Chess in the living room

The inhabitants of this house, if you hadn’t already guessed from my Enter through through the hallway post, is plants. It’s a fascinating display, and there’s more variety than you’d perhaps expect. The plants in the ‘living room’ are generally comfortable in low light. They’ve made themselves right at home as you’ll see from the photos in this post, and it’s probably the lushest living room I’ve ever seen.

Everywhere you looked, the houseplants were taking over. Which given the exhibition name, shouldn’t have been a surprise.

If you’ve seen any images in the media about this exhibition then they’ve probably included one of the chess table, and it’s easy to see why. It’s gorgeous, and even though I’m a confirmed succulent lover I think this will have a wider appeal. And wouldn’t it be fun to create yourself, in slightly larger pots for an outside game?

The other thing about this living room, is that it made great use of old ‘brown’ furniture. With the storage unit - writing desk - display cabinet that many of us no doubt have memories of. The plants definitely gave them a new lease of life, but it’s the detail too.

Did you spot the books in the display cabinets, they’re on houseplants, no doubt on caring for them and tips to avoid them taking over. But for me alongside the chess table, the highlight of this room was the variegated leaves draped over the edge of the writing bureau above.

They definitely had texture, and added drama. But even so, we’ve not got to my favourite room yet.

Enter through the hallway

I’m having a bit of a one-woman-Wisley-fest here at the moment, and that’s not stopping today. I was wondering where to start with sharing my photos from The Giant Houseplant Takeover at RHS Wisley, and then it became obvious. Start at the beginning, or as with many houses, the hallway. This one certainly set the scene for the rest of the exhibition, and also brought back memories of the telephone being in the hall at home and sitting in the hall to use the phone. We didn’t have the houseplants takeover, but there was, at one point, some green patterned geometric-ish wallpaper.

Our phone was slightly more modern than this one too, but the space was full of memories. At one point in my teen bedroom I decided I needed an ‘old-fashioned’ coat stand, and so I had one just like this. Without the flat cap, and plants, mind.

The amount of plants used throughout the display was phenomenal, and for those of us who have memories of The Day of the Triffids, a little bit to be wary of.

The sampler ‘explainer’ was also a nice touch, definitely taken out of the National Trust’s information approach. That works, so don’t knock it.

What was clever, was as you walked through the space there were glimpses of what was to come - just like all the garden designs book tell us.

And as a sucker for succulents I was completely drawn in. The air plants hanging sphere also had me hooked. So with the hallway under our belt, now all I need to work out, is where next, and when.

Love this #91 A Cardboard 'vase'

I’ve not seen these before, but as we wandered around the obligatory shop exit at RHS Wisley I’ll admit to being rather taken with these. Not only for their use of cardboard, but also because of their texture and functionality.

They’re made from recycled cardboard, and are described as a cardboard vase on the packaging. It looks as if they’re French, though so far I’ve failed to find a website for the company, or brand, cache-cache. I’ve found them on websites

They look to be pretty reasonably priced too. The taller necked vase in the background of the photo below is around 28 Euros. When I spotted them at Wisley, I assumed that they’d be readily available and easily findable online, but it seems shopping in person might need to be the approach if you’re interested.

There’s much to be said for the simplicity of this sphere, though I’m sure over time it would become a dust collector. But with such great form and texture, that could be endured, even just for a short while.