For the past six months or so, my dear husband has developed a new hobby: Plants.
Of all new interests that a man on the cusp of thirty-five years old might find himself suddenly drawn to, as his wife, I am so happy he was drawn to PLANTS. I’ll take a potted Echeveria over a red convertible any day.
“Plants” is actually too broad a term. Our collection of household greenery is made up of mostly of Succulents and Tillandsia (aka Air Plants). From where I am sitting at the desk right now, I can count ten individual potted succulents just in my field of vision.
It really is a blessing that he is good at growing things because as much as I love the look of plants in our home, they would not survive if their lives were left in my hands. I don’t know why, but despite my mother being a prolific gardener my whole life and encouraging me to start a garden, the process of growing plants always mystified me. It might have something to do with my lack of patience, which Alex (and my mom) have in abundance.
A few weeks ago, Alex asked me to tag along with him on a pilgrimage to Rainforest Flora, the South Bay’s premiere Tillandsia retailer. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I was pleasantly surprised.
The showroom (I don’t know what else to call it) is enclosed in a humongous greenhouse. The air inside the greenhouse was humid, but not unpleasantly so, and seemed to serve as the perfect environment for the thousands of plants on display to thrive.
In the center, a huge rock formation with pools and waterfalls caught my interest right away. As Alex explored the showroom and talked Tillandsia with the owners, I enjoyed watching the resident turtles as they lazily snoozed the afternoon away.
His face says it all. So stoked.
I didn’t go with the intention of shooting outfit pictures but the lighting was like, just too good.
