On the 12th day of Christmas...

Today marks the first day of our annual 12 Shopping Days of Christmas sales event! 

For the 12 days leading up to Christmas, we will be putting a different item on sale. Once that item has gone on sale, it will remain that way until Christmas! Take advantage of this sale, and find the perfect gift for anyone on your list!

Daily Inspiration

A teapot with purpose!

This silver teapot is the genuine article...but it has a broken handle. 

Bummer. 

As long as it isn't good for serving up some hot beverage, why not use it for something else!? 

Possibly something a tad prettier or whimsical? 

In all the English garden and homes my family has toured, there was a common theme that we all noted- no matter how formal the garden, there was always something of a whimsical nature tucked in here or there. This is what gave even the stuffiest of gardens a 'real' quality and a charm that we all love to see in gardens! 

P.S. Here are the first signs of lavender! Woo hoo!

 (Seeds were started Dec. 1st.- with the help of the seedling heat mat and grow light, we beat the stated germination date by 8 days!)

Daily Inspiration

Lipstick Plant

(Aeschynanthus radicans)

One of our Lipstick plants started to bloom today! Lipstick plants are an easy-care, hanging plant- good for almost any room! They tolerate low-light and dry conditions better than most, and bloom intermittently throughout the year. I love the way this plant sends out dark purple calyces which are followed by bright pink tubes of lipstick!

Daily Inspiration

Terrariums have always been interesting to me. I love that every single one of them is different--each one utilizing different and unique containers and materials. I have terrariums at home ranging from a large, free-standing iron and glass terrarium that has room for several plants and larger decorative items, to a small copper-bottomed terrarium that has room for only one, small plant. When my nieces visit, they always look very intently in them to see if some sort of living creature is hiding somewhere in it. Who knows, there might be!

For most terrarium projects, you can find almost all the supplies you need just by looking around your home with a creative eye. You need any size/shape of clear glass container, and a few other supplies to get going! I started with an old, copper, plant mister that I'm sure was longing to be useful again! The actual glass part stands only 4 in. high and wide, with the opening being only 1 inch. I also found a little sand, moss-covered sticks, polished stones, a butterfly that had been pinned to the wall for I don't know how many years, and some seed pods to use. With a little patience, I got them all stuffed in the mister and arranged so that the lid can easily screw on and off (I warned everyone else not to shake it...or else!). It's helpful to have a pair of long, slender tweezers (or a skewer) if the opening of your container is small. 

Butterfly on moss-covered sticks.

Seed pod and stone.

Daily Inspiration

African Violet

'Blackie Bryant'

You don't see an African Violet with variegated leaves and double, ruffled flowers very often!

 I'm in love with this variety!

A lot of customers say they have a hard time with violets. Through trial and error, I have found the easiest way to care for them is to let them dry out, not completely- but close, before watering, and then I water them from underneath (meaning I fill their saucers up with water and let them drink it up)! Violets bloom best on stress, that is why I let them dry out fairy well before watering! They also like consistent feedings. Ours are fertilized every two weeks with Schultz African Violet food. 

Daily Inspiration

I'm a winter girl for about 1 week, after that, I have had quite enough and find myself wanting spring so bad I can taste it. To ease the dreary, freezing, winter days, I cleared off a spot on our indoor potting bench and set up a seed-starting, plant-growing station. To speed things up, I use a seedling heat mat that stays on constantly to keep the soil temperature 10-20 degrees above the room's temperature, and a grow light set on a timer to give the new seedlings 16 hours of sun (sounds pretty ideal, doesn't it? I wouldn't mind at all having a human-sized station like that set-up!). 

Here's what's coming-up! 

'Sweet Italian' Basil

I used a mixture of one-part Fox Farm Ocean Forest Potting Mix, and one-part milled sphagnum moss/no damp off seed-starting mix.

Looks like I am going to need to do a little thinning...

On the other side of the flat is  'French Perfume' Lavender

No sign of it yet.

 (Germination time is 18-28 days- maybe a bit shorter due to the consistent soil temperature- we'll see.)

Now is a great time to start herbs on your windowsill. You don't need all the fancy gadgets, just a container with drainage, seed-starting/potting mix, saran wrap to make a make-shift grow dome, seeds, and a sunny windowsill! 

I like to grow basil, cilantro, parsley, chives, rosemary, and salad greens on my windowsill! 

Daily Inspiration

Poinsettias!

We just received a huge load full of them! 
Traditional reds, whites, and a plethora of pinks and painted varieties!