Beyond the Garden Gate

Have you ever driven by a house and wondered what lies beyond the garden gate? I do that all of the time. So imagine my excitement when I hear of a porch and garden tour in a quaint little town not far from me. The town is Cheraw, South Carolina. Although I live in North Carolina, I am only about thirty miles from the border. In fact, my daughter used to attend a Christian school located in this pretty little town. I always admired the beautiful homes and wondered about the gardens that were hidden behind them. Today I had the opportunity to tour some of those beautiful gardens and I thought that throughout the week I would share some of my favorite pictures of them. I hope you will enjoy our walk beyond the garden gate.

Today I wanted to share our first stop on the tour. It was actually a local antique store that was set up on the tour for a pit stop for refreshments and restrooms. Since we had to drive for about forty minutes to get there, we stopped there first.

Isn't it a beautiful little store? Did you notice the bunny bench out front? I really would love to have it, but the price was a little much for me.




Refreshment tables were set up throughout the store so that no one area was too congested. I love the punch bowl and the glasses.



This is just one of several food tables set up. I was so glad that I had not had my lunch yet. The food was delicious.



There were many different flower arrangements around the store. This was one of my favorites. I never can think of ways to arrange irises. Isn't this so clever?



The store actually had an outdoor area with pretty garden things. This little frog was so cute, and upon closer inspection I noticed a little bird nest in its mouth. Isn't is amazing where birds will make their homes?



It was actually a very hot day, close to ninety degrees. There were twelve stops on the tour so you can imagine how tired I am right now. I took over three hundred pictures so I will need to spend some time picking some of my favorite ones. I promise to post some each day for your enjoyment. For now, it is time for me to sit back and relax and enjoy my own porch for a little while.