! The link brought back memories. Has it been a year yet? Nope, tomorrow…tomorrow.
Forgot to say on the yule log post, thanks for info on the solstice. It is way cool!
Hi Tina, I knew you wouldn’t be mad, just having fun with you since we are good friends! Yes, memories of feeling such thankfulness for the first loyal readers who left comments during the busy Christmas season, brings a smile for sure, thanks!
Frances
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