Lofty Plants aka Plants to Hang on a Loft Balcony // Blog & VLOG
When we moved into our loft space last year we always dreamed about filling it with plants. Tall trees and vines were our future. We’ve slowly collected plants, first to test out my green thumb, and second when we found something that we thought would go great in our space. Now that Spring has very slowly come into play again, we were able to finally find our favourite metallic plant holders for our second floor rail to embrace our space and load it up with lofty plants.
Searching for plants!
We had a vision and stuck to it.
The plant holders (from Ikea) were all we could envision. Nothing else had that industrial feel with a price point so affordable. We needed something that most people would use outdoors but would still work in an indoor space. Thankfully, we found our favourite pick on an Ikea wandering whim at the cusp of Spring. Even with a solid metal base, I still got paranoid that these outdoor planters would leak and used epoxy to seal the seams of each container.
Recently on Instagram: One of everything please.
We wanted lush plants.
I’m a little more patient than Rishad, but we agreed that big impact right away would be the most satisfying look. We bought two full hanging baskets of ferns hoping we could distribute the plants into three. Did you know each fern leaf has it’s own root? We learned quickly that these baskets were like splitting apart a tangled head of curly hair with no conditioner. It was almost impossible and we could only split them into pac-man shapes for just two baskets. We’re waiting to see how these take before possibly buying a third.
Peering through our second story of lofty plants.
Lofty Plants aka Plants to Hang on a Loft Balcony // VLOG
My green thumb wants more!
We travelled for a week and came back to find our beautiful green plants thriving. I’ve read that ferns are great to filter the air in your home and I just love the way they look staring up from below. After I watered the ten plus plants we already have, I looked around and wished there were more. I’m hooked!
What are your favourite in home plants?
Our videos are sporadic, but we do intend to make them more & more. Follow along on the blog & subscribe to our channel to keep in the loop. xo
Camping at The Bruce (& other detours) // Blog & Video // Summer Camping around Georgian Bay
It’s been over ten years since the last time I went camping. These words frightened Rishad. Since our last trip was spent in a boutique hotel & he knows that I have some particular tastes, the idea of me “roughing it” wasn’t something he could imagine. We made lots of lists, watched lots of YouTube hacks, loaded up Suzy (our car) & went off on a three day camp trip (or so we thought).
Tackling the camping essentials was a breeze. Since my tween years were spent camping across Canada, my family still had some great equipment. I rounded up the cooking gear & propane stove while Rishad rounded up his tent. The only items we really needed to repurchase were sleeping bags & some kind of mattress on a small budget. We found some great little sleeping bags at Mountain Warehouse & still kept to our budget by buying puzzle piece mats from Dollarama. Seriously, they were cheaper than yoga mats, less bulky & time consuming than air mattresses, & so much more colourful. I was proud.
Sitting proud in our cushioned tent
Camping a Cyprus Lake was a brand new experience. We booked our spot on the Parks Canada website & hoped we picked a good location. It wasn’t very private, but our neighbours were lovely & we ended up needing each others help in the end. Strict on rules, the campsite aims to be bear free & conservation friendly. They keep these grounds clean & make sure their campers respect the land.
Walking through the calm & quiet Cyprus Lake
We didn’t plan on hiking our first night there but it ended up happening. Listening to the recommendations of the front desk, we headed out to Overhanging Point before sunset. It ended up being the best & worst decision that day.
What was quoted to us as being a 10 minute hike from one lookout to another, ended up being much, much longer. Walking through rocky dirt paths, hugging trees to wrestle down slopes & balancing over a rocky beach took well over 30 minutes with the sun quickly setting overhead. We were fearful we’d be walking back to home base in the dark & hurting ourselves in the process. Even so, we trailed on.
When we arrived at our final destination, we were the only ones around. The views were amazing & we sat for some time, taking in the sunset falling directly in front of us. The glistening sun reflected on the rippling water reminded me of the ending to The Little Mermaid. It’s a silly reference, but I’d never seen glowing water so animated like that before. Although the walk back was a little dim & our noodle dinner was cooked in the dark, it was worth it. As a bonus, we didn’t injure ourselves!
Recently on Instagram: Watching the sunset at Overhanging Point
Recently on Instagram: Perfect sunset views as the only two people around
The following morning confused the heck out of me. It was the beginning of Summer & I was freezing the entire night! I woke up to extra layers that I threw on in the middle of the night, happy that I packed my handmade wool Mountain Toque. Warm bubbling coffee excited me more than words could describe as I cooked us up some breakfast that morning.
The rest of the day was spent on more hikes, back tracking to what we quickly passed the night before. We were enjoying ourselves so much that we couldn’t believe we only had one more night to go.
Taking in the views at Indian Head Cove
After dipping our toes in the icy Georgian Bay
Debating through the night, we decided not to head straight home. There was no rush & our packing skills left us with lots of food leftover. We begged for another place at Cyprus Lake but the weekend dates were all booked up. It worked out for the best.
Driving out of the park left us confused. We didn’t want to go home but we didn’t know where to go. After aimlessly googling & driving just a little further south, we made it to our favourite part of the trip, Lion’s Head.
We didn’t notice the Lion’s Head until AFTER our hike that day. We were pretty tired.
After settling into the open campsite, we headed out to our favourite hike of the whole trip.
Besides a few photos & small blurb or two online we really didn’t know what we were about to discover. It started with a long hike through trees & stones, avoiding the poison ivy that outlined the path on both sides. We could tell from just that little bit of poisonous green that this wasn’t a trail that many people took.
From there we started the incline up & up. I found myself getting pulled up by Rishad or hugging trees as anchors quite frequently without the use of my hands to climb up. It was tricky but we make a great team.
Finally reaching the first lookout, I couldn’t believe my eyes! Below us was the most tropical looking bay of water surrounded by the lushest evergreens. Could this really be Ontario? The day before shocked me in a similar way, but it was the height & immensity of this view that really captivated me.
Looking down from out first lookout point
He’s a daredevil. I couldn’t get the same nerve in me to take this photo myself.
Recently on Instagram: I guess I can’t say I’m afraid of heights anymore. I’ll just have to say that I have a discomfort with heights instead.
Recently on Instagram: Reminding me of the Wood between the Worlds from The Narnia Chronicles. This is what I imagine when I think about the pools they had to enter. Except, this “pool” was a a long way down.
I wish I could say that our detours stopped after Lion’s Head.
Actually, I don’t wish that at all!
The following morning we packed up our belongings for the final time & started to head home. Kinda. Still wanting to find one more beautiful place, we headed in a greyed out “park” area that looked intriguing on Google Maps. It wasn’t too far away & bordered the water’s edge. Of course, we had no idea whether it’d be a cliffside on beachside view.
Zigzagging through sideroads & farm areas, we wondered if there’d be anything to see at our aimed destination. There sure was! We came upon a beautiful, serene beach with no one in sight & miles of blue water ahead of us. I still can’t believe we found such a private yet public beach location.
Recently on Instagram: Sometimes you’ve gotta go with your gut & see what you find at the end of the line. We found this quiet oasis by looking at a map & taking some very beaten roads. It was worth it.
Inglis Falls. He really wanted to climb down to it, so we did.
Last stop, for reals this time was Inglis Falls. It was yet another detour that was completely unplanned but totally worth it. I think I’ve been here in the past, but the past blurs a little as you get older. Rishad really wanted to visit a waterfall during our entire trip so I’m glad that we finally did. Not only did we see it, we found a way down to it too.
Climbing up & down to the waterfall was a major accomplishment without my hand strength. Using good communication & a lot of understanding, we conquered a good little rock’s edge that I wouldn’t have imagined climbing with anyone else. We’re both still amazed at what we accomplished in that moment.
After all the detours we took, it’s safe to say we didn’t want it to end. I hadn’t been camping in over ten years but I’ve done so now, & I’d do it again. Ontario is such a beautiful place & we really want to explore more areas together this way. We wanted to take another camp trip or two this summer but our crazy schedules got in the way. It’s hard to plan escapes when work events keep popping up in the way. Perhaps next year.
CURA - Cory & Rishad // Camping at The Bruce (& other detours)
Our videos are sporadic, but we do intend to make then more & more. Follow along on the blog & subscribe to our channel to keep in the loop. xo
