Time to sit down and make it!

That's very cool! It'd be nice to see more people here, : )

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dragonjournal

Okay, I spent the morning out and about. Now, I'm watching the last of the Handmaid's Tale and then hockey and crochet and then! Maybe writing?

I really need to crochet though. Bought more yarn for the project so. Now, onto hockey!

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teslac0ils

Still keeping up with drawing every day. I'm pretty proud of my most recent one, I've been struggling with colored pencils but I think I'm improving slowly.

As for the writing I said I wanted to get back to last week... lol that did not happen. But that was unrealistic considering I've been drawing every day, working, helping my family put in garden space, and preparing for family Easter. (In the middle of making a lamb cake as I type right now!)

I'm setting aside the writing goal this week and instead I want to prioritize a much more time-sensitive art request/gift my mom asked for, for Mother's Day.

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Today we went to a craft show. Among my finds was a fern, so I can make up a new terrarium around that. Maddenlingly, the actual terrarium booth was only selling stuff that they would put together, not items to take home and assemble personally. *headdesk* But I got the fern from someone else, along with a Mr. Stripey tomato that I already potted up. It's been a good day.

This is the previous terrarium I made in an antique jar.

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dragonjournal

Wow. That's very educational, and NEAT! I'd try the same thing, but my cats take the point of having a glass anything into an opportunity to knock them off whatever surface they on.

But I'll admit, looking at your posts, I'm tempted.

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Option 1: Secure the terrarium out of reach from cats. I would recommend using a globe-shaped container and placing it in a plant hanger (that doesn't have a tassel on the bottom) high above a north window.

Alternatively, put the thing in the middle of a wall with nothing nearby for cats to vault from. Because terraria need little light, it should be fine with a stickup light above it that has a downward-facing lightbulb. Then all you need is a small shelf to hold the terrarium.

Option 2: First, choose a terrarium with a lid that can be secured, such as a bail jar (which has a wire latch that goes over the lid). Set it up. Then attach it to a shelf using hot glue, velcro, an earthquake strap, or some other secure fastener.

It's also possible to seal a terrarium completely, but that's a bit trickier to get the biome right. A latching lid will let you take it off if you need to water or air out the container.

Some shelves even have a way to unlatch from their brackets, but won't come loose accidentally. Check your local hardware or home-improvement store for that.

Option 3: Get a container that is too big and heavy to knock over. When I was little, Mom had one that started life as a 5-gallon pickle jar. Recently I saw a giant home decor jar that was about as tall but even wider, although that was a pennymouth jar which needs a different setup method. Sometimes you can find a used aquarium at a thrift store, which may be 10 gallons or more! A pet store should have a glass lid and/or a plastic cover with light, if it doesn't come with one. Look for one that latches, or make a way to secure it.

Once you've poured a bag of gravel in the bottom, a big container is going nowhere. Secure a loose glass lid with something like earthquake putty or elastic. A pennymouth can be plugged with a cork of appropriate size that you pound in firmly. This kind of terrarium can sit on the floor near a window where it will get indirect light.

I hope this helps.

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OMG, I read about these terraria as a kid and always wanted to make one! Never did, though. Thanks for reminding me of that, they seem so lovely, a miniature piece of nature! I'll have to look more into it.

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I'm glad I could inspire you. :D

Some basic divisions:

Largemouth -- a terrarium you can fit your hand inside, easy for beginners.

Smallmouth -- a terrarium you can fit your fingers inside, like a spice jar.

Pennymouth -- a terrarium with such as small opening that it requires tools to reach inside, or else you just pour in some topsoil and see what sprouts.

Open -- a container without a lid, which is barely a terrarium at all.

Closed -- a container with a lid that you can remove, a common choice and easy to work with.

Sealed -- a container with a lid fastened in place, which is challenging to balance the ecosystem but if you get it right is the ultimate "set it and forget it" houseplant.

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Nice. Also I love Mr. Stripeys

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I think heirloom tomatoes are awesome. I've been growing cherry and pear tomatoes. This year I got a bunch more large pots so I'm watching for heirloom varieties of larger tomatoes.

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I've been growing them for years but have let them go in the last few mostly because of my health issues and the fact I'm no longer home much of the summer. I'm lucky locally that I can get some cool heirlooms (I need to go bug mom's BFF who has the seeds from the plants her father brought from Italy 100 years ago. I lost mine when the greenhouse misfunctioned. )

the one thing I will say is they are more prone to cracks and usually aren't as prolific but they are fun

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wideeyedloner

I checked out your terrarium posts and enjoyed them a lot!

This is a tempting-looking project. I always admire the terraria I see and this could be a sign to start one soon-ish.

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>> I checked out your terrarium posts and enjoyed them a lot! <<

Thank you!

>> This is a tempting-looking project. I always admire the terraria I see and this could be a sign to start one soon-ish.<<

Go for it. Look at thrift stores or housewares for a nice big jar with a lid. Moss is the easiest plant to grow in a terrarium. Most ferns will grow in one too. So will some tropical plants like the very colorful nerve plant. Check your local garden store or houseplant store because some of them have a section for terrarium plants. But don't buy a container there because they'll jack up the prices. You can also just forage plants from your yard, as I often do.

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ktea

Hi, friends!

I bought new books today, and I am really excited about them. :)

I would love some encouragement on some writing projects! I also want to make some friendship bracelets soon.

I didn't know we had a Discord! I will check it out!

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silvercat17

The discord is fairly quiet, but I share cat pictures fairly often.

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Good luck on your writing pr ojects. Is there anything in particular you need?

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ktea

Thank you! <3 I suppose I just need the reminder that I'm still a writer. I'm always open to writing buddies, too!

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Understandable. Good luck finding them.

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I need to get moving on multiple original and fanfic obligations. Hoping I get something done soon

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dianec42

Hugs. I know that feeling. Can you kind of sneak up on it by being productive on something else?

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Oh I'm working on them but work obligations are in my way

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silvercat17

Sometimes it just doesn't come. Good luck!

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now that I finished the microbiology exam for this week, I'm on a roll

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dianec42

I went to Hawaii for family stuff and came home with so much fabric my suitcase almost exploded! I need to post pictures of my haul and maybe even pre-wash some of it.

I feel utterly stuck on everything in life, including posting to DW. I have been making some progress on the Deer Trail cross stitch.

Next month I am going to the Celebration of Needlework (Nashua NH) which is basically a cross-stitch-centered relaxacon. I'm looking forward to that a lot.

Oh and what am I reading! I got Octavia Butler's "Parable of the Talents" out of the library but I am about to set it aside and read something lighter. It's just too depressing right now. Also happened upon a mystery by Alexander McCall Smith (he of the No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency) for a dollar for my airplane reading. That was TOO light and I left it at the airport's 'take a book, leave a book' shelf on day 2. (Getting home was... fun. I might write that up at some point.)

Edited Date: 2025-04-20 11:52 am (UTC)

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wow, sounds like an adventure. Yeah Butler's books are not light reads especially now

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analogbasilisk

I'm in a drabble era (this year is my year of drabbles, I'm reaching the 200 drabbles. I probably would discard almost every single one of I didn't write just for fun though.)

I'm also currently working on Saturation for rainbowfic. I'm using a structure that I'm not even sure if it'll work (writing a couple of poem lines with each prompt of the list and then I'll write short scenes based on those lines or something similar. Part of the idea is that the poems are written by the story's main character.)

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Halloween socks! Working on them, enjoying it very much! : )

Watching... Jurassic World Chaos Theory, but it's being a bit much DramaTM right now, so I keep dipping in and out. Not sure what I'm in the mood for. Hm. Well! More sock knitting! : )

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...I did not mean to post that anonymously, oops, apparently I wasn't logged in, : )

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zenigotchas

You sound like an interesting person tbqh

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