Our Favorite House Plants

Many designers agree that plants are an essential ingredient in any living space, not to mention the fact that they promote clean air. If you're plagued with a brown thumb, or have to work around spaces with low-light or low-quality light, the good news is that there is a wide variety of household plants vying for the opportunity to fit your decor needs. Here are a few of my favorites:

FAUX PLANTS

 

'Faux' sounds so much better than 'Fake', right? It's French, which makes it OK. In addition to the French-y elegance, faux plants are the cure-all for Brown Thumb Disease. No worries about finding the right light or watering pattern; just plunk one of these babies where you wish, and give it a good dusting every once in a while.

PHILODENDRON

 

This plant is versatile, from an aesthetic standpoint. It adds a new shape you would be hard-pressed to duplicate to any vignette that it adorns. Whether you want it to gracefully drape from one shelf to the next in a bookcase, draw the eye upward in a hanging planter, or trail off into the background on another flat surface, this plant could become your new favorite addition to your decor.

Best of all, this plant is very easy to take care of.

 

SANSEVIERIA

 

Shoutout to the Brown Thumb Tribe...this plant, nicknamed 'Mother-In-Laws-Tongue' for its sharp  angles, requires watering once per month. You heard that correctly. Once.

 

ZAMIOCULCAS

 

This plant's nickname ( 'eternity plant'), may refer to the amount of time it can go without water.

Just kidding. This plant is another once-a-monther, requiring watering every 3-4 weeks. And ladies and gentlemen, an added bonus to this beauty is that it enjoys low-light. I have two of them personally, and the one I have proclaimed 'The Survivor' has been holding its own in my fiance's man-cave for the past year and a half. If you are also close to an avid video-gamer, you know that they prefer Dracula-level standards of darkness.

 

FIDDLE LEAF FIG TREE

 

This is the only plant on the list that I don't personally own, but I have always wanted to see what I could do with this floor plant which has become very popular in the home design world. Its large green leaves are nicknamed for the string instrument that they resemble, and give the plant an airy, yet subtantial presence in any room. These plants can become quite expensive if you find a larger one in the 7ft+ range, but a plant lover may consider the option of nurturing a smaller version to its adult stages. I find that these plants look great in wicker baskets, but don't feel tied to any particular formula!

*Post written by Sharae Terrell, Digital Marketing Associate for Redwood Living 

Behind The Scenes At Redwood's Resident Appreciation Project

You don't have to look far to find a heart-warming or inspirational story, e.g. your Facebook feed or the news. One day in January we started to wonder--wouldn't there also be plenty of stories found among the thousands of residents who call one of our communities home? And, once we identity a few, what should we do about it?

This idea took shape as Redwood corporate asked for the help of those who know our residents best: our Community Managers. We were quickly reassured that the premise for this project was correct; there are many individuals in Redwood communities deserving of recognition, and the most difficult part would be choosing which one.

Having established that this idea would be one of the highlights of our first annual Resident Appreciation Month, and that the chosen resident would receive a cash prize, we pitched the idea of expanding the project to include three recipients to Chief Operating Officer Kris Conwill, whose immediate response was that we were missing a key ingredient: a limo.

Limo in place, balloons purchased, and big check printed, Redwood corporate employees and our Community Managers gathered at our Manchester Falls community on February 16th to celebrate with these residents:

Justin R. became an Army Recruiter after completing five years and two tours of service from 2007 to 2012:

Alice R. is an active volunteer in her community:

and Roy and Millie C. are also longtime residents and bright, happy personalities anyone would love to share a community with:

Congratulations to the 2016 winners, along with all of our residents who won Resident Appreciation Month contests on our social media pages or at our end-of-the-month Resident Appreciation Month. We appreciate all of you, and look forward to out-doing ourselves next year!

What I Wish I'd Known About Home Decor 5 Years Ago

There is a learning curve in design where in the beginning, a budding designer has the ability to identify why something "doesn't look quite right", yet is unable to identify exactly what is throwing off the mo-jo. Oftentimes, good design comes from a period of time spent making minor adjustments and experimenting with elements until they eventually benefit the whole.

As an Impatient-American, I lament the time I spent figuring out basic principles and would like to impart some of those bits of knowledge today. This isn't a replacement for last-minute tweaking, but hopefully these tips will save you some time in the beginning stages, so here are some things I wish that I had figured out a lot quicker:

1. Furniture does not have to be against the wall.

 

If you're fortunate enough to enjoy a spacious living space or open floor plan, the temptation exists to immediately line the furniture up along any available wall space. This line-up strategy works well in police stations, but does not lend itself so easily to interior design. Oftentimes this set-up spaces pieces used for seating too far apart, as the ideal comfortable distance between two people conversing is between 5 and 7 feet. Too much space takes a big chunk out of the conversation-inducing vibe many of us want for living room spaces.

2. Don't hang your art too high.

 

The most universally-accepted height for the center point of a wall-hanging is between 57 and 60 inches from the floor. This is because that is eye-level for the average person.

Shout out to everyone else who didn't take into account that eye-level is not the same as  height over here.

Objects such as couches or televisions may necessitate adjustment of this measurement, but this is a handy rule of thumb to follow.

3. Baskets, baskets, and for the love of God...baskets.

 

We've already covered more uses for baskets if you happen to be a pet-owner, but the most important thing to remember is that baskets hide many organization sins. Deposit clutter into basket, and suddenly it is a decorative accessory. Do piles of mail accumulate on your entryway table despite your best efforts? Place a small basket that you can drop it into daily.

Of course, there is a limit to how many baskets you can use in your quest for de-clutterization, but it remains a quick fix, and may just be what stops your living room from looking like District 13.

4. Odd numbers are our friends 

 

This one translates to many design disciplines. One of the first things photographers learn is the rule of thirds (diving a screen into thirds and placing the subject of the photo on one of the dividing lines). In the case of web design, you may notice the proliferation of three-column layouts.

When it comes to interior design, think about arranging any vignettes (groups of objects) in arrangements of 3, 5, or 7. Something about odd numbers lends itself to a more natural look, so try it!


As always, rules are meant for breaking, so if any of these tips don't speak to you, the beauty of design is that it is whatever you would like it to be. Have fun making your space reflect your style!

*Post written by Sharae Terrell, Digital Marketing Associate for Redwood Living