Creating a Shadow Box Garden

Happy lazy Sunday to everybody!  I hope you're all enjoying your day.  It's a beautiful day here in Iowa.  The sun is showing its face here and there and the furnace hasn't kicked on too much today.  And for me, it's the best Sunday ever...a Sunday with no plans!

Last August two of my favorite squirrelfriends, Jennifer and her daughter Miranda, went to the Brucemore's Arts and Garden show.  Brucemore is a a mansion in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.  Every year they host an event where artists and garden vendors set up to sell their products.  We met a vendor called In the Country Garden and Gifts where I found a beautiful flapjack plant.

I fell in love with it, and the cost for the arrangement wasn't too terrible, so I purchased it.  We noticed they had a sign up page for classes on succulents in the Spring of 2013 so we signed up.  

I was so excited when I finally got the email with all the Spring classes.  I thought the shadow box gardens looked like the most fun.  

Jennifer, Miranda and I visited the country yesterday for the shadow box class.  And even though our allergies were kicking our asses, we had so much fun.  I highly recommend taking a succulent class of some sort.  

We got to choose from different size boxes (I chose the biggest, of course) and we also got to choose as many plants as we wanted to put in the shadow box.  

They had different sized drift wood, rocks and plant pots.  We were instructed to arrange our wood and plant pots first.  Here we are starting out!    

After you've arranged the wood and pots, then you add your plants.  In my shadow box, I used some pots to hold the plants.  I also placed a piece of drift wood across the box,  creating a bed to put my plant in.

Once your plants are placed, you can then add accessories such as pea gravel, mushrooms, moss, etc.  The shop had cute little ladybugs, flowers and butterflies for us to choose.  

Helping Miranda hot glue a butterfly accessory.  

Miranda & I helping each other with the pea gravel.  Or P Rock as we called it.  

Miranda and her finished products.  She ended up making another small garden.

Jennifer's finished product.

My finished product, minus a butterfly that I added on last minute.

It was great to see everyone's shadow boxes.  I think all of us in the class were being inspired by one another.  Once you start, it's hard to stop.  You just want to keep adding more.  

My shadow box will be hanging on my dining room wall, arranged with some family photos. And it will look fabulous!  

See ya in the garden,

Jules