By Dee Archibald

Air plants can be tricky plants to display in your home considering they don’t need soil to grow and flourish. I love to see these hardy plants on mass. This idea suspends them that way in a type of air plant web which will make a great piece for your home.

I have given you 2 options to try for this project. The one you decide to use is going to come down to the style you think suits your frame best.

Which brings me to finding the right frame. This wasn’t a task I found easy! I had my heart set on an old wooden window frame but alas I couldn’t find quite what I was looking for and removing the glass seemed a dangerous job! Think about the look you are going for, perhaps something rustic or more of a clean industrial look. Think outside the square, you may need to pull the inside of a picture frame or mirror out. Or make your own from scratch. My frame had a wrought iron sculpture through the centre which had to be removed.

Option 1 – The Rustic Look

You will need: A frame, some string, some tiny nails, a hammer and of course air plants.

Process: Hammer your nails to the inside of your frame about an inch apart all the way around.

It helps if there is a little hook on the back of the frame so that you can have a hidden place to tie your string to get started. From that point pull your string across the frame to a nail and wrap the string very tightly around the nail a few times before pulling it across the frame to a new nail and repeating the process. Continue the process by choosing each nail randomly until there are no nails left.

Add your plants by randomly slotting them through the web in the tighter spots.

Tip: Make sure the nails are hammered in fairly deep and on a slight angle if possible so they don’t pop out once the string is attached. Nails with a bit of a head on them will work best, I struggled a little with mine as the string kept slipping off.

Option 2 – The Industrial Look

You will need: A frame, a staple gun, a piece of chicken wire or plastic netting, a can spray of paint (if you wish to change the colour of the wire), and of course some air plants.

Process: Cut your netting to size making sure there is some overlapping at the back so it can be secured onto the frame. Spray 2-3 coats of paint to the netting if you wish to change it’s colour. I chose a copper colour to mask the brown. Flip your frame onto its front and staple the netting all the way around pulling each side tight so it doesn’t bow.

Flip the frame over and slot the air plants randomly through the holes until the lock into place with the first few leaves.