Succulent Terrariums

The third Pinterest Challenge hosted by Young House Love couldn't have come at a better time! I had already decided to end the cycle of houseplant genocide that's been taking place in my living room for the last few years. I wanted some sort of greenery to replace the numerous houseplants that have fallen victim to my not-so-green thumb, but wasn't sure what to do. When I saw the terrariums that Brittany created for the last Pinterest challenge, I was completely taken with the idea! Succulent terrariums seemed like the perfect fit since they are lovely and require very little maintenance. (i.e. they are hard to kill!)

Drawing inspiration from Brittany's original "pinspiration" I knew I wanted to create something layered with multiple levels of rocks, moss and dirt. I wanted the layers to showcase the stones I've picked up on Lake Huron and Lake Michigan beaches over the last few years. (Stones and shells currently reside in little Ikea jars tucked away in my office) My original plan was to use tall apothecary jars for the containers but as I shopped I realized that I was drawn to cleaner shapes and open vessels. The jars started to seem like they would be too "fussy" for the look I wanted to create. After a foray to HomeGoods and TJ Maxx I ended up with six possible containers. (Yes, I only planned to make two terrariums but I like to have options!)

For my plant material, I found a wide selection of succulents at both Home Depot and Lowe's. They seem to have recognized the succulent trend and totally jumped on the band wagon. I was pleasantly surprised to find so many types. True, some look like scary alien plants but I found plenty of cute ones. Of course, I bought too many plants as well but I actually needed more than I had anticipated. Sometimes it's good to go overboard! The left-over plants will all find good homes, I'm sure. The last nitty gritty part of the project was the dirt and moss. I picked up a special "Cactus & Succulent" soil and sheet moss at Lowe's to complete my supply list.

So with all my supplies gathered, I started to look at my containers and narrow down the selection. I pared down to three shapes I really liked and then kept editing until I figured out which two shapes worked together and would fit the space I was going to place them in. I ended up with two very simple cylinder vases as the winners!

Next I just layered in the rocks, soil, plants and VOILA! The terrariums took shape. Arranging the plants and rocks "just so" did take a little finagling, so don't worry if you injure a few plants along the way. The succulents can seem fragile since their pudgy little "leaves" break off easily but they are pretty resilient suckers. The broken pieces will just grow back!

As with any project, there are a few things I would have done differently but overall I'm really pleased with the look of my terrariums. Here's hoping we live a long and fruitful life together!