Friday, June 10, 2011

High Style, Low Cost Centerpiece Idea with Our Fine House

Horay, it's Friday! Another one of my stylish blogger friends has stopped by to share a project with you!


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Hi Everyone! I’m Jen from Our Fine House where my husband and I blog about our DIY projects and design ideas. I’m so excited to be guest posting at JPM Design. Mary is a favorite blogger of mine and I was honored when she asked if I would be interesting in taking part in her Guest Blogger Series.

Today I’d like to share my Succulent Centerpiece with you. With the warm weather approaching, I know that we will be entertaining outdoors often, so we will need a nice centerpiece on our outdoor table. Since we have a ton of succulents in our backyard, I decided to take some clippings and create something beautiful for our table. I’ll provide step by step instructions, for those of you who have never worked with succulents before. They are surprisingly easy to grow!


When I saw these vases at Ikea, I knew they would be perfect for succulents. At the price of 3/14.99, it was a steal!


First, I placed river stones in the base of the glass. This allows the soil to drain. Succulents are very drought tolerant and don’t like a lot of water. It’s best to only water succulents when their soil is very dry.


Next, I poured the soil. It’s best to use soil that is specifically for cacti and succulents. If you don’t have any handy, you can mix regular potting soil with an equal amount of sand.


When taking succulent clippings, it’s best to use sharp garden clippers. Let the clippings sit out for about a week. This allows the clippings to “scab over”, which will help them root and avoid disease once they are planted. If you’re nervous about working with succulents, you may want to purchase Rooting Hormone. It’s easy to use and will help your clippings take root. It’s not completely necessary, but may give you a boost of confidence, especially if you are worried that you didn’t let your clipping sit out long enough.


I also happened to have some moss handy, so I added that as well. Moss can easily be purchased at any gardening store or you may even be able to gather some yourself.


To add a bit more texture and interest, I nestled a few river rocks in the vase as well.


And there you have it! A beautiful centerpiece for our outdoor table.


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What an easy, cheap way to create a centerpiece. I am a huge fan of succulents and have tons of them in my yard. They grow like weeds (which is a good thing in their case!)  I may just have to try this out. Julie from Belle Maison created a succulent centerpiece a while back and I have wanted to make something similar, ever since!