DIY Succulent Projects
Six New Holiday Designs to Inspire You
To inspire and entertain you, I’ve selected six new, never-seen-before holiday design ideas featuring succulents. Do consider each as a launching point for your creativity, and feel free to share them with friends. I’d love it if you’d post photos of what you come up with on Instagram or Facebook, and tag me @DebraLBaldwin. Regardless, have…
Read MoreSucculent Centerpieces
Succulent centerpieces last months and look good long after the occasion you made them for. Shown here are ideas for tabletops, floral-style arrangements, groupings and more. Follow the links for additional info and how-to help. Above: Jeanne Meadow of Fallbrook, CA, keeps this succulent centerpiece on her patio table. Jeanne’s is one of the featured…
Read MoreSucculent-Topped Pumpkin Design Ideas
This gallery of succulent-topped pumpkin design ideas are mostly by Laura Eubanks of Design for Serenity, who pioneered the concept in 2011. It caught on immediately, becoming as popular for fall decor as wreaths are for the holidays. After several years of making pumpkins for sale, Laura now devotes her time to designing in-ground gardens.…
Read MorePlant an Undersea Succulent Clamshell
Undersea Succulent Clamshell Planter Succulents that resemble coral-reef flora lend themselves to containers that immerse the viewer in an undersea experience. This succulent clamshell planter sits atop lava rocks near my home’s entry. It’s semi-shaded by Texas privet, the trunks of which frame the arrangement and repeat the upright lines of Senecio anteuphorbium. Certain succulents…
Read MoreHow to Make a Succulent-Decorated Hat and More
Here’s how to make a succulent-decorated hat and more, with design ideas from attendees at succulent events. Wearing succulents at succulent-themed events is a great ice-breaker. Everyone wants a photo of you. The easiest way to attach succulents to a hat brim, visor, hair ornament or bracelet is with the moss-and-glue method pioneered by San Diego…
Read MoreCreative Bird Feeder Materials & How-To
If you’d like to make lovely bird feeders similar to those in my video, Eight Creative Bird Feeders for Your Garden, you’ll find materials, suggestions and how-to here. Depending on the time of year, I’ll have as many as 20 birds of a dozen different species at feeders I’ve positioned outside my office, kitchen and…
Read MoreSucculent Windowsill Pots DIY
In this Succulent Windowsill Pots DIY, you’ll find out how to make a quick, colorful, succulent windowsill garden. Sunbathing helps succulents maintain their symmetry and color, and whenever you look out your window or work at a countertop or sink nearby, you’ll see and enjoy them. These six pots, each 3-inches in diameter, come as…
Read MoreSucculents + Kids = Great Summer Memories
Here’s how to make wonderful memories: This summer, introduce a child to collecting and growing succulents. The people I’ve interviewed as a garden photojournalist often credit a parent, grandparent, neighbor or friend for igniting their interest in plants and gardening. So, who was it for you, that savvy grown-up you won’t forget? For me, it was…
Read MoreMegan Boone’s Vintage Succulent Containers
Megan Boone of Nature Containers Vintage Garden Art designs in three dimensions, using cast-off objects to showcase succulents and vice-versa. As exemplified by the pick above, Megan brings elegance and whimsy to her artistry by reinterpreting the forms and lines of utilitarian objects. I love how the aloe perfectly repeats the shape and color of the rusty metal, and also emphasizes its arc.…
Read MoreUse Colored Sand for Succulent Bouquets
I like to display bouquets of succulent rosettes in clear glass containers filled with layers of sand. Practical as well as pretty, the sand lends color and interest, and serves as to anchor the stems so top-heavy rosettes don’t tumble out. Succulent sand bouquets make quick and original hostess gifts. Moreover, recipients can remove rosettes from…
Read MoreSucculent Color Wheel Rainbow Centerpiece
I’m proud and pleased to announce that Garden Design, the premier magazine about the aesthetics of gardening, features my “Stunning Succulent Arrangements” online class and includes a photo of one of its seven projects—the Succulent Color Wheel rainbow centerpiece. Learn more about the class. Use this link to take 50% off the regular enrollment price of $40! …
Read MoreSucculent Topiary Tree Holiday Centerpiece
My DIY succulent topiary tree holiday centerpiece needs less care than a floral arrangement and lasts much longer—several months or more. Its requirements are similar to those of a succulent wreath: bright but not intense light (rotate occasionally for even exposure), weekly watering (from the top, to evenly moisten the moss), and pinching back if…
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