Plant Craft: 30 Projects that Add Natural Style to Your Home

by Caitlin Atkinson

Overview

Discover the simple beauty of adding natural style to a space!
 
Not everyone has a garden—but with only a handful of materials and a little bit of time, everyone can bring the beauty of nature into their home. Plant Craft features projects inspired by the natural world and made out of live plants, cut flowers, foraged branches, and more. You’ll learn how to create a colorful floral mural, an elegant table centerpiece, a serene underwater sculpture, a whimsical mobile, and more. The step-by-step instructions are clear, easy to follow, and fully illustrated with color photographs, and the projects vary in difficulty. Given the right care, they all have the potential to grace a home for a long time.
 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781604696493
Publisher:	Timber Press, Incorporated
Publication date:	10/05/2016
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	1,085,064
Product dimensions:	8.00(w) x 10.88(h) x 0.88(d)

About the Author

Caitlin Atkinson is a photographer of places, spaces, and all things botanical. She was the photographer for the books Dry Gardens: High Style for Low Water Gardens and Designing with Palms, among others. Her photographs have appeared in Elle Decor, Dwell, Martha Stewart Living, and Architectural Digest. When not photographing gardens, you can find her digging in her own patch of dirt. See more of her work on Instagram @caitlinatkinson_photography or at www.caitlinatkinson.com.

Read an Excerpt

Introduction
As any gardener can tell you, working with plants and other natural materials forces you to accept the independent nature of the subject matter. An indoor garden can inspire a sense of wonder and anticipation, but also disappointment, and the unpredictability of working with natural materials can be a source of awe and frustration. An artist or crafter working with living things is forced to accept the impermanence of her creation and life itself—it is always a learning experience, and while mistakes can be made, fun can be had. 

The projects in this book range from tabletop gardens to hanging sculptures to vertical wall gardens. A few are versatile and can be displayed by securing them to a wall or perching them on a bookshelf to lean against a wall. They vary in difficulty—a few, like the Water Sculpture Garden, merely call for assembling the materials to create the project while others, like the Bench Planter, require basic drilling know-how and comfort using a saw. Most can be made in an hour or two. Given the right care, they all have the potential to grace your home for a long time. Some projects, such as the Miniature Flagstone Planter and the Saikei Tray Garden, are miniature living landscapes, which give you a chance to go beyond caring for a houseplant and fully engage your creative spirit as you select and arrange the materials and then tend to the plants.

There is no need to stop with the projects in these pages—use this book as a starting point. Seek inspiration for ideas in your daily life: from an art exhibit, a walk through a park, or a great book. Look to what is available in your local environment as well from afar when you’re thinking about a new project. Exploring your surroundings closely is a way to develop a deeper connection to the place where you live. The need to connect with something beyond ourselves is necessary, the need to create elemental. There is no better way to harness the desire to create, connect, and enjoy nature than an indoor garden project. Go get dirty.
 

Editorial Reviews

Caitlin has an exacting eye, a deep love of nature, and an astonishing ability to create beauty out of natural materials.” —Flora Grubb, owner of Flora Grubb Gardens
 
“The projects are well organized, with clear, bold photos illustrating each step. . . . recommended for the instruction and diversity of ideas.” —Library Journal

“A book where natural and crafting perfectly meet. . . . [Caitlin Atkinson] is a trifecta of creativity: she is a photographer, stylist, and crafter, and so it is no wonder that her talent and visual sense come through in each project.” —Gardenista

“Bring the outdoors in by putting together one of the 30 projects in photographer Caitlin Atkinson’s Plant Craft—she has a whimsical way with natural materials like foraged branches, cut flowers, and plants.” —Martha Stewart Living

“This book is perfect for people who love gardening but don’t have a yard. It provides decorating tips and expert advice about designing with nature. With 30 step-by-step projects, you’ll learn how to mesh chic style with plants, greenery, driftwood, willow branches, moss and more.” —HGTV

“Fresh and achievable, the ideas come at the perfect time in the change of seasons. What better way to add life to interiors throughout the colder months ahead?” —Sunset

"Step-by-step instructions for 30 projects that make your home a little greener; most are stylish, creative ways to bring living plants inside.” —The Los Angeles Times

“Apartment dwellers, rejoice! With just a few inexpensive materials and a spirited imagination, you can bring the outdoors in with step-by-step projects from author Caitlin Atkinson.”  —Better Homes and Gardens

“Delivers lush, knowledgeable, and surprising ways to beautify your home and bring nature into your life—so accessible, you’ll want to start right away!” —The Horticult

“Indoor garden projects are immensely rewarding, bringing renewed life into your home and keeping you connected with nature, which is extra beneficial during the winter months. The Threaded-Leaf Wreath in Plant Craft: 30 Projects That Add Natural Style to Your Home couldn’t be a better-suited uplifting holiday project.” —Powell’s Books Blog

“Full of DIYs that artfully marry home and garden, Plant Craft by Caitlin Atkinson is a boon to anyone looking to keep busy during the winter season. . . . The book’s calm, clean photos feature modern garden projects that are especially accessible for those working with small spaces.” —Garden Collage

“As a garden photographer and former merchandiser and floral designer for an urban garden store, Atkinson has had a lot of practice bringing green indoors. Each example in the book is thoughtfully explained and beautifully photographed.” —Garden Design

“The creativity here is quite astonishing. From making a concrete planter to planting up a chandelier, making photograms from plant juices, wall hangings from air plants and willow spheres for pendant lights, you won't run short of ideas. Popular bonsai, terrariums and kokedama techniques are also covered in depth. The step by step pictures and captions are very easy to follow, and the results beautifully photographed.  lf you're bored of static houseplant displays and looking for ways to green up your interior, this inspirational book is for you.” —Garden Answers

From the Publisher

10/15/2016
Bring the garden into the home with this collection of projects. Photographer and first-time author Atkinson has grouped 30 designs by general concept (e.g., build, craft, mount, plant). Included is an introduction to recommended plants and their care. The projects are well organized, with clear, bold photos illustrating each step. Standout projects include a planter bench, a plant chandelier, and flagstone planting. Several variations on hanging plantings are less inspiring. VERDICT While some of the projects are well conceived, others are not new. Still, this book is recommended for the instruction and diversity of ideas. For fresh designs with succulents, see Tawni Daigle's DIY Succulents.

Library Journal