Wednesday, August 29, 2018

A FIDDLE-LEAF FIG REPORT AND A FEW TIPS

I absolutely love live plants in my house. But, my goodness, they are such a challenge to keep alive sometimes. Not this peace lily. I have had this plant for--wait for it--twenty-four years! My grandparents gave it to me when my first baby boy was born. It's still doing well. At the time I took this picture, it had ten blooms on it.


However, this guy... I'm not sure he lasted twenty-four days. And that made me really sad because I thought he was a beautiful maidenhair fern.


But the "it" house plant that's everywhere right now is the fiddle-leaf fig.

Maisondepax via Pinterest

Jones Design Co. via Pinterest

Dwellings By Devore
Grown plants like the ones in these photos can be over $100 or even more. And according to what I've read and seen friends post on Instgram, they are hard to keep alive. So when I saw a smaller fiddle-fig at my local grocery store this summer for $10, I decided to give it a try.


I started it out here in our foyer. But this bright light you see in the pictures is later afternoon sun, probably around 2 or 3:00. And the air conditioner blew directly on it--that's a no-no.


It dropped three leaves from the bottom over the next couple of weeks. I took that as a sign and moved it to our breakfast room, a little ways down from the peace lily. This window gets indirect morning light and afternoon light. I think he's much happier here.


I took it out of the blue and white planter because it felt too big. So for now it's just a fig, in a plate, on a little red stool. Have no fear though, I have a cute basket on the way.

It has done wonderfully since moving to this new spot. Here is the first new leaf. I couldn't believe how fast it grew once it opened up.

From this view the plant looks perfect, but there are a few struggling leaves below.


You can cut out these brown spots without damaging the rest of the leaf. I'm leaving this one for now because it doesn't seem to be spreading.


This one was pretty bad, so I clipped off the brown spot.


That's the update on the plant itself. Here are a few tips based on all I've read and what I'm actually doing to care for the fiddle-leaf fig.


LIGHT

Bright light all day seems to really be what it likes. The light isn't direct, but it is constant. This window probably provides the most light of any in our house.

WATER

I water it once week, unless it still feels damp, and then I might wait 8-9 days. I use a half-gallon pitcher and fill it about 3/4 of the way full. I water it evenly and let it drain well.

POSITION

Each time I water it, I turn it 180 degrees so it's not pulling toward the window. Also, I put it on the end of the window that receives very little direct air from the air conditioner.

LEAVES

Almost every tutorial I read said to wipe the leaves off occasionally. I've carefully done that about three times in the few months I've had it. I've just used a damp paper towel or dish drying towel.

And other than just telling it how pretty it is and how much I would love for it to live a long, happy life, that's it! So far that seems to be enough. I haven't fertilized it or repotted it. I'll give you an update in a few months.

Kathryn

PS... Since preparing for this post, new leaf #2 has appeared. :-)


Wednesday, August 22, 2018

MY ONE PRIME PURCHASE: BLACKOUT CURTAINS

I only made one purchase on Amazon Prime Day, but it turned out to be a good one.


I bought new curtains for our master bedroom. I am loving them so much that I thought I would share them with you. 

A couple of years ago I decided to go with a more neutral look in our bedroom. That meant my darker drapes had to come down. I made some place-holding curtains out of drop cloths, inspired by pictures on Pinterest. They were a good, temporary fix and gave the room the look I was going for, but they were not nearly dark enough for sleeping past daylight. I don't even remember how I came across these on Prime Day, but for the price and with so many good reviews, I went for it. 


I've never had panels/curtains/drapes with grommets before--I've never been crazy about the look. I do see the appeal now, though. They make for super easy installation and they open and close with ease. When they are opened, the grommets are not too visible, and when they are closed, no one is here to see them. :-)




You can order individual panels, but I wanted two on each window. It made more sense for me to order the four-pack


It's hard to show you the quality in a picture, but the material is really nice and soft and substantial. They're machine washable and energy efficient, too. 


I ordered the longer length and have them puddling just a tiny bit. It would be nothing to hem them and have them flush with the floor. But for now I'm leaving them longer.


Here is a morning picture I hopped up and took with my cell phone this summer for comparison's sake. 


And this one is a late afternoon picture after both sets were up.


The final product...



They come in multiple colors. I bet they have the one you need if you happen to be in the market for new (and room darkening) curtains. Almost forgot to mention the price--you can do two windows for less than $60. I don't think you can beat that!

**This post contains an affiliate link. 

Tuesday, August 07, 2018

ITALIAN PASTA SALAD

I tried a new pasta salad this summer. It's crazy easy, only five ingredients, and it can be eaten warm or cold. I liked it much better cold, but my picky son liked it better warm. And the fact that he liked it at all, was reason enough to share it with you--it must be good. :-)



Ingredients:

1 cup grape tomatoes, halved
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
1 (20-oz) bag of cheese tortellini
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2  cup Asiago peppercorn salad dressing

Directions:

Bring water to a boil for the tortellini. Cook according to the directions on the package. While it's cooking, halve tomatoes and chop the basil leaves coarsely. Drain the pasta when ready.

Add the other ingredients...


...and toss!


That's it!

We probably got about six servings out of this bag. It would be really easy to double the recipe if you were feeding a bigger bunch. So glad my local Publix grocer was having a food demo. I picked up the recipe card and a new favorite was born.

Happy Tuesday...