May arrives with cow parsley and hawthorn blossoms

May. It is my favourite month - three day weekends aplenty, an explosion of green, juicy growth where ever you turn in the garden or country lane and armfuls of my favourite blooms - cow parsley, mayflowers, bluebells and alliums. Not to mention baby moorhens and ducklings swimming in nervy pride down the stream at the bottom of the garden. And occasional t-shirt temperatures which means cups of coffee and with a bit of luck, whole meals in the garden again. Bliss. 

This is the moment of the year for cow parsley, it festoons every local lane and foothpath, sometimes mingling with the white-flowered hawthorn in the hedges. The cow parsley umbels are one of nature's wonders, I love it so much it is the Wild Acre logo. The hawthorn is close to my heart too, and one of the first natural shapes I explored in silver. To have them both flowering their pretty heads off at the same time is double floral heaven for me! 

It is something about the delicacy yet profusion of cow parsley - pure looking and yet rampantly growing, clearly strong but so finely cut, it seems impossibly exquisite and utterly simple at the same time. I really love the stuff!

Even the colour-drained silhouettes are tantalizingly, breathtakingly lovely, don't you think?

The hawthorn flowers are so pretty too, not as ethereal as the cow parsley, rooted firmly as they are on the strong branches of the May bushes. But the little creamy, spherical buds combined with the profusion of papery flowers and new green leaves are gorgeous in their own right. 

When the hawthorn and cow parsley grow together, the effect is amazing, this lot is 30 seconds from my backdoor!

I will have to save the bluebells and alliums for another post, but in the meantime, hurray for May!

last flowers standing

The very, very last flowers left standing: cosmos, dahlias, astrantia (third flush!!), cotinus foliage and a teeny aster. That is it, finito, adios, all over for another year. This last bunch goes to Jane's flower party, no better place.  It may not be much but it is all I have! 

How to keep your cut flowers looking good for as long as possible

I have just arrived home from holiday, and more of that adventure soon, but I just wanted to let you know that I have a blog post up on Sarah Raven's blog this week, detailing all I know about how to maximise the vase life of your cut flowers. Lots of people have asked me about this subject, and I thought it would be useful to make a blog post of top tips based on what has worked best for me. Do click HERE for the link.

Signing off now to partake of the familiar post holiday rigmarole of putting on the first white wash and thinking how on earth to make supper with a remnant of cheese, a couple of bendy carrots and a can of beans. Hmmm!

Palest pink-milk hoar frost

The snow is falling softly, in tiny, undecided flakes that are dusting rather than blanketing the landscape, but the skies are heavy and perhaps the big gun flakes are waiting in serried ranks - who knows?

But preceding the snow was the loveliest hoarfrost, not the hard, white glittering type, backed by a bright blue sky, all alpine and diamond-like, this one was milky and soft, rosy almost. Palest pink-milk hoarfrost.

The water meadows and bridleways looked so otherworldly....

This is how winter should be, cold and frosty, stark and beautiful. And in summer I would love lingering, warm evenings to eat out every night in the garden. We don't either very often, which is perhaps why I love them so much and relish every second. Have a lovely weekend, stay toasty. xxx

Jewellery news

I have a few of happy pieces of Wild Acre Jewellery business that I wanted to share with you.

First up there is a big, sparkly 20% off sale at the Wild Acre shop for one week, starting tonight. I very rarely do sales, but I felt ready to shake this chilly January up a little and spread some jewellery joy, so there you are - some lovely bargains to be had, and in 7 days the prices will return to normal and a few pieces will not be available again. Keep checking in the shop, because I will be adding new things most days. Everything that has sale marked on it when you click the thumbnail is a full 20% less than normal price. Yeeehaah! :)

Secondly, I have sent out my first ever Wild Acre newsletter today, it is free, concise and full of news, special offers and photos. I think you might like it, so if you would like to be added to the subscription list please just send me your email address. All future newsletters will be available to view via email only, and will contain exclusive offers. You can see the first newsletter on a link on my FB business page here. Have a gander, I'd love to add you to my list of newsletter friends if you like it.

Lastly, and unrelated to jewellery, I have a blogpost on Sarah Raven's blog, Garlic and Sapphire, this week. I am raving happily about the wonder that is the Snowdrop. Can we have a chat about them over there in the comments?

Thanks for listening, keep cosy - the snow is coming. xx

Decorating for Christmas with nature

Truth to be told, I like to keep Christmas decorations pretty simple, too many festive bits and bobs on every surface, every deck swagged and sparkling and I start to feel...slightly suffocated. Which is putting it a tad over dramatically, but you know that feeling at Christmas of just too much stuff everywhere? Inevitably made worse the media screeching "spendspendspend", "cyber-monday" blah blah bleugh!

But here is the paradox, I absolutely love Christmas, the feeling of anticipation, feasting, family, gratitude, the whole proper works. I love the celebration of so much that is important to me, plus the depths of winter really needs a bit of general whooping up and fun, no?

So this year I am avoiding the 'drowninginbaubles' feeling by two very conscious little decisions: to keep the decorating all about bringing the outside in and lighting candles, and keeping the gift giving as full of handmade goodness as possible (but not by my hands!). It already feels a lot less frenzied and more considered, which I am liking.

This last weekend, it was about bringing some winter nature indoors by making wreaths from ivy, twigs and various seedheads and weeds foraged from the garden and riverbank.

The wreaths I like best are quite skinny and sparse, slightly quirky and unexpected, and what is available outside around here is actually just right for just these kind of wreaths, so I'm a happy wreath-hugger!

It was just a matter of cutting down some withies from a wild shrub that grows in our woodland area of the garden, creating a base by bending them into circles and tying with twine, and sticking reed seed-heads from the local river through the gaps in the wreath base. Embarrassingly straight forward. The little round seedheads  (the ones that are a nightmare in dogs' fur), are so sticky you can just throw them at the wreath and they stay in place. I squirted some white paint spray at some of them as you can see. Finish off with a bit of ribbon. I know it lacks colour and sparkle, but I really seriously like this one in its understated but slightly boho, Anthro-ish nonchalance. It really feels like we have a bit of riverbank goodness in our home. I think next year I will make this as an autumn wreath.

The other one I made from totally foraged material is totally sprayed white. I think I am definitely having a white christmas this year, snow or not!

More bits of garden shrubbery with hogweed seedheads. It is a bit eccentric but I love its snowy ice-queenishness. Long live the quirky wreath!

So easy to make as before.

I made two other little wreaths for table centres/candle holders but they were using up some flowers from a one-off winter bouquet I made for someone recently - I like them but not as much as my totally foraged ones!

I have also got some white painted sticks in a vase, ready to make a mini decorated tree, but still finding the right decorations for it. That will have to wait.

inspirations: summer's end

I think this is one of my very favourite moments of year, as summer draws to its end. September starts a whole new season of possibilities - there is an energy greater even than the turn of the calender year I think, quickened by the smell of sharpened pencils and new school uniforms and the first of the autumn bonfires.

Certainly I feel that tinge of melancholy that summer is over, but where we live the weather is often so wonderful in early september and the light is just beautiful.  There are still cosmos and anemones and some late planted loveinthemist to retain the feeling of summer,

The garden is full of the rich, venetian colours of late summer, and because they will be gone soon, somehow their beauty is even poignant, so I take time to really look and enjoy.

The nights and early mornings are colder but the softly slanting light  and afternoon warmth more than makes up for it, and it is lovely to light the first evening fires of the year.

Most of all, I find so much creative inspiration in late summer and early autumn. All the delicacy of seedheads and grass infloresences are waist high along the paths I walk, and those amazing shapes are the ones I love to explore in silver. It is impossible not to be inspired by the field margins at the moment.

Wouldn't these shapes be amazing in 18ct gold or silver? I can't wait to get cracking!

Which is all great timing because as of next weekend I am taking part in Hertfordshire Open Studios, when artists open their studios to visitors and exhibit their work. I am actually showing my jewellery every sunday afternoon at the studio of a fantastic local ceramicist, Carole Sender and we will be joined by the artist and photographer, Vanessa Champion who will be showcasing some amazing photographs from her work with two charities in Mumbai. We kick off with a big celebration next saturday night - with sangria, tapas and live flamenco guitar - should be quite a night, do email me if you would like further details, I would love to meet some bloddies!