terri planty

echo park time travel mart

buzz buzz buzz. this little lady bee had been buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz-e! thanks to one of my fave ladies - laure, i am currently working with the amazing ive & jen of shades of green and john of form la at the dwell on design event over at the ol' la convention center. oh my is there a whole lotta work involved. fork lifts, giant trees, recycled plastic swings, chicken tractors and chickens oh my! but so much fun! amazing things to come, so i hope to see your faces at the event.
in the midst of all this terri planty does not sleep. nope. we just did a terrarium install at one of the most brilliant places in la - the echo park time travel mart. haven't been? run. where else can you find caveman stationary and parts for your time machine? and better yet, not only is the mart incredible, but this spot is actually just the front of an amazing non profit organization called 826LA that is dedicated to teaching students 6 - 12 with their creative and expository writing skills. they are such an inspiration! i recommend volunteering!

the installation that team terri planty made was portraying los angeles of the past and los angeles of the future. inside a cabinet, you open two doors, both windows feature the native so cal chaparral landscape, however in the future there is a scene of a miniature version of the caveman and robot you will find in the shops rad store window display, propping up a a new billboard poster for the time travel mart. look closely and you will see the legs of la icon angelyne underneath and on a rock i insisted on introducing a new character into this joint, a lady cavewoman of course.

the process of making this piece reminded me of being a kid again, working so hard on that science project for the science fair. my parents and sister came out and i realizing now the more and more they help that i have to change my about page and give them waaay more credit. they worked their butts off. as did mr. erick. he helped me conceptualize a series of custom terrariums for the shop that will be sold there (with part of the proceeds being donated to the organization). this particular collection is based of famous books such as old man and the sea, james and the giant peach, sleepy hollow and more. we also threw in a few made up sci-fi scenes for fun.

i also want to to give a shout out of love to the talented and wonderful shannon who invited me to do this project and worked closely with me on the concept. she is one clever lady! (thanks for letting me sneak those angelyne legs on that billboard)

photos of the shop via laughing squid, close up by shannon, the rest by yours truly and her baby sister.

garden wedding

this last weekend we went to a garden wedding. erick was one of the best men. he looked super handsome. we rocked it and caught the bouquet and garter belt for the 3rd time in a row! i am a pro at catching flying plants!! that is essentially what a bouquet is to me!

we danced our butts off, laughed, high fived, played with adorable kids, met families, hashed about old times. it was all lovely. but the best part was that it took place in a garden. so while i was trying to be all friendly and make conversation, i couldn't help but notice how large the foxtail agaves were or that jade plants and sword ferns were growing so harmoniously side by side in the shade. i wondered when things were planted and why. delighted in the classic los angeles palm tree lined skies sprinkled with little lights. gardens are happy places. the wedding took place at the hidden chateau in woodland hills, cali. if you are feeling wedding ready, check them out here.

and here is my dancing fool of a partner in crime looking extra mad men-ish but with moves!

i'm going stag!

so there is this magical garden by me in rancho santa anita called the arboretum. if you are plant hungry like me, these gardens are a MUST SEE. i love all of the gardens - but the cacti / succulent area and the greenhouse are my all time faves. the other lovely thing about this wonderful place is that they host plant sales and shows. this last weekend was the fern and exotic plant sale and show. i have been waiting for this show for so many months now and i'll tell you why. see there is this very special plant near to my heart called a stag horn. i have wanted one for a LONG time, always admiring my folk's collection. but it wasn't till i started my 70s plants book collection in september where they showcase these lovelies in rad altar like arrangements that i was growing seriously impatient and decided i needed at least one. my mother insisted i wait till this sale and she was right. the selection was mind blowing. not to mention when i went to the geranium show at the arboretum i scored some of the most unusual and cool looking plants that are incredibly healthy and in full force.

the show was incredible. so many cool textures, colors, varieties, information, inspiration, mind blowing, life. oh yeah, and terrariums! the kind with the simple motivation of creating a perfect micro climate. pure science.

i scored!! i bought one and my father who is adorably generous with me snuck off to buy me the other that i loved. my cats of course had to inspect the stags. they approved. naturally, they have great taste!

i also bought some interesting succulent / cacti treasures for terrariums along with CARNIVOROUS PLANTS! more photos to come. we end it with an image of my sneakers waiting patiently by the doorway for a proper cleaning. shhhh... i had been gardening last weekend. don't tell anyone. :)

plants on blogs

the renegade craft fair is just around the corner, and before that a terrarium installation at a very special place (still a secret!). as usual cruising for some inspiration. this particular little grouping is kinda on the arty side. guess the artist is me is seeking out some more risk taking and unexpected combinations for my future displays...

as always check out the links below. great places to visit.