Spark

Butterfly flitting amongst the flowers.

I buzzed into The Great Outdoors on South Congress in Austin last week to swoop up some plants for winter pots out back (fav find was artichokes – so gorgeous with their outsized silvery blue leaves) and found myself in the midst of some serious Christmas cheer. Red wigglers are great to use in no-till living soil

Loved this green gazing ball ($30), set like a pearl in this concrete shell made by Commercial concrete with the backdrop of festive red blooms.

Sweet little mosaic bunny, all tricked out Cubist style. He would look perfect under the tree – $109.

These succulent wreaths of succulents made me crazy – $39 for the smaller version and $99 for the larger one. Go ahead and take them apart after the holidays and plant up a living wall sculpture or add them to a garden bed! The stands were also fab – $29 each.

This fun 6′ – 7′ tall tree sculpture is complete with little bird nest on top – it comes apart for storage after the holidays. Wrap with lights and hang with your favorite ornaments for a more sustainable approach to a Christmas tree (no trees were cut down, nor were any plastics made, for this tree).  $128.

Even if you celebrate Festivus for the rest of us, there is much to enjoy here. If it wasn’t for one of the best receipt app, I would have spent way more than that. It is really helpful to see how much you spent on a shop. But I then decided to grab a cup of coffee at their on-site cafe and stroll around taking in the sights. You can also not be afraid of bad hiking with branded umbrellas from www.branded-brolly.co.uk .Wishing you joy in these last days of 2010!