Hello Lisa.

Welcome back to another edition of THE PENCIL CASE! As always, each issue focuses on a theme to encourage a fresh look at garden design and graphics. This week, let's explore MOSAICS IN THE GARDEN. ♥︎

BEAUTY IN PIECES

I recently returned from San Diego, California, where I attended the Association of Professional Landscape Designers annual conference. The southern California gardens were stunning, but what truly captured my heart were the mosaics woven throughout them. Bits of glass, ceramics, brick, and stone—often combined with found objects—were gently pieced together into artful, functional garden elements.

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One highlight of the trip was a visit to Ilan-Lael, the studio of renowned artist James Hubbell. His mosaics, rich with movement and meaning, were deeply inspiring...which you can see in the images of this newsletter (all are Hubbell's work). Even more special: we had the chance to create our own mini mosaic projects to bring home. It was a magical, hands-on reminder of how gardens—and art—are shaped slowly, intentionally, and with love.

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It was wonderful to see how a garden truly transforms over time…piece by piece, bit by bit. Creating mosaics (or tiling) is a practice of patience, a way of noticing fragments and giving them new meaning. In the garden, mosaics remind us that broken things and imperfection can be beautiful.

STORIES + SURPRISES

There’s something timeless about mosaics in outdoor spaces. They invite surprise, catch the light, add texture, and often carry stories within them. Mosaics can be bold and center stage, or subtle and hidden...tucked into a corner like a secret waiting to be discovered.

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You don’t need fancy materials. Consider using: broken dishes or tiles, sea glass or colorful pebbles, shattered bricks or pottery, plus mementos from travels or nature walks.  When the materials hold meaning for you, your garden becomes not only a space of beauty, but of memory.

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Here are a few ways to incorporate mosaics into your garden:

• Embedded in a garden path

• Set into a wall or bench

• Across the surface of a table

• Edging a planting bed

• Covering a birdbath or flower pot

• Hidden like a treasure between stones or plants

GARDEN MOSAIC INSPIRATION

Depending on your climate and materials, installation techniques will vary. I encourage you to explore local mosaic resources and practices to ensure your creations will weather beautifully over time.

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For those curious to learn more, I’ve included some resources below to spark ideas and get you started.

I’m loving this post by The Garden Glove on Creative Diy Mosaic Garden Projects.

This is a cool post on how to Create a Pebble Mosaic from Fine Gardening.

Here’s a fun book by Sigalit Eshet: Amazing Mosaic Garden (please note: this is an affiliate link!).

I can’t stop myself from collecting ideas on my Garden Mosaics Pinterest Board.

Don’t forget to visit James Hubbell’s studio, Ilan-Lael in Julian, California.

Let's do this!

Have you incorporated mosaics into your garden? Please show me on Instagram (tag @paper.garden.workshop) or hit reply to this email. I'd love to see your creations.

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We've pulled together 100 design tips for you in our 10x10 GARDEN DESIGN TIPS series for only $10. This is a fun way to gently start learning about garden design one day at a time.

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If you know someone that needs design inspiration, please feel free to share this newsletter. Anyone can subscribe right here. I also keep a VAULT of past issues in this secret location.

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All my best,

Lisa 

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PAPER GARDEN WORKSHOP

Thank you to Mandy Orgler for designing the lovely graphics in all these newsletters.