Day: December 1, 2020

studio flowers: choisya & forcing paperwhites

1 Dec 2020

Studio vignette: a brown vase of Choisya ternate (Mexican Orange Blossom) flowers sits on a stack of silver-colored metal paper boxes next to a glass cylindrical vase of gray rocks and paperwhite bulbs (narcissus forced in water and stones), with Wraptillion's spiky abstract botanical statement Trellis Earrings, Garland Earrings, and Rose Window Earrings dangling from a jewelry stand nearby, and a black leaf-shaped dish holding the Garland Bracelet.

This week’s studio flowers are fragrant: I’m enjoying the Choisya ternata (Mexican Orange Blossom) now, while I wait for the forced narcissus (paperwhites) that are slowly growing for later this winter. (Shown with the Trellis Earrings, Garland Earrings, Rose Window Earrings, and Garland Bracelet I’m working on today.) It’s such a beautiful vignette — I love seeing the dark green leaves, white flowers, and dark rocks when I look up from my desk. So worth the few minutes it took me to create it!

Studio vignette: a stack of metal boxes with a brown bud vase of Choisya ternata (Mexican orange blossom) green leaves and small white flowers, next to a welded steel jewelry stand with Wraptillion's modern abstract botanical statement earrings: the Trellis, Garland, and Rose Window styles. A glass cylinder vase with rocks and paperwhite narcissus bulbs sits nearby, in front of a white curtain.

The choisya has a sweet, slightly tart scent that does remind me of orange blossom. It can be tender in my garden near Seattle; I don’t often get winter flowers from it, so these feel special, despite being a little bug-eaten. I love their gorgeous green leaves, too.

Studio vignette: a glass cylinder vase of stones and narcissus bulbs sits next to a stack of metal boxes. The paperwhite narcissus are showing green shoots and white roots. A jewelry stand holds Wraptillion's round, abstract floral statement Rose Window Earrings nearby.

These are the same paperwhites I started a couple weeks ago. They spent some time in the dark (you might spot them at the bottom of my greenhouse shelves here.) Now that they have roots, I’ve brought them out into the light to grow. This glass bowl with its few narcissus bulbs will scent an entire room easily. (I grow them in glass and rocks because I love watching the roots.)

Studio vignette: a photo of a brown Heath Ceramics modern bud vase with choisya green leaves and white flowers, next to a welded steel jewelry stand with Wraptillion's spiky edgy Trellis Earrings, Garland Earrings, and Rose Window Earrings nearby, in front of a white curtain.

Choisya, shown with the Trellis Earrings, Garland Earrings, and Rose Window Earrings, from my Mechanical Garden collection.

It can be hard to visualize how my earrings compare to each other — is that design bigger or smaller than this one? I’m working on a series of photos to better illustrate that. And why not include some beautiful flowers along with them? This is the Mechanical Garden collection, after all!

If you enjoyed this glimpse into my studio, you can see more of my studio flowers posts here.

I hope you pick a few flowers or leaves, however worse for the winter, and create your own moment of beauty!

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plant shelves: my orchids & other houseplants

1 Dec 2020

If you’ve been following my studio flowers posts, you might be wondering where my potted orchids and other houseplants live when they’re not blooming in my studio. Here’s a behind-the-scenes look at my living room plant shelves!

These east- and north-facing windows have the best light in my house, and that’s what the orchids I grow need to rebloom well. (Phalaeonopsis live mostly in the north-facing window, and Oncidiums and a few other higher-light types live in the east-facing window — Euchile mariae and Oncidium ‘Tsiku Marguerite’ have appeared in my studio, as well as a small sedum I keep as a houseplant.)

My vining tropical pitcher plant (Nepenthes ventricosa, I think?) hangs in the east window. Hopefully the Queen’s Tears (Bilbergia nutans) will visit the studio when it blooms this winter — the amazing green and blue flowers are some of my favorites! It’s a large bromeliad, and a “passalong plant” — it’s easy to pass an offshoot on to someone else. Mine came from my granddad. He’s been gone for years now, and I think of him whenever it blooms. I love decorating my home with the things (and plants!) that have meaning to me, like that one. It’s a lifelong project, never finished — I’m always editing, always changing things. But it’s so much more satisfying to have my home fit who I am, where I came from, and where I want to go. (Just like my personal style!)

If you enjoyed this glimpse into my secret plant life, you can see more of my behind-the-scenes studio flowers posts here! Don’t forget to bring a little more beauty into your world.