A New Book and Toby Jugs

I’ve had a lovely new book, “365 Days of Colour in the Garden”. Full of inspiring photos of beautiful plants to fill the garden with brightness all year round. That’s my aim.

I can’t wait to get stuck in and plan how I’m going to improve the seasonal displays with flowers, berries and colourful stems.

I have made a start with Winter flowers such as Hellebores, Cyclamen and Snowdrops. These have made such a difference during the drab dull days of winter when most of the plants have disappeared from view. Now I’m hungry for more ideas from my new book.

Meanwhile the Spring display is slowly developing.

I sowed some flower seeds in the greenhouse in trays and plugs. Purple Hollyhocks, Oriental Poppies in mixed colours and a few Sunflowers. It will be exciting to see what colours develop when the Poppies eventually come into flower. Oriental Poppies are so beautiful with their huge silken petals and often with dark markings on the inside near the centre. I have a deep orange one and a red one. I love all Poppies. I have the Welsh ones, Mecoconopsis cambrica, which you can see here in yellow and on the right in orange, and opium Poppies in lovely shades of pink.

Still a bit cold for most seeds and I’m not keen on cold weather either so I stayed indoors and baked. I made my date and ginger squares. You might remember them if you’ve been following my blog.

If you’d like the recipe you will find it on my previous post called “Eggshells and Sprout Tops”. Very tasty and satisfying. They make a nice pudding too with a dollop of greek yoghurt, cream or custard.

Baking on a cold day is one of my favourite things. I think most people love their kitchen even if they don’t bake. It’s the heart of the home, warm and welcoming, especially if you’re lucky enough to be able to sit in it.

Some of my treasured bits and pieces belong in the kitchen. My little Toby jugs, for example. They live on the windowsill with a few other things.

They’re a bit old, battered and perhaps a bit ugly but I just love them. I found the one with a green hat in an antique shop and the other two at bootsales. They’re only about 3 inches tall, not like the big antique Ralph Wood Tobies. Their diminutive size is part of their charm.

I’m working on a painting I’ve done before. This is the second time I’ve used the photo for reference. I took it at Arley Arboretum in Shropshire. It was Spring and the Azaleas were flowering. The light through the trees and along the path was lovely. I painted it with acrylics the first time, as you can see here.

This time I’m using gouache for a smaller painting. I enjoy using acrylics for larger paintings or to achieve a certain effect but I love using gouache for a bold crisper look to my picture. It’s basically watercolour but it has added texture to give it more definition. I will put the finished painting on my blog when I’ve done it if it’s half decent.

I hope you’re enjoying plenty of Spring flowers. With you again in a few days. Please feel free to comment. I love to hear from you.