My Little Terrarium

I will be the first person to say it: I am not a gardener. I leave all outdoor (oh heck, indoor too) plant life to my boyfriend. He enjoys it much more than I do and, thus, takes greater care.

Something weird happened, though. I suddenly got it into my head that I wanted to make a terrarium. The idea of planting something in a glass case sounded pretty cool and I love how they look. So I hunted around at thrift stores looking for glassware that came with a lid. The lid was important to me; it was all about my vision.

I did finally find what I was looking for... sort of. I found a long, ugly cylinder glass with a fantastic lid, so I decided to buy it anyway. I took the measurement of the opening in the cylinder glass and found a fun circular bowl that worked perfectly. 

Next part of my vision was the plant; I needed something low maintenance if  I was going to do this. Browsing through the local farmer's market one Saturday morning I found a dainty little succulent. It was beautiful.

I already had some rocks and soil, so the rest of the project was a snap.
First, I lined the bottom with some small rocks for drainage. 

I would like to make a note here: the next step should be to add a layer of activated charcoal. This helps clean the air of fumes and smells created when organic materials begin to decompose. I didn't have any charcoal and they don't exactly sell small bags of it so I skipped this step.

If it does become a problem I'll fix it.

Have I mentioned I'm not a gardener?

Moving along...  throw some potting soil into the terrarium. Well, don't actually throw it, but don't be shy. The soil doesn't have to be totally flat, either. It looks more natural when it's not.
Just for fun, I added some moss spores that Michael bought for his bonsai. Hopefully those will grow, then the terrarium will be lovely and green.
Then the plant needs to be pulled out of it's plastic container. Shake and squeeze, gently, the dirt loose from the roots.

 I think everyone can guest what happen next. Yes, you plant it! Amazing! Good guess.

Display and love.

I've had it about two weeks now and I'm still excited about it. Translation: I haven't killed it.

Anyway, that was just a fun little home project I thought I'd share. The moss takes almost two months to grow in so I'll give it three before I'm disappointed; ha ha.

By the way, that book up there titled "I Know This Much is True" is one of my favorite books. It may actually be my favorite aside from the one next to it, "She's Come Undone." I've read both multiple times and they stay amazing. I very highly recommend them, though they are not for the faint of heart. 

Well, I digress. As it is, I've got some more projects coming up soon, including more cake decorating and sewing!


xoxo
Stephanie