Creative containers and pots competition - winner announced!
Our winning entrant's “Creative Corner” is a mix of up-cycled treasures and the fun use of bright ceramics. Before and after shots show how they have been brought back to life!
Our judge Chloe Thomson from The Gardenettes has selected our winner and special mentions for our "Creative Containers" competition.
Our winner will receive a generously donated $100 gift voucher from Northcote Pottery. Read on for the details.
Getting creative with pots and containers is one of my favourite gardening activities and so I’ve had a great time looking through all the entries in this month’s OGV “Creative Containers” competition.
I’ve giggled at some of the fun and creative planters used, I’ve admired many an heirloom planter passed down through the generations and I’ve been inspired to think outside the box even further when looking for containers to put plants in.
Well done to everyone who entered, you should be very proud of your achievements - I hope creating them brought you much happiness and they continue to flourish in your garden.
First prize goes to:
Benett Setiar Hernandez and her “Creative Corner” in her Geelong, Victoria garden - this is Benett’s happy place and this really resonates with me - especially during the lockdown time here in Victoria! Benett’s “Creative Corner” is a mix of up-cycled treasures and the fun use of bright ceramics. I particularly enjoyed seeing the contrast of the before and after shots of the up-cycled pieces - Benett has quite literally brought them back to life.
Your choice of bright, yet harmonious colours for the chair was beautiful and I love your use of succulents in the other planters. You’ve shown beautifully how to combine plants with different foliage colours and textures for interest. And I love that the musical drawer on the jewellery box planter still works - what a fun garden to explore.
I particularly like the way you’ve grouped and placed succulents in the frame planter - it’s done in a way that really does look like strokes of a painters brush and the wicker decorative balls add great texture and colour to the picture.
Special Mentions go to:
Carmel Diretto and her antique wash basin planter filled with alyssum - I’d love to see a photo of this when the alyssum is fully grown and cascading over the sides of the planter - it will look just like my bathroom basin when the kids use too much hand soap!
Linda Hermens whose simple, yet extremely elegant planter demonstrates beautifully that from mistakes come opportunities. This minimalist naked lady statue might have lost her head, but she’s found a new ‘head dress’ in the form of Graptosedum Francesco Baldi - and Linda delights in watching it grow and evolve over time.
Mallory Anderson and her cacti and succulent copper “shelfie” - I love the design, creativity and aesthetic of these planters. While they look incredible massed together like this I can see each piece could easily find a home in many gardens and even sunny windowsills. I LOVE the strong contrast between rusty copper colour and cacti / succulent foliage - great use of recycling and repurposing.
Mel Smith who demonstrated great garden design in combining mismatched pots to creative a cohesive and beautiful succulent display. So often people get hung up on having everything in their gardens “matching” and I think Mel’s shown just how fun it can be to mix and match pots with different colours, textures and shapes to create a potted family that works together.
Well done again to everyone who entered, you should all be very happy with your incredible creations. I smiled every time I read an entrant say that they enjoyed creating their planter, or their garden was their happy place - during these crazy COVID times our gardens really have been our escape.
Stay safe and keep gardening
Chloe