Groupthink

Four groups, four ways

One of the greatest things about RR is that there’s really tons of space to play around in… by that I mean there’s a lot of display space, inside and out. This comes in handy dealing with, and showing off, whatever I’m collecting at the moment. For a while it was carved wooden figures, then carved wooden heads, then stumps, then… well, you get the picture. One thing always leads to another. Right now I’m collecting pots, succulents and rusted metal objects. Tomorrow it’ll be something else. These RR vignettes show four different ways I’ve chosen for displaying groups of objects. The reasons for these groupings may sometimes be apparent but others may take some explaining.

WOODSY: This group came about when I discovered I had too many wooden things in the house and I needed to store the extras somewhere. I stacked them outside, totem-style, and set them next to my jazzy yellow vinyl corner bench. The colors look great together, the holes in the little kindergarten plywood chair and stool echo each other and the sunny yellow offsets the carved ‘rabbi’ stump at the top… wouldn’t the gnarly tall thing make a great place to hang his yarmulke?

SAME DIFFERENCE: What do a discarded concrete garage sink, rusted steel pipes and a mouthy concrete planter have in common? Well, they all look really great with a variety of succulents growing out of them. With plants that show as much range as the containers that hold them, this group hangs together — united by their differences. And, plants and planters look great against the backdrop of the rustic fence as well.

METAL ROCKS: Sad fact? Stores are going under. Silver lining? Terrific deals on stuff. I got all of these blackened steel planters for under $200 at a crafts store that was going out of business. Stacked and filled with cool-colored succulents they have a nice architectural quality that was softened and complemented by the colors and shapes of the plants. Surrounded by equally cool-colored river rocks they make the perfect heavy metal rockin’ group.

KITSCHY KUPBOARD: When we first got the Rancho we had to come up with a way to defuse the cave-y, orange knotty-pine, scallop-edged mess that was the kitchen. Lots of off-white paint, removing the upper cabinets and trim, and open door fronts did the trick. Still, I wanted to keep some reminder of the past so this built-in was spared. Freshened for today it was the perfect place to hold my fave candy-colored canister set along with equally colorful ceramics and glassware. These pop-y citrus colors make the zinc dining table and thrift store vinyl chairs sit up and take notice.