A true story about the woman who tried to turn her studio into a greenhouse.

That’s what it would seem like, anyway. Today we’re going to talk about – you’ve guessed it- plants! Specifically, I’m sharing some details on the new pots that I bought this weekend from The Sill.

I can’t take credit for my newfound plant vision. Devin has been killing the plant game (that’s a TERRIBLE unintended joke, but too good to edit out. Please don’t kill your plants, Dev) and her new plant arrangement is extra fabulous. Just check out the picture below. Still, from the day I signed my lease, I knew that I wanted an abundance of plants around my own space to make it feel rustic and earthy.

I started my plant journey with a grand total of two plants. One was a real baby snake plant that I snagged from a bodega the weekend I moved in and which I potted in a Diptyque candle jar. The other was a large fake snake plant I picked up from Homesense. Then came the mantle shelf with the draped fake foliage I bought at Urban Outfitters. Over Thanksgiving I went bananas and bought yet another artificial snake plant (which proved just how FAKE my original one looked – rookie), and two fake grass plants to stick between my chair and media console. Finally, I grabbed a small real cactus from WholeFoods, which is where I picked up my most recent plants (excluding the artificial eucalyptus and lavender stems I bought from a Walmart by Penn State.)

The theme here is apparent – I’ve been sticking with fake plants. This is mostly due to the low maintenance aspect, but also because my apartment has minimal natural light. I’ve also maintained this misconception that real plants are an expensive habit, but recently, I’m noticing that’s not entirely the case when you can still spend upwards of $50 on a fake plant –  and that’s not even including the pots!

Either way, when it comes to real or fake plants, the options seem endless and even overwhelming! If you want to go the real plant route, do you hit a local store? Home Depot? Or check the usual suspects like World Market, Target or Wayfair for a fake addition? I’ve linked some great options here, here, and here for the later. For me personally, however, instead of going on yet another faux plant crusade at my local Homegoods and ending up with a hodgepodge of a selection, I’ve decided to stick with real plants for a while simply to see how it goes:

I picked up two “small tropical plants” from WholeFoods early last week for a grand total of $1.99. Yes, you read that right: $1.99. Despite not yet having any pots for these new guys, I knew I couldn’t pass them up. I brought them home and figured I could put the pots on the back-burner until I did some research (for instance: drainage vs no drainage….) and found a pot aesthetic I liked.

Let me tell you: there are some AMAZING options out there. From Amazon selections , to H+M Home (YES, THIS IS A THING) to Anthropologie, there is no shortage of pots to fit any aesthetic.

I was about 100 Chrome tabs deep during my search when a friend at work recommended I check out The Sill. Their website GOT ME. Not only do they sell an array of plants at reasonable prices, but they have a great selection of pots. We’re talking sleek, sophisticated, yet basic planters that totally fit my apartment’s vibe. That, coupled with the fact I could go down there as soon as the clock struck 5 PM and take them home that day made it done deal. I don’t know about you, but there’s nothing like the in-store purchasing experience. The scents of the store; the interaction with the trustworthy employees who want to see you succeed; getting to hold your item and evaluate it in real time; handing over you credit card with a smile – you’re just too happy about this single purchase to care about balance that’s sitting on the card; and of course, that moment when you’re standing on the subway platform and you look down at your glorious new purchase in sheer panic because yes, you just spent $80 on pots and dirt. But all of the jokes aside – I am truly happy with my purchases an I think they are exactly what I was looking for.

The store in and of itself is absolutely incredible – it feels like a boutique greenhouse. I was obsessed with all of the plant and pot options, so not walking out with another plant and trying to narrow down to three pots was challenging.

Here’s what I ended up with:

1. The Grant Planter (size XS in Cream, $14)
2. The Balboa (size S in Cream + Blush, $25 each)
3. Potting mix (since I would need some extra soil to relocate the plants. The staff was also super generous by putting some lava rocks at the bottom of each of my pots to help absorb extra moisture from watering. )

I had to go through the entire process of taking the plants out of their original homes and relocating them into the new pots, which was actually much less stressful and messy than I imagined it would be. The women at The Sill recommended literally grabbing each plant and pulling it up and out of the original pots while the dirt was dry, which seemed shocking to a newbie, but worked!

Then I loaded the pots with a few inches of soil, dropped in each plant, and packed in more soil on top. Voila! My finished products:

One last thought about The Sill. Variety and price point aside, the fact that they have a monthly plant subscription service is a unique offering! You can sign up to receive a new potted plant each month depending on whatever your needs and restrictions are. Really neat concept, although I’ll have to play it by ear with my new plants to see if I’m ready to bring in some more!

Have you shopped at The Sill? Have any recs for a new plant mom? Let me know in the comments below!