As 3 Squares Cottage laps the calendar to mark our B&B anniversary. To mark the occasion,  I pay tribute to bees, and specifically the beehive. I chose Utah’s omnipresent state symbol for the same reason the 1847 pioneers selected it to be their emblem, as it represents the qualities of industriousness, perseverance, thrift, self-reliance, and stability. 

Design Thoughts + Elements

Bees, beehives and the colors yellow, gray, and black appear in wall hangings, lights, pillows, dishes, towels, and a plethora of other decor throughout the cottage from January- May.. 

Transitioning from Farmhouse theme to Beehive theme -- I kept the simplicity of the colors from last month and specific neutral elements including: the rug, silver lanterns, black and white china, cream tablecloths, and wood accents. Living in Utah has allows me to embrace my farm heritage, but still keep the cottage modern and contemporary. 

history

To commemorate the cottage anniversary benchmark, I wanted to tell the story of how 3 Squares Cottage came to be an airbnb. My (then soon-to-be) husband, Jack Wilbur, and I purchased the property at 623 East Coatsville Ave. in Salt Lake City in December 1999, about six months before we got married (on Midsummer’s Day, June 24, 2000). Each of us had a teenager at the time: Ian and Ashlie, 17 and 16, respectively. Our happy new family settled in and enjoyed living here. Both our children grew and thrived, found amazing partners, got married, and each now have a child.  

At the time we purchased the home, it needed some serious love and a lot of elbow grease. The builder, who had built all the homes in the neighborhood, had lived here at 623 East Coatsville from the time the home was built in 1932 until early the 1990s. After the couple moved away, the property fell into disrepair and by the time we bought it, it was in pretty rough shape. The lawn was dead and the yard was a mess! The inside was not much better—generally grimy, with writing on the walls, and filthy carpeting. When I saw the house, I could feel the beauty underneath calling to come out. When I brought my mother to see it for the first time she teared-up and told me she was so worried about it, and she just hoped we would be able to make something of it.   

It turned out we did make something of it, and like our children, it flourished and thrived. There were fewer weeds, more flowers and fruit, family pets, and an adopted philosophy, “Ferme Ornee” (French for Ornamental Farm). Through the years it has morphed into many things, a big garden with a seed starting shed/walk-in vegetable cooler supporting our 3 Squares Produce business, a place with a big trampoline and a tree house for teens to hang out, a youth leadership facility, and an afterschool professional development retreat hostel. The inside gleamed with new paint and wallpaper and much scrubbing, scraping, and cleaning. The inside also morphed as our children moved out and Jack, suffering from allergies, frequently needed to sleep propped or sitting up in the Lazy Boy chair in the downstairs family room. A few years ago, an unsavory element moved in next door to the west (long gone now), but I found myself staying in the downstairs bedroom for a night or two to feel safer. Then within a month, I moved my clothes and personal effects, and I finally had to admit  I was pretty much living in the basement with Jack. We were cozy and comfortable, and began to settle in. I noticed I was prepping meals and eating in the downstairs kitchen and if we wanted to watch TV, were even doing that in the basement family room.   

In July and August, 2017 my regular work was extremely stressful. I needed an outlet. We had the idea of using the upper level of the house as an airbnb. Jack had been talking to his friend from work who keeps a portion of his home rented out as an airbnb. We started working out the logistics of what it would take to transition part of our home into an airbnb.  The creativity of providing a wonderful experience for someone I had never met became a near-obsession. 

I posted the listing on the airbnb website on July 28, 2017 and the first person had booked within an hour. It’s been pretty much booked ever since. I have met many amazing, talented, fun, interesting people from all around the world.  (Note: We closed the cottage during the pandemic, and by the time things were opening up again, we were doing a little remodeling here and updating there. As of 2023, we have been using the space for family and friend stays.)

I feel so blessed to have had the opportunity to get to know each guest a little, and am so grateful they found their way to stay at 3 Squares Cottage.

Living Room + Entry

Shop: Haobo Home Linen Fabric Accent Chairs (black), Amazon; Gray Iron and Glass Tube Lantern, Hobby Lobby; Skinny Timer LED Candles, Seasons by David; Three Decorative Tin Bee Skep RNUM-Inch Boxes, Amazon; Chad Barrett Premium Thick-Wrap Canvas Wall Art Print entitled Honey Bee, Amazon; Metal Sunflower Wall Hanging, All That Stuff in the Barn, Midway; MWW Manual Woodworkers & Weavers Indoor/Outdoor Climaweave Throw Pillow, Insects Bee (18X18), Amazon; Honey Bee Glass Dome Paperweight with French Script, Amazon; Yellow, Cream, and Gray Pillows, TJ Maxx; Throw Pillows, Smith's Marketplace; Always Be Humble & Kind - Handmade Wood Block Sign with Saying Inspired by Tim McGraw Features a Bumble Bee for Home Wall Decor, Amazon; Unique Loom Sofia Collection Black (8 X 10) Area Rug, Amazon; 3 Squares Cottage personalized sign - Farmhouse wood, Amazon; Haobo Club Chairs with nail for Living Room or Reception Room (Set of 2) Accent Chair, Black, Amazon; Signature Housewares White Speckle Ceramic Tabletop Accessories and Bowls - Natural beach Outdoor Colors, Amazon; 2 of Honeybee Fairy String Lights, 40 LED 14 ft Honeybee Battery Power Led String Lights, Amazon; U.S. Toy Childrens Pencil Erasers, Amazon; Original Bee Keeper patent Prints - Set of Four Photos, Amazon; Button Chair, Downesast; Antique Wall Decor, Garner Antiques; Basic Party Fans, Zurchers; Large Gold Foil Fan, Madeleine L'Amour; Ribbon, Madeleine L'Amour; File Box with Flowers, TJ Maxx; White Daisy Flowers, Michaels; Frames for Pictures of Barns, Michaels; Flower Arch - Flowers, Hobby Lobby; and Open Sign, TJ Maxx.

Dining Room

Shop: White Metal Antique Tool Caddy (centerpiece), All That Stuff in the Barn, Midway; Bees: A Honeyed History Book, Amazon; Jolee's Boutique Dimensional Stickers, Bees, Amazon; SuperMoss Moss Balls, Fresh Green, Amazon; Throw Pillows, TJ Maxx; Dishes, TJ Maxx; Wall Decor, TJ Maxx; and Tablecloth, TJ Maxx.

Kitchen

Shop: Now Designs Teatowl, Honeybee Jacquard, Set of 2, Amazon; (15 inch X 6.5 inch) Decorative Bee Skep Tray Plastic, Amazon; Natural Bamboo Fiber Melamine Serving Tray for Food - Cream Color with Black and Gold Floral Print, Amazon; Antique Kitchen Equipment, Garner Antiques; and Pottery, Ben Behunin.

Bedrooms

Shop: Light Yellow Bedding, SteinMart; 5 of Wilmington A Bee's Life Beehive Allover Black Fabric By The Yard (Master Bedroom Pillows + Throw), Amazon; Premium Hypoallergenic Stuffer Pillow Insert Sham Square Form Plyester (26 X 26, Set of 2), Amazon; and Desk, Garner Antiques.

Bathroom

Shop: 2 of Nunubee Bee Cotton Linen Home Decorative Throw Pillow Case Cushion Cover, Amazon; Rug, Tuesday Morning; Chi Shampoo and Conditioner, TJ Maxx; and Towels, TJ Maxx.

the beehive has significance to the state of utah

The beehive first appeared on the seal of the Territory of Utah, in the year 1851 and was adopted as the state seal in 1896. 

20 Facts about Bees

1. Honey bees must gather nectar from two million flowers to make one pound of honey.

2. One bee has to fly about 90,000 miles – three times around the globe – to make one pound of honey.

3. The average bee will make only 1/12th of a teaspoon of honey in its lifetime.

4. A honey bee visits 50 to 100 flowers during a collection trip.

5. A honey bee can fly for up to six miles, and as fast as 15 miles per hour.

6. The bee’s brain is oval in shape and about the size of a sesame seed, yet it has a remarkable capacity to learn and remember things. For example, it is able to make complex calculations on distance travelled and foraging efficiency.

7. Honey bees communicate with one another by dancing.

8. A colony of bees consists of 20,000-60,000 honey bees and one queen. Worker honey bees are female, live for about 6 weeks and do all the work.

9. The queen bee can live up to 5 years and is the only bee that lays eggs. She is the busiest in the summer months, when the hive needs to be at its maximum strength, and lays up to 2500 eggs per day.

10. Larger than the worker bees, the male honey bees (also called drones), have no stinger and do no work. Their sole purpose is to mate.

11. Honey has always been highly regarded as a medicine. It is thought to help with everything from sore throats and digestive disorders to skin problems and hay fever.

12. Honey has antiseptic properties and was historically used as a dressing for wounds and a first aid treatment for burns and cuts.

13. The natural fruit sugars in honey – fructose and glucose – are quickly digested by the body. This is why sports enthusiasts and athletes use honey to give them a natural energy boost.

14. Honey bees have been producing honey in the same way for 150 million years.

15. The honey bee is the only insect that produces food eaten by man.

16. Honey lasts an incredibly long time. An explorer who found a 2,000-year-old jar of honey in an Egyptian tomb said it tasted delicious!

17. The bees’ buzz is the sound made by their wings, which beat 11,400 times per minute.

18. When a bee finds a good source of nectar it flies back to the hive and shows its friends where the nectar source is by doing a dance, which positions the flower in relation to the sun and hive. This is known as the ‘waggle dance.’

19. Honey’s ability to attract and retain moisture means that it has long been used as a beauty treatment. It was part of Cleopatra’s daily beauty ritual.

20. Honey is incredibly healthy and includes enzymes, vitamins, minerals. It’s the only food that contains “pinocembrin”, an antioxidant associated with improved brain functioning.

Original article: Golden Green