flowers – Page 10 – Karla's Cottage

Nathan Family Fairy Food Forest Fall Update

By Karla Nathan / November 2, 2013

I hate to see the garden season come to an end.

This year was special with the creation of the Fairy Food Forest that my son and our Gypsy designed and grew.

We had some delicious meals plucked from its mounds.

And fresh flowers popping up all over. The wild flower mixes held varieties that attracted good bugs to eat the bad ones, and some plants were meant simply for bugs to eat, to them them away from a plant we might have wanted to eat ourselves.

This year was just a start. My son says it is a five year plan. This was the basics, more trees and edible shrubs will be going in next spring.

And our baby trees will grow tall and produce for us.

There are swales down one side, that trap rainwater so that it is saved in the garden, not washed down the hillside to the creek. Next spring, more swales and trees will go in on the other side.

I'm hoping for more arching structures of vines too. Peas, then beans, then cucumbers all climbed these one after each other. I think the veggies liked the arches as much as I did.

The kids loved planting and picking food too. Both girls knew they could eat tiny, current tomatoes and mini strawberries whenever they saw one ripen. The yard was organically planted, so no nastiness needed to be washed off before popping a tasty treat into their mouths.

It was nice to see little girls playing outside in the dirt and eating produce right off the plants.

Our kitchen garden, fenced off from bunnies, was a success too. We are still pulling up carrots and beets.

And we have about 4,000 cardoon plants. Those seeds really took off and I'm not quite sure what to do with them.

Sadly, we got very few large tomatoes this year, although we had small, salad sized ones daily. I'd have liked some big, slicing tomatoes for sandwiches and some for making sauce to freeze too.

The raccoons seemed to like the few big tomatoes that ripened. Unless I picked them green and brought them in to finish, the animals beat me to them.

Even with a guard gnome.

This week, we had our first hard freeze. Before we'd even had a light frost. In Kansas, you just never know. Last Thanksgiving, I was picking fresh tomatoes. Some years, we are done before October.

Before the cold snap came, I was able to get these farewell pictures taken, and my kids planted some cool weather crops that weren't even affected by the freeze. We fixed a big bowl of salad greens up last night. It was lovely to have fresh lettuce at Halloween.

I wonder how long it will be til we are picking apples off this tree?

At the base of it, the kids have planted companion plants. It's a whole different look than what you'd expect from an orchard. I'm learning a lot about it all, but I still have issues with what looks like weed problems to me.

I did my best to pull up grasses and baby trees, as well as some other pesky things that I knew we didn't plant. My son said it was unnecessary. You just "chop and drop", cut off the tops and leave them on the soil for nutrition.

I was worried about seed heads on the things we didn't want growing there. He says it isn't an issue.

But I wonder how the good things know to reseed and the bad don't? Seems to me like grasses need to go before they go to seed. But he explained that, over time, the fruit and nut bearing trees and shrubs and other forest components work together and fill in so that things you don't want don't grow. Or if they do, it's just a bit here and there. Apparently, it's not a perfectly manicured look. It will be wild and unruly, and well, look like a forest.

For now, while the trees and all the plants are small, we are using the mounds for our garden veggies too. But as time goes on, they won't work there and we'll have to move them back to the "kitchen garden".

All of it has been quite the learning curve for me. Luckily, our Gypsy has a thumb so green, it's practically neon. And my son has a deep love of growing food for his family.

The bounty is barely beginning. Thinking about the years to come is quite exciting!!

What is the best part about the long descent from Fall to Winter? Thinking about the holidays!! I hope you'll join me here at the Cottage for my Christmas workshop where we will make 4 projects in one day. Details in the previous post.

ps- if the weather and the garden cooperate, I'll be serving fresh greens from the food forest at our holiday luncheon on November 23!

Halloween birdcages

flowers, holiday decor, Tutorials

By Karla Nathan / August 27, 2013

As a thanks to all of you who have purchased my online tutorials, I've added a few more ideas to the classes, all in a Halloween theme.

Including instructions on how to make captured ghosts to fill the wire birdcages from this class.

And paper roses that are pretty on all the wire projects.

I've also redone one of the wire wrapped wreaths in black and white.

It's not too early to be ghoul crafting and getting ready for the upcoming spooky season.. But there is no reason to be all orangey about doing it. I like holiday decorations that will fit into any color scheme of a home. Like Beth and I created for our Romantic Gothic Ghosts class.

I've got a slew of tutes, most are listed here. Some free, some for sale. I am adding a fairy and an angel dress form to this class too. When I come up with a new idea for an existing class, I enjoy slipping it into the workshop for you. If you can't remember the passwords, feel free to contact me. People do it all the time. These classes are going to be up and available as long as I have a Typepad blog, and you can pick and chose projects from them at your leisure, no hurrying to keep up or waiting for the next instructions.

PS-Leave a comment on this post, if you would like to enter my two giveaways. I'm away at the moment, but will draw names after Labor Day weekend

Recovering a lamp shade and some other touch ups

cottage, flowers, how-to projects, magazine pictures or articles, paintings, sewing?

By Karla Nathan / August 18, 2013

Before Fifi asked me to do a photo shoot for Romantic Country magazine, I was already on a home fix up binge. I've been making pillows, slip covers, touching up paint, rearranging and foofing. Good timing for her call!

This bench was brought in from the garden a couple years ago, so we'd have a spot to sit and put on shoes by the front door, and the baskets under it are perfect for toys and kid's shoes. But I'd never made cushions for it, I've been wrapping fabric around a cushion that didn't match and making do with that.

About ten years ago, I'd found some old, floral curtains in a dumpster (I nicknamed it the "Dumpster of Gold", there was so much beautiful bounty in it!!!). They were just the right fabric for making pillows for this bench. The top pillow is stuffed with poly fluff, but the bottom one is just a pillow case over that same cushion that I'd been wrapping around fabric before. That way, I can slip it off and wash it after muddy dogs spend time on this bench. Which they love to do. It's Twinkle's perch so she can keep an eye on the front door and protect us.

The pink rag rug was one that used to be white, but the white wasn't coming back after years of use. (I don't throw much away) It was still in decent shape, so, I dyed it, along with some stained tees and other odds and ends. Because when I have a dye pot going, I always feel the need to scrounge around the house looking for other things to dip in it.

I used the liquid Rit Dye in fuchsia, but only a 1/2 bottle along with a 1/4 bottle of tan to tone it down. I think I could have done 1/4 of pink and 1/8 of tan and been happier with the result.

It seems like I've been on the go nonstop for the last couple of years and hadn't really had a chance to nest. Since I declared this the Summer of Whammy and took time off to simply be a grammy and enjoy my family and home, I found lots of little projects that needed tending to. Like this lamp shade that I revamped.

If you have ever covered a lamp shade, you know that with the curved shape, it's hard to smooth fabric down onto. To avoid measuring, I decided to patch work it. I took scraps of rose pattern cotton, and brushed the lamp shade with school glue, and brushed some onto the scraps too, then laid them onto the shade.

After piecing in a background of roses, I covered the seams with lace applique bits (picked up on the Enchanted Affaire bus tour in downtown LA for 25 cents each). And made a bottom trim border from some old tatting over a row of dangly beads.

Around the top, I used some trim from a vintage skirt. All the lace and trim was attached with Ultimate glue, but I'll bet fabric glue would work the same. School glue wasn't strong enough for this part.

Tah Dah! Just perfect for the Rosey Room, to go on the $4 Goodwill lamp that Aunt Sandy left behind for me when she left here.

The throw on the bed got a make over too. It was one that I thought was just lovely, but it sure fell apart fast. The top is sheer with cut velvet roses, and velvet trim. But the backing on it shredded and fell off. I saved the top because it was such perfect fabric and I always thought I'd use it someday for something.

Who knew, that I'd return it to being a throw again?

I came across the piece of fabric when I cleaned out the closet for the Studio Tour and decided I was ready to reuse it. What great timing, since soon after, Fifi made arrangements to photograph the house. And this was just what the Rosey Room needed.

All I did was buy some stretchy, crushed velvet on sale at Hancocks for $4.40 a yard, and sew it on the back. I am hoping that the stretchiness will help it last longer than the previous lining. And the crushed velvet is soft and comfy to wear over my lap as I watch TV. So, this throw will go to the living room now that the photos are done. The guest room doesn't get used often enough to keep it up there. It's so pretty and soft, I want it in the living room to snuggle under on a regular basis.

A Romantic Country Photo Shoot with Fifi, or the Adventures of the Pink Flowered Rug

cottage, dogs, Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), flowers, magazine pictures or articles

By Karla Nathan / August 11, 2013

Last week, Fifi came to my home to do an article for Romantic Country magazine. We had worked together in the past on a few small projects but I'd only met her briefly at our friend, Carol's home. It was a joy to spend the day with her and I was happy to have her come and visit the Cottage. She's cute as a bug and filled with interesting stories. Accompanying her was photographer, Mark Lohman, who was witty as well as talented. He made me giggle quite a few times during the day, with his teasing comments.

He also showed me a photo he had taken of his dogs, that has to be the most beautiful pet portrait I have ever seen. His two Shih Tzus are running toward the camera, with their hair flying in the wind, happy looks on their little turned up nose faces, and a blurred out, elegant garden behind them. That guy is an artist. What a picture.

Fifi and Mark made my home look lovely, I was impressed with their work. And I enjoyed not working on the story myself, just stepping back and letting the pros do it. In the past, with numerous articles, I've been the stylist or was writing the story. This time, I was just the home owner, and that was nice.

I never really considered myself a professional, even though I was involved in dozens of published articles. It was all a bit of a lark, and I like having it on my resume (if I actually had a resume, which I don't), but I never considered it a real job.

Since I have worked on past stories, I did know how to be prepared for the chaos of styling and how to be ready when Fifi and Mark arrived.

If you are going to have your home photographed, here are a few suggestions:

1- Don't try to pre-style it, you don't know what the camera angles will be.

2- Don't have your heart set on a certain look. Things WILL be moved, rearranged, shuffled, changed, and might even be a totally different take on the room than you'd ever thought of.

3- Have fresh fruit and flowers ready to go, but don't put too much time into flower arrangements, chances are they will be redone more than once throughout the day. Have extra vessels handy for switching blossoms around to reuse in different rooms. You don't need a ton of flowers, because they can be recycled from room to room. (and save your receipt, the flowers are usually reimbursed)

4- If you own extra pillows, throws, rugs, china, etc, have them handy. The stylist will have ideas on making the house fit the magazine, and a color theme she has planned, and it helps if she has access to your extras to bring her ideas to life.

5- Have a place to stash the coffee maker, toothbruses, and other mundane, daily used, objects. But don't put it away too soon, you might want to offer a pot of coffee while everyone is working.

6- Clean up as you go, because the messes just get worse from photo to photo, as things get pulled out of cabinets to be used, or items get stored to one side of the room to be out of a shot. If you save all of the pick up for the end of the day, it will be too much to handle!! But do be careful not to put away things that might be used again. Like the pink flowered rug I brought down from the girl's room, it ended up in almost every shot, all around the house.

7- Don't be insulted or hurt if your home doesn't look like your version of your home in the pictures!! Its all your stuff, just rearranged. You might even pick up some good design tips from the experts and leave your new look in place.

Here is my bedroom after some of Fifi's redos.

Here is how it looked when they arrived.

bedroom BEFORE

My home was a little too neutral for what Fifi wanted, but it was easily fixed with throw pillows from the sofa, and the studio along with a pink rug and quilt from the girl's room.

bedroom AFTER

I love this look, but couldn't leave it this way, or my sofa would not have any cushions…. And in "real life" if the chair was in the middle of the room, you couldn't walk through to the bathroom. Or see the TV, which is high on my list of importance.

AFTER

My two footstools got a work out, as well as the chippy chairs that the kids use, all were used in other areas too. And see the pink rug again? Like I said, it made it into almost all the shots. The floral can filled with lilies was the bedroom trash can.

The surprise lilies are growing in abundance right now, and we could gather an armload for her to use in this shot. They were plopped right on top of the remnants of trash in the bottom of the can. Glamorous, huh?

Kitchen BEFORE

living room AFTER

There is that pink rug again!

In "real life", if you had that many pillows on a sofa, there would be no room for your backside. But it looks nice for the magazine, doesn't it? I could be tempted to leave it this way, but I think I'd get too many complaints from the family.

I didn't hear the dogs complaining about too many pillows, though. They'd be happy if I left all of those on the couch.

living room BEFORE

This isn't quite my "real life" look. Because the pupeesh think that rugs are pee pads, I don't usually have one on the living room floor. I swiped this one from the upstairs. And that half wall is actually a dog pen. I keep a gate across it, and the dorkies have access to the fenced in yard through a pet door in the corner. For the occaision, I took down the gate and put away all the dog bedding.

The pupeesh were also banished for the day, but forgave me when they got plenty of snuggles when Fifi and Mark finished.

I'm afraid I didn't get photos of the styling upstairs. Sugarwings will be sooooo thrilled to see her room in a magazine. She was counting on them taking pictures of it, even though I told her that it wasn't a done deal, we'd have to see what Fifi chose to feature. Plus, I'm not sure she even knows what a magazine is, but she was excited about it anyway.

A photo shoot ain't for sissies, that's for durn tootin. After a day of housework to prep, and a day of pictures, plus the clean up that goes along with it, I was beat.

But no matter how exhausting it can be, it sure is fun to see the spread when it's published. Plus, Fifi and Mark make the experience delightful, they are such nice people to spend a day with.

How to make a tincture of lavender oil

flowers, free images, how-to projects

By Karla Nathan / August 6, 2013

The girls and I made some lavender extract/oil recently. We experimented, after I read through lots of online how-tos and picked out the easiest parts from what I saw.

Hopefully, my jimmy-rigged attempt will work out.

This is the first year that my lavender has really taken off, so I had a beautiful bush of it. Well, I don't know if they are condsidered bushes. But this was so large, it practically was a shrub.

I filled a vase with some, then, we set up an assembly line of cutters and crushers to make the oil.

Sugarwings was in charge of the scissors, Dewdrop had the job of throwing the blooms into the bowl. We all took turns using the pestle.

It was then shoved down into a clean, glass jar. (vintage of course!)

We covered it with vodka to soak. (to me, this seemed less likely to cause bacterial problems than soaking it in oil might, although I'm sure if done right, oil is fine) At that part, my husband walked in the door as I nabbed his bottle of Gray Goose, and he was wondering if trying to make this concoction with the help of the two little fairies had driven me to mid-morning drinking.

Once I explained what we were doing, he thought I might be wasting the good stuff (I don't drink vodka, but once the price was explained to me, I quickly looked in the cabinet for something cheaper)

Here is how we are making it, I'll let you know how it all turns out:

1- Trim most of the stems off, but you don't have to take the blooms off completely, just cut the stem off at the base of the buds. (I placed a few cut off long stems in each trash can around the house, as air freshners)

2- Lightly crush the blooms, just to release the oils. Don't smoosh them to goo.

3- Fill a clean, glass jar with the lavender, cover with vodka cheaper than Gray Goose.

4- Tighten the lid, and shake.

5- Shake a few times a day for a week or so, and store in bright light. My bottle looks pretty on the windowsill.

6- Pour the liquid through a sieve into another clean, glass container.

7- I used the sieve as a lid over a big, glass measuring cup and let it sit for a few days so the alcohol could evaporate. Cheesecloth is what you are supposed to use, but this seemed fine.

8- When it is done, I hope to have a concentrated tincture of fresh, organic lavender oil to use in my cleaning supplies and to scent bath products I like to make.

9- Store in dark bottles. Make sure you make a pretty label for your bottle!

You are welcome to use this one if you'd like.

One site I looked at for making herb tinctures seemed good, But I only used parts of it and parts of a few others, so please google tinctures and oils before you make your own too, you might find other ways that suit you better.

Hugelkultur food forest update

dogs, family, flowers, Food and Drink, Nathan Family Fairy Food Forest, yorkies

By Karla Nathan / June 23, 2013

When my son and our Gypsy started the landscaping, we trusted them to grow some tasty, organic meals for us. We provided the land and the financing, and turned them loose.

What I didn't expect was the pure beauty that was created out there.

I have to admit, I didn't really get the concept of sustainable gardening. Well, I knew what they meant and it sounded great, but when it came to grass or weeds popping up in the middle of the veggies, I really didn't get the need to leave them as is.

Or the vast mix of plants together. I was raised by an avid gardner, and my dad was concise on his measured rows and spaced plants. Of course, he also used lots of Sevin Dust, Miracle Gro, and weed preventer.

This way of gardening by passes all of that. There are flowers scattered throughout that repel bad bugs or draw good ones.

Food, flowers, herbs, all sorts of plants are grouped in "guilds" of related vegetation and the ground is completely covered to prevent erosion and to attract the right bugs, and lots of other jobs that they are busy doing.

It would never have occurred to me to plant a ton of clover around the baby perennials to feed the soil and keep the ground covered.

Or to add Borage to the melon patch. It does something or another. But mostly is plain old pretty.

My son has collected exotic and heirloom varieties of plants, including this curly stick tree that will produce magic wands. And the whole thing is irrigated by swales and trenches that are filled with gravel and look like trails.

They are lined with the daintiest little wildflowers I have ever seen. As well as some grass that apparently should be left to protect the earth there until the trees grow more and create shade, then the grass will naturally die out, along with the other ground covers he has added to keep the dirt safe till things start to take off.

Until the trees get big enough to block some sun and the area truly becomes a forest, we are using the beds for our regular garden too. Tomatoes, peas, beans, heck, just about everything, is growing among the perennials.

In a few years, we won't be able to use this space for our annual plantings, because by then, it will be all fruit and nut trees, berry bushes, vines and other food producing vegetation.

This archway of branches will soon be covered in kiwi vines and grapes, but for now, I'm enjoying the stark beauty of it as it is. And at night it is lit with twinkling solar lights.

The produce is beginning to come in, this year, just a few handfuls of berries, but next year, and the year after there will be more and more.

This is a garden that will grow over time, bigger and better. It will not need to be tilled in the spring like my Dad would have, it will develop and change, but once established will take care of itself, with plantings that cooperate and take care of each other.

The mounds are known as hugelkultur, and make for a beautiful layout, as well as a healthy growing space.

Our regular garden is a masterpiece this year too.

It's lush, full, and delicious.

Daily, we have been eating every variety of lettuce you can grow, plus kale, chard, spinach, herbs, and other things that my son sneaks into salads. He is quite a cook and also has been foraging in fields for wild thistle to saute as a side dish. It is every bit as good as asparagus (which we also have growing).

My Dad would be fascinated, I wish he was here to see it. He'd wonder about the lack of rows, but I know he'd love the vast harvest we've been picking! I do too.

PS- Don't forget that Google Reader is closing soon! If you are
reading this from that site, you need to make a change real quick or
your list of blogs will be gone.

I've tried Feedly myself and basically all you do is sign up and it
will import all your Google Reader sites in the click of a mouse. Very,
very, very simple.Bloglovin is another good one.

You can also follow my blog through Networked Blogs and read it on
FaceBook that way. There is a list of different reader site buttons on
my sidebar that you can click on to follow me in.

Hope I'll still be seeing you around!

Spring cleaning in the garden

bird song art event, flowers

By Karla Nathan / May 13, 2013

Having an arty weekend at your home is a good incentive to get some yard work done! When we had some trees removed this winter, the sunshiney areas in my courtyard tripled and I've had a chance to add some roses to the area.

We've never had enough sun back there before to grow much other than ground cover and begonias. So, this week, I planted some knockout roses and a few miniature roses. Knockouts are so easy to take care (you don't have to do anything much more than watering as needed) I can't get enough of them. And they always go on sale at Home Depot for $10 around Mother's Day.

I'd hoped to replace a drooping deck this year, but we ran out of time. (I don't even want to talk about budget, we'll just say there was no time to do it).

The boards are warped and some stick up. My temporary solution was an outdoor rug under the tables. I found one on sale at Kohls for $85, which is much quicker and cheaper than ripping out a deck and replacing it. I saved soooo much money on the deck issue, that I splurged and bought a colorful new umbrella from World Market too ($99) and a couple cement birds from TJMaxx ($6 each). I really should have taken the photo with the cushions on the chairs (sky blues) and the umbrella open (blue, pink, orange, green paisleys on cream).

Don't you just love it when bloggers basically say, "here is a crappy picture, please use your imagination, I promise it really looks better than the photo"?

I've been rearranging the tables and chairs too, and now have two groupings that I like, one on the gravel and one on the drooping deck.

In my dream world, the whole area is redone in paver stones, with moss and thyme peeking between the stones, and there is a fountain trickling in the center of it all.

In real life, I have second hand furniture held together with wire and a deck that trips people in one area and a pile of gravel in another.

But instead of dilapidated, I chose to call it charming. And when the court yard is filled with my friends at Birdsong, it will be so cozy and fun! (as long as no one trips on that dang, droopy deck)

In the Guncles’ Garden and some travel woes

family, flowers, guncles, Travel

By Karla Nathan / April 7, 2013

On my trip to Florida, I didn't even make it anywhere near a beach. As much as I love staring at the ocean, on a quick trip, I'm so happy at the Guncle's house I don't even remember that the Atlantic is nearby.

Their home and garden are so inviting, and they are so welcoming, it's a joy to be there and part of their little family.

After the cold Feb. and March we've had in KS, I was happy just to see some sunshine. While I was there, it was snowing up a blizzard back home. I thought my timing was great for the trip when I heard that. Originally, I had planned to go home on Sunday, but there was such a huge difference in ticket prices, that I changed it to Monday to help out Karen, who was gifting me with the ticket.

And it snowed at home on Sunday, so I thought I'd made the right choice, I had a craft day with Guncle Randy and some time to hug the doggies.

But the snow caused major airline delays on Monday too. I sat at the Jacksonville airport for hours before it was confirmed that I was not getting home that night. My cold had turned into a pounder of a sinus infection and I wanted my own bed more than anything else.

The guncles are the best hosts ever, but I needed to get home somehow and if I stayed overnight again in Jacksonville, I wouldn't be able to catch a flight till the next evening, plus the guys would have to work, so I wouldn't even see them till time to catch a ride to the airport.

Normally, I am pretty tough. But I think, being sick for a few days away from home and trying to pretend I wasn't sick through all the social activities that were too fun to miss, had worn me down. I am embarrassed to say that I called my husband crying when I found out I was stuck at the airport.

What a big baby.

And of course, tears do NOT make a sinus problem feel any better. The pounding became a steady wallopping.

So, my husband got online and found the quickest route home, through nashville, away from the snowy places, then early the next morning, back to KS and home by 8:30 am. He arranged a hotel and shuttle for me too, and I felt much better.

Now, all that is stuff I could do myself with no trouble, but it was sweet for him to take over and take care of me. It's sure nice to have someone who cares enough to take charge when you are down.

And it doesn't hurt to let someone take care of you sometimes. As moms or grammies we tend to always be the ones who take care of everyone else, don't we?

Craft day with Carol Spinski, Debbie Dusenberry, and Amy Barickman, woo hoo!

flowers, vintage paper/collage art, We're having a party, Workshops

By Karla Nathan / January 14, 2013

Last Tuesday, Amy, Carol, and Debbie came over for a craft day and lunch. It was a fun day of catching up, creating, and chatting.

Amy's friend, Cindy, came by for a while, it was nice to meet a local Lawrence lady who was a big shot blogger (Skip to my Lou). I had no idea. Wow, 2,000,000 hits a month?? Not only was she a big time blogger, she was sweet as can be, which is appropriate since she has a store called Sweet.

In the kitchen, my dining table was set with a drop cloth cover, white mismatched linens, cream plates, and white salad plates with tiny rosebuds. I added matt white pottery vases with bright roses (on Mondays, my local Kroger marks leftover flowers down to $1.99 so I snaf up armloads, then feel greedy and put back all but two to take up. Happens every time. I see the sale price and start grabbing, then stop myself).

The look of the room inspired me to get out some Valentiney themed and colored papers to add to the all neutral books we were making. I loved the look so much, in the room and in the book I made that I thought it would be fun to have a workshop to create Valentine journals. The details are in the previous post and I'll have some photos coming up in a couple days with more info.

Knowing that
Carol and Debbie were both fans of "low color" style,I'd set out a
studio table full of neutral ephemera so that we could sift through and
pull together pages that we wanted to use in our books.

I'll be providing similar for the books we will make in class. As a matter of fact, I probably won't be putting these away, I'll leave the piles out for us to work with.

At a flea mkt last fall, I scored an 1800s receipt book stuffed with fantastic writing and logos. We all used pages of it in our books that day.

Of course, an afternoon with these three ladies is pretty durn inspiring in and you know that they can put together something scrumptious no matter what supplies they have on hand!

I had some ticking stuck away and pulled it out knowing that Debbie would use it in an interesting way, and she did, fraying the edges of strips to make ribbon, and lining some pages. She generously left the book here to use for ideas during the workshop.

Amy's book is a sweet pink tone.

And she generously left some of her books behind too. These are copies of two of her latest books and she gave them to me to offer as giveaways.

Vintage Notions and Fabric Flowers.

While I am away in Hawaii, I'll have some fresh posts done up ahead of time for you, so please come back. Leave a comment on any post between January 14 and 28th for a chance to win one of two books.

The third will be given away during my workshop on Saturday, Feb. 2nd to an attendee.

How to Create a fairy garden and some mini terrariums

flowers, how to's

By Karla Nathan / January 5, 2013

Its snowy and blowy outside as I write this, and to cheer up some winter blahs, I've added some fresh greens to my home. Sugarwings helped me with it, and while we were at it, we made a few to give as gifts too.

This one is in an antique serving bowl. When making an indoor fairy garden or a terrarium, you can use pretty dishes or bowls and not worry about drainage holes, like you'd need to for an outdoor planter. Just use proper layers and the plants should be fine.

We filled quite a few of these glass ornaments.

After the holiday, I took the ornies off the tree, pulled off the top, and exchanged it for a cork. Then, set the balls on top of candle sticks.

Maybe you can see through the glass and tell what I mean about layers?

Here is how you layer:

1- small rocks for drainage

2- charcoal for keeping the water filtered and fresh

3- soil for a growing medium (use soil meant for the type of plants you chose)

4- plants, with roots down in the soil, then a bit more soil over it

5- moss to keep in moisture

A crystal creamer was properly layered and planted with baby's tears. That is the same plant I used in the balls too. This one is perched under a vintage dome with a tattered velvet base.

Sadly, this one didn't live, I thought the rusted metal tea cup was cute. But it wasn't under glass. I think the baby's tears are too delicate for the dry January air in my house without a covering to hold in the moisture.

If you are planting succulents, use a cactus soil over the rocks and charcoal.

In this one, I added a wrapped wire "garden arch" and pinned a vintage butterfly brooch to it. Below the arch is the plant and an old fairy figurine.

It's accented with millinery blooms that match the sugar bowl it's planted in. The top of the cactus soil is sprinkled with rose quartz chips.

When making a fairy garden, keep scale in mind. Use small plants that compliment any little figurine you add to the mix. Also, try to create a scene with the rocks and plants, like the pathway leading to the pewter fairy in this bowl.

I found some great crystals at a rock shop to use in this one since it was a gift for someone special. Sugarwings and I also gathered up some pretty stones from the yard, but I wanted a few meaningful chunks in there too.

The sign is a bit of brown grocery bag. I cut out a large square, folded and glued it in half, then did that a second time, so that it was sturdy. The second time, I glued it over a bent wire that was stuck into the dirt after writing the message.

Something I noticed while assembling this, was that the cactus soil is very loose and dry. The pieces and plants wobble around easily, since the dirt isn't compact, it doesn't anchor anything very well. So I had to wedge a rock over the base of the fairy to keep her from toppling over.

Behind her, is an extra pretty crystal to help keep her in place too, and her base is buried in the sandy, rocky dirt.

The pathway is made up of peridot and moss agate chips. Sugarwings chose these and sprinkled them over the top of the soil to make the walkway for our fairy.

Tiny bottles of semi precious stones can be found at rock shops for $1 each. I used two for this garden path.