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Although this could very well be a picture of me finding a new treasure at a favorite nursery, it's actually an illustration by David Catrow for a children's book called Plantzilla.

Thursday, July 2, 2015

12th x 12th Part Two: The Garden of Claudia Riedener

If you recall Tuesday's post, you'll remember that 12th x 12th was an event in Tacoma that combined open gardens and yard/garage sales in a walkable area.  The provided map simply listed addresses and one had no idea if there would be a sale, garden, or both.

Verbena  bonariensis and screaming orange/red  asiatic lilies caught my eye from the sidewalk.  There'll be a garden!

And also, it seems, a really great yard sale! 

Okay, this is obviously a gardener's sale!

Turns out, this is the garden of  Claudia Riedener, horticulturist and tile artist.  Claudia worked for years at Lakewold garden and knows our garden pal Vickie Haushild, former manager of the nursery/garden shop at Lakewold.  One doesn't find stuff like this at just any sale!  (Is that a loquat on the right?)

These bug tiles are way cool!  A praying mantis (not shown) and an antlion (left.) followed me home.

More tiles.

These paths were made of shiny granite scraps. 

Fun amalgamation of re purposed  objects.

A closer look.



Great plants everywhere like this native Jeffersonia diphylla.

A winged arbor frames the petasites monster!

He looks tame enough.

However, he ripped the face off of the last person who tried to pet him. 

A beautiful greenhouse that Claudia's husband built. The color is wonderful and the design is great.


A peek inside.

Looking back at the house.


 Paris polyphylla 

Beautiful variegated arisaema foliage!

The serpentine paths and overflowing beds, and the many points of interest make the space seem much larger than it is. Claudia's husband said that the garden was here when they bought the house sixteen years ago.  I'm certain that the Riedeners have done a lot with the garden in their time there.






You may remember seeing this in my greenhouse in a previous post. Now you know from whence it came.

The greenhouse is attached to this garden shed.  Perfect!

Atop the garage.


A narrow side garden is home to potted treasures.  

A piece which includes some of Tacoma's Icons.


More of Claudia's tiles adorn the chimney.

Is that fun or what?

To learn more about the delightful Ms Riedener's work and see beautiful public and private installations, visit Ixia Tile Tacoma's website here.

Walking through a sweet shade garden, we're back where we started.


At those gorgeous lilies!


 Bye-bye for now!
 I'm kicking myself for not bringing home more cool stuff from this great sale!  Thank you Claudia for dreaming up 12th x 12th, for opening your garden, and having such a cool sale!!  I hope it will become an annual event!

31 comments:

  1. My kind of place - every square inch of it! And what a unique/charming greenhouse...Thanks for posting it!

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    1. It's a great garden and the greenhouse is stunning! Always glad to share the cool stuff gardeners are doing.

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  2. I hope it becomes an annual event too -- so that I can go next year. What a cool garden!

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    1. I'll certainly let you know if it happens again.

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  3. I visited the link you provided for an additional view at installations in the city of Tacoma. A plain concrete pillar or wall are transformed with a bit of imaginative colorful ceramic art.
    Wonderfull and Green green house! What's the towering yellow bloom over the re purposed objects?

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    1. She's one talented lady! I think that is a Thalictrum flavum ssp. glaucum

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  4. Cool garden and even cooler garden art she has!

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  5. I love love love that greenhouse!

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  6. More, more, more gardens like this. I like seeing that people can have lovely gardens full of treasures, both plant and art, and lots of fun! Even walking through it with your great photos brings many smiles to my face. Sometimes I even laugh out loud. I like the tile of Tacoma icons, the amalgamation of repurposed objects and the figurehead on the garage.

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    1. Glad you liked it Jane! I had similar reactions walking through the garden!

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  7. I was surprised at how much I liked some of those tiles -- that's not usually my thing. Great garden that contains a nice mix of art!

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  8. What a fun tour! Did the Ant Lion tile come with a little tag that says, "Doodlebug, doodlebug, come out of your hole." ?

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  9. I wish local yard sales came with gardens like this! That flying figurehead on the roof bears a striking resemblance to Angelina Jolie...

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    1. Well, this was a special combo event. Should we call the flying figurehead "Roof Interrupted?"

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  10. Another great tour! Like Loree, I love that greenhouse - so much, in fact, that I pinned it. One day I hope to convince my husband to build me one like that.

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    1. It's a beautiful greenhouse and I hope Mr. LTTGP builds it for you!

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  11. I want that variegated ariseama! Lust!!! What a cool garden. I wish I'd toured it, too. :o)

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  12. Lot's of fun, cool stuff in this garden.

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  13. I wish I knew about this event! Very interesting garden!

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    1. Ixia (Claudia) has left a link below to watch for next year's event!

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  14. WOW...and the greenhouse, triple WOW!

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  15. Peter! What an amazing eye you have. This is our garden and man! - do you make it look good :) Thanks so much for sharing your images and wit. It was super nice to meet you. We'll do this again next year. We'll try to make it a bit clearer what's to be expected at each location. And hopefully focus more on gardens and garden art. Find details here for next year's event (probably not updated until March or April next year). On a side note, there was no garden when we bought the house, just an old half dead lilac and a crappy lawn. When we took up the dormant grass in July there was not a single worm, ant or ant lion to be found in the soil. It seemed a bit like a toxic waste site. Over the last 15 years we kept adding compost and mulch and now there are bugs galore. Thanks again!! Now I have Google doodle bug. Never heard of that.....Claudia

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    1. forgot to add the link: https://www.facebook.com/12thby12th

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    2. Thanks for the kind words, Claudia. It's difficult to get good pictures of gardens when the sun is so bright so I apologize for the quality of the images. Your gardn is amazing and was such a treat to tour! Even more impressive to know that there was nothing there when you got the garden and now there's living soil again! Thanks for the link, I've become a member of the group. I loved the mix of garage sales and gardens! I'd planned the entire day for 12th x 12th but unfortunately got called in to work so only had until noon to see as much as I could. Otherwise, I wouldn't have cared what would be at each location. It was a joy to meet and chat with you. If you're interested, I'd love to share my garden with you sometime!

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Thanks so much for taking the time to comment! I love to hear your thoughts.