What would look nice?

[ThirdEyeVision]

I'm really not good when it comes to decorating and I was in awe when looking at some of the planted aquariums online, specifically the AOTM. I was hoping for some advice regarding what I could do to put together a nice looking tank.

I have a marineland eclipse 6 (6 gallon curved front tank with a biowheel and a fluorescent light) with a dark royal blue betta (light blue tail w/ a little red) and I was planning on getting amano shrimp once it is planted (possibly some neon tetras down the road if room).

Adding driftwood or something similar seems to be a popular thing, and I think it makes it looks nice so I was planning on using that. I was wondering if anyone had advice on substrate color (suggestions for brands would be nice as well) and which plants would be pretty, and make the aquarium come together. It would be best if the plants are somewhat hardy, I'd love to keep maintenance low if possible.

I know this is a lot to ask, but I'd be very grateful with any help whatsoever. I'd be happy to send pictures when I finish if interested. Thanks a million :worthy:

[acevudoo]

stick to Anubias family.. being that they are hardy and slow growing.. driftwood is always nice in appropriate FW.. small roundish gravel is my fav. especially if its tumbled or polished.. maybe drop a few flat river rock piles

[Mokomon]

This is my 55
I LOVE the natural look :)

[ThirdEyeVision]

Thanks acevudoo. I've heard good things about anubias.

Mokomon - That's a beautiful tank. It looks like a great variety of plants. What kind of wood is that?

Wow, I'm sorry for not checking out the fun tool/toy thread before posting this. This thing is a fantastic idea.

I'd still love advice, especially on the substrate, I dont' want the color to take away from my fish and preferably to help the shrimp stand out a little bit.

[Mokomon]

Thank you, it was fun decorating :)
It's all Mopani driftwood, 6 pieces

[ThirdEyeVision]

Ah, thank you very much. I'll have to look for that. Did you just have a vision for decorating it, or was it more like testing different stuff out, or a lot of research?

I sort of have a few plans that might work, but they're mostly based on pictures of aquariums I've seen. What kind of plants would you suggest that were easy to grow?

[Mokomon]

I just used what I personally liked
I wanted natural color gravel, wood, LOTS of plants, & rocks.

I've had great luck with Anubias, Java fern, Wisteria, & Water lettuce

Aquascaping is such a personal thing.
Just go with what YOU enjoy looking at, because after all, that's what an aquarium should be all about :)

[ThirdEyeVision]

I really like the look of the wisteria but my local fish store has no wisteria and instead a wide variety of swords so I might try one of them along w/ anubias and java fern. Thanks for the help, there was also a good selection of mopani driftwood and I love the look of it. I think I'm going to go with a mixture of fluorite that is sold, looks very natural to me. Thanks for all the advice everyone.