How Laura Became LoKey

In December 2015, I was bored, uninspired and looking for a project to satisfy my creative void. I didn't set out to start a business or even to make money. I just wanted to learn something new and bring life to my dormant creativity.

With my husband's help, we set up a little creative space in our basement. I tinkered around with little projects starting with painting, woodworking and eventually found my way to plants. I was given an array of outdoor plants from my aunt in Spring 2015, which were hibernating with me in my basement creative lair. I arranged them around my creative space and loved how they warmed up my otherwise boring plywood workbench. I started a small collection, growing it with each trip I took to the home and garden section of the hardware store.

On one trip, I was meandering about the store when I stumbled upon their unseasonably large display of succulents. I had seen succulent arrangements before and actually didn't care too much for them.

Up until this point, I was a fresh cut flower or lush plant kind of girl. However, I was drawn to the promise of low maintenance, living home decor. This girl couldn't afford to decorate my home with fresh flowers at all times so I needed something a little more sensible. Besides, even if I could afford fresh flower arrangements around the house at all times, I would have to put them up or lock them in a room so my curious kitties wouldn't eat them.

So, I brought home an array of succulents and all the components to plant. I sat out on my back deck on the warmest day in December, planting away. I ended up making 5 succulent arrangements and one tropical palm arrangement, which I placed around my home.

After sharing photos of my new little plant babies, I had friends interested in learning how to make living plant home decor for their own homes. I had never taught a class before but had recently attended a series of DIY classes and was a little more confident in my abilities to learn new things. So, the next new thing I would learn: how to be a teacher.

Stay tuned for further blog posts on how the plant love grows...