lovely (grass-free) lawns

Sunset Magazine and their design blog Home by Sunset is one of my favorite destinations for beautiful images of the California dream lifestyle.

With the current water restrictions and the rising need for conservation all around, the phrase kill your lawn is popping up in landscape blogs and workshop titles everywhere. Sounds a little scary and mean, right?

Well, here's what it looks like...







...so are you ready commit the crime?

Kill your lawn and start fresh with some native plants- the only time you'll do is the time it takes to plan your gorgeous new lawn.

Taking the Indoors Out

It's warm outside and it's all I can do to not just sit and fantasize about my dream backyard all day (seriously). I found this article from Sunset Magazine on beautiful backyards on the cheap.



The images carry me to a far-away place, but I was excited to find that it features a local landscape architect, Brooke Dietrich of Green...Landscapes to Envy.

Check out the article here:

Design an affordable tropical lanai - Photos - Sunset.com

and other great ideas at Sunset Magazine

something different for Mother's Day

Instead of flowers this year, why not give Mom a beautiful floral sculpture that she can admire all year round?

These gorgeous arrangements don't need any attention (though I imagine they'll get quite a bit of attention sitting in an entryway or atop a dining table)

Find them at Designers Views in Los Angeles (they can do custom orders as well but I'm not sure what the turnaround is)

desktop garden

More and more people are working out of their homes today, including moi, and finding the pros and cons of literally 'taking your work home.' One potential con would be the cabin fever that comes with being chained to your office chair for the better part of the day. No lunch breaks, no coffee with coworkers; A typical day includes breakfast, lunch and (sometimes) dinner in front of the computer, gossiping only to myself :)

Sometimes you just gotta get outside!

As springtime comes rushing in I have begun craving the outdoors even more. While there is no substitute for the shining sun and chirping birds, I decided to treat myself to a little desktop garden to take me to a happy place when I just can't break away.

The Juicy Leaf is a company in Irvine that specializes in container arrangements exactly like what I've been looking for. But in the spirit of being 'one with nature' (and perhaps a little thrifty) I used their creations as my inspiration and planted my very own collection.

What do you think?

inspiration from The Juicy Leaf


my desktop garden