4 Simple Goals, an update

About a month ago I shared with you my '4 simple goals', aimed to be achievable, enriching, process focused and achieved before the end of 2012. My goals were as follows....

1. Celebrate life and my achievements' of the last 12 months.
2. Make a book.
3. Take more photographs of people.
4. Enjoy growing things.

It's now almost a month later so I thought I would give you a little update on how I have been going so far, some goals have been whizzing along nicely, some are in progress and some well... have come to an absolute standstill. Oops.

To start with the positive I have been a MANIAC in the garden, building raised beds, raising seedlings and potting up perennials. This month has been a frenzy of gardening activity. With both veggies and flowers on the go I'm really looking forward to the summer months where I will get to reap the rewards of all this hard work. I have been so absorbed in this process that I have been entirely remiss in blogging. Another 'oops'. 
But never fear, my creative juices have been flowing like crazy even though I haven't been sharing it here and goal 4 is seriously ticked off the list, I even got myself an awesome plant for my desk,a 70's classic the 'Monstera Deliciosa'. Hells yeah, what a name.

Goal 2 has been coming along nicely too, my Blurb book is nearly complete and just a few tweaks in the layout it will be good to go. A friend also mentioned that she made herself a Blurb/Instagram book, tapping directly into your Instagram account to upload photos it sounds as easy as pie and something I'm keen to try out. 

Goal 1 is a biggie as it's more about a frame of mind than anything else, I have made a good start by helping one of my closest friends celebrate her birthday. It's been a big year for Kim and it's wonderful to see her so happy and loving life. How cute is this idea of dancing with strings of lights! Love it!

It also helps that October holds lots of things to celebrate including my man and I having a wonderful first 12 months together and my 7th Aussie-versary... I can't believe it's been so long since I first arrived in Australia! Worth celebrating don't you think!?

So here's where I'm not doing so well, goal number 3 has been a total flop... not only am I not taking more pics of people but I have been hardly taking any photos at all! I'm not sure what that's about, my camera is normally attached to me like an extra appendage! Perhaps it's sightseers fatigue after our trip overseas, or I'm just being lens-lazy! Either way I'm going to bust out that SLR asap and get inspired again, it's the only goal to go so I have no excuse! 

Have you any simple goals on the go?
X Steph

Spring is in the air

At last. Spring is in the air and it's bringing a spring to my step along with it.
We are still having our fair share of cool, rainy days but with the occasional beauty thrown in the mix I'm not complaining.

Our chilly town is defrosting and coming out of hibernation and so am I.
This past weekend has been full of all stages of the gardening process, sowing seed, potting-on seedlings, fertilising veggie patches and preparing to build window boxes.

As well as that I have been building the mother of all display cabinets for the many little bits and pieces of vintage and antiques I love... I can't wait to share some pics but I'm saving them until the process is finished.

Spring is such a productive sort of time don't you think? It seems to take ages to show up, and then 'boom' it's all go!

It's not only the garden which is enjoying some long planned invigoration but this weekend we had a huge day of Spring cleaning at home too. Little by little my dinky house is feeling fresher and cleaner and prettier. One project at a time, each DIY getting me closer to the vision of loveliness I know this quirky little home has been hiding under years of neglect.

Make your own Terrarium

I first fell in love with terrariums earlier this year. When I saw these amazing little worlds at a local market, straight away  knew I would have to make some and immersed myself with researching how these mossy micro climates were created.
The first thing I discovered is there there are more than one type of terrarium, there are dry, arid versions and there are moist mossy counterparts and they need distinctly different conditions to survive. The lush, vibrant greens of the moss terrarium really appeal to me, discovering the key to a successful moss terrarium is creating it's own sealed micro climate makes the concept even more satisfying.

Constructing a terrarium is pretty simple and doesn't really need that many specialist supplies. You will need a glass vessel with a lid, preferably large enough to fit your hand through the opening until you become a pro. You will also need some gravel, charcoal granules (I got mine from our local pet shop as it's often used in fish tank filters), potting mix, some props to create fun scenarios and of course moss.

I collected moss from beside a local creek, you will find it growing in damp, shady spots often on rocks or wood facing away from the sun (in the southern hemisphere that is South, very confusing to this northern-hemisphere girl!)
Prise the moss away from the surface with a blunt knife or paint scraper and try to bring with it any soil or surface it is attached to, this will help when transplanting it. Pop it in a plastic bag, this will help keep it moist and alive until you get chance to replant it.
You can buy dried moss from a florist or online, once you rehydrate it eventually it will become lush and green again under the correct conditions.

Begin with a layer of the charcoal, this will prevent your micro-climate from growing mould, then add a layer of gravel for drainage. Above that place a layer of potting mix or soil, it need not be deep and the quality need not be rich, as moss gathers it's nutrients from the air. Make the soil either domed or sloped in shape as this helps with drainage then cover with the moss.

It's now time to create your own little world! There are an abundance of miniature figures and props available online used to creating model railways. I bought a chain-gang, park bums and gravestone set in N scale, this makes the figures 11mm high IE. teeny tiny. I think in hindsight I should have purchased HO scale which is a little bigger!

To make my figures stand I glued itty-bitty stalks of wire to each prop and once dry inserted into the moss to make a grave-robbing scene.

 

 To care for your terrarium you will need to mist it with a spray bottle every so often if the moss feels dry. Don't over water it though and if you see water sitting in the gravel then leave the jar open to allow some liquid to evaporate. If you mostly leave the jar closed it will 'water' itself through condensation. Keep your micro-world out of direct sunlight and open the lid every so often to allow air to circulate, if you want to show your terrarium off, then open the lid to let any condensation on the glass disperse.
I'm now on the lookout for a nice old magnifying glass for my visitors to view my little cemetery and think I might make some more for our shop, I think they would make really terriffic wedding or Mothers day pressies.

How to take cuttings from succulents

The succulents in my garden are making little 'babies' all over the place at the moment and I'm working on a number of ways to make the most of the offspring. I found these sweet mini buckets in my local dollar store and thought they would look awesome on my kitchen windowsill, a spot that gets the afternoon sun long into winter. They will be perfect as succulents don't need much watering so will save the buckets from rusting.

 I delved into my stash of sample paint pots and picked these three fresh colours, they remind me of my trip through the New Mexico desert and those pretty painted stucco houses. I painted a couple of coats onto the bottom half of the buckets and allowed to dry.

Succulents thrive in well drained soil, too much moisture will causes the roots to rot, so a combination of potting mix and sand will do nicely to plant them in. You could also use a specialist succulent potting mix but I had the sand in the garden from paving last month.

 

Taking cutting from succulents is as easy as pie, just cut a section of the main plant with secateurs and pop into the new pot. Simple as that! I have also heard that allowing the cutting to dry for a week or so before planting helps it root. I would imagine this process emulates the natural process of arid regions.
The plant in the center is Aloe Vera so will be handy in the kitchen, just in case of burns!
I shall pop these in their new home and let you see how they look.
Happy slump-day!
X Steph

A perfect season

I love an Australian Autumn. The season brings it's share of cold, blustery and rainy days but there are some gems in there too. Those clear, blue-skied, sunny days that are just perfect in every way, warm enough for shorts and tshirts but no need to crack out the sunscreen.
Being from a colder climate I call the season here 'English Summer'. This year I am excited to be having two summers, and Australian and an English one... Well, at least part of one.
It's been six and a half years since I migrated here and it feels like a lifetime... In a good way. But I am still inspired by my British roots in so many forms, my mother is the worlds most amazing gardener. With the greenest of thumbs and much hard work she fed our whole family on home-grown, organic fare... Year round. Twenty years before it became trendy, back in the days when growing organic food was considered mildly nutty!
This perfect season has inspired me to do some serious work in the garden before the ground gets cold and the days too soggy.
At the Red Brick we love our Secret Garden, a magical and tiny courtyard surrounded by huge red brick walls, coated in wisteria, ivy, rambling rose and jasmin it's an absolute sun-trap in winter and a shady haven in summer. We were lucky enough to inherit an established and beautiful garden from the previous inhabitants and it's my all-time favourite spot for cups of tea, chatting with friends and nurturing its flowers, succulents and mosses. These past few weeks I have been a busy little bee building a new picket gate, laying red brick pathways, sowing, pruning, feeding and mulching.

One of the best parts of being in this part of town is our neighbours. We have built a great and supportive network on our little corner and are always there to help eachother out. There is a little stretch of dirt which joins the rear of the buildings shops and homes and we are beginning to create a shared garden space where we can relax on summery evenings, grow veggies and pretty stuff and share a wood-fired pizza or two!
This past weekend myself and my enlisted helper Mark have been mixing concrete and laying bricks begining 'project pizza oven'. We are using recycled red bricks from Marcias renovations at her Victorian cottage and Im a true sucker for free materials. We have a long way to go, but a few more afternoons of work and we should be there... Let me know if you need an invite to the Red Brick pizza night! X Steph