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So your fondest pen pal can open those stamped sentiments, give them an Italian-made, hard-tempered steel blade—embellished with a luxe layer of 24-karat gold across the handle. Designed to liberate love letters with one swift swipe, this letter opener even comes engraved with either imperial or metric measurements across its length. If your recipient is an introvert who sometimes needs “alone time,” they may certainly empathize with the humorous, passive-aggressive messaging this reversible coir doormat serves up. One side welcomes all with a friendly, “Come in.” Flip it around, and the uninvited will probably feel more amused than offended by its curt, cursive demand to scram. Most everyone has a bottle of olive oil in their home, and many even have a bottle of really good olive oil. But this oil from Brightland is good enough that we think it’s worth bringing to your friends’ new digs.

They look especially striking amongst mossy areas – another classic choice for Japanese-inspired spaces. Every garden needs a path or two to get from the lawn to shed, or from the house to the gate. When weaved around a small tree, a statue, or a body of water, they can also be used to encourage mindfulness. Maintaining abeautiful gardentakes a lot of work, so your favorite gardener will appreciate any gift that makes the chore more enjoyable. Patrice is a writer specializing in lifestyle hacks, home decor, and product recommendations. The idea is to remove any grass, rocks, roots, etc., in your garden area that might interfere with a level and firm foundation.
What are the best plants for Zen gardens?
The blanket’s chunky cotton yarn, which is knit loose and loopy, is warm but doesn’t overheat. And the Napper comes in five colors, so you’re sure to find a hue to suit your recipient’s new home. It comes in 10-, 15-, 20-, and 25-pound versions; for most resters, the 15- or 20-pound option is a good bet. If you’re planning to havelive plants in your garden, place a divider around the area you’ll place your plant before you pour the sand. Once you’ve divied up the space, add some rocks along the bottom of the plant’s area prior to adding the soil to help the water drain out when watering the plant.
Sand zen gardens are called “karesansui” gardens or “dry landscape” gardens. This is because traditional zen gardens don’t include plants or water features in order to achieve abstraction and promote feelings of tranquility and calm. As such, the placement of the stones and sand in zen gardens has lots of meaning and intention. Stones represent things such as islands, mountains and trees while sand patterns represent flowing water.
Bonsai Juniper PreBonsai Tree
Large stones can help break up a plot of raked sand or gravel in your zen rock garden. If you want to include more greenery in your landscape, arrange rocks surrounded by structured shrubbery on the edge of your garden. You can grow moss on many stone surfaces, as well, if the climate permits. You can certainly use a standard leaf or gravel rake for your outdoor Zen garden. However, it’s also fun to search for a tutorial and make your own rake using a rod attached to a small board that’s cut into a sawtooth pattern.

But the beauty and meditative quality of these gardens is only amplified by traditional Japanese home design. Space will be your biggest limiting factor, but remember to consider future maintenance before jumping into a massive project. Even without living fish, water features require quite a bit of upkeep to stay looking their best. Of course, not every homeowner can or wants to care for live fish.
Smart mood lighting
Maybe you have some pretty aquarium rocks from your kid’s fish tank or some extra gravel around your yard or driveway. Your Zen garden could be the perfect spot for thatair plantor tiny succulent that’s been floating around your windowsill. Perhaps you can finally begin to clear out that junk drawer full of tea lights, a few random marbles, and that tiny figurine you found on vacation. Larger outdoor Zen gardens are often separate or to the side of other landscaping.

Free-form, on the other hand, has become more popular in modern times. This organic form fits more seamlessly into the surrounding landscape and allows for a bit more creativity. Hedges and sharp curves might hide or reveal parts of the garden from different vantage points. But if your space is limited, you may need to think strategically for the most compact design.
Originating from Japan many hundreds of years ago, Zen gardens were traditionally created as places for monks to reflect on the Buddha's teachings. To encourage contemplation and feelings of peace, they were designed to be minimal spaces, devoid of distractions. Even if you have a large space to work with, Zen gardens are all about the themes of “kanso” , “shizen” , and “koko” .
Decorative trinkets are great for personalization, especially if you’re giving this as a gift, but don’t go overboard and overshadow your garden with towering pieces. Place additional decor wherever you feel it enhances the peaceful atmosphere. Before we dive into the materials you’ll need, let’s take a look at the symbolism of traditional zen garden elements to better understand their importance. Choose materials and colors that fit with the theme of the garden, such as stepping stones or natural-edged pavers.
This symbolizes stripping life down to its bare bones, helping you to focus on the things that really matter. Even if someone’s home decor is more midcentury modern than hippy-dippy, a salt lamp will be a welcome addition. Alleged health benefits notwithstanding, this little lamp gives off a comforting, rosy glow. And its small size and 6-foot cord make it portable, so the recipient can move it from their desk to their nightstand to the living room for a casual, at-home yoga session. This one also has a dimmer switch, so it can be a lovely night-light, too.
Zen gardens use natural components like sand, rocks, gravel, stone, or wood. The sand or gravel in a Zen garden is regularly raked and tended to, using meditative movements and sand patterns. Minimal addition of anything aside from stone, a few current paths raked around the rocks, and with some moss on just a few of the rocks. The patterns in this rock garden are meant to be interpreted as ripples in water, which in turn makes the larger rocks symbolize islands or other large masses. However, as Zen Gardens are supposed to be a place that promotes peace and a meditative state, you can incorporate whatever you need to achieve that. Willow trees, quaking aspens, small shrubs, and groundcover plants would be good additions.
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