Sunday, December 08, 2013

Where Light Floods In

So what did we get up to last summer that took up so much of our time and energy from the garden, and that up to now still is our main preoccupation (although definitely tapering off now)?

All but a few odds and ends of the house renovation have been completed and the most recent weeks have been spent decorating and recovering our house away from the builders, converting it from a building site into a home. Slowly but surely we're getting there starting from the back...

Our new Conservatory


This room is the newest addition to the house and it sits where a decking area that was raised from the rest of the top patio used to be. When it was completed and cleaned the temptation was there to keep it minimal with just furniture and not fill it with plants. We've always thought that this would be a nice place to have breakfast (and it is!) as well as hang out near the garden but still protected from the elements. And it is a conservatory after all, it just wouldn't be one without plants don't you think so?

A select few now take pride of place in the room, the only place in the house where plants can be generously found especially we've made that resolve not to overwinter many plants in our house again like we used to.



When we decided to go for the renovation we also opted to let go of most of our old furniture as well as radically reduce our 'possessions', to feel almost like we're starting anew, letting go of the past and starting fresh. And it's amazing how much junk one can accumulate through the years, actually make that two. The endless sorting out and trips to the recycling tip and charity shops were exhausting but invigorating at the same time. However, if you let go of too much you can also feel like you're losing touch of memories so I'm glad a few things did survive the mass cull and is now on display again. Like here where the Hopper print is that used to be in our old dining room and the pair of miniature Chinese terracotta soldiers that we bought, not in China but in an interior shop in Stockholm a few years ago.


Our new Conservatory

And speaking of Stockholm we bought this pair of Jordi Labanda plates there (whose work you're likely to recognise even if you just occasionally flick through fashion magazines. I'm a big fan ever since I got hold of his book Hey Day) back in 2005. Despite liking them they remained wrapped up and stored away until recently when suddenly, the plates fitted in the new colour scheme of this room which is...


Jordi Labanda plates

Colour pop! I actually wanted an all white room (white white everything white!) but Gaz wanted colour so we compromised and went for colour pop. Both of us are pleased with it and is very cheerful to look even if its gloomy outside. The scheme of this room is also a reflection of the scheme of the rest of the house.


Eames Chairs in our Conservatory

We're both gardeners, we have pets, and it's a white room. Is it easy to maintain? Yes! It depends on the material you choose, make sure they are wipe easy and you have two important things by the door - a boot scraper and floor mat.

Now talking about good timing the people from The English Lamp Post Company offered to give us a boot scraper to try out and review and I must say it's a very good scraper and I'm really pleased with it as far as boot scrapers will go! It does what it's suppose to do very effectively, with a good grip on to paving so it doesn't move around when you scrub off dirt from your shoes. And for a cast iron product (which tends to be ornate) the design of this model is simple enough that it can fit in their surrounding perfectly, from contemporary to the traditional. Double thumbs up from us!


New Boot Scraper

So cleanliness starts from a good boot scraper and then a good door mat. Choose wisely when it comes to indoor door mats especially if you play with soil and mud on a regular basis. If you can go for a microfibre one, it does what it claims and is machine washable too.


Twinkles and Knickers approve our doormats too!
What about the plants that now resides in this room and what made me choose them? I mentioned about the first batch of plants that were selected before and their selection criteria. As a follow up to that post (which makes this post a Part Two) a second batch have been selected since then which now completes the lot that will now keep us company indoors during winter. They are:


Agave toumeyana var. bella
Agave toumeyana var. bella
Cycas circinalis
Cycas circinalis
Agave parryi
Agave parryi
Chamaedorea radicalis
Chamaedorea radicalis
Agave colimana, front and another Agave at the back whose species name escapes me
Agave colimana, front and another Agave at the back whose species name escapes me
Big pots - Philodendron 'Xanadu' to the left, Butia archeri to the right
Big pots - Philodendron 'Xanadu' to the left, Butia archeri to the right
Remember Mas Que Nada? Some of them made it indoors to continue their summer vibe!
Agave attenuata
Agave attenuata - flawed but pretty enough to still make it in
Most of them will go back out again in the summer, if I can be bothered to shift them out that is. And perhaps one or two will be changed/replaced/repositioned from time to time to vary the display and keep the interest going. After all, change is a good thing even in just small doses.


Pachira aquatica
Pachira aquatica
And to cap off this post is this Pachira aquatica, looking comfy where it is now but actually was an effort to get there and has a back story to it. More on that on a future post soon!

Slowly, indoors are being sorted. If you notice anything untidy outside beyond the glass pardon us for now. We'll sort that bit out early next year.

Mark :-)

32 comments :

  1. Mark, how great that you guys got yourself a conservatory. It looks like a dream to me! I feel that is was the right decision to bring the plants in. Agave attenuata grows here outdoors in San Diego and I really love that plant. I should get myself one. Enjoy your breakfast in your new conservatory, I guess it will be more and more fun as winter proceeds to look into your garden from a warm and comfy space. Have a good start into the new week!
    Christina

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    1. Thanks Christina and you too! I just saw your post and Agave attenuata would compliment well with your other plantings especially the cycads.

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  2. I love the concept of a "new start" and going minimalist. Do you think you will be able to maintain that aesthetic over time? The urge to "collect" is strong. Despite my best intentions, I can never pull it off. So cool that you address the maintenance factor here.

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    1. Thanks Ricki and so far so good, the minimalist thing has a good stronghold and find it relaxing not to have too much 'stuff' around. But the collecting bug remain with the garden though. Less stuff to maintain outside means more time to maintain more plants outside :)

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  3. When we moved five years ago, we got rid of 25+ years' worth of accumulated stuff, mostly into a dumpster or set out at the end of the driveway for people to pick over on craigslist. It was so liberating. I hope you manage to keep the new conservatory from getting cluttered. It looks great, so crisp and clean. Is A. parryi not hardy outside for you?

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    1. Thanks Alison! Amazing how much stuff one accumulates through the years, especially when placed somewhere where one doesn't usually hang out in like spare room or attic. Out of sight out mind and then the room gets cluttered. It was liberating to get rid of so much clutter, hopefully we'll keep everywhere else streamlined from now on. A. parryi is usually hardy enough here, bigger ones at least. I just chose this one in particular as I thought it looked pretty in its pot.

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  4. Beautifully done and I love the crisp look with carefully selected pieces and updated color. It's not easy to pull off.

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  5. Wow, what a beautiful room. Magazine-worthy, for sure! I'm not typically a fan of monochromatic rooms, but you pull it off so successfully with pops of color--and of course the many different shades of green from the plants.

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    1. Thanks Gerhard! It was initially going to be mono chromatic but Gaz insisted on colour so we went for colour pop. The shots of colour does look cheerful even on gloomy days which is the norm in the winter.

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  6. Your conservatory is glorious. Your idea of purging and starting afresh is fabulous and I wish I could pull something like that off but find myself happy with my hoarding tendencies.

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    1. Thanks Peter! I'm sure you can do something with your wonderful creative flair. We hope we can continue being disciplined enough to keep things minimal (so far so good but time will tell!).

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  7. What a wonderful new space and it looks like you've really gone about deciding how to use it right and for the long term. I love the minimalist approach and strive for it, lack of space (our home is 830 sq ft up and down for a total of 1660) does get in the way sometimes. I dream of a room like this where I could be "outside" even when the weather is ugly.

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    1. Thanks Loree! I thought of you when I was finding a place for an orange ornament which went in the kitchen instead. As you've seen before ours isn't a big one either and had to sacrifice a bit of garden space to accommodate this one. I wonder if its still possible to have something similar fitted to the back of your house? It 'll be a talking point when we see it in the flesh next year ;)

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  8. Your plants love it in the white room, much more your cats, both in colors and in need! You are very privileged Mark! good job

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  9. Absolutely love your new room. No wonder you were so excited about it all. It's lovely and the plants are choice that you've chosen. I would also love sitting out there in the evenings as the sun is setting.
    Cher Sunray Gardens

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    1. Thanks Cher! It's an enjoyable place to relax, in the morning and especially in the evenings after work :)

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  10. It looks so fresh and bright...I bet it is amazing to sit there on a chilly winter day and sill be surrounded by your garden...fabulous!!!

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    1. Thanks Scott! Going for white and splashes of bright colours helps bring cheer even on cloudy winter days. Really pleased with the outcome of the space.

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  11. Wonderful new digs. To a non-gardener, your restraint would look like a jungle! But amazing how you have kept plants to a relative minimum. Looks bright and roomy, and I love how the two of you compromised to make such a cool, special place.

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    1. Thanks Denise! The plants we have in there now I feel is just the right balance with the space available to feel surrounded and yet remain spacious, and yes you're right, to a non gardener it is jungly already :)

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  12. Looks super, love the lines. All that clean white background gives the leaf shapes a chance to speak for themselves .

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    1. Thanks Helen! With the white background the plants do stand out even more and makes you appreciate their form.

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  13. I love all that natural light! The conservatory must be especially welcome during the shorter days of fall and winter. It looks like the perfect place to hang out - for you, the cats and visitors. I'm a fan of minimalist spaces myself but the pops of color provided by the plants and items you've collected keep that minimalism from being hospital-style sterile. Great work!

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    1. Thanks Kris! Natural light is even appreciated indeed in the winter when day length is so short. When I insisted on nearly all white the worry was there that it will look sterile and clinical so we met halfway and went for colour pop and so pleased we did!

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  14. A beautiful room guys - light, uncluttered and unique. It looks good enough to grace the pages of a magazine. Where did you get that gloriously shaped green watering can from? I'm suffering from a touch of iwantitis :)

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    1. Hi Anna, sorry I only read your reply now. The watering can is Diva by Alessi :)

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  15. What a gorgeous room. I love everything about it. The floor tiles are beautiful. I would love to have a space like that, and I get jealous when I watch UK renovation shows and they build conservatories. It wouldn't work out for us because it would be like frying ants under a magnifying glass. Enjoy :)
    P.s your cats' names are so cute.

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  16. Love it! I think the colour pop and your lovely plates work really well, together with the plants they make it a modern but friendly space, if that makes sense, lovely job guys.

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  17. I love your color pop! Will you please adopt me! LOL

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  18. I love the look of this. My husband and I are planning a renovation/makeover for a small sunporch on the back of our house and you've given me some inspiration!

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