My top 10 posts of 2021

One of my start of year traditions is to look at the most viewed posts here last year, and this year is no different. Once again I’m sharing two lists again, the first of which shows the top ten posts created in 2021, the second list is the top ten posts created at any time.

So onto the top 10 posts created in 2021.

1 Eight years (and 1 month) blogging

Last year I was running behind time on marking my blog anniversary, and took the opportunity to reflect on eight things that had changed since the previous year, and how my life had altered during that part of the pandemic. If I’m honest, I’m not sure I thought we’d still be quite so in the thick of it, but we are. Hopefully we are at least on the start of the end.

2 A tale of two desks

After about a year of working from home, we decided to get ourselves a desk each - and here I look at how our desks show our different personalities. I don’t think anyone was really that surprised.

3 A new crochet project

A post sharing my enjoyment of my yarn advent calendar, and the plans for my project. That’s finished, and I enjoyed the box so much I got another one for the advent just gone - more to follow on that one soon.

4 Two footstools and a tassel

This post was based on a visit to the Long Gallery at Blickling in Norfolk, which is as its name suggests long, and full of some wonderful tapestry, which while clearly traditional has modern touches too.

5 Calm and swirls in the Mediterranean garden at Houghton Hall

Another Norfolk post has made it into this top 10, and a visit to a place I think we should go to more often - maybe this year we will.

6 A bathroom refresh

Back at the start of last year we finally acted on plans to update our bathroom and while when I wrote this post there was still a little time to wait, and of course a few twists and turns along the way, we did get our new vanity unit into use.

AREZZO WALL HUNG VANITY UNIT, VICTORIAN PLUMBING

7 City green spaces

By the time Easter came around last year, like many people, we were itching to get out and about. But unlike most people we decided to head into the City of London and walk around and around visiting many places that were common to us when we worked in town.

8 Irony and priorities

Finally in April and not without irony I shared my word of the year - which was in fact priorities - and looking back now had its moments, and was overall helpful, but see what I thought at the time.

Photo by Sara Kurfeß on Unsplash

9 A fascination with boxes

It’s not a bad fascination to have, well as long as the boxes are pretty! These past few months we’ve been collecting the more mundane cardboard sort for MOH’s mum and her house move. The ones in this post though are much prettier.

10 The Chinese Streamside Garden at RHS Bridgewater

I’m pleased to see a post from the new RHS garden make it into the top 10 - I’m sure I have plenty more to share from there. I’ve realised that photo editing is something I’ve been particularly bad at, which isn’t much use for when it comes to blogging about our visits.

I always find it interest to see which posts make it into the lists, and as I’ve said before as long as my blog reflects my life then I’m happy.

Now onto that second list

This list is posts created at any time but viewed in 2021, the year in brackets is the year it was originally posted - and it’s very similar to this list last year. For whatever reason these posts continue to attract views, I’m glad that some of our garden and our gabion baskets are in there.

  1. Filling our gabion baskets (2017)

  2. My IKEA hack: HOL storage table to laundry basket (2015)

  3. Let's talk Edwardian house decoration (2017)

  4. Softening our gabion seating area with plants (2017)

  5. Sean Murray's Great Chelsea Garden Challenge (2017)

  6. 52 Cookbooks #36: Beef in easy tomato sauce (2014)

  7. Three of the six show gardens at the Ideal Home Show (2016)

  8. Fabulous outdoor planters (and more) from Cox & Cox (2016)

  9. Blinds and shutters with Thomas Sanderson (2018)

  10. Circles, spray paint and another plan for my garden (2016)

So there you go, that’s these lists completed for another year. Tradition completed!

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My garden in November

We’d been putting off collecting the leaves, but on a dry and blue skied day we could put it off no more. We knew it wouldn’t be the only time we’d be collecting leaves, we have a lot of trees and have lived here long enough to know it’s a thankless task. But I’m not sure we’ve left it quite this long before, though from my vantage point on the stone circle it really did look like the leaves were taking over.

MOH and I are a good team in the garden - he started to tackle the leaves, by mowing the ones on the grass and it wasn’t too long before the grass started to re-emerge. Picking up leaves isn’t one of my favourite gardening tasks, but as you can see not doing it really isn’t an option. I have to remember how much leaf mulch we’ll have in years to come.

While MOH tackled that I set about putting the garden furniture away. Usually that goes under cover on the patio nearest the house, but as there’s a chance that MOH will be working on the patio (chipping out the pointing) at some point in the early spring if we’re lucky with the weather. I decided to relocate the garden furniture storage this winter. The stone circle has already been repointed and so it seemed a more natural option.

By the time I’d lugged the wooden table and chairs up the length of the garden - dodging the lawnmower - and then getting them stacked as I wanted, there was much more grass making an appearance. I also got to cover the pizza oven and while MOH was starting to feel pleased with his efforts, we both knew that there was more to do.

These at the back of the garden was just the start. But collecting leaves is hard work, and pretty dull work too. I was starting to hatch another plan.

And while I was doing that I took some time out to snap the agapanthus and the fatsia, which were both looking good even if the agapanthus were just showing their structure rather than any flowers.

And my alternative plan? Here it is - sweeping them all into a corner for the time being! I’m hoping they’re still mostly there.

And as we finished, of course there were more leaves falling. This one I’m sure was just taunting us.

My garden in September

I’ve already shared the October post, and so you’ll not be surprised to see the sunflowers in full bloom. While technically they don’t fit into a ‘my garden’ post I’m including them as they’re so beautiful and because that’s where they ended up! For £3 they were quite a bargain from M&S and have reminded me how much sense it makes to grow sunflowers. Remember the ones that I grew on the allotment? Goodness, that’s five years ago!

There wasn’t a lot of garden activity this month, but the photos showed we had some great weather. It was a month for trimming and tidying up - the pyracantha below, as usual, tried to have its own way and fight back - and the berries were starting to show.

MOH almost pulled this up as a weed, and while it isn’t and he was told just that, it has grown massively from the small plant it was. It’s definitely one to try and split into smaller plants next year, as it’s such a pretty delicate thing.

The small Christmas tree was starting to bush out, hopefully it doesn’t think it’s coming inside this winter - it most certainly isn’t!

The mock orange in the background desperately needs cutting down, but as there’s as much to cut back as will be left that’s not one we’ll tackle ourselves. The cone shaped yew in front of it was one I took the hedge trimmers too, along with what I call the slopey bush right at the front of the picture. Both are a lot smaller than they were when I started, and my arms got a workout too.

MOH started one of those never ending jobs, and that’s the patio. The grout is crumbling and his plan is to replace that. I think he’s realising just how much he’s taken on, as he also wants to clean the black spot off the slabs. He’s started, and even with the best of intentions I think it’ll take a while before he finishes.

But it’ll look great when he has, and will be the perfect place for cocktails. Yes, I’m really not expecting it to be finished before spring!