Pirate Girl, weekend before last I saw lots of Peace Lilies at Lowes which were obviously new. They were all very beautiful and I almost bought one then. When I went with my husband on Saturday to get filters for the furnance and some perlite, many of the lilies were wilting from lack of water. This one was not wilting yet but was very dry. The hoya I found there had just the opposite problem. It was in a metal pot with no drainage and, when I picked it up to read the tag, water sloshed out of the pot. I dumped the water into a thirsty plant and brought the hoya home too. Luckily my husband is very kind and just rolls his eyes when a plant ends up in the cart. They had some beautiful sansevieria that were in pebbles and water. I loved the variegation on the leaves but hey were already starting to die and were expensive. I was so sad. As far as using newspaper, I bet coffee filters might also work. Purple, I was excited to find the plates. I picked up a couple more today while they were on clearance.

Thank your for your replies, it use to be a beauty but it looking pretty bare at the moment :0( I only paid 10$ for it so there's no point in taking it back. The soil does feel pretty moist still and I didn't check the temp of the water before watering so that could be the cause also. The vines are so fragile at the moment and they are tightly coiled together around the bottom of the pot that it makes it almost impossible to remove from the pot without breaking the vines, I feel like I will do more damage than good by trying. Was thinking of trying to dry the soil with a hair dryer on low cool setting, on top of the soil and in the holes on the bottom of the pot, or would that do more damage than good? At this point if I touch a leaf it falls, so trying to wipe off the shine spray off wouldn't be an option either so who knows what the future holds. No beginners luck for me I guess but on a brighter side, I bought a bunch of other beauties the same day from a local commercial plant business that was having a 1 day year end sale. It was a in a massive warehouse filled with gorgeous oversized commercial grade indoor plants and trees marked down to $10 each. Definitely worth looking around for one in your area for a sale :0)

I live for this--seeing more people discover gesneriads! Its almost like a "cause". Why? well, because they are such neat plants and because so few people grow them compared to the variety of gesneriads out there needing to be grown. Aeschynanthus are great plants and it sounds like your basic instincts are not too far off the mark. Epiphytes of the gesneriad family all grow in the same type of mixes. Depending on your watering style and other conditions they like anywhere from a "light mix" to a barky epiphyte mix. The first, would be like my standard mix for all gesneriads--three parts Canadian peat moss, two parts perlite and one to one and a half parts vermiculite. I am always changing these ratios and many use a 1-1-1 mix of these ingredients. But, you can also use a mix like this, with up to about 50% of a good potting mix. My friend Alan, who religiously believes in simplicity, uses straight Supersoil, and does pretty well. Aeschynanthus don't like to dry out excessively but will do well with light drying out between waterings. They generally like to be kept lightly moist and lightly fed all the time when in growth (warm season) with a little more dryness in their drought season (winter). So, I, who underwaters, use larger pots and still I sometimes dry them out too much. I use a lot of deep 6" plastic pots or regular "azalea" pots. Smaller plants go in 4 to 5 1/2 inch pots. Aeschynanthus come from Asia, whereas xmas cacti come from the mountains of coastal Brazil. So, aeschynanthus have widely varying needs for minimum temperatures. The most popular of the commercial varieties are somewhat more tender, coming from Bali. These would be lobbianus, pulcher, 'Pullobia', radicans. But, other species come from cooler mountain areas and grow very well all year outdoors. The most hardy are garrettii, gracilis, parasiticus, x 'splendidus', with all the other species and hybrids inbetween. Up here in cooler SF bay area, I grow mostly indoors but have the hardy ones outside, where they tolerate dips to slightly below 32. Garrettii can take even our big freezes. I really like nematanthus (the "goldfish plant") which comes in many varieties. They are native to mountains of coastal Brazil, and really do well for me as outdoor plants. And, they are not as water-needy as fuchsias, by a long shot. They have beautiful glossy small leaves and wonderful flowers shaped like little fishes. Nematanthus are epiphytes too, so do not generally do well planted out in the garden but make wonderful outdoor hanging basket and potted plants for bright shade. A few columneas are also hardy enough for all year growing outdoors (erythrophaea, schiediana, and 'Sundowner'). I am being a bit conservative in these recommendations. I have known people even in my area who grew many other examples of these genera outdoors all year long, with great results. You can also grow streptocarpus, chirita, petrocosmea, sinningia and quite a few other gesneriads outdoors. Its a big family. for sources, check out the "Suppliers" page on the AGGS web site. You will find links there to Lyndon Lyon, Lauray of Salisbury, Kartuz, and other specialists in gesneriads. Kartuz in located in Vista, so could be a nice excursion for you (call in advance). Also, check out the Gesneriad Reference Web for over 1500 photos of gesneriads. I will post the link below. Jon Dixon Here is a link that might be useful: Gesneriad Reference Web

I have no colour in my lips. I use a hydrating, full colour lipstick, applied over a similar colour lipliner - with lips filled in - applied over a good lip cream/balm that does not have any form of an exfoliant. I will not use one of the "long lasting" lipsticks that are supposed to stay put for 8 hours as I find them very drying. I also do not suit gloss - whether it be on its own (lips too pale) - or a gloss lipstick. Somehow it makes me look somewhat "cheap" - and I am talking about a Cle de Peau Extra Silky Lipstick here - they cost about $60 - I tried it because the colour would work - after changing due to my very high body acid. I had to blot it a few times to remove the "shine". The lady I buy my cosmetics from was shocked at how bad the glossy look "looked" on my. Due to my colour changing problems, I have only one lipstick - not cheap - it is a Sisley. Chanel makes Hydrabase - I am in Canada so our Chanel is Made in France, not the U.S., but I understand that in the spring Chanel sold in the U.S. will also be made in France so pigments/formulations will be the same. So bottom line is make sure you suit the glossy look. My lipstick does not look "matte" as in the matte look, it just looks creamy - which is want I want. I would try out a few lines to find out one that looks the best on you. I did match the colour once to one made by a cheaper - but not that cheap - brand - but once applied my lips felt as if I had been eating greasy soup and crackers - that had dried on my lips. So back to my one and only lipstick. Filling in with the lipliner really helps hold the colour - of course best to find a moisturing l/l. I am nearly 60, but did not suit glossy lipsticks when I was 20.