Cultivate Interiors

Aim

Bringing the outdoors, in; a small business specialising in interior plant displays, general greenery and plant inspired decor items!

Plants are awesome

Plants are amazing for so many reasons. Some are safely able to absorb and remove harmful compounds from soils and the air, some are delicious, some smell amazing, and some are just really good looking. People and plants go a long way back, and we have always been dependant on, as well as in awe of, these amazing organisms. Bringing a little urban jungle to your indoors is not only an instantly enjoyable way to decorate your home or office, but they provide other little bonuses too. Plants in indoor spaces have been shown to have many positive effects on people and workers: increased productivity, lower anxiety levels and less sick days being just a few of these benefits. Not to mention, who doesn’t love an indoor jungle?! 

Cultivate Interiors offers indoor gardening services and installations, botanical displays and consultations, plant and decor sourcing (such as pots, macrame hangers, vases) and can tastefully design what you need for your desired space. 

How I Started

I love plants and I love design. Having worked as a creative individual for 10 years, in galleries, glass workshops, botanical gardens, small cafes and even a few laboratories, I’ve seen a lot of things I like, and a lot of things I don’t like. I realised a few years ago that one of the things I enjoy the most, is a well-designed space that flows and compliments the environment it encompasses. 

I recently graduated from a BSc in Horticulture Plant Science at the Eden Project, Cornwall, and have been an enthusiastic hobbyist gardener for 5 years. I manage a thriving allotment and have worked in the gardens of the Rainforest Biome at the Eden Project. My background in handmade glass and working in galleries has given me a certain style that I am ready to harness for other people- a style that pairs houseplants and your desired environment in a stylish and harmonious way!

Cultivate Interiors allows me to continue to hold the creative freedom that I thrive on, as well as to start up a service that not only makes your space greener and more beautiful, but creates positive effects alongside it. Houseplants have been shown to improve wellbeing, reduce anxiety, and even lower sickness levels in the workplace. Just being able to see a green space improves your mental health- so why should these spaces only be outdoors? My goal is to bring these green spaces indoors, and in ever increasing urban areas, making as much greenery available as possible is more important than ever. Cultivate Interiors aims to bring you an indoor garden that suits your needs, wants, and ability to care for.

What I need…

Urban spaces are calling for more green space- this doesn’t just mean outside! If I raise my target amount, I will be able to begin to sustainably produce and source stock to begin my mission to botanise indoor spaces all over the South West, as well as making plants available for postal orders. If I hit my target, I will use the money to:

• Raise funds for essential horticultural equipment, such as a heated propagation bench for quicker, more efficient rooting of cuttings, and a suitable environment to raise these plantlets whilst they are still young. I am also on the hunt for a bigger greenhouse to house them in whilst they develop!
• Money raised will also enable me to develop new product ranges, both for interior products and inspiration, and exploring the options of unique creative and educational workshops to help broaden your, and share my, horticultural knowledge. One kit I’d like to develop further is the DIY propagation and cutting kits!
• To be able to purchase appropriate “mother plants” to begin the process of bringing you your new favourite houseplants, as well as an exciting first load of stock of interesting plants for you all to come and ogle! This also means I will be able to sustainably provide plants, without excessive plastic, and without all the air miles.
• This opportunity means I can work at turning a hobby into a full-time business, to support myself and do something I really love for a living. What more could anyone ask for?

Not to mention the exciting partnerships I can build with local businesses and gardens- and cut out unsustainable and unnecessary products, and any nasty chemicals that are usually used.

The Future

The ultimate dream would be to build a small micropropagation laboratory for propagation of old and rare species that cannot be propagated from traditional cutting methods. This is something I really hope to work towards in the future, for both commercial and plant conservation purposes.

This is a project that I hope will also pave a way towards as plastic-free production as possible of houseplants within the south west. The growing trend in houseplants is undeniable, and as people grow more 

I also hope to use this business to build partnerships and relationships with local gardens and colleges, to build a horticultural community, an open source of information and education, where resources can be shared and pooled, and like-minded people can come together and get planty!

Update! I've added these new plant rewards!

Here are some of the rewards I'm offering...

This project successfully funded on 4th February 2020