Hello!
My name is Matt Allison.
I go by many titles with over a decade of experience in the design industry. My work has been featured in various lifestyle publications including Home, House & Leisure, Elle Decoration, VISI, Real Estate, Good Taste & The Sunday Times.
Based in Sydney, Australia my approach to interior styling and design is clean and timeless. I believe in creating spaces that are simple and functional, yet practical enough to deal with the ever-growing demands of daily life.
Thank you for visiting.
Category Archives: Gardening & Landscaping
String gardens
So as you know I have a penchant for plants, I’m a little on the crazy side, like the old lady with one too many cats. Yes, THAT crazy.
For a while now I’ve been deliberating what to do in our bathroom.
I love the bohemian feel of using vintage styled mirrors and have been collecting a few, waiting on the last one to arrive from Vamp before I can assemble the collection (though you can see one of the mirror ‘templates’ in the first photo).
I wanted to bring in a botanical element (remember, crazy plant person), but having a 21 mnth old makes placing plants on the window or table a risky business, why not go up? Or rather down?
Months ago I sumbled across this tutorial on Design Sponge on making Kokedama, Japanese moss balls and thought they looked amazing and have been hankering to try it out.
Seeing the amazing work of Opus Studios in the new Vamp Collaboration room rekindled my willingness to try.
I settled on these two Orchids, a common Phalaenopsis or ‘Moth Orchid’ (the smaller yellow one) and a larger Cymbidium as my ‘test subjects’.
Being epiphytes (plants that grow on other plants) they don’t need soil, so I wrapped the roots in Sphagnum moss and then added decorative green moss on the outside as I wound the twine around them.
Stealing the idea from Paula at Vamp I decided to hang them from the roof with chains, mine are galvanized steel to match the silver of the mirrors.
Another little crafty project out of the way, hundreds more to tackle, but it feels good to be a little creative again amidst all this work.
How to make a terrarium
There is no denying terrariums are making a come back, like 80’s day glow spandex there is just no getting rid of them. Why fight it, embrace their flora goodness (terrariums, NOT spandex).
I found this glass vase at a local thrift store and decided it would make the perfect habitat for our little patch of jungle goodness.
/// All that is needed to make a terrarium is a container, potting soil, pebbles, activated charcoal (any pet shop will have some), plants and a pair of chop sticks.
TIP: It’s often more cost effective to buy a mixed bowl of indoor plants then buying them individually.
I used an Aluminium Plant, Polkadot Plant, Spider Plant & Fern in mine.
/// Place your pebbles at the bottom of the container, followed by a sprinkling of charcoal. The charcoal helps absorb the potentially harmful fumes of decaying matter, essential if you plan on stoppering the container.
/// Remove your plants from their pots and gently pry the soil away from the root bulbs and place the removed soil into the container, making sure not to compact it, you want it light and loose.
/// Once you’ve loosened all your plants gently wrap their roots into balls, which will make it easier to place them into the potting soil.
/// Use your chopsticks to gently lower your plants into the container and then use one of them to push the loose soil around the exposed roots.
TIP: It’s always best to start with the largest plants first, making your way down to the smallest.
/// Once your plants are in you can add in extra stones, twigs and moss if you wish and sculpt it to taste.
To clean the inside of the glass tape a paper towel to the end of a chopstick and wipe it down.
If you plan on stoppering the container you need to water it first and then seal it, put it in a cool place where it will receive adequate light and give it 2 weeks to ‘harden off’. Once you’ve done that you can move it around if you so wish.
It will no longer require watering if you stopper as it becomes a self contained eco-system.
It took me less than an hour to put together, so it’s a fairly quick craft project that will bring months or years of enjoyment.
To add a bit of extra charm pick out a suitable ‘guest’. Nathan picked out this true to life pink and yellow dinosaur…