GARDENER’S IDEA BOOK
Temporary upcycled displays like this one are perfect for adding visual interest to a drab wall or underused place in your home. Wood, metal, and fabric elements warm up the space with their unique textures while flowers add color, fragrance, and happiness. In this scene, objects that ooze old world charm like brass goblets, a metal kettle, and other neutral containers hold vividly colored Ruffles™ New Guinea Impatiens.
Consider putting together a hip upcycled display like this for your next couples party. Add candles in colors that complement the flowers for a little more ambiance. Remember to bring the flowers back outside the next day so they can get the sunlight they need to continue to thrive.
Your favorite aunt gifted you her collection of lace doilies and though you love them, they’ve just been sitting in the drawer waiting for an idea like this to come along. Or maybe you’ve just picked them up at tag sales and vintage marts. Now here’s an idea for displaying those antique linens.
Purchase a broad sheet of canvas or linen from the fabric store to use as a backdrop. Use heavy starch when pressing the doilies so they are nice and stiff. Mount them to the canvas or linen using fabric glue or by tacking them with thread. Use a larger piece of fabric as a throw, or stitch several smaller doilies together to form a runner.
Use your creative eye when collecting temporary planters for your display. Anything from vintage glass light fixtures to wooden vessels and ceramic bowls will work. If you plan to keep the display up long-term, you’ll need to set it up in a sunroom and use containers with drainage holes in the bottom.
Anytime™ Pansiolas steal the show in this fun collection which pairs vintage green glass vases and vessels with brilliant purple, blue and white posies. It’s your choice: use cut flowers for a quick pop of color or plant them in containers with drainage holes and display in a sunny spot for longer term use.
Here, decorative paper stars were spray painted purple and tacked to a canvas to coordinate with the Pansiolas below. If purple isn’t your color, try this same idea with any flowers and paint colors that inspire you.
Vintage tins are fun and easy to upcycle from your own kitchen or to collect from flea markets and tag sales. Poke a hole in the bottom for drainage if you plan to keep the display up longer, or leave the tins intact if displayed just for an afternoon luncheon. In the collection shown here, neutral green and white flowers were used to help the colorful tins really stand out. An old scale and fresh fruit were added for decorative interest.
If you set a rustic bakers rack like this out on your back porch, plants that can take a bit of shade like ColorBlaze® Coleus and Irish moss can be set there for the season. If used indoors, bring the plants in from outside to set up your display a day or two before your event.
Make use of the valuable extra square footage your balcony offers by adding seating, plants, and accessories to create a casual space for entertaining. This owner did a little treasure hunting at her local vintage markets, collecting durable metalware, two deck chairs, wooden boxes to use for a table, and containers for colorful plants. By sticking to a cool color palette with warm yellow as an accent, everything collected naturally fits together. Sweetly fragrant Sunsatia* Lemon Nemesia perfumes the space.
A lively color palette transformed this previously unused corner space into a tropical-like getaway. Warm corals contrast beautifully with turquoise and chartreuse yellow tones grounded by earthy browns and rust. An upcycled metal column serves as both table base and succulent planter paired with painted barstools. Leftover paint from this project was brushed onto the Indian style screen which serves as a backdrop for the gorgeous pots of Butterfly Marguerite Daisies, Colorblaze* Coleus, and the Supertunia* mixed container perched proudly on the basket weave column. You too can transform your own little piece of paradise using any colors
