What’s Hot in Southern California :: Organic Designs by Aggelige
February 8, 2014/
There is just something so wonderful about succulents. I love how they fit in almost any type of décor style you might have. A few weeks ago we ran into Aggelige Spanos, the owner of Organic Designs by Aggelige and is just about the cutest shop around located at The Camp in Costa Mesa. Her shop is set up in an old school mobile home filled with an array of succulents. She offers a huge selection of plants that make the perfect gift! We chose this gorgeous terrarium that has a crystal, feathers and rocks that she collects from her nature walks. And for Valentine’s Day – think about giving a live plant that can be treasured all year long – her Valentine’s Day planters are fabulous. I had a chance to speak to Aggelige about the inspiration behind starting this wonderful shop of hers!
Love this terrarium from Organic Designs by Aggelige!
Tell us what was the inspiration behind starting Organic Designs by Aggelige?
I’m originally from Pennsylvania. I was a Fine Arts major at Penn State University and I worked in the Fine Art gallery world for many years. That career enabled me to live in San Francisco, Hawaii and now Orange County. When I moved to OC from Hawaii, I was a bit depressed having left behind a beautiful, lush, tropical garden in my backyard that I tended to daily. Now I was faced with not having a yard period! Then I discovered succulents and loved the sculptural qualities of these plants. And paired with an interesting vessel they looked even more like a piece of art. So I taught myself everything I know about succulents and created my own oasis of succulent filled containers around my house. Later on I began giving some of the smaller pieces away as gifts and soon realized there may be a demand for this sort of thing. I loved the feeling I was experiencing when I saw the amount of joy that this living piece of art brought to the person I was giving it to. And the world could certainly use a lot more of those feeling on a daily basis. So I ended my art gallery career and decided to dive into pursuing this passion with no business plan whatsoever. Just a desire to start living my life as an artist instead of selling other artistʼs work and hopefully people would be receptive to what I was doing……..and luckily they were.
I love your plant arrangements! And love how you use recycled cans and pots as well! Where do you get your inspiration and ideas from?
I feel so lucky because I literally get inspired pretty much everyday. I can’t seem to look at anything without immediately thinking “how can I plant that?” I love going to flea markets for that reason. There is an endless supply of incredible objects that can be recycled and made into something even more beautiful than their original purpose.
Why do you feel it is important to add live plants in your home décor and/or office?
It’s important because I feel that they provide a healing quality to any environment. Their mere presence creates a sense of well being, tranquility and joy. I constantly have customers tell me how happy they feel living with the plants that they’ve purchased from my shop. I couldn’t ask for more than that.
Note: We were provided with the a planter of succulents but this did not affect my opinion in any way. I think Aggelige has one of the best nursery/gift shops around!
Melissa Northway, M.S. is a mom, founder of dandelion moms, and a children’s book author. Her award-winning book Penelope the Purple Pirate was inspired by her little tomboy. Penelope is a modern-day Pippi Longstocking who teaches girls and boys the importance of having fun while at the same time teaching them to be kind and respectful of others and their differences. Dandelion moms was created for moms to share their stories and to inspire and be inspired! You can reach Melissa at: info@dandelionmoms.com and follow her @melissanorthway and @dandelionmoms. Check out her author web site at: www.melissanorthway.com, as she hands out loads of goodies from the treasure chest.
