Repurpose...

A lovely friend of mine gave me three of these old wooden crates.  I can't tell you how pleased I am.  They have been waiting patiently in my garage for me to put to use in my garden.

I dug out some tools from my toolbox and a spare roll of membrane from my vegetable beds and got to work.

I stapled the membrane inside the box to form a liner, not too neatly, I might add!

Then filled them with compost and positioned them in some gaps around the deck.  I have planted one with some lavender plants that I had since last year and were looking for a new home.

And filled the other 2 with some sweet-smelling nicotiana, bright surfina and a couple of spare busy lizzies from the front garden.

In the evening, when the sun is going down, these nicotiana open their petals and fill the air with their scent.  Another perfect ingredient to a summer's evening.  I am really liking how, this year, my deck is feeling like an outdoor room.  It has been helped by the warm weather, of course.  I think I only sat out there in the evening once or twice last year in that sorry excuse of a summer we had!

Waterlily House...

I took my Mum and Dad to Kew today to see what July had to offer and I have to say, it all looked a bit parched!  Look at that strip of grass between the lavender beds, it's as dry as a bone!

My highlight was the Giant Waterlilies in the Waterlily House.  When Kristina and I visited in April, these magnificent leaves were nowhere to be seen, but now they are well and truly living up to their name.

They are dwarfing the stunning waterlily flowers which have been out for some months now.

Hibiscus flowers always remind me of summer holidays - wherever it is hot and sunny, there are usually hibiscus flowers.

The chillies were also relishing the warmth and humidity of the Waterlily House.

Transformation...

A wheelbarrow full of colour can work magic when a particularly grim part of the garden looks like this:

I have tried and tried to get a box hedge growing along this little curved border in front of my hammock, but someone thinks it is the perfect place to cock his leg (not mentioning any names...).  An hour spent on a kneeling pad with a fork and actually crumbling the heavy soil between my fingers and it was getting there:

Add in the goodies and a not-so-grim place is created.

It is fairly shady and the soil is heavy, so I think the hostas will do ok.  I had absolutely no resistance in buying those zingy orange zinnias.

PS. Here is the culprit!

Forever Summer...

...is one of my favourite cookery books.  There are now plenty of recipes I use that summer just doesn't seem complete without now. 

Today we had the best Greek Salad, although I left out the fennel because I was trying to feed us all economically and just use what I had in the fridge.  It was a shame really, because the fennel adds a nice freshness to the salad.  I didn't have a Romaine lettuce either but the one that came in my veg box was nice and crispy anyway.  I also had 2 bags of baby spinach so I made Jamie Oliver's Italian spinach and ham flan from this book and I can report that it was absolutely delicious.  Add to that a potato salad, a raw courgette salad and some freshly cooked beetroot and it was a wonderful al fresco lunch.

Oh, and there was bread.  Freshly baked this morning from the Ottolenghi Cookbook.  Cut up into chunky wedges and dipped in extra virgin olive oil and balsamic vinegar, it was good.  Very good.  It requires you to start it the day before you want to bake it, but is so worth the wait and all being done in my KitchenAid, there is no arm-aching kneading.

For pudding it was Vanilla Shortbread with strawberries and some thick Jersey cream.  As a treat for the children, I also made Sophie Dahl's Clover's Carnation Milk Jelly but the truth is, the adults didn't really let them get a look in!  It was dead easy, just melt a jelly (I used strawberry flavour) with some hot water then when it has cooled add a large tin of Carnation evaporated milk and allow to set.  I absolutely love evaporated milk!

 I love leisurely summer lunches outside...

A promise...

...of something spectacular to come.  My agapanthus is in bud.  I'm sure I can see them growing before my very eyes.

I have had a productive day.  A bit of cooking in preparation for a family lunch tomorrow.  A bit of gardening (weeding that pesky back border again).  A bit of relaxing.  A bit of crochet.   A good day.  Finished off with a glass (or two) of something pink and chilled.  How was yours?

E is for...

...embroidery...   extra embellishment to a custom cushion...

...edging stitches in bright orange thread...

...or perhaps for a little girl called Ella.  A present from her Godmother and made by me!

July...

...and another challenge.  Seeing as it has been six whole months since I did NaBloPoMo way back in January, I am going to give it another go.  The theme for July is SAVED.  This is what the brief is: 

This month we want you to tell us about the things you've kept, rescued, or otherwise prevented from being lost forever.

I have, for various reasons, been unable to blog regularly for the past couple of months in spite of having lots of things that I've wanted to share.  So, with the idea of those things being prevented from being lost forever, I will try to gain a bit of momentum through the next 31 days.

Today things changed dramatically due to the fact that I took delivery of a new laptop for No2, who has been hogging mine for ages now - I have missed the internet!

All that remains is to find a suitable picture to accompany this post and the challenge can begin...

...how about this one for starters?  New house rules!  Not really sure how long any of them can last...