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Muffins for Mom

Posted on May 6, 2020 by wordpress

These Maxwell House Muffins are a staff and visitor favorite at our Café 29. Use our recipe to whip up a batch at home this weekend. The mothers in your life will thank you!

Batter

6.5 ounces all purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 ounces butter room temp
6.5 oz white sugar
2 eggs room temp
5 oz sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions: Mix dry ingredients and set aside. Cream butter & sugar till creamy. Mix eggs 1 at a time then add sour cream & vanilla, mix till blended. Add dry ingredients and lightly blend. Add 1 scoop of batter (ice cream scoop will work) to buttered (or use liner) muffin pan, sprinkle the “middle” sugar, top w/ 1 scoop of batter then top with the topping. Bake 350* 20-30 minutes till baked thru.

Middle

2 oz brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix set aside.

Topping

2 ounce all purpose flour
2 ounce brown sugar
2 ounce oats dry
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 ounce Maxwell house coffee ground
2 ounce cold butter 1/2″ cube

Mix dry ingredients then mix in butter till it becomes a crumble, set aside.This Mother’s Day weekend, we’re missing all of our members, visitors, and volunteers who would normally be enjoying the beautiful weather with a picnic on the Arboretum Lawn, a stroll through the Color Garden or enjoying the sights and sounds of our TRAINS!While you can’t treat mom to a day in the gardens, you can treat her to our delicious Maxwell House Muffins by Café 29. Made with the signature Maxwell House Coffee blend that has such significant meaning to Cheekwood’s story, these muffins, much like the coffee, are good to the last drop… or crumb!

Read about the Cheek family’s history with Maxwell House coffee, and then try your hand at making Maxwell House Muffins for Mom this weekend!Did you know the Cheek family business was the Cheek-Neal Coffee Company, creators and brewers of MAXWELL HOUSE COFFEE and TEA? The specialty blend was named after and marketed by the best hotel in Nashville, the Maxwell House. The success of the brand launched the local business into nation-wide production and is said to have captured the attention of President Theodore Roosevelt, who exclaimed that it was “good to the last drop!”

Cheek-Neal was created by Joel Cheek, the cousin of Leslie Sr.’s father C.T. Cheek. C.T. had been an early investor, and Leslie Sr. bought stock as well. In 1928, the Postum Company, later renamed General Foods, purchased Cheek-Neal Coffee Company for $45 million. As an investor, Leslie Sr.’s fortune quickly expanded, likely also expanding his plans for Cheekwood.

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Tots! Activity: Lily Ponds

Posted on May 5, 2020November 20, 2023 by wordpress

Tots! Activity: Lily Ponds

As Cheekwood’s Tots program is temporarily suspended, we are sharing today’s activity for parents and tots to activate at home. Use our files to create your own lily pond, then share your work with us by tagging @cheekwood on Instagram and using #cheekwoodtots!

Here’s what you’ll need:• Cardboard or sturdy paper

• Paint, pastels or crayons in yellow, blue and white

• Paint brush if using paint

• Pink tissue paper (or any color tissue paper)

• Green construction paper

• Glue

• Scissors

Directions:1. Cut out a pond shape from a piece of cardboard or paper if preferred.

2. Scatter dots of white, blue, and yellow paint around the piece of cardboard.

3. Using the back of a spoon or a paintbrush, spread the paint around to cover the pond. Set aside to dry.

4. To make a lily pad, cut out a circle from green construction paper and cut a wedge out of it.

5. To make the flowers, cut out a circle from tissue paper and pinch the middle into a point. Layer more tissue circles for fluffier flowers. Glue onto the lily pads.

6. Once the paint has dried, add your lily pads and flowers.

Try pairing the activity with one of these books:
In the Small, Small Pond by Denise Fleming

Pond Circles by Betsy Franco

Would You Rather Be a Pollywog? (All About Pond Life) by Bonnie Worth

Ask your artist: • What colors did you mix to make green?

• Claude Monet, a famous artist, painted the water lilies in his garden. Can you draw something you see the next time you’re outside?

• Where around your home can you gather inspiration to create art?

• What can you find at a lily pond? Fish, tadpoles, plants, birds?

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Gardeners’ Top Picks May 2020

Posted on May 3, 2020 by wordpress

False Spirea (Sorbaria sorbifolia ‘Sem’)

Bloom Time: June – July

Sun Requirement: Full sun

Water Requirement: Medium

Wildlife: Bees & butterflies

Tolerates: Erosion

Native to North America: No

Other: New foliage is colorful & attractive / Excellent use as massing for erosion control on slopes and hillsides

Zones: 2 – 8

Location: Bracken Foundation Children’s Garden

Blue-eyed Grass (Sisyrinchium angustifolium ‘Lucerne’)

Bloom Time: May – June

Sun Requirement: Full sun – part shade

Water Requirement: Medium

Wildlife: Bees & birds

Tolerates: Light shade & some drought

Native to North America: Yes

Other: Perfect selection for rock gardens and woodland borders

Zones: 4 – 8

Location: Turner Seasons Garden

Nine Bark (Physocarpus opulifolius ‘Diablo’)

Bloom Time: May – June

Sun Requirement: Full sun – part shade

Water Requirement: Dry – Medium

Wildlife: Bees, butterflies & birds

Tolerates: Drought, erosion, clay soil

Native to North America: Yes

Other: Bark provides exceptional winter interest / Great as a hedge / Excellent pollinator plant

Zones: 3 – 7

Location: Howe Garden

Peony (Paeonia ‘Julie Rose’)

Bloom Time: May – June

Sun Requirement: Full sun – part shade

Water Requirement: Medium

Wildlife: Bees

Tolerates: Rabbit & deer

Native to North America: No

Other: Fragrant and attractive large blooms.

Zones: 4 – 9

Location: Bracken Foundation Children’s Garden

Coral Bells (Heuchera ‘Autumn Leaves’)

Bloom Time: May – June

Sun Requirement: Part Sun – shade

Water Requirement: Dry – Medium

Wildlife: Bees & Butterflies

Tolerates: Sun

Native to North America: Yes

Other: Wonderful plants to add lasting color (foliage) throughout 3 seasons.

Zones: 4 – 9

Location: Carell Dogwood Garden

Fuzzy Deutzia (Deutzia scabra ‘Plena’)

Bloom Time: May – June

Sun Requirement: Full sun – part shade

Water Requirement: Medium

Wildlife: Bees

Native to North America: No

Other: Fragrant blooms/good hedge plant

Zones: 5 – 8

Location: Carell Dogwood Garden

Kousa Dogwood (Cornus kousa ‘Miss Satomi’)

Bloom Time: May – June

Sun Requirement: Part Sun – shade

Water Requirement: Medium

Wildlife: Bees & Butterflies

Tolerates: Deer

Native to North America: No

Other: Attractive & edible fruit. Excellent selection for woodland gardens.

Zones: 5 – 8

Location: Carell Dogwood Garden

Red Buckeye (Aesculus pavia)

Bloom Time: April – May

Sun Requirement: Full sun – part shade

Water Requirement: Medium

Wildlife: Hummingbird magnet

Tolerates: Clay Soil

Native to North America: Yes

Other: Prefers moist soil. Great shrub for rain gardens.

Zones: 4 – 8

Location: Bracken Foundation Children’s GardenWe’re gearing up for summer, and so are our gardens! Our garden team has hand selected their top plant picks for May.

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Cheekwood Retrospective: Mansion Restoration

Posted on May 1, 2020 by wordpress

Cheekwood History Activities

Download our activity sheets that celebrate Cheekwood’s history!

Word Scramble Symmetrical Drawing
Design a Coat of Arms Brand Design
Coloring Activity

The restoration of Cheekwood’s historic rooms and gardens and the endowment for their care and maintenance have been made possible with generous support from the Andrea Waitt Carlton Family Foundation, the Bovender Family, Mr. and Mrs. William F. Andrews Jr., and the Founding Members of The 1929 Club.Color choices in fabrics, rugs, ceramics, and paint are critical in the attempt to recreate an historical space. With many of the photograph documents in black and white, Cheekwood staff consulted color experts and collaborated with renowned fabric companies to ensure accuracy. Curtains and drapery in the library, dining room, transverse hallway, and drawing room were updated with silk damasks in 18^th century patterns, all produced by Scalamandré, a textile manufacturer in Italy. Some dyes were customized, like the rich red tones found in the drawing room. Custom dyed and designed passementerie, also handmade by Scalamandré, were updated for all draperies in the historic rooms as well.The restored and refurnished mansion opened to the public on June 17, 2017. But the gathering of information related to Cheekwood will never cease. More recently, photographs of the Loggia and notes written about the space by Leslie Cheek Jr. were uncovered. After describing the steps he took to design the first set of doors for the space, he noted that the color scheme throughout the room was white, yellow and green, and that there was “much use of clear and mirrored glass to aid in the effect of coolness.” The lamps and rugs were bought at W. & J. Sloane, a store in New York City which catered to prominent spaces and families, including the White House and the Vanderbilts.

Last summer, extensive conservation efforts began in the loggia. The eighteenth-century terra cotta fountain was restored off-site while work was completed on the underlying plumbing system. The plaster walls were returned to their original color following patchwork and refinishing. Documents, photos, objects, and stories continue to reveal themselves and enrich our understanding about the family and their place in Nashville’s history.To guide the restoration, staff consulted and compiled a variety of historical, primary resources: oral histories with family members, friends of the Cheeks, former Cheekwood staff, and members of the community with ties to Cheekwood; itemized receipts saved from the family’s 1929 trip to England with Bryant Fleming; a 1932 household inventory list initiated by Leslie Sr. for insurance purposes included all structures, automobiles, furniture, china, linens, and decorative objects. Separated by room and detailing the color and texture choices of textiles and furniture arrangement, the list provided an understanding of how the Cheeks curated their space.

Photo documentation also informed restoration choices. Family scrapbooks passed down through generations include pictures of the Cheek family from the days at their home on West End to the lavish parties held on Cheekwood’s grounds in the 1930s. These books bring the family to life and illustrate how they made a grand house into a home. The September 1934 issue of Country Life Magazine featured a stunning seven-page spread on Cheekwood, including photos documenting the main rooms of the home. These photographs, the only known images of the mansion’s interior, show room arrangements, curtain and drapery design, height and placement of paintings, and other valuable visual clues that allowed the rooms to be restored to their former glory.As Cheekwood celebrates its 60^th Anniversary as a public institution, we reflect on the many changes to our estate and gardens. One significant transformation began in 2012, when Cheekwood embarked on a five-year process of preparing and planning for a historic restoration of the mansion’s interior. While approximately 40% of the furniture in the house is original to the Cheek family and stood in Cheekwood during the family’s time in the home, the remaining 60% is new to Cheekwood, including antiques and more recent replicas. Read on to learn more about the restoration process!

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Tots! Activity: Color Wheels

Posted on May 1, 2020November 20, 2023 by wordpress

Tots! Activity: Color Wheels

As Cheekwood’s Tots program is temporarily suspended, we are sharing today’s activity for parents and tots to activate at home. Use our files to create your own color wheel, then share your work with us by tagging @cheekwood on Instagram and using #cheekwoodtots!

Here’s what you’ll need:• White paper

• Paper in various colors and old magazines

• Scissors

• Glue

Directions:1. Gather old magazines and paper in a variety of colors.

2. Using the paper you gathered, cut out shapes and objects. You will need a handful of cutouts for each color on the color wheel.

3. Glue your cutouts in a circle on your paper. The colors should form a round rainbow: red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, and then back to red.

Try pairing the activity with one of these books:
A Color of His Own by Leo Lionni

Swatch: The Girl Who Loved Color by Julia Denos

Neon Leon by Jane Clarke and Britta Teckentrup

Ask your artist: • Can you name all the colors on your color wheel? What is your favorite color? Why?

• How many different shades of each color are on your color wheel?

• What color would you make if you mixed red and yellow? You would get orange. If you mixed yellow and blue you would make green, blue and red make purple.

Exploring color in and around your home: • Go on a scavenger hunt around your house for objects of various colors and arrange them on the floor to make a large color wheel.

• Take your color wheel outside and use it to identify colors in nature.

• Play a game of I-Spy to help identify colors around the house.

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Blevins Japanese Garden

Posted on April 30, 2020June 14, 2024 by wordpress

Following an additional major gift from the Blevins family to endow the garden, Cheekwood embarked on a renovation with the landscape architect Sadafumi (Sada) Uchiyama, garden curator at the Portland Japanese Garden. Uchiyama was respectful of Engel’s design, planning and executing a more polished enclosure, and updating to be more accessible.

During the collaboration with Uchiyama, Cheekwood was selected by the Japanese government’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism (MILT) to receive support for the renovation project.

After many years of thoughtful work and planning, the long-awaited renovation project is complete. Originally slated to open at the end of April, the newly restored Blevins Japanese Garden will reopen to the public when Cheekwood opens from its current closure. We look forward to being able to safely welcome you to experience this beautiful garden of peace and tranquility, and we hope to see you soon!

Click here to read about our other distinct gardens.In celebration of Cheekwood’s 60th anniversary as a public institution, we’re highlighting one of our 12 distinct gardens each month to showcase our wide variety of garden offerings. With 55 acres of rolling hills and 12 intricate, unique gardens, there’s something for everyone to experience and love at Cheekwood.The bamboo forest is the final path before one enters the courtyard, where the Viewing Pavilion stands. Looking out from the pavilion, visitors see a highly composed panorama, the meeting of ocean and mountains. The dry body of water is made of raked gravel and large rock formations, implying calm water.

The next significant milestone for the development of the garden was the relationship with James Victor and Patty Blevins, owners of Blevins Popcorn Company. The company led the family to business ventures in Japan, which resulted in a beautiful linking of cultures. In late 1982, while visiting friend and business partner, Toyoji Kato, a foundation was laid to further enhance the garden at Cheekwood with both art and a meaningful legacy.

In 2012, Melba and Bill Blevins honored their family’s vision by generously supporting and commissioning a master plan for the renovation and restoration of the Japanese Garden. Thanks to their support, the planning for long-awaited garden enhancements to address aging horticulture and accessibility for all within the Japanese Garden finally commenced.The Blevins Japanese Garden (Shōmu-en) became a concept for Cheekwood in 1970, when Betty Weesner, a former president of the Ikebana International Chapter 5 (Nashville), pledged a generous gift in support of a Japanese garden at Cheekwood, and the search for a designer began.

Groundbreaking for the Japanese garden occurred on August 14, 1977, in honor of Weesner, followed by a tea ceremony.

Created by David Harris Engel, the garden guides visitors on a meditative journey to an idyllic image of a mountain retreat. Engel named the garden “Shōmu-en,” which translates to “pine-mist forest.” This garden transcends cultures by connecting Eastern garden design with the native Tennessee landscape. The mist in “pine-mist forest” is suggested by the feathered and light-textured flowers of the smoke bush (Cotinus coggyria) that bloom in late summer.

Engel chose the site to lead the viewer to a canyon that opens to a symbolic, grand view of ocean and mountains. From the entrance gate, visitors stroll through the roji, a tea-garden term used to define a transition zone. On this narrow path punctuated with unevenly placed steppingstones, visitors focus on their footing and leave the outside world behind.

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Member Moments

Posted on April 29, 2020 by wordpress

Join Cheekwood today and experience the unparalleled beauty of Nashville’s landmark country estate.

Join, Renew or Give the Gift of Membership

“My son’s pumpkin obsession could only be fulfilled with our Cheekwood membership but we are also missing watching the seasons change, and can’t wait to return and see the Children’s Garden.”

– Amy

“We love our Cheekwood membership because it makes it affordable for our large family to visit throughout the year. I love the new children’s garden because of how interactive it is. It provides so much sensory play for my curious crew of littles. It give us so much inspiration and knowledge for our own gardens at home. We are so thankful to have a place like this to visit and look forward to when we can go again.”

– Amber

“It was on this date night at Cheekwood where it ‘clicked’ that we wanted to spend the rest of our lives together. We’ve been members ever since and love taking a break from the rush of life to get out in nature, breathe and take in the beauty of the grounds. Cheekwood is one of Nashville’s greatest treasures.”

– Justin

“Cheekwood membership has been a blessing for my family. My mother and father join me in Nashville for all the new exhibits, and we can’t wait for you to reopen. Your gardens are magical and provide us a sense of calm in the midst of chaos. Thank you for all you do.”

– Savannah

“Cheekwood has been a joy and peaceful refuge for our family for many years. Our children have grown up there, yet we never tire of Cheekwood’s beauty. There is always something new, exciting, fascinating, and gorgeous to explore; we love you Cheekwood!”

– Christy

“My husband & I love having a yearly membership to Cheekwood! Each season of the year Cheekwood has something special & unique & fun that no one else in Nashville can match. Our favorite season is Christmas with all of Cheekwood’s activities & displays on the grounds of the mansion along with the gorgeous Poinsettia Christmas Tree to top it off!”

– Luann

“I love being a member because of the Tuesday for Tots classes. The women are so sweet and make my child feel so special each week, especially since they remember him and can connect with him. It gives us time to be outside and explore and learn about nature.”

– Maria

“I credit much of my love for gardens and art to spending countless hours at Cheekwood with my grandfather as a child. Cheekwood represents the very best of my beloved Nashville—fine art and cultivated beauty made enthusiastically accessible, even (or perhaps especially) to a toddler who mostly just wanted to feed the ducks. Thanks for 30 years of happy memories.”

– Rachel

“Annabelle and Isaac’s first time seeing the children’s garden! They had so much fun and enjoyed playing cafe in the tea house. Cheekwood is one of their favorite places and we’re so excited for when the gardens reopen. We’ve been watching the virtual blooms and are in awe of all the beautiful tulips!”

– Katye

“Everytime I visit Cheekwood I know it will be magical and help me reconnect to the people I love. From our first date to birthdays my boyfriend and I consider Cheekwood our favorite date location! I can’t wait to experience what summer has to offer.”

– Katherine

“I took these photos of my daughter the day after her school shut down due to the virus, and we had so much fun wandering the grounds and seeing all the flowers starting to bloom. On that day we didn’t realize the grounds would soon close, but now these photos help to remind me that light and beauty will eventually emerge from these difficult times. I love being a member because I know on our next visit to Cheekwood we’ll be able to see a fresh new landscape filled with amazing color and blooms.”

– Sherrie

As a Cheekwood member, your support helps us to deliver on our mission, and keeps our beautiful estate and gardens going throughout the year. Members have the benefit of unlimited access to the grounds, free parking, sneak peek previews of festivals and exhibitions, priority access to special event tickets and reciprocal admission to nearly 200 botanical gardens, arboreta and conservatories nationwide, and over 60 museums in the Southeast.

What else is there to love about being a Cheekwood member? We asked our members to share a photo of their favorite Cheekwood moment!