Flowers & Things

These were my last dahlias and asters for the season.  Our garden is currently completely bare with the soil airing ready for our next plantings in March.  I miss being able to head out to the garden and cut a fresh bunch of flowers.

Talking about flowers and gardening I must share my new favourite blog with you.  You may have already discovered it but if you haven't then I suggest you head over to Ben Pentreath's blog.  It is divine in every single way.  I love the images he posts of his beautiful country house and his garden and his store, some of which I have posted above.  So beautiful.

Oh and I know this is a bit random but I loved how this picture matched the pictures above.  It was featured in House of Fifty online magazine and was created by Naomi over at Design Manifest.

Hope you have a great weekend.
xx
Anna

Flowers Everywhere

We've had an endless bounty of beautiful flowers from the garden this week.  The Zinnas are flowering in full glory and the Dahlias just seem to keep on coming.  Here are some sitting on our fireplace mantel this afternoon.  There's no doubt about it, they make me so happy!!

Hope you've had a happy weekend!

xx

Anna

Wedding Preparations

As I write this post I am preparing 8 large rectangular tubs with chicken wire inset into each tub ready for all the flowers I will be cutting from our garden very early tomorrow morning.  After the big harvest I will be loading the tubs into my car for the journey down to Northern NSW tomorrow ready for my cousin's big Wedding this coming Saturday.  We will be filling approximately 60 mismatched vintage vases with Dahlias, Zinnias, Daisies, Calendulas and Foxgloves all of which I have grown here at home in our garden.  You should see the Foxgloves.  They are amazing.  I will try to take some photos of them before they are all cut tomorrow. 

Here's a snapshot of some of the gifts wrapped at Black & Spiro today which have been purchased for Ben & Phoebe.  They were so kind to mention that B&S is their favourite store on their wedding invite and I must say they have some divine gifts coming their way!!

I won't be back here now until early-mid next week.  Hope you all have a great weekend!!
xx
Anna

First Dahlias Flowering

Earlier in the year I was so impressed by the pretty Dahlias one of my clients had flowering in her garden, I decided to plant some in our garden for this Summer.  About 4 1/2 weeks ago we planted 60 Dahlia Bulbs and this week I cut my very first bunch.  My Mum and my Grandmother and Aunty came over yesterday afternoon and each of them picked their own large bunch to take home.  It really is such a joy to be able to give flowers from my garden to my family and friends.  I can't wait for the Asters and Zinnias to flower in the week ahead...

Monday Ramblings

I woke up on Saturday morning to the sound of heavy rain on our old tin roof.  My plans for a mindless day in the garden had to be cancelled.

If only I could have stayed home today because this morning I woke to the most beautiful, warm, sunny Spring day.  Isn't it always the way!  I was rather envious of Merv who arrived at around 8am ready to work in the garden for the morning.  There was just something in the air this morning.  Did you feel it too?

Next on our gardening agenda is planting 2 garden beds full of Dahlias, Zinnias and Daisies.  These should then flower right through Summer...fingers crossed.

Has anyone driven passed Black & Spiro over the last few days?  Did you see the divine, divine, divine pair of vintage concrete Swan pots we have sitting right at the front as you enter our front door?  I am having major problems trying to hold myself back from getting them picked up and delivered to our house.  They came from an old house in South Australia and I will admit that I am in-love!  I really don't think I could stand seeing them go to another home.  I haven't been like this over something in the shop for such a long time!!  I wonder where they will end up...my house or yours?

image 1 - via seboise, image 2 - via pretty stuff, image 3 - via pretty stuff

A Day for Daffodils

It seems my Daffodils have flowered right on cue.  Back in Autumn I ambitiously planted 50 Daffodil bulbs in our garden and although not all of them have surfaced, we have quite a few in flower today just in time for Daffodil Day.  To support this very special day click HERE to make a donation or to find out how you can contribute.


On that note I am signing off for this week.  I'm yearning for a weekend in my garden.
xx
Anna

Garden Pots Inside

After planting a few little pots for my garden table on the weekend I have been thinking I might do a few more so that I can bring some inside to put on the table in our lounge room or to place down the centre of the dining table when we have people over for dinner.  I also love how they are placed on the bench in the bathroom I have posted above.  I think it would be a nice idea to find an old rack with perforated shelves {like Brooke's} so that I can store lots of potted up succulents and also my potted bulbs and herbs in the garden near our garden shed.  Lots to do!!

PS.  If anyone is wanting to plant up some of these traditional little terracotta pots, I purchased mine from Bunnings.  I think they were approximately $2.50 per pot.  And if you live in Brisbane and want to purchase some bulbs then head to Bunnings as well.  Bulbs can be a bit tricky to buy here in Brisbane due to them not really liking our climate.   Oh and one more thing, if you want to plant some sweet peas you need to get them in this week if you live here!!  Mine were planted yesterday.  I can't wait to see them grow and flower over the coming weeks.

PPS. I only know these things about when to plant etc. thanks to Merve, Uncle Robbie, my mother, my grandmother and the lovely man at Bunnings who is my new best friend.  What would I do without them!!


image 1 - via delight by design scanned from easy elegance, image 2 - http://brookegiannetti.typepad.com/ {thanks viera}

Garden Ramblings

This is our garden yesterday with the round garden table Harry and I filled

with pots and also our vegetable garden to the left.

If my ramblings about my garden are becoming annoying just take me off your google reader or stop reading because I am thoroughly enjoying the excitement my garden is bringing me and I hope that these posts might inspire you to get your gloves on too.  I am actually quite a highly-strung, stressed-out maniac most of time however, I am finding that my garden is a place where I can relax.  I tend to drift off into another world when I am out there.  So, this is what I got up to on the weekend.

Harry and I planted up 10 little pots with succulents, herbs, pansies and another little plant which I can't remember the name of.  We arranged them on a round wire garden table which I placed near our vegetable garden.  I think this idea is such a great idea for interest in a large garden like ours but also would be wonderful on a verandah in an apartment or in a courtyard in a small garden.  I originally got the idea from a story on Deborah Needleman in Lonny magazine.  I think it was in one of their first issues...

We also started planting up some terracotta pots with Hyacinth bulbs which won't flower now until Spring but we are prepared and I think I might plant a few more this weekend as they will make nice gifts when Spring comes around. We also planted 30 Daffodil bulbs into the garden.  This weekend we will plant the Ranunculus, Freesias and tulips {which are currently in the fridge}.  I am keeping my fingers crossed that they will like it here in our red soil and will flower in Spring.

On Saturday we spotted 2 capsicum growing in our vegetable garden along with some corn.  We collected a small basket full of beans and cherry tomatoes which I cooked up on Saturday night.  This week we are planting some pretty sweet peas...this is the perfect time here for planting them.

And just to prove that I am making some headway in the garden compare the top photo in this post to this photo above as this is what one area of our garden looked like just before Christmas last year.  What a difference some effort can make and some help from my Uncle Robbie and Merv our lovely 84 year old gardener.  I can't claim all the accolades although if I didn't work I think I might be out there 24-7!

PS...One day she will be painted white but for the meantime we endure the red, green and yellow...xx

My Wonderful Weekend

My plans for a weekend in the garden had to be slightly altered due to the weather.  However, despite the rain I did achieve some gardening goals.  I went to my favourite nursery at Wellington Point yesterday.  If I could put their garden surrounding their nursery onto a truck and deliver it to our house I'd be one happy girl.  I just love wandering around the little pathways through their beautiful established garden. 

My aunty and my grandma {the one I photographed here on the blog last week} dropped in for morning tea this morning.  Aunty Jane brought me these pretty roses from her garden.  I love garden roses.  They are my favourite.

As you can see I did go a little crazy at the nursery.  I love the mix of plants I chose.  I really want to add lots of different colours into our garden.

I can't believe our little Max turned 10 months old yesterday.  He is almost walking.  Time really flies...



This morning my brother Sam and my mum, Harry, Max and I went to the Chandler Markets.  I hadn't been before and was so excited by what they had.  I found some beautiful orchids and fresh flowers and a few little vintage surprises too.



Yesterday I collected this bundle of fresh lettuce, beans and tomatoes from our kitchen garden.  I placed them into a basket and took them down to my mum's house.  Today she and Sam made an amazing salad which you will probably find the recipe for over at Sams' Table this week. 

Weekends at home are my favourite.  I always feel so inspired and rested and ready to go back to work on a Monday when I have been pottering around the house all weekend.

The S.A. Crowd & Home on Sunday

Hello!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I must apologise as I didn't get a chance to post before I left for Adelaide a few days ago.  I am working on a house in Dulwich which is such a beautiful area in lovely Adelaide.  Whilst visiting I had the absolute pleasure of catching up with The S.A. Crowd - Kimberlee from Brown Button, Emma from White & Wander, Kate from Polka Dot Pantry, Pippa from Tres Dodgeois and Alex from French Navy Stationery.  What a lovely group of positive, happy, inspiring, funny, encouraging and creative girls.  We had a fantastic dinner at Sparrow Kitchen & Bar on Friday night and then went out and hit the Antique shops on Saturday together.  I was amazed by Adelaide's history, wonderful food, pretty tree-lined streets, old stone houses and fantastic Antique shops.  It really is a place worth visiting and I can't wait to head back down there mid-year to catch up with the girls again.

After such a busy few days away, today I loved being at home.  I spent the day with my boys pottering around the house and the garden.  We recently put in a kitchen garden or Potager as the French call them.  Our lettuce is growing beautifully.  I picked one today to make a salad with tonight along with our tomatoes which just seem to be sprouting up everywhere in our garden.  Although all of this rain we've had has done some horrible things to our state, our garden is just so green and full of flowers which I have been picking and placing in vases in the house.  There really isn't anything which makes me happier than arranging flowers from my own garden to place around our house...simple pleasures!!

xx
Anna

A Weekend in the Garden

My plan for the weekend involves gardening gloves, weed removal, mulching and preparing my old garden beds for some new plants. I have been obsessing over these gorgeous plants in the image above and as I am completely not-in-the-know when it comes to gardens I wondered whether anybody could tell me what these are? I just love them. Would they live in our hot climate here in Brisbane?

xx

Anna

Tulip Tub

I can't be credited for finding this fabulous image. Joni posted this over at Cote de Texas the other day and I immediately fell in love with it. It is the work of the famous garden designing couple - Isabel and Julian Bannerman at their own home or should I say estate - Hanham Court. {All of this info was provided by Joni!!}.

I have a few of these old galvanised tubs which would do the trick. Although, tulips won't grow too well here. I'll have to plant them with something like Lavender I suppose. Any other ideas? I also love the wisteria growing so wildly over the house in the background.

Gardens & Garden Furniture

I like these gardens pictured above because to me they are informal. I don't want a formal garden. I want one which is filled with lots of different plants just like these are. I also adore the gravel pathways which to me seem less formal than paving. The chairs in the top image remind me of the furniture we are now stocking at Black & Spiro which is all handmade by a lovely man down South using timber from his property.

Here are some of the pieces which we are having made at the moment. We are having them custom painted for us in lots of different bright colours. We currently have some white rectangular side tables and one orange round table at the shop.

My Garden Project

To my absolute delight we have a pretty serious garden at our new house which I am hoping to improve, extend and make even more beautiful over time. We also ended up purchasing the block next door which is a big, ugly mound of dirt at the moment - a perfect blank canvas. One thing I definitely want to put in is a Kitchen Garden or a Jardin Potager as the French call them and I also want to add more flowering plants so that I can cut flowers for the house and for Black & Spiro too.

With lots of ideas swirling and no idea where to start, I have decided to create a garden file and if it's okay with you I am going to post a few more garden inspiration bits here on the blog too.

My Uncle Robbie is going to help me put all of this into action as he is a retired Landscape Architect. He actually just did our front garden beds at Black & Spiro and although my instructions were very vague; "I just want them to look like a field of pretty flowers", he nailed it.

So, watch out for lots of pretty garden pictures and maybe I might even pose a few questions to you along the way as gardening is a whole new ball game for me!!

image 1 via nibs blog, image 2 jennifer garner's garden via habitually chic