If this Summer's flower shows, like the RHS Flower Festival at Hampton Court Palace last month, have inspired you to get green fingered, why not go a step further and create your own little piece of paradise in your own back yard?
Online magazine Garden Design is just one of the sources citing a dramatic increase in people's interest in their gardens – from growing their own food, through adding colour and interest, to creating a welcoming space in which to unwind and spend time. They say, “Many people are turning to their gardens for a place to relax. Small balconies and large backyards alike are being transformed in record numbers into places to escape...”
As millions of us the world over became housebound during the periods of lockdown, that has surely contributed to the uptick in interest with gardening and home improvement.
Our homes became our whole world – the place where we worked, schooled, exercised, 'virtually' socialised and where we sought solace and recharged.
And even though lockdown restrictions are starting to ease in many parts of the globe, our obsession with our homes doesn't seem to be, and people are looking to feather their nests and breathe new life into their living areas.
Spending time outdoors and in green spaces is also a great way to boost our health and wellbeing, with treatments like ‘Ecotherapy’ becoming ever more popular. Ecotherapy is a type of therapy involving getting outdoors and doing focused activities in nature, with the aim to help problems including anxiety
and depression.
Mental health charity, Mind, advocates the benefits of being outdoors in natural light, and spending time in nature to help with mental health, saying, “Spending time in green space or bringing nature into your everyday life can benefit both your mental and physical wellbeing. For example, doing things like growing
food or flowers...”
So creating a beautiful balcony or cosy cottage garden could provide us with so much more than just a pretty space.
With the warmer months of Summer upon us, our attentions turn towards our gardens, so now is the perfect time to make the most of these spaces and create a haven in which to recharge, chill out...or (now that we can) socialise with friends and family.
Of course, the essence of a garden is the array of flora, and there are lots of garden centres up and down the country who can help you create beautiful floral displays. But once you have the planting complete, you can also make the most of your outdoor living space, and create a relaxing retreat, by dressing your garden with soft furnishings for comfort and, stunning sculpture to create interest.
You will find the Santa Fe rug (in both cool jade or warm and fiery spice colourways) on our interiors website – a beautifully woven striped rug, designed for outdoor use, that will provide an inviting and cosy place on which to lie and bathe in the surrounding birdsong, or sit and enjoy a glass or two of Pimms!
A well placed sculpture can create an air of intrigue and romanticism in an outdoor space - complementing your planting and inviting you and guests to spend more time in the outdoors.
We have an extensive and spectacular range of bronze sculpture on our website, just perfect for adding a bit of drama or whimsy to your plot.
Heron (Life Size), by Sophie Louise White, is a remarkably sculpted large scale bronze piece that would provide a showstopping focal point to a grand space – perhaps near an ornamental pond.
Adam Binder's Kingfisher II, is smaller in scale and exquisitely formed and patinated – its rich turquoise and warm red colouring would make a striking addition to even the smallest planted area or water feature.
Renowned sculptor Philip Jackson CVO has a wide range of imposing and wonderfully dramatic large scale figurative works – like the commanding Serenissima – that would suit a large plot which begs to be explored.
This bounding Hare by Hamish Mackie is a fantastic piece for adding a sense of movement and wonder - and would work well featured popping out from some ornamental grasses or leaping across a lawn.
We have lots of other striking sculpture on our online gallery to browse through and whet your appetite, so head over to our online gallery, or plan a trip to our Sculpture Garden and Gallery in Fordingbridge on the edge of the New Forest National Park.
