A billion dreams at Chelsea

We’re heading back to this year’s Chelsea Flower Show and one of the artisan gardens for today’s post. The garden was commissioned by The British Council and designed by Sarah Eberle and  “was sparked by the hopes and dreams of young people in India, and also drew on the UK and India’s shared love of cricket. It was a celebration of the 70th anniversary of the British Council in India.”

Timely then that I’m posting this as England play India, cricket must have reached into my psyche, and when it is a garden as pretty as this, that’s ok with me.

The inlay work on the low height walls was stunning and reminded me of our trip to India for our honeymoon back in 2007.  We brought home a coaster which uses this effect, and is stunning, but I’d forgotten how much more spectacular larger pieces were, totally breath-taking-away. 

Much of the press coverage for this garden during the show focused on the pair of rather large cricket stumps, and large cricket balls that matched and given the purpose of the garden that’s probably fair, but there was so much more to it for me.  The intricate jewelled walls and bright, jewel like planting too. 

With such oversized stumps, a normal sized cricket ball just wouldn’t do, would it?  Although I’m not sure I’d want to be on the receiving end of this one, or have it land amongst my borders. 

The colours of the planting picked up the bright colours in the wall, and are a riot of colour, shape and texture and not all “exotic” plants either - at the forefront of the photo beow you can spot some French marigolds.  The attention grabber in this photo is the yellow “filament” flower head.

There was also the iconic blue Himalayan poppies, or mecanopsis, stunning aren’t they?  One of the true blue flowers I’ve seen, and much bluer than bluebells, which in comparison don’t seem that blue after all.  

Even now, seeing how the light bounces of the blue petals, it’s clear that these are something special.  The garden was awarded a Silver-Gilt medal - I still don’t know how the judges can separate any of the gardens, when they’re all so lovely, but...

Even if cricket’s not your thing, I suspect this garden might hold your interest - what do you think?

My garden in July (and a bit of June too!)

July in the garden has been pretty parched and practical, and as such not so pretty, so I'm going to sneak some pictures in from June at the end of this post, as somehow with everything going on I missed posting a June update.

The grass has been straw-like, and some of our plants are crispier than I'd like.  I resisted watering them for a while, because we were away for a week, and I didn't want them to get used to it.  As usual I had a massive potting on session in the greenhouse before we went and left upturned water bottles plunged into the soil to tide the plants in the greenhouse over.  

They survived and as it was so warm when we got back I decided to fill them up and keep them there. That is until I realised they emptied overnight, so I wasn't saving myself any watering time at all.  But it did make me doubly proud of the tomatoes and other greenhouse plants that soldiered on that week.

The tomatoes in the greenhouse are reaching the ceiling and looking quite lush.  I've been surprised that the tomatoes outside in pots are further advanced than those planted into the bed in the greenhouse but, there you go.

We spent some time a weekend or so ago preparing for the new trough pots - which still haven't arrived, despite being ordered over a week ago and being on a one day delivery, I'm not impressed.  Part of the preparations included sorting out the compost, which was a job I'd been keen to get done for a while now, and strictly wasn't essential but it was a good opportunity to get it done and it gave us both some mindless labour to do and letting our minds rest for a while.

I'd struck on the idea that the new small shed would be much nicer to look at than one of our dalek compost bins, and so the dalek needed to be moved - but of course, it was full.  With some persuasion and a bit of brute force, its plastic outer was removed and placed next to our second bin. 

Thankfully it just about fitted. It's now on a paving slab, and it will have to manage with that.

And so we set about moving the compost.  We've ended up with the good stuff at the top, which works for us as we'll be using a fair bit if my new pots ever arrive.  The second bin, which we've never emptied should also be ready, and if we need it we'll empty that one from the bottom in the more tradtional way.

And look what was left.  A small shed sized hole.  

Reassembling the part-assembled shed we brought home from the allotment is still on the to do list, but it will fit here, even if we have to make some adjustments to the surrounding area, but that's for another day.

I told you July in our garden wasn't pretty, didn't I? 

June was much more colourful...

In the cherry-less cherry tree we've been seeing some bird activity, and I'm sure I saw some tits disappearing into the yellow bird box.  On other branches in the same tree we've a sage green and pale blue bird box, so it's a bit like a housing estate for birds.  I'm curious to know if we do have residents, but will have to wait a while before checking the boxes out.  

And if we do, I wonder why they've gone for the yellow one.  Maybe it's the equivalent of a bird des-res, who knows?

With all the lovely weather I've moved some of the succulents outside, so they can enjoy it too. Although the aloe vera looks to be coping well, it took a turn for the worse and I've moved it back inside where it's flourishing again.  The other one though, which should have leaves up its stem, is relishing being outside.  

Not only has it grown more leaves than we've seen before, and more quickly, it's also starting to sprout new branches from the roots.  And where it's touching the pot, on the bend, it's starting to grow from there too.  It'll be interesting to see how far it gets.

We've been slow in keeping on top of our garden this year, partly the weather and partly as weekends have been taken up with family things, but there's still a fair bit to do.  With the hot weather continuing, we're continuing to take it slowly, but of course things are growing faster than we're pruning.  It's how gardening goes though, isn't it?

For the past four or five years we've been managed to see the stag beetle's annual visit.  This year we were treated to several fly pasts before on one occasion it crash landed into the agapanthus and posed for this photo.

It seems to be attracted to our sycamore tree, so even observing that is interesting and I was able to add that to the annual stag beetle survey which I also learnt of this year.  Around the garden there were the blues of the Canterbury bells, the whites of the dogwood flowers, the pinks of our Gertrude Jekyll rose and the scent of the honeysuckle as we've sat outside on the patio in the balmy evenings that we've come to take for granted.

As well as the scent of jasmine and honeysuckle on the patio, we've been surrounded by roses and clematis, which I've realised are the opposite of each other with their light and dark petals.

It's also one of my favourite photos from the garden this year, so any excuse to include it in a post!

How's your garden coping with the high temperatures?

5 luxury armchair designs with the wow factor

You'll know that earlier in the year we set out on the quest for new sofas, prompted by being faced with sitting in our uncomfortable 'spare' sofa while the conservatory work took place.  The new sofas arrived as planned, they came through the door (which is always a worry) and look great.  They also brought with them plenty of cardboard, which at the time I planned to put to good use over at the allotment, trying out the 'no dig' approach to gardening, however that didn't quite work out and the cardboard I can't use in the garden will now be destined for our recycling bin.  But that's another story, and I'll be sharing more here soon, I'm sure.

Our search was focussed on sofas, but even so at times we were distracted by some gorgeous armchairs, because, well because, when shopping I'm like a magpie drawn to the pretty things.  There's something luxurious and special about a good armchair, I think, and if you’re looking to make a change this year in your interiors, but are happy with the overall look of your decor so can’t bring yourself to redecorate, then a luxury armchair is a good way to brighten up your space and give it a new lease of life. Whether you opt for an out-there statement piece, or a pair for double the impact, here are five top luxury armchair choices that all have the wow factor and will bring a sense of drama and vibrancy to your living room. 

The classic chesterfield is a timeless design that never goes out of style. Upholstered in a bright velvet it can look exceptionally modern, while a cracked leather will make the chair look more traditional. This bold velvet version by Arlo & Jacob is striking and will certainly make an impact in its setting – either paired with a similar colour palette, as shown here – or as a standout piece against a more neutral backdrop.

Or perhaps a luxury metal-framed chair is the ultimate in glamorous interior furniture. This stunning version from Liang and Eimil combines a striking geometric gold frame, with a pulled velvet cover, showing off two luxurious materials in one stunning chair. A pair of these chairs next to one another in a bay window or either side of a fireplace will score you some serious interior envy. Highlight the frame colour in your other accessories, like lamps and picture frames, and the effect will look chic and put-together. 

If you're looking for something more traditional, a Rococo style French-inspired armchair will have your regal rear feeling like it’s sat upon a throne in no time. Placed in a room with a strong patterned wallpaper and drapes, this overtly ornamental piece will take centre stage and provide the perfect perch for your derriere. This rococo-style armchair is the perfect example. 

Or perhaps you're thinking something bigger is better, and this high backed chair from Tom Dixon is no exception and likely to give you a hug every time you use it. An updated version of a classic, the curved edges and dramatic height take this traditional-inspired piece from drab to fab. What’s more, this electric blue (also available in striking black) has the ultimate wow factor for a spectacular interiors update. 

Finally, if you’re looking for something with less height but equal levels of wow-factor, then this scallop-shaped armchair could be the one. The dramatic shape is provided by the petal-like fluting to the back of the chair, giving a nod to art-deco styling. This beautiful chair from Audenza will bring a touch of glamour to your interiors and deserves to be placed next to a fully stocked liquor cabinet, but would work equally well in your bedroom. 

So, five armchairs, all different styles, all with their own wow factor. Which would you choose?

* This is a collaborative post.