Public Pills: My terrarium obsession

For the past couple of months I have been obsessed - obsessed! - with terrariums. Well, actually I've been fascinated by them since I was a teenager, and my mother recently reminded me that I made several back in the day. But I blame this current wave of obsession on Paula Hayes and her breathtaking miniature landscapes contained within equally-magnificent hand-blown glass vessels. This woman has cost me untold hours of my life spent staring in fascination at my computer screen.

Apparently I'm not alone. A quick Google search will show that terrariums are very "in" right now - who knew? So, in the imitation-is-the-sincerest-form-of-flattery vein, I decided to make my own. While I was able to gather plenty of how-to information online, I decided to sign up for a workshop at Sprout Home with my boyfriend, Adam (it was free - why not?). They had a nice selection of vessels in a wide range of price points (I was also told I could bring my own), and a good selection of plants. I made a very simple terrarium using Baby's Tears and a small fern, and covered the remaining surface with some dried sheet moss and rocks. It was ok, but I wasn't completely satisfied with it yet.

So I studied my terrarium - what works? What doesn't? What would make it better? I decided the Baby's Tears worked, the fern didn't (out of proportion to the vessel), and live moss would make it better (dried moss is cheating anyway, so out it went). I found the Etsy store of Teresa, who sells an assortment of live moss and other goodies. I purchased her moss and lichen terrarium kit, and asked her to send some moss-covered rocks as well which I saw advertised on her website. I spent the next few days eager for my package to arrive. Finally, a few days later I had a wonderful assortment of moss and lichen, and Adam and I spend the evening designing the layout. We had a little more than we needed, so I picked up a small apothecary jar and made another one. They've been growing for a few weeks now and I'm happy to say they seem to be doing great. I credit my staring at them and randomly shouting "grow!" (I swear, it works!)