One of my go-to moves when decorating is to dot plants around the house – they add a lovely natural element to any space and make it feel more warm and alive. I find it’s especially important to have plants in the winter, when cold and snow take over the landscape (dude, it is SERIOUSLY chilly in Ottawa today!). You may remember our benjamin ficus (aka. fig tree) that we were gifted a little while ago. It is still happy as a clam in the corner of our dining room in it’s trendy dipped planter.
Two other plants I had in the living room were not looking so hot. This guy needed to have his dead leaves removed…
And this guy was looking okay, but was never actually potted into that holder (I had just dumped the plastic planter he came in into the metallic thing).
It was time to give these guys a little TLC and some new digs. There was nothing wrong with the metallic planters, but I was feeling a little bored of them. Plus, I had another use for them as craft supply storage.
This also gave me an excuse to buy one of these white lacy planters from IKEA (you know, these sweet ‘skurar’ ones?) for a mere 4 bones. I had been eyeing them on every trip to IKEA for the last little while and just couldn’t resist.
Out came the plant and re-potted into it’s new home. This also gave me a chance to beef up the earth situation, adding in some extra nutrients to keep this guy alive.
And then I did the same for fella #2. The grey ceramic planter was one that I had picked up thrifting ages ago for around $2. I liked its asymmetrical top, grey colour, and fun little dots.
And now the plants are back in their homes, looking much improved.
Are you guys plant people? I don’t have much of a green thumb (at all), so I need to stick to pretty hardy plants. Just a bit of water here and there and that’s it. Anything more complicated and forget about it. Any plant tips or faves?
fixing up my plants today on the blog: http://wp.me/p1s8qR-1Gh
I love plants. I’m also not great at keeping some of the them alive. I’d love to have some in my apartment but we have only 4 windows some sometimes giving them enough light is a problem. Also, our apartment gets so cold in the winter I’m not sure if they could handle it. I also have to be careful where I put them because the kitties will try to eat them. I do have one plant that is doing really well in my office at work, which is surprising because I don’t have any windows.
Yeah we’ve had the bad lighting before too… I think there are low-light plants out there that you could try, but I’m definitely not the expert! And unfortunately, I don’t have any great tips on the kitty not eating them – haha :) Good luck!!
xo,
gem
Cute! I love how many shots yougot of the little guy, like his own plant photo shoot! But really cute so worth it! Since I moved into a condo I have had no plants and now that we’re in a house I feel like I need them. Problem is having places to put them in an old house with next to no shelving, AND a toddler who would be set on eating or killing it (worse than a CAT!). Thanks for the inspiration!
Hahah too funny! Don’t think I have any advice on how to have a happy plant situation with a toddler around… on high shelves only? :)
xo,
gem
Great project to keep your mind off the chilly weather! We’re in Ottawa too and our patio doors are frozen shut today. I blogged about something similar – spring days (and little boys and their dogs jumping in puddles) being just around the corner!
Longing for those spring days right about now!! I don’t mind the winter, but this is too much! I think my nose hair froze this morning. Ha!
xo,
gem
Great post and lovely blog. I too live in a bungalow and have similar sized rooms for my living area and find your take on design very refreshing! I want to kick my shoes off and chill in your living room. I’ve been working on placing plants in my home also and have managed to keep a palm looking tree from ikea alive ….so far!
Thanks so much, Christine! Small bungalows can be tricky, but I find it so cozy! Good work on keeping that plant alive.. ha! :)
xo,
gem
We are cactus people, but we have successfully killed all the herbs we had in our kitchen window. It may be time to re-pot a couple of our cacti too… you may have inspired something!
Oh good (on the inspiration, not the killing.. ha)!! We killed a bunch of basil a few years ago and haven’t gone the herb route again – we only do them outside in the summer.
xo,
gem