Stacey Ring writes as if she were talking to a friend. Whether it's on her blog, Bricks 'n Blooms, or in her book, The Bricks 'n Blooms Guide to a Beautiful and Easy Care Flower Garden, her approach is natural, warm, and inviting.
“That's what was going through my mind when I was writing,” said Lynn, a Bernardsville resident whose book was published in February and is available on Amazon. “I was thinking about my friends. 'Would you want me to elaborate on this?' 'Would you want me to say this?' Or would they look at me like a deer in the headlights? My only goal was not to intimidate my readers. My friends were my benchmark.”
Since the seed was sown over 20 years ago, this master gardener has developed a knack for translating gardening knowledge into easy-to-understand instructions and tips. Though Lynn is no longer a gardening novice, she wasn't always rich in experience. There was a learning curve, and she shares it with her readers.
“Just because something doesn't work doesn't mean everything won't work,” Lin says. “You just have to find what works best for your garden. There will be some trial and error, but that's part of the process.”
Lynn first got into gardening thanks to a friend who lived in the same apartment building in North Jersey. “We had absolutely no land,” she says, but somehow her friend created a magical outdoor space. Lynn was inspired, learned from it, and wanted to be an inspiration to her friends.
After her gardening experience in the townhouse, Lynn told her architect husband, Christopher, she needed to move. She needed a proper yard. They moved to Chester, where Lynn had filled a half-acre with flowers for 23 years. After raising three daughters there and doing “all kinds of projects, indoors and out,” Lynn was looking for another change. In 2021, she found a home in Bernardsville with plenty of space for gardens and projects.
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Since moving, Lynn has learned a lot more. Unlike their sunny yard in Chester, their new yard is in more shade. They also have 10 acres of land, five of which have been landscaped to Lynn's “preferences.” Her hands-on husband built raised flower beds and added other architectural designs.
“It's always an adventure, but that's the point,” Lin said.
Lynn's goal with this book is the same as her goal with everyday gardening: to inspire others to create the garden of their dreams, regardless of their experience level. The manuscript took her just three months to write, but Lynn says that's because she's been writing the Bricks and Blooms blog since 2018. She already had a lot of material to deploy.
The blog has thousands of readers and subscribers across various social media channels, her website, and via email.
The topics are plentiful, she says: Lin never runs out of subjects to cover or gets bored, and many of them remain fresh.
“I have a lot to write about,” she says, “and I tend to write about what's going on in my garden and what I know will happen. I really enjoy waking up in the morning, going into the garden, and writing about what I'm doing and how I'm doing it, and taking pictures and videos. I really enjoy it.”
Lynn built her brand with advice from others and meticulous pruning, weeding and tending, much like tending a garden. She had to learn to be “gritty,” spot trends and stay positive.
“When something isn't working, it's easy to let it all hang out in your head,” she says, “but don't let that dwell on it. Just keep going, keep creating, and eventually it'll work out.”
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Lynn likens her blogging experience to her journey to becoming a Master Gardener, which she completed with the Rutgers University Cooperative Extension in Morris County about 15 years ago. At the time, she also ran a small garden design business serving friends and neighbors.
“I teach people in my community how to do things,” she says, “but starting the blog and the book has helped me reach a wider audience. There are a lot of people out there who think they can't grow anything, so I try to talk to them and show them that they can too. It's just a matter of what you're growing and how you go about it. I've never been interested in gardening until I met my neighbor. I'd never really thought about it. I don't come from a gardening family. I was just inspired and it really took on a life of its own.”
Now, Lynn finds gardening to be “very therapeutic.”
“You get into a rhythm of doing things and it becomes like meditation. You focus on what you're doing and forget about everything else,” she says, “and you just enjoy all the effort that you've put in. You can say, 'I did this. I grew this.' There's a certain self-satisfaction in that. I think it also builds confidence. Especially when you start doing something that you didn't know how to do and suddenly you can do it, it's a real confidence builder.”
Email: cmakin@gannettnj.com
Cheryl Makin is an award-winning features and education reporter for MyCentralJersey.com, part of the USA Today Network. Contact her at Cmakin@gannettnj.com orCheryl MakinFor unlimited access, subscribe or activate your digital account today.
