Art and Design

Groups for plant lovers are some of my favorite places to hang out online. These communities are super positive, helpful and full of interesting people. It was in one such group that I came across Marjan van der Heijden’s plant photo project in early January. In 2021, Marjan took a photo a day (every day!) with her plants. And not just a quick snapshot, but super creative photos that are guaranteed to make you chuckle.

Let’s just say my curiosity was piqued right away and I wanted to know more about how she pulled off such a long daily challenge. I have a deep admiration for people who embark on year-long daily projects. I wish I had that kind of commitment and motivation, but the truth is I haven’t pulled it off just yet. I start strong with a project (either writing, collage-making, social media, reading, learning), but my enthusiasm fizzles out quite quickly.

I reached out to Marjan to ask her more about the project and her work.

Here’s the interview:

Hi, Marjan. Can you tell us a bit more about yourself and your plant project? 

I have a degree from the St Joost Art Academy in Breda (the Netherlands) and a Masters degree in Animation. In the summer of 2020, I became a full-time entrepreneur. I make and sell products on a few different themes, such as nature, animals and nostalgia, I organize exhibitions and events, give animation and textile craft lessons to every age and work on my own projects.

Even though I am an entrepreneur with a big variety of projects to work on, during the lockdown many of my activities and projects were canceled or put on hold. So me and my partner, Joël David – who took all the pictures – didn’t have much work coming our way. We saw this as the perfect opportunity to start a new project together.

How did you come up with the idea of doing a photo-a-day project with plants?

It started around Christmas 2020. As a gift, our family gave a digital photo frame to all our grandparents, with an app we could all upload pictures to it. When I wanted to upload some pictures, I found out we didn’t take as many pictures of ourselves as we had thought.

So I thought it would be a nice idea to take a plant-themed picture every day and send it to my grandparents, as they also really loved plants. 

During Corona, I also sent many letters to my grandparents and I attached a new plant cutting every time.

Your photos are very whimsical and thematic. How did you come up with so many ideas to keep going for an entire year?

We had a few ideas to begin with, but after the first 50 photos, we started to run out of ideas. So I had to look for some more inspiration and found an international list of special holidays and such. That made sure we did have a theme for every day and made it much easier to make more content. 

What are your top 3 favorite photos in this project? 

That is always a difficult question. If I were to answer this question every day, my answers would definitely vary. 

I really can’t help myself, so here are 6 of my favorites:

Day #2: I really like this one because of the ‘Bananaphone’ song. I also have this picture as my profile photo on LinkedIn and I use it for my contact page on my website. It’s very useful!

Day #15: This one is just very relevant; who would have thought two years ago teachers would be teaching online all the time? So this is me homeschooling my plants.

Day #104: I think this one is really funny, as we are some sort of a barbershop quartet. Also I like to make weird faces which I have learned from Dutch comedian André van Duin.

Day #266: This one just works because the colors are perfect, very soft and matching.

#287 Me having a cacti party! Whoop! Whoop!

Day #349: My grandmother has a Droste cocoa tin which I always liked when I was younger, because of the Droste effect. I just really needed to make this weird picture with a tote bag on my head pretending to be the woman on the cocoa packaging.

Editor’s note: The Droste effect is the perfect example of a mise en abyme effect in which an image recursively appears within itself. The illustration on the Droste tin depicts a woman holding a tray with a Droste cocoa tin on top. The cocoa tin in the illustration bears a smaller version of the woman’s image.

What was your trick to staying motivated and committed for a year-long project?

The funny thing is that I wasn’t that motivated after a while. 

My grandfather was my biggest motivation, as he was really enthusiastic about the photos and talked about it with many people. But he got sick in February and passed away in June. When he was in hospice care, he showed my photos to all the nurses and talked about my project a lot. My grandmothers also like the photos, but not in the same way my grandfather did. 

Also as the lockdown eased after a few months, I started to get really busy with my work and didn’t have much time left to take the pictures. As it often is in the Netherlands, by the time I was done with work, it was already too dark to take photos. 

In September, we agreed to just finish the year, because it didn’t feel right to just end a project like this all of a sudden. But the nice comments on social media were also very uplifting.

What advice would you give to someone embarking on a year-long creative project?

Make sure you really do have the time for it. Make sure you can work in advance when you have a quieter time.

What was the most challenging aspect of doing this photo project?

It was a challenge to keep the ideas fresh and to not repeat ourselves too often. 

Do you have a favorite houseplant?

Choosing one favorite is difficult. I really like plants with a variation of colors and patterns in their leaves, such as Calathea, Coleus and Maranta. 

But at the moment my favorite is a Hoya which I inherited from my grandfather. It is a very big one; It’s growing very well and it’s very easy to propagate. I want to take many cuttings to share with many people, just to make sure this plant will always be alive somewhere.

Where can people find you online?

You can find the entire plant photo project on Instagram @mijn_planten_en_ik (which means ‘my plants and I’) and my animation portfolio @mvdheijden_animation

My handmade work is in my Etsy shop, Miss Mantis Makes.

Editor’s note: Check out these super cute monstera wood earrings made by Marjan.

And the seasonal botanical textile art:

And another of Marjan’s creations for the cottagecore fans out there:

Thank you so much for your time, Marjan! 

If you want to read more about houseplants and gardening, hop on my once-a-month newsletter list. There’s no endless email sequence here. Just a monthly email to keep in touch and chat about plants.

Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means that if you make a purchase through one of the affiliate links, I will get a very small commission or referral fee at no additional cost to you. You can read more on my affiliate policy page. 

I have an ambivalent relationship with calendars. Being organized is one of my strong suits, but I also have a deep deep hatred of life-admin. And I don’t mean the work meetings, the webinars and the video calls that come part and parcel of being your own boss. I’m referring to the pesky recurring tasks of a personal nature that just seem to love playing a game of whack-a-mole with my overstretched nerves.

I mean, I’ll do them. I’ll schedule a dental cleaning and pay my municipal taxes on time and send my meter readings and schedule the fur bud’s yearly checkup. But I’ll grumble and I’ll crumble all the way through, because just seeing these things on my calendar gives me the adulting heebie-jeebies.

At the same time, I need a calendar in plain sight (usually in the kitchen and on my desk) just to keep track of days, especially with the kind of repetitive and monotonous couple of years we’ve had with lockdown after lockdown. I do have a stack of planners on my desk – for various projects and ideas, but a calendar is the command center of it all.

So the best compromise I came up with is using a digital calendar for work and life-admin, and using pretty botanical calendars for the fun stuff: birthdays, day trips and (eventually) seeing friends. Damned if I’ll ruin any of my plant calendars with notes of dentist appointments!

The reason I’m writing about calendars about a month too late (in the middle of January, that is) is because I’ve been dithering between which one to get way into the new year. But I’m forgiven, since January is my birth month, so that’s when my year starts anyway.

And for a brief second there, in the fog of last November, I actually thought I’d finally mustered up enough commitment to make my own calendar. It was to be a work of beauty, with photos I took every month in the past to mark the present month and serve as reminders of happy times. Oh, you sweet procrastinating soul! Making my own calendar is just not going to happen this year.

Last year I got an absolutely gorgeous calendar from Laivi Illustration, but her shop was taking a break when I checked.

Never one to skip an opportunity to curate a collection, allow me to show you all the botanical calendars that made my shortlist (and the one I actually ended up ordering).

Note: Just in case you come across this post later in the year when calendars are no longer available, I’m linking directly to the maker’s shop. Just check the Calendar tab under “ALL” to see what’s available. 

1. Tropical leaf print calendar from Earth and Alchemy

What I like about it: it’s unbound, so once the year is over, you can cut out the illustrations and use them as prints.

2. Green thumb calendar from Brown Parcel Press

What I like about it: the minimalist modern illustrations are absolutely gorgeous. I dare you to not crave a tomato (or a bunch of them) after looking at the page for the month of July.

3. Wildflower calendar from Mini Press

What I like about it: the understated floral artwork and the wobbly lines of the calendar grid.

4. Houseplant desk calendar from MMPaperGoods 

What I like about it: I made my own wooden desk calendar stand, and this calendar is the perfect size for it. And since my desk is already full of plant pots, I prefer a smaller desk calendar. Once the month is done, I’ll just cut the illustrations and maybe use them in a collage.

5. Illustrated houseplants calendar by Nadia Hassan 

What I like about it: I love the totally flashy vibrant colors and the variety of houseplants in this calendar. 

6. Art Nouveau calendar from Earth Planners

What I like about it: It was hard to pick a calendar from this shop because of how gorgeous all their vintage illustrations are. In the end, I’d go for the Art Nouveau botanical calendar because I’m envisioning it will go together beautifully with an Alphonse Mucha print I brought back from my trip to Prague.

7. Watercolor cat and houseplants desk calendar by Shanvi Prints 

What I like about it: Cats and plants! Need I say more? Two of my life passions. The only thing missing is a cup of coffee in every illustration and then I would really be my life in a nutshell. 

8. Desert Delights calendar by Sandie Conry 

What I like about it: A departure from illustrated plant calendars, but still very much the perfect gift for plant lovers. This calendar includes a stunning collection of photographs by Sandie Conry from her trip to Arizona and its beautiful botanical gardens. 

9. Whimsical botanical botanical pattern calendar by Floating Thistle Paper 

What I like about it: The gorgeous illustrations remind me of ornate wallpaper that I spent a whole vacation photographing (and swooning over) in castles strewn about along the Rhine Valley. 

10. Cozy shops and markets calendar by Phoebe and June

What I like about it: Cute little illustrated storefronts (a bookshop, a bakery, an outdoor gear shop, a cheese shop, etc.) with flowers and potted plants in the windows. 

11. Houseplant vignettes calendar by Betsy Garcia of Bloomwolf Studio 

What I like about it: Not just houseplants, but houseplant vignettes. The illustrations look very cozy. Check out the cute state and city prints by Betsy Garcia, even if you’re not on the market for a calendar. 

If you want to read more about houseplants and gardening, hop on my once-a-month newsletter list. There’s no endless email sequence here. Just a monthly email to keep in touch and chat about plants.

Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means that if you make a purchase through one of the affiliate links, I will get a very small commission or referral fee at no additional cost to you. You can read more on my affiliate policy page. 

Over the past couple of years, it has become clear to me the power the natural world has over the state of our mental health. Every single day, I’m learning so many things from watching my garden grow, caring for my houseplants, and going out for a walk down a tree-lined street. 

Intuitively, I know how nature is a healing force, even when I bring it into our homes. So I wasn’t at all surprised – but I was delighted – when the same narrative emerged from my interview with resin artist Bella Joy. 

Bella creates exquisite plant jewellery, and she forages the botanical material on her hikes in the forests of Sweden. 

Have a look at her jewellery below (and on her website). But more importantly, read her answers on the connection between nature and mental and emotional well-being.

Hi, Bella! Can you please tell us a little bit about your business? 

I create wearable botanical art pieces inspired by nature and emotions. I am the kind of artist who always finds comfort in nature and who tends to associate colors and shapes to different emotions.

I focus on wearable art, particularly jewellery. I love details, and you can clearly see that in all of my work. I do create minimalist designs from time to time, but I enjoy my work more if I can see details that were formed by tiny flowers and leaves. Most botanicals that I use were gathered during my walks around the area where I live in Sweden.

How did you decide to start a business making botanical jewellery?

It all began when I was looking for ways to preserve the pressed flowers that I kept between the pages of my books. Resin was also becoming popular at the time in terms of flower preservation, so I thought I’d give it a try. It was never intended to become a business, but most of my friends kept telling me that I should sell it!

After months of encouragement, I gave in, and thus Izabella Resin Art was born. To be honest, I didn’t expect the response I got in my first three months as a resin artist. 

People were sending messages about how they feel whenever they look at my work, telling me that it gives them calmness and peace. 

These kinds of messages filled my inbox, especially at the beginning of lockdown.  From that moment on, I realized that my work was more than a business; it had become a haven for people who are battling anxiety because of the uncertain times we’re living in.

Can you give us some insight into your creative process? How does a piece of jewellery designed by you come to life?

My creative process is somewhat unique because I usually associate a certain feeling with all the things I see, the places I’ve been to, and even my interactions with people. 

For me, these emotions correspond to certain colors and shapes of botanicals I get through foraging the forest where I live. Unlike other artists who create sketches before making the actual artwork, I prefer laying all my flowers on the table and just allowing creativity to flow through me.

How do you source the flowers that you use in your designs?

Most flowers that I use for my work were foraged during my walks in different forests near where I live in Sweden. This pastime led me to learn more about the different botanicals that I gather. The knowledge I have about these plants helps a lot in my business, and it also makes my customer understand more about my artwork.

 What does a workday look like for you?

I am an entrepreneur and an international student living in Sweden. My day is usually spent working on my university assignments and creating designs for Izabella Resin Art. 

I also walk everyday, morning or afternoon, and I always have a box or a bottle of water with me. These two items are handy for a forager, especially when I see botanicals along my walk and I need to make sure that they will not wither fast.

When I get home from walking, I immediately put the botanicals in my presser or in a container with a drying agent. Once done, I go back to working on my research for uni classes. When I get tired, I go back to cutting dried flowers or creating thank you cards for my customers. Basically, my workday is like juggling between flowers and books. My life as a student can be very demanding, but my business with flowers helps me preserve my sanity.

Do you have a favorite houseplant?

Unlike my mom who has a green thumb, I think I am not really blessed with the skill of keeping plants alive. However, when I moved to Sweden, I bought my first ever plant. It was pink heather (Calluna vulgaris), a beautiful plant that is really low maintenance and yields a lot of flowers. To be honest, I used most of its flowers in my work. Sad to say, my heather withered around March, so I didn’t have a choice but to gather all its flowers and just use it in my art. I will get this type of plant again once it becomes available on the market.

Where can people find you online? 

You can visit my shop and learn more about what I do through my website, izabellaresin.com. I am  also very active on my Instagram account where I post my life as a botanical artist. I also show people how I forage in the woods from time to time.

Thank you for taking the time to chat with me, Bella.

All images via izabellaresin.com

If you want to read more about houseplants and gardening, hop on my once-a-month newsletter list. There’s no endless email sequence here. Just a monthly email to keep in touch and chat about plants.

If you’re wondering why a post about making paper snowflakes belongs on a houseplant blog, rest assured that crafting won’t take over gardening around here. This post was originally published on an old blog of mine (oh, I’ve had so many blogs) and still getting a lot of views in the months leading up to Christmas. Since the old blog has been put to bed, I’ve decided to move this post here for the people who are looking for easy paper snowflake instructions. Welcome, my Christmas-loving friends!

I really don’t like buying Christmas ornaments from big box stores. It seems to me that all the collections available are cheaply (and exploitatively) made in China. The glitter is more in the box than on the baubles, Santa’s eyes are drawn on his forehead and angels have dubious things hanging from their backs that definitely don’t look like wings.

Making a paper snowflake was a simple and fun project done while we were watching TV. I remember doing this paper project when I was in kindergarten, so it really is easy. The most difficult part might be picking the right book to butcher, if you choose to use book pages instead of regular paper.

I did, so I picked Jerry Seinfeld’s Seinlanguage. Jerry wouldn’t mind, and all the jokes are in his shows anyway, so I felt the sacrifice was minimal.

What you need to make paper snowflakes:

3 book pages for every snowflake

sewing thread

a needle

scotch tape

scissors

patience

8 Simple steps to make paper snowflakes

1. Cut out a page out of the book.

2. Fold the page accordion-style, from the bottom to the top.

3. Cut the two ends into little hearts or stars (optional, but it looks nice).

4. Fold the page in half.

5. Make two more sides, following steps 1-4.

6. Tie three folded pages in the middle with regular sewing thread or a thin ribbon.

7. If the snowflake doesn’t stay “open” (this depends on the paper), use scotch tape to attach the separate pieces of paper at the ends.

8. We used a needle and thread to attach the snowflakes together. 

If you’re making just one snowflake, you can use the thread to make a loop – it will come in handy if you want to hang the snowflake on the Christmas tree. 

It’s hard to convey how delicately mesmerizing crystal charmers are unless you’ve seen one twirling in the sun and casting drops of colors on everything that surrounds it. 

Well, imagine the beauty of these crystal sun catchers combined with the elegant strands of an air plant and the golden glimmer of metal, and you’ll just about imagine how gorgeous Nicole’s air plant holder creations are. 

I asked Nicole for a quick interview about how she started her small business in the middle of lockdown, and as a healthcare professional to boot. To accompany this interview, I selected a few of my favorite pieces from Nicole’s collection on Etsy; and let me tell you, it wasn’t easy to pick. It was made easier, though, by hundreds of raving reviews accompanied by photos of the air plant sun catchers in people’s homes. 

The mark of a good small business is when your customers send you photos of how your product fits in their environment and their daily lives, I think. And by this standard, Nicole’s business is thriving. 

Take it away, Nicole!

Hi, Nicole! Can you please tell us a little bit about your business? 

The Charmer Boutique, LLC, is a small business I started in order to infuse my craft and love of plants with my reiki certification. I started it during the height of the pandemic as a creative outlet for myself, and it quickly turned into something much more!

How did you decide to start a business making air plant accessories? 

Initially, I started making these pieces as a hobby. It was a therapeutic way for me to pass time as the whole world was in lockdown. It helped take my mind off my anxiety caused by what was happening in the world. After posting my creations on social media, people quickly started asking me to make pieces for them. This is how my small business was born!

Can you give us some insight into your creative process? How does a piece designed by you come to life? 

I started off making simple pieces, and quickly realized I’d love to have more of a variety of styles for people to choose from. 

I knew I wanted to incorporate crystals into my plant holders, and found agate to be a nice weight and size to suspend from them. I also love spending time in crystal shops looking over their selection of crystals that I can use to adorn my pieces with. 

Where do you draw your inspiration from? 

I am very much into crystals, reiki and holistic healing. I keep those aspects of my life in mind when creating new ideas. Combining these passions makes these pieces very personal to me!

What does a workday look like for you? 

I actually work full time as a Director of Nursing, and when I have down time I love to spend it crafting these pieces. After a long day at work, this is a nice way for me to unwind, light some candles and some incense, and put together my pieces. 

Do you have a favorite houseplant (other than air plants, of course)? 

As simple as they are, I love my spider plants!

Where can people find you online?

I can be found over on Etsy at The Charmer Boutique.

Thank you for taking the time to talk to us, Nicole! 

All images by The Charmer Boutique via their Etsy store. 

Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means that if you make a purchase through one of the affiliate links, I will get a very small commission or referral fee at no additional cost to you. You can read more on my affiliate policy page. 

Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means that if you make a purchase through one of the affiliate links, I will get a very small commission or referral fee at no additional cost to you. You can read more on my affiliate policy page. 

I have a confession: every week, I spend precious hours entangled in social media groups for houseplant lovers. Sometimes I interact and give advice; other times I just lurk and admire other people’s plant babes. I can’t help it. I’m a believer in the power of plants to create supportive communities.

It was in such a group that I came across a post from Kelly. She had just started her business making wood plant stands and was announcing it proudly to the private plant community I was just happening to scroll through.

The picture she posted – of a curvy wood plant hanger – made me go looking for more. I found her Etsy store, Wood and Soil, and decided to keep tabs on it.

And every time I checked, there were more and more swooning reviews from her customers. “I have already gotten many compliments on it,” said one. “Love the craftsmanship and quality of the materials,” reviewed another. “It has become my favorite focal point in the room,” and on and on. Talk about building a fan base, one product at a time. 

I reached out to Kelly to find out more about the creative process behind making every single wood planter by hand and how Wood and Soil got started.

Hi, Kelly! Can you please tell us a little bit about yourself and your work. 

My husband, Casey, and I make wood plant stands and hanging baskets by hand. We are both in our mid-30s and have two daughters: Evelyn who is 5 and Alice who is 2.

How did you decide to become a wood artisan? 

One of Casey’s hobbies has been woodworking, and I’ve had a plant obsession for years.  Over the years, Casey had made a few pieces for my plants. We were both bartenders when the pandemic hit, so we both lost our jobs because of it. Not knowing how long it would last, we needed a plan to provide for our daughters. 

After many ideas, we decided to try the plant stands and baskets! Now it has become a full-time job for both of us, which is so crazy to think about. When we first set up our business, Casey did a lot of the woodworking; but he has been training me over the months and I can make any of our pieces from start to finish now! So, it’s been a really rad skill to learn.

Your hanging baskets look gorgeous and unique. Can you give us some insight into your creative process? How does a piece designed and created by Wood and Soil come to life?

Thank you so much! The very first basket design came from Casey when he made me a basket out of an old dining chair! So we used that design as the inspiration for our first basket. 

Now, it’s a collaboration between the two of us when designing new pieces. A lot of the time, I think of a piece that I would want for myself and we try to bring it to life. Casey is a natural artist, so when he gets some spare time to just focus on creating, he comes up with amazing designs.

Where do you draw your inspiration from?

Our inspiration comes from everyday life. We want pieces to be both beautiful and functional. 

The inspiration for one of our pieces came from the classic “egg chair” design. Another piece was designed for people to be able to hang a basket without having to put holes in their ceiling or walls. I really wanted that option for people who rent and aren’t allowed to drill into their walls.

What does a workday look like for you?

The first few hours of work start with stinging up baskets and getting pieces ready to ship that we stained the night before! Our customers get to choose the stain option that best fits their style, so everything is made to order. 

After everything is packed and dropped off at the post office, we are in the shop and drawing out pieces, cutting them out, routing, drilling, sanding and then staining. We aim to get about 10 pieces done from start to finish every day. Each piece takes us hours to make, so we are only able to fit in so many a day.

Do you have a favorite houseplant?

Oh wow, that’s a hard one. I love so many! My monsteras and my lemon lime philodendrons are probably my favorites.

Where can people find you online? 

So many places! We sell our designs via Etsy at Wood and Soil and we ship everywhere! If people want to follow us online, they can find us on Instagram and Facebook. 

Thank you for taking the time to answer my questions, Kelly! 

All images via Wood and Soil. 

If you want to read more about houseplants and gardening, hop on my once-a-month newsletter list. There’s no endless email sequence here. Just a monthly email to keep in touch and chat about plants.

Have you ever thought about renting houseplants?

I’m not going to lie, the thought definitely crossed my mind four years ago, after yet another international move. My family’s life was in a period of transition, and my partner and I had no clue whether we’d stay put for more than a year. 

It took a few months for the waters to settle, and in the meantime the only plant in our apartment was a store-bought sage, occasionally joined by a pot of basil whose only sin was not keeping up with the pace of pesto in our house. 

In times like these, I would have loved to have the option to rent some houseplants. I wouldn’t have to deal with finding them new homes (always a sad process) if and when we had to uproot our lives and move again. 

Luckily, houseplant renting services are no longer just for corporate clients with big budgets. 

European startup Horticure is now at the forefront of offering plant rentals for individuals. I reached out to Horticure founder, Deborah Choi, to ask her a few questions about this new houseplant rental service. 

Hi, Deborah. Can you tell us a bit about the plant services offered by Horticure?

Horticure is a young company and brand, launched at the end of 2018. In this short time, we’ve experimented with many different service models and products. For example, we previously piloted a program with a few independent plant stores, where Horticure was their marketing and logistics arm for online sales.  

All through these iterations, we’ve kept the same mission: enabling more people to live a greener life indoors, by addressing the knowledge gaps, as well as the convenience and affordability issues that come with bringing plants indoors.

Plant rentals (or more specifically, a rent-to-own program for consumers), was a natural extension of our mission.

It took some time to get all the details right, such as building solid relationships with great and consistent growers, fine-tuning our logistics process and really understanding our customers’ pain points.

Who is your houseplant rental service for? Does your average plant renter have a profile? 

What we see so far is that the Horticure customer is largely just getting started with indoor plants. 

Generation-wise, they’re primarily millennials (between the ages of 25 and 40), rent their homes in urban areas with little to no outdoor space, and have a desire to feel good at home, with plants playing a new role in that.

How do you decide what plants to offer for rent?

We say with our plant rental program, “just add water”! Our focus is on plants that are easy to care for, but we hope to diversify the understanding of what an easy-care plant is. 

So yes, we’ve got lovely Sansevierias, Monsteras and ZZ plants in our rental plans. But we’ve also included less well-known plant families that can thrive with normal room humidity levels and tolerate lower light conditions, such as Ctenanthes, Syngoniums, Philodendrons, etc. 

We think easy-care also speaks to the maturity of the plant as well, so our kits only include plants that have already grown to heights of 15+ centimeters (about 6 inches), and fit planters no smaller than 14 centimeters (5.5 inches) in diameter.

Finally, our rental subscribers can pick our “Pet Friendly”, and enjoy between 15 and 40 diverse and non-toxic plants delivered to their home.

How does the plant renting process work?

We are currently piloting plant rentals in Berlin, Germany. But we plan to expand this service before the end of 2020 to a few more cities in Europe. Here’s how the process currently works:

Step 1: Customers select their package size (S, M, L), based on whether they’re filling a room or flat with plants. All plans include plants for hanging, setting on tables and window sills, and placing on available floor space.

Step 2: Customers decide the type of planter they want. We offer plants in either their nursery pots, or pre-potted in new terracotta planters.

Step 3: The customer also selects either our Classic mix, or the Pet Friendly plan (non toxic plants only).

Step 4: We then receive the plants and pots to our logistics center here in Berlin and re-pot the plants. This is done by our team of horticulturists, using peat-free and high quality soil plus substrate.

Step 5: Courier delivery is then organized to get all the plants in the kit (whether that’s 15 or 50!) to the customer’s home.

Step 6: Once a month, the customer has a short (10-15 minute) virtual check-in with a horticulturist on our team, as a way to help them grow their plant care knowledge, and also ensure any issues with the plants are handled right away.

What should someone who wants to rent a plant through Horticure know before they sign up?

We’ve designed our rental program to be very flexible!

You can use it as a way to affordably bring plants into your home permanently via our rent-to-own option, or enjoy having a rotating selection of plants at home by opting to swap the selection every six months.

What happens if the renters fall in love with the plants they’ve been taking care of?

We’re transparent about when the plants have been “paid off”; we hope you do fall in love with the plants and learn how to take care of them, with the support of our plant experts. Most plans are paid off after 6 or 7 months.

Renting plants for your home is certainly a very new concept, but we encourage people to give it a try with us! 

Thank you for taking the time to join us, Deborah!

Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means that if you make a purchase through one of the affiliate links, I will get a very small commission or referral fee at no additional cost to you. You can read more on my affiliate policy page. 

Hey, houseplant lover! What if I told you there’s a sloth hanging out on your pothos? Oh, and by the way, he’s not the lonely kind. Its friend, the flying squirrel, is making its way up your monstera.

No, it’s not a tropical plant-induced mirage.

I’m talking about the latest line of houseplant accessories from London-based Another Studio.

Whether we’re talking about graceful brass birds perched on pendants or playful koalas peeking from behind a ZZ plant, these houseplant accessories are the perfect surprise present for the plant-obsessed people in your life. You can start them off with an animal or two or buy the entire ten-piece collection.

There’s so much ingenuity in these figurines, so as soon as I found them online, I wanted to know more about the creative mind that came up with the concept. Aimee Furnival, the creator of the brass houseplant accessories and the founder of Another Studio, was kind enough to answer a few questions for our Green with Purpose readers.

Hi, Aimee. Please tell us a little bit about yourself and your work.

I run a indie design company in London called Another Studio which I started in 2009. I have a lovely light and plant filled studio in Deptford where I work with my amazing team: Hannah, the Studio Manager; Stacie, our Studio Assistant; Stanley, my Sausage Dog and Chief Mascot.

I’m a bit obsessed with miniature objects, so many of the designs we create play with scale, be it pocket-sized ornaments or plant-related decorations.

How did you start designing houseplant accessories?

My interest stemmed from living in London and craving green spaces. I didn’t have a garden, so houseplants and indoor gardening it was!

I do think plants have their own personalities and character, so it was fun to make playful and engaging products inspired by them.

Can you give us some insight into your creative process? How does a piece designed by you come to life?

Ideas tend to spend a while in my head!

I like to sit with an idea and consider it for a while. If it still excites and interests me after six months, I’ll start researching and sketching out some designs.

Then it has to pass my two strict tests:

Would I buy it?

Is it original and unique?

If it gets past this stage, designs are made, sampled, tested and tweaked before we bring them out. Nowadays I like to share all our work in progress on Instagram. It’s really helpful to hear people’s feedback and thoughts as I’m creating the pieces.

Have you created any other products that might be of interest to houseplant lovers?

Absolutely! We have a great set of Houseplant Care Cards which are packed full of advice and tips for botanical success indoors.

We also have an illustrated Houseplant Poster. I like to use it as a tick list for the plants I want to acquire. I’m getting there slowly, so I may have to design a second edition of the poster soon 🙂

Since we’re all about the plant fandom around here, do you have a favorite houseplant?

At the studio I love our trailing Aeschynanthus lipstick plant. It’s quite unusual and rewards us with beautiful flowers each year.

At home the ZZ plant (Zamioculcas zamiifolia) is a firm favorite for its dark green waxy leaves and super carefree spirit. It’s the easiest plant to look after and very tolerant of winter, too!

Thank you so much for your time, Aimee.

All images via Another Studio. To go straight to their animal collection, click this way.

If you want to read more about houseplants and gardening, hop on my once-a-month newsletter list. There’s no endless email sequence here. Just a monthly email to keep in touch and chat about plants.

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Danish design?

It could be sleek modern lines. Minimalist whites. Or even hardy wood shapes.  

But surely, it’s not terracotta. 

Until now, that is. 

Have a look at these sunkissed terracotta planters from Studio Arhoj, a Danish design studio housed in an old envelope factory on Islands Brygge – a former industrial and dockland area just outside Copenhagen.

Studio Arhoj, very much a family-operated business, has an unwavering focus on keeping alive traditions and knowledge about bygone crafts such as wheel throwing, glazing, and kiln firing (which they do out of their 12 kilns in front of visitors and buyers).  

The Tri-Pot terracotta flower pot stands testimony to their commitment to old-school craftsmanship.

The flower pot stands on three hollow-legs that act as drainage for the plant nestled inside it. But don’t worry, all planters come with a matching saucer that catches the excess water. 

I can already envision the funny galoshes that these feet will develop overtime, as the terracotta develops its patina after exposure to water and the elements. 

For now, the Tri-Pot comes in two sizes: 10 cm deep (about 4 inches) and 13 cm deep (5.1 inches).

The studio ships all over the globe, but do check the details straight on their website before you place an order. 

All images via Arhoj Studio. You can order the flower pot on their website.

Every time I sit down to research designs that houseplant lovers might like, I keep in mind a list of criteria that the product should meet.

And even for a short 400-word post, I drill down as deep as I can to uncover all the details that might not be obvious at first glance.

I once scrapped a whole post just as I was getting ready to hit “Publish” when I realized that the extremely cool-looking planters I had written about were actually made in a factory in China. There were no guarantees of fair trade or fair work conditions. But the product specifications were buried so deep down in the recesses of the designer’s website, that it was impossible to notice them.

Well, almost impossible.

I was even more disappointed to find that same product all over Pinterest and on other sustainable design websites.

It shouldn’t be this hard to find more information what we’re buying. It shouldn’t be this hard to find out who made it and where. And this is especially true when we’re talking about design studios that attach hefty price tags to their products.

An informed buyer is an empowered buyer, and more and more millennials are making the choice to cast a vote with every purchase they make. A vote for what they want to see more of in the world.

What I want to see more of are products that are sustainably-made by artisans who are fairly compensated for their work. Products that are created by designers who understand that sustainability is no longer a choice, but a necessity.

That’s the kind of product I want to show you today.

This adorable rope hanging planter from Closed Mondays ticks all the boxes.

Sustainable material. Slow creation process. Hand-made in the United States. Reasonably priced.

The colorful rope planters are made in the Closed Mondays studio in Brooklyn, New York, by artisans who receive fair wages. And there’s one more thing that sets them apart that I haven’t really found anywhere else: the studio sells their “mistakes.” A blotch of paint here, a loose thread there – these aren’t reasons why we should discard perfectly good products.

The Closed Mondays studio was founded by Bekka Palmer, a designer and photographer on a mission against fast fashion and poor working conditions. When she was six years old, Bekka learned how to sew from her grandmother, and she continued to be influenced by the craftiness and attention to detail of her parents.

For more of Bekka Palmer’s projects >> this way

All images via Closed Mondays

I have this thing for fun people! Yawn, who doesn’t, right?

But I mean really fun people. The kind of people whom you sit next to at a random networking event and find yourself trying to suppress your laughter while snickering under your overpriced cup of “generic networking event coffee.”

And I have a feeling Jamie O’Berry matches my view of fun people. You see, I haven’t met Jamie in real life; I’ve just been stalking her account on Instagram. And then I reached out to her to ask for an interview for Green with Purpose, because Jamie is fun and creative and a little bit different from all the other houseplant-centered accounts I follow.

Jamie has been in the business of selling houseplants for eight years, which seems to have only fueled her creativity. She creates adorable miniatures and chic flower arrangements that have her twelve thousand Insta fans swooning on a weekly basis.

Hi, Jamie! Can you please tell our readers a little bit about yourself and your work?

Hi! I’m Jamie O’Berry. I’m in my 30s and I own O’Berry’s Succulents. I started my business in 2012 and I was making succulent arrangements in upcycled pottery.

Now, in 2020, I’m a florist. I create plant merch, collaborate with local artists and assist in hosting community plant events in the town I live – St. Petersburg, Florida.

How did you start growing houseplants to sell?

I come from a long line of growers and farmers. So I seriously think growing plants is in my blood. I became interested in succulents and cacti in 2010 and went to bookstores to find books on drought-tolerant plants. Back then, I could only find a couple of books.

Things sure are different now!

My dad, who is a grower and went to college for botany and foliage plants, would help me find succulents at local stores or around my neighborhood when neighbors were re-landscaping and throwing out their old plants for new ones.

I have always had a large collection of ceramics and china, so we started planting them together. I did a little research and saw that Flora Grubbs Gardens in San Francisco was selling tea cups with a single succulent and was inspired. But since this was way before Pinterest, this was all the inspiration I could find.

So I learned how to drill holes in the pottery and make beautiful little landscapes myself.

Can you give us some insight into your creative process? How does an arrangement designed by you come to life?

Creativity doesn’t always come first. Sometimes I’m just making pieces because I have a deadline, and then doing the work leads me to the creative part. I end up making a piece and think “wow, this is so good,” so this pushes me into making more. And then I become so excited about what I’m making. That’s usually the process every time I sit down at my workbench.

You use a lot of upcycled materials. How and where do you find them?

I find my upcycled pots and ceramics at estate sales. After doing this for so long, I can tell in about a quarter of a second if something is going to work. Size, color and texture play a big part. I also meet local ceramic artists at events, and I ask them to work with me.

How about the miniature houseplants? Are they becoming more popular?

Everyone loves the miniature planters. I can’t seem to make enough of them, which is why I’ve started taking ceramic classes. I have a lot of ideas and I’m excited to be able to turn them into reality.

Buyers love them because they are cute and they don’t have them yet. Gardeners always want the plant and planter they don’t have yet! Very few artists in the country are making them and I realized mine have a unique style. They’re not like anyone else’s.

What does a workday look like for you?

My workday usually starts with being in the office for a few hours. I work for a local craft faire doing social media and brand management.

Then I’m usually working on making planters, creating wedding floral proposals, listing items in my online shop, and making sure everything is growing successfully in the cactus and succulent garden outside.

I work every day, but make time for small mini-vacations every couple of months.

Do you have a favorite houseplant?

It’s tough to pick a favorite, but I’m up for the challenge, so I’m declaring the string of pearls as my favorite!

Thanks so much for chatting with us, Jamie!

Have a look at Jamie’s online shop and her Instagram account to see what’s currently available. My advice is, if you like something, get it right away. O’Berry creations are selling like hot cakes. Or is it hot cacti?

All images via O’Berry Succulents.

Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. This means that if you make a purchase through one of the affiliate links, I will get a very small commission or referral fee at no additional cost to you. You can read more on my affiliate policy page. 

For every product I write about, I first look at whether it meets certain sustainability criteria. I come across so many products for houseplant lovers, but before I decide to feature them, I want to know what boxes they tick.

I can tell you now that I will never feature concrete planters. I am often tempted to, but when you read about the environmental impact of concrete, there is little justification for choosing to use it for home decor.

I’m also committed to not featuring plastic, mass-produced products. There are plenty of designers, crafters and artisans out there making beautiful planters. And if that gets a bit too expensive, there’s always the most sustainable choice of buying pre-loved and pre-owned plant paraphernalia.

So when I had a look at what designers Mélisande and Philippe were offering to plant lovers, I decided to write about them … again.

If these planters look familiar, it might be because we have already featured products by the same makers before.

But it’s really hard not to revisit their store every now and then, just to see what other quirky designs Mélisande and Philippe come up with.

Here’s what French store Minimum Design has going for it:

Their planters are made from a fully biodegradable material (a mixture of recycled wood and bioplastic made from corn). This material gives the planter the look, feel and unique smell of raw wood.

They work on demand, so every product is made especially for one particular buyer. Producing on demand allows Mélisande and Philippe to conserve resources and produce responsibly. There’s no overstock waste.

When you order their pots, you can choose whether you want it to come with a drainage hole or not. This is customization at its finest. That means you don’t have to use a plastic pot if you choose the planter with drainage. If the plant you want to display in these Scandinavian-inspired designs is already in a plastic liner, then you can choose a model without any drainage.

My personal favorites from their current collection are definitely the Aztek design – with its geometric stamps and sleek lines, and the Japan model – with vertical minimalist lines perfect for showcasing houseplants with long stems and voluminous tops. I think a ponytail palm would look amazing in this planter.

Before I wrapped up this post, I looked up Hossegor in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, the part of France where the design studio is located. Wow! It all seemed to come full circle. Golden beaches, pastel-colored buildings strewn about and a general sense of serenity. I’m not denying the Scandi influences of Mélisande and Philippe’s work. But maybe, just maybe, there’s a little bit of French Atlantic inspiration in the mix.

Most of the planters are available in three or four sizes. Have a look at their Etsy shop or their website.

Photos via Minimum Design

If you want to read more about houseplants and gardening, hop on my once-a-month newsletter list. There’s no endless email sequence here. Just a monthly email to keep in touch and chat about plants.

From tea containers to humble pencils, we’re seeing a rise in plantable packaging. We won’t lie, it makes our environmental-loving hearts skip a beat every time several serious problems are tackled at once.

In this case, the creator of Lifi is showing us that it is possible to avoid packaging waste and avoid loss of organic materials through pointless burning (think of how your city handles leaf collection during the fall).

This project comes straight from the mind of Lithuanian designer Edmundas Jankauskas.

Edmundas created Lifi (pronounced ‘leafy’) as a final project for his Master’s Degree at the Vilnius Academy of Art. Lifi is already an award-winning concept, having received accolades such as Red Dot Award for Design Concept in 2018 and Silver, A’ Design Awards 2017-2018

Here’s how Lifi works:

Every autumn, the package creators collect fallen leaves from the deep forests of Lithuania. The leaves are washed, crushed with a mixer, turned into a fibre, placed into a mould, and carefully shaped into cube packaging. The entire process remains untainted by chemicals or additives.

The hand-made packaging is then filled with herb seeds.

When you bring the cube home and start watering it, the packaging starts to dissolve while at the same time helping the seeds inside grow into a healthy herb. All the organic decomposing materials release minerals which help the plant thrive. Compare that to the alternative of buying herbs potted in plastic, which is often the case with herbs you can find in the supermarket.

The active packaging can be reused many times or just thrown away when you no longer need it. It will decompose in nature or in your garden. You can even add it to the soil of another plant in your collection.

Lastly, the label is made with an eco-friendly paper and printed with plant-based ink.

Photos from Edmundas Jankauskas’ Behance profile.

For more plantable packaging ideas, have a look at this compostable tea container that comes with a seed stick.

I’ve been noticing a pattern while curating design pieces for houseplant lovers. Often, the design follows a minimalist aesthetic associated with Scandinavian decor. And almost just as often, the craftmanship is executed in countries such as Portugal – renowned for its ceramic artistry and use of organic materials. (Have a look at these planters from Dedal to see what I mean.)

So naturally, when I found a planter that’s the best of both worlds, I knew I had to feature it.

The Sip plant pot is designed by Norwegian ceramicist Ann Kristin Einarsen, and it comes to life under the masterful hand of Portuguese artisans.

Created especially for Case Furniture, the planter is made of terrastone, which is a hybrid material with the porousness of terracotta and the durability of stoneware. What lies hidden inside the planter is a nylon wick which works as an extension of the plant roots. The wick draws water from the base reservoir, thus controlling the amount of water that the plant receives. So the plant only takes what it needs – a surefire way of controlling overwatering, making it perfect even for the novice plantkeeper.

All you have to do is add water to the cleverly shaped glazed tray, and the plant will take care of itself.

The Sip is also the perfect flower pot choice if you’re the forgetful type or if you travel a lot and your plants can’t rely on you for regular watering.

We’re advocates for self watering containers around here, because even with the best intentions, some things are bound to go wrong when we’re taking care of plants. But the beauty of plant keeping is that houseplants are forgiving. And even when they’re not, there’s always a lesson to be learned along the way.

In the designer’s own words ideas come “from life, from living, learning, seeing, experiencing, touching, making, dreaming and failing; and they develop and change through testing, problem-solving, discussion, experimenting, experience and failing, again.”

Images via Case Furniture

For another self-watering planter designed by Ann Kristin Einarsen, have a look at Rolla

A couple of years ago, I received a postcard from a friend living on the other side of the Atlantic. The postcard, issued by the United States Postal Service, was made with special paper that had wildflower seeds rolled in it. It ended its life – or started its life – as an act of guerrilla gardening in a vacant garden on a university campus.

Thus started my love for all things plantable.

There’s something especially hopeful about planting seeds and waiting for them to sprout.

There’s something even more special about objects that would otherwise go to waste transformed into another opportunity to plant and be hopeful.

Rhoeco, a Greek purveyor of fine quality organic teas, has made it their mission to get us planting.

The company sells a few types of loose leaf tea blends, aptly named after natural elements (mountain, forest, sea, agros). Once you’ve savored the tea to the last leaf, you don’t have to worry about disposing of wasteful packaging. Under the lid, you’ll find a stick that’s imbibed with a mix of organic herb seeds: chamomile, mallow, sage, lemon balm, thyme, and hyssop. The glue holding the seeds together is natural and eco-friendly, and helps feed the seedlings after you’ve planted them.

Now the planting is up to you. All you have to do is fill the empty container with some soil and press the seed stick in it. Keep it watered, but not soggy, and place it on a sunny windowsill.

You can write the planting date on the stick and observe the seed growth day by day. You’ll see the results of your green thumbs in 7 to 20 days.

When the seedlings are 3-4 cm (1-2 inches) tall, you can take the next step and transfer the planter to a larger flower pot or to your garden. You don’t have to worry about digging it out, because the container itself is biodegradable.

Isn’t that an amazing idea?

You get to enjoy the soothing tea inside and then, if you put at least a little bit of effort in the process, you get to grow your own blend.

I can’t think of any other company that offers their buyers a chance of by-passing them to get the same final product. But that’s the beauty of circular economy and sustainable business practices in action.

Rhoeco – whom I’ve been introduced to via the Maison et Objet Fair, is a team of young professionals, ecology enthusiasts and herb lovers, with the ambition to revive traditional habits and insert them into our modern hectic days.

You can read more about their manifesto (you should, it will speak to your soul) on their website.

All photos via Rhoeco’s website and their Instagram account.

For more product-seed-plant examples, have a look at
> the Sprout pencil – you can plant it once you’ve sharpened it to the stub
> the bee saving paper – releasing a delicious cocktail of flowers that bees can feast on.

Can you imagine a rolling flower pot? What’s the first thing that comes to mind? Maybe when you’ve accidentally knocked one over when you were vacuuming. (Just me?)

What we’re talking about today is something a little bit more sophisticated than that. The Voltasol flower pot has been especially designed to move according to the direction of the sun.

Why is the sun so important?

If you’ve ever cared for a houseplant, you already know that they’re major light chasers because they get the energy they need for photosynthesis from sunlight.

I once had a purple heart plant (Setcreasea pallida) that craved the sun so much, it almost twisted itself around a bookshelf just to get closer to the window. And when plants put their energy into chasing the light, they often don’t have enough energy left to grow in any other direction. Plants lacking light will often end up leggy and frail.

Ideally, you want to rotate your plants every month to make sure their growth is even and not lopsided, but that’s just one more thing that I’m not keen to add to my to-do list.

Back to the Voltasol planter – it’s designed to rotate easily, either spontaneously as the plant leans over, or if given a gentle nudge. Voltasol comes in pleasant color combinations of terracotta top and mint, peach, white or yellow bottom – mirroring the shades of summer in the Bisbal d’Empordà, where the pieces are made.

The planter is designed by BAG Disseny studio, a project started by Sandra Compte and Xavier Mora. The studio is based in Barcelona, Girona and Andorra.

The planter has already won multiple awards and has become the darling of the design fairs all over the world.

You can buy all four sizes of the planter from Living Things

All photos via We Are Living Things.

To buy the Voltasol flower pot, head over >> this way

When I came across these flower pots from Light and Ladder, I felt a chill of deja vu sneaking into my brain.

Where had I seen this shape before?

The sliding lines wrapped around a sphere, so elegant yet so precise. With no extraneous corners, no botchy transitions, no rushed revelations. Just simple, clean, magnetic.

It took a while to be able to place it, partly because the context in which I had seen the same shapes was so different. But it came to me, eventually. I had used the same words to describe a building I had seen on a trip to Luxembourg City. The Luxembourg Philharmonic, with its soft lines and 823 facade columns of white steel, is modern architectural masterpiece.

I don’t think I can describe the Vayu planters better than their creators do: by peeling away layers and staggering the proportions, the eye is drawn towards a view that’s unique from every angle.

You can order this piece both as a flower pot (this means that it has drainage holes) and as a planter (just insert the plastic pot that your plant came in). The flower pot version comes with a matching tray for catching the excess water.

The ceramic planter is made in the United States and comes in a stone finish (grey) and a blush finish (a pleasant peach color).

Light and Ladder is a Brooklyn-based studio headed by Farrah Sit. Farrah’s dream is “to create a business based on quality, function, beauty and community” with a focus of nudging their buyers towards owning fewer, but better, home accessories.

And they’re doing a great job at taking out the excess to reveal the beauty of everyday decor.

All photos of the planter via Light and Ladder

Luxembourg Philharmonic photo by Jean-noel Lafargue via Wikimedia commons