Crafts & DIY
Man shows brilliant way to make running waterfalls in beautiful moss terrarium
This guy's ingenuity is amazing. Talk about a work of art.
Ma Fatima Garcia
06.03.22

Picture yourself relaxing in your home and just looking at your aquarium or terrarium. It’s relaxing, isn’t it?

Nature isn’t just beautiful. It’s amazing.

Imagine seeing life unfold in front of you, and you can enjoy this in the comforts of your own home. Wouldn’t that be amazing?

Pexels / Karolina Grabowska
Source:
Pexels / Karolina Grabowska

We’re all familiar with aquariums, but how much do you know about terrariums?

According to Terrarium Tribe:

“Terrariums are miniature gardens, housed inside small — and usually sealable – containers like bottles and jars.”

Pexels / Anna Shvets
Source:
Pexels / Anna Shvets

It comes from the Latin root words terra, which means “earth” +‎ arium, which means a “place.”

It’s all about the plants.

Instead of fishes and water in an aquarium, a terrarium has plants.

You might think how is this possible? Can anyone make it? How can living creatures survive inside a sealed container?

Pexels / Anna Shvets
Source:
Pexels / Anna Shvets

These are just the most common questions with terrariums, and the answer is simple.

They’re fully functioning ecosystems.

Amazing, right? Each terrarium is mostly self-sustaining, so you don’t have to worry about it.

The plants inside the container can survive by the water they get through transpiration and condensation.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Tanner Serpa (@serpadesign)

It’s all science.

Now, if you search online, you probably would see so many terrarium designs.

Each one is beautiful and unique, but there is one that caught our interest because it hosts a running waterfall.

Can you imagine that? A running waterfall inside a jar.

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A post shared by Tanner Serpa (@serpadesign)

Tanner Serpa, the owner of the SerpaDesign YouTube channel, has over 1.23 M subscribers.

His work astonished people, and this one is one of our favorites. Of course, we all want to know how he did it.

How’d he imagine this brilliant design?

YouTube Screenshots / SerpaDesigns
Source:
YouTube Screenshots / SerpaDesigns

The first task that Serpa worked on was the plastic tray. It didn’t seem fit for the terrarium he had in mind, so he worked on a wood base for it.

Once that was done, he took a clean jar and made two holes in it. This is where the water will enter and exit the terrarium.

Beauty from scraps

The position of the jar in the terrarium should be tilted, so Serpa created a support system to hold the jar. He used a scrap of glass and silicone to create the piece.

YouTube Screenshots / SerpaDesigns
Source:
YouTube Screenshots / SerpaDesigns

He assembled the pieces and dried them.

The next step was working on the frame of the waterfall. He used expanded PVC boards and made his way into creating three separate pieces.

The reason he didn’t create the full scale was that it was easier to assemble the waterfall frame one by one since the opening of the jar was limited.

YouTube Screenshots / SerpaDesigns
Source:
YouTube Screenshots / SerpaDesigns

Serpa designed his waterfall using limestone sand, limestone gravel, and limestone stones. He also added Manzanita woods to the design.

With everything set, Serpa started decorating.

Seeing him add different types of moss is so relaxing. You would see the patience that this man has with his work.

YouTube Screenshots / SerpaDesigns
Source:
YouTube Screenshots / SerpaDesigns

Using different tools, he placed each piece of moss in the jar and, slowly, you see his masterpiece unfold.

If you’re curious, he used damp sphagnum moss, fern moss, haircap moss, hypnum moss, and some thread moss.

The waterfall terrarium fall is finally complete.

Time to design the base.

YouTube Screenshots / SerpaDesigns
Source:
YouTube Screenshots / SerpaDesigns

Serpa covered the pump with a sponge and then covered the base with Leca, seiryu stones, sphagnum moss, and java moss.

Finally, he added springtails. The final product was stunning and majestic. Serpa, once again, proved how talented he is.

Can’t wait to watch the full process of creating a terrarium?

See the entire build in the video below!

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