At Letters from The Whiskey Porch, over on substack, The Spring Porch Invitation is now open.
April 15th - 24th, 2026.
​Become a member or upgrade now
Receive a handmade studio thank-you gift
​

I just opened a small and very special invitation for readers who would like to step a little further onto the porch.

For a short time, readers who join Letters from The Whiskey Porch as annual Porch Companions or Studio Stewards receive a small handmade thank-you gift from my studio at Juniper Hill Cottage in Prescott, Arizona.

The Spring Porch Invitation is open through April 24.
​
​You'll find all the details on membership benefits and access at the link below. 👇🏼
Join the conversation and be inspired.

At The Whiskey Porch, we specialize in creating beautiful, functional spaces that connect your home to the land around it.

One design philosophy that’s especially "buzzy" right now is called Organic Modernism—a style that blends modern simplicity with natural materials and seamless indoor-outdoor living.

More than just a trend, this approach can expand your usable living space and enhance your lifestyle—while also increasing the value of your home.

In fact, recent Zillow research shows that homes with outdoor kitchens and nature-inspired features can sell for up to 3.1% more.

We just published a deep dive on this topic over on our Substack "Letters from The Whiskey Porch":
👉 Read the full article on Substack

In it, we cover:

• What Organic Modernism really means
• How to bring this style into your home
• Why it matters for homeowners in Arizona and beyond
• ​How we blend Nordic lifestyle principles into our own version of this design style—light-filled, natural, and deeply connected to place

With Peace & Contentment,

This is a fun little bit of news to share.

The local garden club here in Prescott is Alta Vista Garden Club, and they have been here in town since 1951.   

One of the many activities they do is recognizing local gardens each season of the year, which they call "Garden of Merit".  

And for autumn this year, my gardens here at Juniper Hill Cottage were selected!

This is a group of very skilled and capable gardeners who care deeply about the local community and they work hard to provide value and resources to this area. 

I am grateful for this honor and hope you've seen the advertising around town recently as well as in the local paper.  

Just a quick post here today.  Thinking about Earth Day which comes up in a few days.

I applied organic fertilizer in my kitchen garden and landscape this weekend.  It's a tiny ... stinky.  In a good way, at least I think so.  My husband asked me if something died in the garden, haha. 

After I realized that I could still smell the soil and the "organic-ness" of my garden, even at the neighbors' house, the next couple days, it got me thinking.  

Why do some folks think it smells bad, while others (at least me) find it settling and wonderful?

I'm not sure I have the answer to that, but I really enjoyed this recent article from The New York Times about The Health Benefits of Getting in the Dirt.  And I wanted to share it with you.

​Let me know what you think!  Maybe go make a mud pie if you don't keep a garden 🤠...

Happy Earth Day!
​~Miriam

It's an especially big deal to have a happy and content client.  

I used to work in corporate finance doing strategic and business planning in Silicon Valley tech and software companies and then the NFL (National Football League).  In my position I worked at a senior level with internal and external corporate customers, and it was nice to feel appreciated.

But it never felt like what I was doing was real.  It didn't make a difference in anyone's personal life.  At least not directly.

Here, with The Whiskey Porch, I've built a business that is focused entirely on crafting design solutions for neighbors and members of my local community.  If I am able to nail a design or solve an issue for a homeowner, I know how big of a deal it will be for them.  It feels great.

I know I'm making this little part of the world just a little bit more beautiful and comfortable!

When thinking about your garden and landscape, it's common to want to grow and enjoy plants that you are accustomed to.  Either from where you most recently lived, or from where you grew up.  We all have that nostalgia for a familiar landscape.

But, one of the most frequent questions I hear from newcomers to the Prescott, AZ area is that they struggle with finding the appropriate plants that will not only grow, but thrive and become well established without a lot of fuss.

One of the core refence tools for gardeners and landscape design, is known as the USDA Plant Hardiness Zones.  There is also an index by Sunset Magazine, and then there are climate and heat tolerance zones as well.  Lot's of different indicators that can be helpful, but for this post I am going to focus on the USDA Hardiness Zones.

My advise:  Know and embrace your garden zone!

Keep reading for all the details.

Our biggest motivation is always to meet and exceed the needs of our wonderful clients. 

We get almost all of our business through referrals from happy customers and colleagues, and choose to keep it that way.  And this allows us to keep our pricing more competitive without having to cover advertising overhead.

But I gotta say, getting recognition is pretty cool, especially when it's not something we pursued.  

I realized that I haven't posted a summary here in the blog for several months.  I guess this all just takes quite a bit of time and effort and by the time I hit "SEND" on that newsletter, I'm usually ready to move on.

​But I wanted to do another round-up here for today's Newsletter...

You can check out this newsletter here, and I hope you'll consider joining us to stay connected.  

You can join our list now, and subscribe at any time.  

Every month or so I put together an email update to round up a bunch of our best recent content.  It's a great way to be sure you don't miss anything really fabulous and it's the only way to ensure you will be the first to find out about our Design Services specials & offers when we extend those.

You can check out this update here, and I hope you'll consider joining us to stay connected.  
​

It's another lovely rainy afternoon here in the high country of Northern Arizona.  Hope it is too wherever you are.

~Miriam

Ibis-the-yellow-lab is helping me stay sane and focus on the positive and smile-worthy moments every day.  

​I've got some new content to share with you for this Midsummer Newsletter.  You'll find original articles and inspiration related to cottages and bungalows, seasonal living, art, and simpler lifestyles.
​

​If you'd like to be in the know, may we suggest that you join our mailing list for up to the minute news and inspiration:

Okay, well that's all for now.  Enjoy the 4th of July.  Stay safe.  Wear a mask!

Contentment & Possibility,
​~Miriam