One of our goals for 2016 was to open up our website to the Urban Jungle Bloggers community and share planty stories from our fellow bloggers. So here we are with our very first Planty Profile and our first guest is Nora: an Italian architect and design blogger from Design Outfit. She was born in Rome and still lives there, surrounded by ancient ruins, history and contemporary contradiction.
Can you tell us a bit more about your blog?
My blog is Design Outfit, it’s online since February 2013 so it’s turning three next month (how time flies!). Main topics are design and architecture, with a little bit of traveling, lifestyle and kids’ stuff. Since my first post for UJB last Easter, Design Outfit also became green and plant lover.
How many plants do you have?
I have just a few plants. I wasn’t born green fingers (my original fingers are black instead!) and I began to be involved in plant matters just recently. The main reason is that my kids are fond of gardening and I have to learn and show them how to take care of plants. The second reason is that I’m in love with flowers (tulips are my favorite!) and I’d like to read up about and to improve my little home garden. Getting to the point, I’ve about ten plants among the indoor and outdoor ones.
And which one is your favorite?
There’s not a favorite one because I’m very inconstant about my passions. One day I’m in love with succulents, one day with flowers and suddenly with green plants. But most of the time I’m in love with all of them! The most long lasting plant that I’ve ever had has been living with me for about five years. It’s a succulent plant that I’ve on my balcony and it’s from Venice, the city where I had been living and studying for four years.
If you could have any plant in the world, which one would it be?
I’m very curious about exotic and aquatic plants and, at the same time, I’m passionate about art and impressionist painters. So, remembering Monet, I’d like to have a little lake with some pure and white water lilies.
Did you ever kill a plant? How?
Unfortunately you can be sure of this! It happens often during summer holidays, when my family and I are away from home for a long time. In that occasion I usually find a new home to my plants, but if I can’t for all of them, disaster happens and I can’t do anything to prevent that!
What would you like to learn about plants?
As I said at the beginning of the interview, I’ve a lot to learn. I think that a Gardening for Dummies guide would be perfect for me! Perhaps it would be interesting to collect some expert UJB tips in a sort of green handbook for the readers…
What’s your favorite style of plant pots?
I start by saying that I usually use cups, mugs and little baskets as plant pots. For brand new pots I prefer ceramic ones: I love all pastel colors and simple Scandinavian shapes. Online shops are design mines and I often spend a lot of time browsing catalogues and finding my favorite objects and accessories.
Your favorite UJB topic so far?
My favourite UJB so far is, without a doubt: Show your plant gang. I played with succulents and assigned every plant to a member of my family. It was very funny because my little kids, Francesco and Fabio, were exactly alike their green twins.
Do you have a suggestion for a future UJB topic?
Perhaps I’d like to write and show some images about the connection between plants and architecture: green facades, houses surrounded by the green, tree houses…
Thank you Nora for being the very first to open up to us about your plants. We completely relate to your “standing on chairs” behind-the-scenes situation 😉
You can find Nora on Instagram – Twitter – Facebook – Pinterest and her blog Design Outfit.