Brown Thumb

...that's what I have (or maybe even black) when it comes to house plants. I do like to have a little something 'living' around, though...so I'm always trying my hand at some plant or another.

I do have one (soverysad) plant in my kitchen that has been 'alive' since last Valentine's Day. The first couple of blooming cycles, it thrived...w/ the tiniest of pink flowers on it. All it is now, though, is a pitiful few sprigs of greenery...nary a bloom to be found.

Last May, at the wonderland that is IKEA...my mom, sister, and I bought some bamboo. Why wouldn't you buy a living plant at a home furnishings store...makes perfect sense. So...I brought it home, made it a little spot in our main level bathroom...and it's been doing alright. THEN...I put it in the basement over Christmas (didn't really fit the decor). Ever since its stay downstairs...it just hasn't been the same. About a week ago...it turned a sad color of yellow...death.

Sadness...it gave a good fight, though...I really thought it could survive...

There is one piece of the 3 that is still green and nice...so it has a new home by my kitchen sink. We'll see how long this lasts...

So...I needed something new and fresh to take the place of the bamboo (RIP). I've really been wanting to do some sort of terrarium (b/c they're poplular and I have no original ideas)...so off to LOWE's I went. Well...they didn't really have the right kind of plants for said project...but the lady working there talked me into something called a palm.

I had 1/2 of the items needed for the project (vase & rocks).

You can never have enough vases...just don't know when the project bug will strike!

I had to buy the plant ($2.49) and a bag of potting soil ($3.69)...of which I used very little. So...I'm thinking the cost of everything was less than $3.

Everything you'll need to make your own little tropical decorative piece (minus the cat...he's very curious...will probably kill my new plant w/his nibbling).

Sorry...no action shots of actually putting this together. It's so easy, though...pictures & directions might be a bit insulting to your intellegence. ;) All I did was put a little potting soil in the bottom of the vase, placed the plant in (smooshed the root ball down a bit), gently dropped the rocks in...and then gave it a bit of a drink.

I really like how this turned out! Gives the bathroom a little something special. I will prob have to let it get some rays somewhere else from time-to-time...but hopefully (fingerscrossed) it will be ok in this spot.



~Hilary~