July 2026

The flowers here have needed a lot of looking after in the recent heatwave, but worth it to see the colourful sweet peas, revealing new blooms daily in range of heady colours. Most are from saved seed, meaning that there are lots of nameless surprises never ever seen before! The trick is to stop deadheading at the end of summer, in time to let a good number of the pods swell ready for harvesting.

Several new cards: three new prams in a variety of colours and a pretty floral heart with gingham border. Re-stocked is the framed ‘Summer Meadow’ which is an informal miniature embroidery; every one I make is unique as I just make it up as I stitch.

Thank you for visiting today, I hope you enjoy having a little look around.

Helen

June 2026

Have you looked in The Curiosity Shop lately? (See tab above). It is a shop within a shop where I put mostly reduced price items and a few other things I have made, like photo cards taken in the cottage garden here for instance. I have just added some ‘old stock’ cards at reduced prices, so why not pop in and have a browse!

The baby birds here are now appearing, tiny pale bluetits, long-legged speckly robins and screechy young blackbirds ‘parked’ around the garden waiting to be fed. The roses are showing now too, always chiming with the giant angelica ‘trees’ that self-seed all over the place. A rather wild garden this year, but full of life, more than ever before, so I am just sitting back and enjoying it all. These are my husband’s Cedric Morris irises, which are spectacular this year!

May 2026

How beautiful the blossom is this year, perhaps the best I have ever seen! The Hawthorn hedges that run for mile upon mile along the Lincolnshire lanes are a froth of white flowers.  Flowering at the beginning of the month it is also known as May Tree or Maythorn, the blossom traditionally used in garlands for May Day celebrations.

We planted our quince tree over 25 years ago as a slender ‘maiden’ since when it has become a much-loved garden treasure. Its blossom is my favourite of all; from the tiny deep pink furled buds to the fully opened delicate floaty blooms, it never fails to delight. The exotic scented fruits are perfect for jellymaking but some years there may be just one or two!

May is a month when we again feel the real warmth and brightness of the sun; a month of birdsong and bees! The first baby blackbirds are out and about, exploring the garden and their own magic power of flight.