THOSE WERE THE DAYS...

It's funny that I used to love shopping for things like clothes, girly stuff (bags, shoes, etc) magazines and snacks.  Apart from buying them in the malls, I love going to the supermarkets and the first place I hit is usually the fruits and veggies aisles.

Well, I still shop and buy stuff but less bodycon dresses; instead outfits that take me easily into the garden.  I still can't resist a good bag if they're the size of a luggage that I could throw stuff that I need for the garden.  Gone are those gossipy mags.  In place are those filled with plants, flowers, fruits and veggies.  Sustainable living interests me.  Flipping through seed catalogues brings smile on my face.  What Hollywood tales?  

Everybody loves a good snack.  I still love my cookies, chips and chocolates.  I still head towards the fruits and veggies aisles when I am in the supermarkets.  Some things just don't change but some things do. 

These days I would rather visit the garden centre to buy a plant, a pot or a garden tool.  Shopping in malls is no longer a prime necessity.

See what makes me happy!

Loading up on plants even when I am thousands of miles away from home!

BACK TO SCHOOL

In the past, whenever I think of something green and boring  succulents would come to mind.  To me they were simply green, stiff and unattractive.  I was that biased; seriously I was.

It didn't help that my experience with them was short lived and never amiable. 

For the longest time, I was convinced succulents and I were not meant to be the best of friends.

Then along came something magical.  I saw pictures of  succulents with pretty flowers and I was completely sold.  Didn't know succulents bear flowers! I love.

That started my interest and feeling all grown up, I bought my first adult size plant.  I was certain I have graduated beyond looking after those fun size ones. 

It was a heavily laden jade plant.  Call that love at first sight because I grabbed the plant as soon as I caught sight of it.  I even gave her a name. When I took Jade to the checkout, three  strangers commented how pretty she looked.   I brimmed with pride, so happy that I snared gorgeous Jady.   I was doubly happy when google search said I just bought a money tree.  I could picture myself counting money happily.

My one and only memory of gorgeous Jade

Few days after Jade came home, I gave her some water as I thought she looked a little under the weather.  We all know the importance of drinking enough water to stay hydrated.  So for the next couple of days like any disciplined parent, Jade got extra water treats whenever she lost a leaf or leaves. 

I just knew it!  Jade was suffering from dehydration and dehydration as we all know is bad for the skin.  Surely the same applied to her.    

Before long, I started to notice Jade was beginning to have what you call, a receding hairline.  I did the next cleverest thing.  I filled a pail with water and completely submerged her into it.  I just knew she was in need of more water love. 

Thank you but don't ask me how long Jady sat in that swimming pool.

After that great soak, I put her out to bask in the sunlight.  A few days later, she just wobbled under her weight; kind off lifeless!  I drew up a list of suspects including my family member. 

(1)  Mum because she thinks nothing is more beautiful than her Adeniums (they really are gorgeous!) and there's no space for another plant along the corridor; 

(2)  The sweeper on our level because he sweeps as if he's in the pool competing the backstroke event;  

(3)  Tigger my neighbour's cat because she has a guy's name and behaves like one.  He... oops... she has a tendency to jump into flower pots to poop & pee or pee & poop whichever she fancies and she loves to pounce on insects  hiding in between plants.  

Surely one of them must be responsible for Jade's injury! 

When I picked her up, her limbs were soft and squishy.  Did I detect water as in water retention?  Like a brave surgeon, I did my best to safe her life. 

So these were what's left of Jade. 

Meet Jade Junior... a part of gorgeous Jade.

Suntanning remnants of her other limbs

I wish someone would have told me "Just because you love gardening does not mean you know everything... "  
 
Just a few days back, I spotted new Jades at the same place I met gorgeous Jade the original.  I had this peculiar feeling that they will meet the same fate as Jady so I turned and walked away. Sadly, it is really true that succulents and I are nothing more than just casual friends. 


 

GOTTA LOVE 'EM

There is no secret that I’m in love with anything natural and good especially when words like “rich source of antioxidants,” “health benefits,” etc pop up.  Who doesn’t??

Ain't she gorgeous?

When I heard from the grapevine that the Clitoria ternatae whose common name is blue pea flower for centuries have been used in traditional ayurvedic medicine and is supposedly good for improving eyesight, the blind as a bat in me just have to give this plant a second glance!  

I Love You

To begin, I love the vivid intensity of these lovely blue flowers and the added bonus is there are lots of them taking refuge all over the fence.

For a long time the natural dye in the flowers have been used for cooking.  The flowers can also be dipped in batter and deep fried.  You can even make tea out of them.  They can also be added to a bowl of salad.  Look at how beautiful they look!

Do bear in mind that if these beautiful flowers are to be consumed, it is best that they be grown without the use of pesticides or chemicals.

 

Why eat something supposedly good with added benefits when in fact it is detrimental to your well being.  If you're growing your own, do it the organic way.

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

For nineteen months this orchid plant remained barren.  Yes that's one year and 7 long months with 2/3 of the time spent in my apartment and the other 1/3 in MSG.

No amount of cajoling, sweet whispers or wonder food worked.  Out of exasperation, we thought perhaps the plant would only flower in its country of origin, thousands and thousands of miles away.  We were wringing our hands out of exasperation!

 

However one day we got a pleasant  surprise and claimed ownership to two very beautiful blooms.   As usual, like all other flowers my first instinct was to plant my nose in the blooms and I was rewarded with the most delicious scent! It was certainly worth the long wait. 

Then last week during a heavy downpour, the plank holding some potted plants collapsed.  The first thought that flashed in my mind was "Oh.... the orchids!" as we scrambled to salvage the damage.  Other than some bruises on the petals, everything was fine.

Please don't let us wait another two years for the next round of flowers. (*fingers crossed*)

SHARING A PINCH OF JOY!

Here's a little story...

These are not paintings but a series of real flower shots which are very special to me.  

I was given this cluster of a rare stunning orange bloom (was told there's only one tree on this island) recently by an islander in the compound of a temple.  I just had to take some shots there and then!  There was a red table nearby and as much as I love colours.... well, red and orange don't seem like the best combination.  So I found myself emptying my nylon bag and using that as a backdrop for these shots, much to the amusement of the islander who must have thought I was a little craycray.  Let's pretend you didn't see the creases in the background ;)

The beautiful shade  of orange flowers speckled with those black seeds were so mesmerizing.  I was so fascinated by them and completely blown!  

I like to think that these are my lucky charm because today I received an email to advise that this print has been included in the Society6 Shop (http://society6.com/products/STUNNING-ORANGE-BLOOMS_Print where these pictures will be reproduced as art or framed art prints and also printed onto other merchandises.  

Just in case you're wondering what's on Society6 Shop... 

"The artwork on Society6 is created by hundreds of thousands of artists from around the world."

When you buy a product from Society6, we produce it using only the highest quality materials, and ship it to you on behalf of the artist.
  

Gosh! So am I an artist?  No because I can't draw.  Many years ago during a charade game (I've given up playing them, they only embarrass me...), I picked up a card with the word goldfish on it but you just imagine how I drew the fish because my team mates screamed in unison "guppy!... guppy!" to my horror.  If given a choice by the nice people behind Society6, I would consider myself more of a photographer because what I basically do is upload photos I take onto various products. (No, I don't use photoshop.  You get what you see) However what I like about this is although my products are available in my shop on Society6, in reality I do not own a brick and mortar shop where rental can be so exorbitant.  Apart from uploading photos and promoting my products which I am lagging far far behind, there is nothing else that I have to do as everything else is taken care off by Society6 (just in case anyone else out there wants to be an artist too).  Basically I get 10% of the sale price off all merchandise (except for art prints) which barely is enough for me to buy a packet of seeds but hey I am enjoying what I do ie. taking pretty pictures and that is what matters most.

Coming back to where I stopped, so after some detective work, I found out the common and botanical name for these flowers.  They're the flowers from the Black Pearl Tree, also known as Majidea Zanguebarica.  What a pretty mouthful!