Go Green and Get Happy: The Sill

I'm super excited to chat with some of our new favorite plant people in New York City, the staff at The Sill. Located in the Lower East Side, The Sill is a plant shop dedicated to inspiring people to "bring more of the outdoors in" and helping them do just that! Staying in touch with nature is a huge part of feng shui, a great way to make adjustments and, in general, an all-around excellent decision for your space. Check out what The Sill experts, Erin Marino and Christopher Satch, have to say about bringing some nature inside!

AC: Tell us about The Sill and your approach.

EM / CS: The Sill is very different from other nurseries and florists in that not only do we source only what we consider "easy care" houseplants (no green thumb required!), and design our pots and planters in-house + manufacture them locally in NJ, but we also walk you through plant ownership pre-purchase and continue to be a helpline once you bring your plant home. We are a growing community of people passionate abut plants, and we don't want to just sell you a plant and that be it. We want to help you pick out the perfect one and help you care for it by providing tips and advice, as well as plant diagnostics. You're not alone with your plant when you're with us. 

You list five of the benefits of having houseplants on your website. What would you say is the biggest benefit, and why?

All of those benefits - increase in mood, decrease in stress; cleaner indoor air; increase in productivity + creativity; an enhanced environment; etc. - are great benefits to have, but probably the one that stands out the most to us is that your plant companions are uplifting. They boost your mood and increase a space's aesthetic value. Plants make people happy! We also happen to enjoy the air-cleaning qualities, too. Everyone can use some fresh air, especially in an urban environment like New York City where we're based. 

How do you select plants to offer your shoppers and followers and how do you package these plants? 

In our NYC storefront, or when speaking with our corporate clients, we often ask about the environment in which the plant will be located - How close is it to a window? How much direct sun does it get, if any? What's the care commitment that can be invested into this plant? We don't want to give a high-maintenance plant to someone who's too busy to care for it. And we think that that's where a lot of other companies lag. They'll tell you that you can have whatever you want, and as soon as they have your money, it's goodbye. We not only help you pick the best plant, package it so that it's stable during transport, and doesn't get damaged, but we also want to see it through in its new forever home until it's thriving. 

What are 3 tips for our readers, to bring in some of the Sill philosophy into their holistic spaces?

#1 - Know thy space

Keep a vigilant eye on where the sun is at different points in the day. Where is it in the morning? Midday? Evening? How does this affect my plants? How about my humidity and air flow? Radiators and A/Cs can have a profound effect on a plant that's very close to them! And usually a negative one. 

#2 - Keep in tune with nature

To keep a plant happy and healthy in a house, the goal is to recreate the natural environment as best as possible. We provide information on the origins of the species of plants that we carry. This helps us and our customers place the right plant in their homes that their homes' environment allows for, or help them make the changes to come closer to creating it. 

#3 - Have fun

Enjoy your plant companion and have fun with it.  Decorate your pot, or if your plant is a vine, train it along crazy trellises. Use natural stones or gravel on top of the soil of any color that your heart desires. Horticulture is both an art and a science! Let your artistic side shine and express yourself. 

How does The Sill create a holistic space for itself (and / or for your clients)? 

Since plants make people happy, the more plants, the better! Our shop is covered from floor to ceiling in all sorts of greenery. And not all plants are green! Some come in various shades of every color you can imagine. We know that there is something for everyone, and you don't need a "green thumb" to reap the benefits that come with the presence of plants in a space. 

by Anjie Cho

The Sill brings easy care houseplants direct to your door, order online or shop their Lowest East Side storefront located at 84 Hester Street. Featuring their own line of locally made plant pots and stands, The Sill aims to inspire you to bring more of the outdoors in. 

The Sill was created with a simple ambition – to inspire people to bring more of the outdoors in. Our mission is to make the experience of discovering the perfect plants as wonderful as the plants themselves. The Sill is the source that bridges the gap between plants and people – offering products and services that to fit with your personal style, your lifestyle, and your budget. 

Father's Day and Feng Shui

Last month we celebrated Mother's Day with a selection of meaningful flowers. This Sunday, it's time to celebrate our fathers too! Like Mother's Day, Father's Day is a nationally celebrated holiday in America, but not many of us know the history of this day of celebration.

Father's Day was inspired by Anna Jarvis's efforts to honor her mother, which ultimately resulted in the establishment of Mother's Day as a holiday. Similarly, West Virginian, Grace Golden Clayton suggested a day to honor fathers as she grieved for her own father and 362 men killed in a nearby mining accident. 

The very first Father's Day sermon was held in West Virginia, but because of overshadowing events like Independence Day, the celebration did not move outside one small town. In 1910, though, Arkansan, Sonora Smart Dodd, living in Spokane, Washington, inspired also by Anna Jarvis's Mother's Day, urged her community to honor fathers on a specific day in June. Though officials weren't able to make the celebration happen until July 19, it was the first statewide observance, and ultimately, along with the efforts of many to bring the tradition to life, led to President Nixon signing Father's Day in as an official holiday in 1972. 

In terms of feng shui, the Father corresponds to the Benefactors area of the bagua map. The Benefactors area is located at the bottom right corner and is related to the color grey, yang metal energy and helpful people. This makes sense, since our fathers are some of the most important, helpful benefactors in our lives! 

Many of us no longer live with our fathers, but we can still honor them and welcome them in our lives with a very easy feng shui placement. You can honor your father and remember the support and help he provides you by adding something that represents him in the Benefactors area of your space. This item can be something of your father's, something he gave you or something that symbolizes him. Be sure to move this item to your Benefactors area with positive intention and a deep gratitude for this supportive person. 

I hope you all enjoy Father's Day this year and spend some quality time with the first man in your life! 

by Anjie Cho

The Sticky Secret to Painting Straight, Even Edges

You’ve spent time looking at paint swatches. You’ve hung your homemade poster board-sized samples on the wall, and then moved them to check your hue from various angles. You’ve spackled, sanded, and repaired. You’re armed with rollers and brushes and you’re ready to give your room new life with a fresh coat of paint. Right? Wait. There’s one more thing you need to do to paint like a pro: Tape. 

Let’s talk about this painter’s staple for a moment. A bit of magic, tape will ensure you get paint where you want it and not where you don’t. If you want clean, straight lines, you need to tape off your borders before you get started. 

The right stuff

Don’t rack your brain trying to figure out what you have at home already that might sub for the roll of tape in the paint department. If you don’t have a roll of this specific stuff, you’re going to need to buy one (or more). Painter’s tape is low-tack, which means it will go on and peel off without leaving sticky residue on your walls and trim. It also won’t pull away the finish you wish to keep. There are different tapes suited for specific surfaces. Read the label or ask the paint shop staff for help in selecting the right roll for your job. For example, you’ll find tape designed for multi-purpose use, as well as tape specifically designed with delicate walls in mind (think fresh dry wall or newly painted). To get off on the right foot, pick the tape that’s best suited for your job. 

Prep the wall

Before you stick the tape anywhere, take a damp sponge and wipe down the wall and trim. Let the surface dry before you proceed. The best painted walls start off clean, dry, and dust-free. 

Go long

You may think it’s more manageable to pull off several inches of tape and apply it to the surface you wish to protect. Not necessarily. Every juncture point is an open invitation for paint to seep through. On the other hand, you don’t want to peel off a huge swath of tape all at once. Work with 1 to 2 foot sections at a time. Be sure to overlap your tape segments to limit the aforementioned invite to seep. Don’t go too long, however. Pulling off large sheets can create sticky tangles and ineffective, overstretched tape that won’t lie properly. This would invite paint to bleed past your tape border as well.

Smooth it out

The goal of taping is a clean, sharp line. Make sure the tape lies flat at your border line. Press it down with your fingertip or a putty knife to secure the edges. 

Base coat it

To really seal the deal, use your brush to lightly paint a thin strip of your primer or wall color along the edge of your tape. 

Take it off

If you wait for your paint to fully dry to remove your tape, the paint may chip and create uneven lines. Start pulling your tape off when you put your brush down from the last swipe of color. Pull down and away gently at a 45- degree angle. If the tape isn’t peeling back cleanly, adjust your angle to 90 degrees and enlist the help of a sharp tool to cut (or score) the layer of paint between the finished wall and the tape you’re pulling away.

by Anjie Cho