Powerscourt County Wicklow

As promised, the rest of our holiday snapshots. We were very lucky with the weather and were able to spend a large part of the day in these wonderful gardens. Those Landscape Gardener's from days of yore had such vision didn't they? They knew how to put a scheme together! These gardens are really lovely and the scenery around is so lush and green and mountainous, truly spectacular. I especially loved the walled garden, with its wonderfully full borders, lilly ponds and gorgeous gates. We took several photos of the gates but my husband spoilt them all with silly poses, so sorry I am not including them.

Lois looks like a little Leprechaun in this! She took the 2 pics above which I think are rather good.

Afterwards we went to 'Johnny Foxes Pub', supposed to be the highest pub in Ireland. It really is geared for the American tourist and was a little O.T.T. in it's Irishness, we were tempted to run away before ordering but had been told on good authority that it was renowned for it's Seafood, so we stayed and it really was very good.

I adore my honeysuckle just outside the kitchen door, it smells so sweet and the standard rose is scented too and there is lavender underneath.

Now I am no Capability Brown and neither is ny husband, we aren't really gardeners at all, but we are triers, and we enjoy trying! I kind of view the garden as another room and so colour plays an important role, and I like the cottage garden style. Thats about as far as the knowledge extends, it's a case of the blind leading the blind, but it's fun, and we do get enormous stisfaction out of seeing things grow.

The Passion flower is new and so I don't expect it will do a lot this year, but hopefully next, if it doesn't get blown to bits!

Crabapples are early this year, I think it's jelly making time!

The first raspberry...yum!

A little cottage garden posy.

Hope you all are having a lovely summer. I hate to tell you this, but Autumn is coming, whilst out walking today I saw Hawthorn and Blackberries. I love Autumn, though, not at the start when the weather is still warmish and you don't know what to wear, but when there is that nip in the air and you have to get your tweed and woollies out of the closet,and you can wear boots . I love the freshness in the air, and I always get the feeling that I can acomplish great things, there is an energy about Autumn. All the seasons are wonderful in their own way and I would miss them if I went to live in a milder climate. Wishing you all a wonderful weekend, love Linda x

Old Pine....New Life!

Good day to you my bloggy friends! Sorry for my absence, it is a very busy time for me at the moment. I thought you may like to see something that I have been working on. I painted some old and new pine for a client, to give her Living/Dining Room a more cohesive look. You will need to have a little bit of vision as the photographs are not the best and the client has yet to decorate her walls and replace the carpet.

I used Farrow and Balls Skimming Stone on most of the furniture, the inside of the bookcase and corner cupboard and the chairs were painted with Elephant's Breath, a subtle shade deeper to add some contrast, without adding more colour. The client is papering her walls with a lovely linen look plain paper in a neutral colour, carpeting the floor in a donkey coloured plain carpet, and painting all the woodwork in Farrow and Balls All White eggshell. It is a little frustrating that I don't get to see the finished room, but I do have to return later to paint something else, so perhaps I will get a little snapshot then.

Painting old furniture is my favourite thing to paint. Because it has had a life and is cracked, dented and scored, it really suits being painted and then having an antique wash put on it to show up it's character lines. See what you think.......

Also as promised, some more photos from our Holiday in County Wicklow. Enniskerry is a really pretty village, full of the most gorgeous houses. The second one is actually a B&B! The last one, I just love so much, I want to replicate the Wisteria idea on the side of my own house.

And finally a little bit of colour from my own garden..........................................................................

I have never brought Geraniums into the house before, but I certainly will now, they last for a really long time and the Hot Pink colour of these I just adore. Wishing you all a very happy week, with love Linda x.

Travel...'broadens the mind'.

The Walled Garden at Powerscourt, Wicklow.

Even if you travel in your own country! I am so glad we stayed in Ireland this year, if the weather had been awful I may have thought differently! It was so good to see Ireland through the eyes of a tourist, to take in its wild, romantic beauty and really appreciate it. Sometimes I get quite down on my own country, because it's not very sophisticated, because we don't seem to appreciate our history and heritage, and seem to favour new fangled and modern instead of old and worn. ( I am speaking of Northern Ireland here.) With my line of work, painting furniture and interiors, it is frustrating because it is really hard to find vintage and antique items here, and when you do they are generally heavy victorian and dark wood, not the kind of look I  want!  General cost of living is quite expensive here, everything seems to be brought in and so is more expensive than England. We have very little in the way of Farmers Markets, even though we have plenty of farmers. So, you can imagine, when I see the lovely Antique Fairs, Vintage Markets, Farmers Markets, Brocantes etc. on your lovely blogs, I jump up and down and cry with frustration. However, when I travel to Southern Ireland and see places like Avoca, with their wonderful cafes and deli's thriving, Artisan Bakers, French Vans selling local fruit, it gives me hope and I think yes, we will have these things in Nortern Ireland! I need to remember too, that it wasn't that long ago, when we had bombs going off, shootings, we were a country at war, and it takes time to recover from these things. I have forgotten what Belfast city centre used to be like, when no-one went out at night. There were no 'Cocktail Bars' and fancy Hotels, coffee houses and designer shops. We were really starved of culture and beauty! Things really have changed for the better when I think of it. My mind has been broadened, I have come to appreciate my country more and I am glad of it. So here are a few of our holiday snaps, to let you see how beautiful it is!



A wonderful Georgian door in Bray.





A pretty row of houses, in the seaside town of Bray.





 

I would so love one of these Citroen vans.



Entrance to Avoca shop, restaurant, deli and garden centre at Kilmacanagoue.

The photos above where taken at Avoca.



Down at the farm at Kilcoole.



I don't want to bore you with too many photos, so I will keep the one's from Powerscourt and Eniskerry for another day. Have a wonderful week. Thankyou so much to my new followers, welcome aboard! Love Linda x