I hope I don't kill it

I brought home a biggish $16 palm from Home Depot this weekend and put it in the parlor. I had hoped to find something tall that was not a palm for a good price, but all the other plants they had were much too small. IKEA and Lowes didn't have anything better, and the greenhouse I tried was closed until spring (whenever that is). This guy kind of makes a big difference in the coziness factor, doesn't it? See corner before. Alex was impressed, too.

The Home Depot lady said that after 20 years of killing plants, she has finally learned not to water them from the top, but to let the plant suck up the moisture from the bottom. Her formula is: keep the plant in the cheap plastic container it came in. Put that inside a clear plastic liner tray from the garden center or cheap disposable party bowl from the dollar store, and set both of those inside the pretty decorative outer pot. Every week or so, put water in the clear liner tray for the plant to absorb. Give it Miracle Grow once or twice a month.

We'll see. I'm starting with this guy, and then I'll branch out (har har) into some of the other plants you guys recommended in the excellent comments on this post.

Also note the cute curly fig on the table, too. Best wishes for a long life, little fella.

Update: as requested, here's the pot I put the palm in. It's from Kroger.

Liquid gold leaf on paper

I tried painting yesterday's Liquid Leaf on paper to see what would happen. It creates a lovely metallic lustre.


Liquid Leaf does soak through paper a bit, though. I tried spraying a sheet with a quick coat of clear acrylic sealer first to see if that would help, but it didn't change much. Still, it's no problem if you want to paint some prints for framing or paste the gold-painted paper onto something else.

Experimenting with liquid gold leaf

I'm still shopping for enormous plants, but in the meantime, I operated on some lamps.

You know how IKEA's model living rooms always look so inviting because there are little light sources everywhere? Or in movies, the libraries and dens are always so cozy? Lights on the bookshelves seem to add a lot, so I was determined to put some on our shelves in the parlor. Like a less glorious version of this.

I shopped online a bit, and brass picture lights are expensive. So I bought a couple of these NON lights from IKEA. But I wanted them brass or gold to go with the parlor light fixture instead of the silver color they came in.


I considered spray painting them, but was worried about the paint making a mess and going inside the lamp's little holes. It seemed easier to brush them with something, so I tried out some Liquid Leaf I bought at Michael's. Sort of like gold leaf in a jar.

I shook up the bottle to mix the paint and then brushed it on with a small craft brush. Because the lights were very slightly textured (they're plastic), it adhered beautifully. Brushstrokes evened out and disappeared. It was like brushing on fingernail polish, and smells the same, too. In minutes the paint was dry to the touch. In an hour it was hard and set.


The coverage from one coat was almost enough, but I put on two for good measure.

I cleaned my brush with mineral spirits— not sure what you're supposed to use, but that worked well.

This color is Florentine Gold, which is more coppery than straight-up gold. The store was out of bronze, which would have been nice, but I'm pleased as punch. You can't even tell I used any from the little bottle, so there's plenty left to gild Alex's computer when he's not looking. Now I just need to put up the lights!

DIY pots for small plants

On the subject of house plants, have you seen these sweet tutorials for small pots? Above, tiny polymer clay faceted pots at Merrypad.


Face pot at Dream Green DIY and brass pot with spray painted stripes at Little Green Notebook.


Cement pots with gold leaf at Ruffled and DIY book planters at Green Wedding Shoes.

Cute, all of 'em!

House plant ideas

It's starting to seem a little more spring-like outside, which turns my thoughts toward our yard that I don't know what to do with. And plants. At Lowes this weekend I bought a couple small houseplants and put this one in a pot I had. But I need more!

A smart designerly friend suggested I put a great big palm in the dining room, Downton Abbey style. It would look awesome. But I hear palm and immediately picture this.

I might take her suggestion for a philodendron instead. And a pencil plant for the office. Love it. I use pencils there, so that makes sense.

Now, I understand that if you're a blogger and/or want your house to look like a magazine photo, it's required that you own a fiddle leaf fig.

Got any other suggestions for potted plants that could stand on the floor, grow really tall, don't require direct sunlight, and are hard to kill?

Dress up plain furniture with fretwork

In my travels around the internet today, I came across O'verlays fretwork panels. They're made from PVC and are paintable, lightweight panels that add decoration to your furniture. Designs include Greek keys, quatrefoils, figure-eights, and other geometric shapes. They're especially great for adding ornamentation to plain IKEA furniture— you can choose kits specifically for the model you own. For inspiration, visit the Facebook page or the project gallery, and learn about painting options here. An interesting resource for DIY furniture makeovers.

Original linocuts for under $30

I've been thinking about what to put on our empty walls. I love original art, but it can get pricey really fast (and deservedly so). For original pieces with an affordable price tag, check out my round-up of little hand-pulled linocuts I found on Etsy. For $30 or less, they're a great way to purchase a small work of art created by a printmaker. See my Pinterest board here.

Above: Pattern by Mia The Hawk, Heads by Flat Earth Studio, Whale by We Think Small, and Bee by Art at Garden Corner.

You know you need this Bigfoot. And the award for best title goes to Donkeys Disturbed By A Meteor Shower.

Scratchboard art

I haven't seen scratchboard since art class in high school. It's a fun medium— you scrape away a black ink finish to reveal the white coating underneath. This weekend I picked up a scratchboard drawing done in the 60's by local artist Louis Speigel. I did some research and it turns out he is best known for his paintings of clown faces. I do not need any of those. But I liked this fountain. Original local art! It was an impulse purchase from my favorite antique store. I'm not sure exactly where it will hang, but I'm thinking the parlor.

The subject is Cincinnati's Tyler Davidson Fountain, named "The Genius of Water," in downtown Fountain Square.

To see some terrific examples of scratchboard art, head to scratchboard.org. There are a few tutorials and fascinating videos of artists drawing, too.