INSIDE & OUT : Lizardry
If you have a craving for creepy crawlers or things that go bump in the night, drawer pulls, wall hooks and door knockers by the Gardener should satisfy your urges.
The lizard drawer pull ($46), wall hook ($20) and door knocker ($50), all of wrought iron from Iron Forge in Arizona, are especially well-suited to cabinets, walls and doors in homes with a rustic motif.
Originally created for a client who has an adobe house, the lizard pull is 7 inches long and 1 1/2 inches at its widest point.
To order or obtain more information, call the Gardener, based in Berkeley, at (510) 548-4545.
Switching Places
One quick way to refresh a room inexpensively, decorating experts say, is to change the switch plates and cabinet and drawer pulls. There are no fresher plates and knobs than those in the Trout Studios line, designed by Sallie Trout of Trout Rozenberg Inc., which is based in Venice, Calif.
Trout, who along with partner Desiree Rozenberg began the product line about a year ago, uses coffee cups, palm trees, stars, fish bones, squiggles and swirls for switch plates (about $30 each). Larger than the standard fare (they average 12 inches in height), they are available in six styles--aluminum toggle, gold toggle, aluminum pushplate, gold pushplate, aluminum outlet and gold outlet.
Zany knobs and drawer pulls ($9 to $17 a piece in either aluminum or gold) feature a menagerie of objects--lips, eyes, numbers, letters and exclamation points--that can spice up kitchen cabinets, keep a watchful eye out in the bathroom or add sock to your bedroom drawers.
For a catalogue of Trout Studios’ home accessories, call (800) 851-6231 or (310) 574-1574. Trout has recently opened a showroom at 308 Venice Way.
No Moss, No Moss
E-Z Liner, developed by Ted and Rick Mayeda of M&M; Nursery in Orange, is an inexpensive, easy alternative to using moss for lining wire baskets.
The Mayeda brothers, who took over the family business in 1975, say their liners work just as well or better than moss and are a lot less trouble.
The liners, which are fitted pouches that have a synthetic outside covering with plastic inside, act as moisture barriers and won’t deteriorate. Holes in the bottom allow water to drain after the soil has been thoroughly saturated.
To use, simply drop the liners into a basket, and you’re ready to plant fuchsias, impatiens, begonias, strawberries, herbs--anything that grows in a container.
E-Z Liners are available in three colors--white, brown and green--and sizes from 10 inches ($4) to 24 inches ($13) at M&M; Nursery, 380 N. Tustin Ave., Orange. The Mayedas also take custom orders and will ship. For more information, call (714) 538-8042.
