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Author Archive | greenandgorgeous

A Rockin’ Rapunzel

By on June 7, 2013 in Blog

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We were recently 
invited by Shannon Lee Robinson of SLR photography to participate in a fantasy bride shoot. I immediately liked the idea, it was something a bit
different and sounded fun.

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Shannon had teamed up with stylist Georgina Webb of Ruby
Weddings and between them they wanted to create a photo series of “fairy tale
weddings”. I knew I’d want to be involved in the Rapunzel shoot,  partly because we’ve been doing so
many hair flowers recently and partly because my 4yr old daughter adores
anything Rapunzel.

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I had so many ideas: huge climbing roses twisted around
brambles, clematis growing through chandeliers, an abundant flower fascinator with jasmine tumbling down and winding around a long plait….of course I had to rein myself in, largely down to the usual constraints of  budget & time but also the lack of flowers due to challenging growing
conditions*

 

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Another curve ball was life got in the way of me going on
the shoot* so I really wasn’t sure what to expect when I saw the photographs. Today I
received my disc of nearly 400 images and here are a few of them. Hope
you like them as much as I do. I’m thrilled….but how do I choose which ones to use, they're all lovely.

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I'm sure the other suppliers will be as pleased as I am with the images. Here is a list of who did what and how to contact them:

Hair

 Perfectly Posh Hair Design – Krysia Eddery – 07540224383

Email: krysia.eddery@btopenworld.com
Website: http://www.perfectlyposhhairdesign.co.uk/about-perfectly-posh/

Flowers

 Green & Gorgeous – Jo Wise -07778 549412
Email: jo@jowisedesign.co.uk
Website: http://www.greenandgorgeousflowers.co.uk/


Cake

 Little Cow Creative Cakes – Katie Defrates – 07857 752 563
Email: katie@littlecowcreativecakes.co.uk 
Website: http://www.littlecowcreativecakes.co.uk/

Wedding Dresses

 Aisle B Yours – Charlyne – 07540 999865
Email: charlyne@btinternet.com 
Website: www.aislebyours.co.uk 

Model

 Vicki - vicki.r.evans@hotmail.co.uk – 07879 498063  

Styling

 Ruby Weddings – Georgina Webb – 07901774696
Email: georgina.webb@ruby-weddings.co.uk 
Website: http://www.ruby-weddings.co.uk

Photos

  Shannon Robinson – 07595893559
Email: shannon@slr-photography.co.uk
Website: http://www.slr-photography.co.uk/


Venue

 Kingston Bagbuize House –  http://www.kingstonbagpuizehouse.com/ - Adrian Wiley –info@kbhospitality.com - 07824 874507 – 01865 820 217  

 

Jo Wise

 *Lets not talk about it

*Lets not talk about that either

 

 

 

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Icelandic Poppies

By on May 27, 2013 in conditioning, Cut flowers, Poppies

I cannot let May come to an end without
a blog about my favourite flower of the month, the enigmatic
Icelandic Poppy. A flower that looks so delicate and ethereal that
any kind of vase life seems a far-fetched notion. Unlike other
members of its family, they can give you 5 -7 days of breathtaking
beauty in a vase.

 
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They also have a good 6 week flowering
period if you keep on top of the picking.

 

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 Once they have finished flowering, collect the seed and sow it fresh, sometime next month is ideal. This
will give you much better germination rates than buying it in, which
of course you will have to do initially.

I recommend Chiltern Seeds for a good
range of varieties of Papaver nudicaule. My favourites are 'Meadow
Pastels' for soft, muted shades of apricot, coral, cream and lemon –
great for weddings.

 

 
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If you want a bit more punch then
'Champagne Bubbles' fits the bill, with the most beautiful shade of
orange, salmon pink, daffodil yellow and white.

 

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 Pick the flowers just as they are
opening and sear the ends in boiling water for 20 seconds.

 

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I will be saving the seed off these next month and selling it fresh at our Saturday shop.

Rachel 

 

 

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To swoe or to hoe?

By on May 10, 2013 in Hoes

Ever since working on a large market
garden, I have been a staunch fan of the swoe, that golf club of
precision and surgical application. I used to do all my veg with it,
leaving it standing up and proud at the end of the row, marking where
you had got to. The stainless steel and the shape of the blade
(thanks to Wilkinson Sword) means that you can use it in wet
conditions, when you have no other choice but to tackle those pesky
weeds.

 

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But a few years ago, neighbours were
moving and were dumping a skip full of useful stuff, including a
Cultiweeder made by Wolf tools. This has a 3-pronged cultivator part
and a small sharp hoe combined into one tool, depending on which end
is up. I thought it would be more of a hobbyist tool, but it has
survived true field punishment and has proved to be really useful and
was a constant companion last summer. You can cut off topgrowth with
the hoe and then swivel round and have a go at the roots with the
blade. The cultiweeder is useful for ground preparation too and the
hoe is good for compacted paths baked hard in the summer.

 

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Of course, if you really want to motor
then a wheel hoe can work wonders, as long as the soil is not too
compacted, with the added benefit of an amazing workout for your
pecs. Great for taking out those flushes of annuals that we'll be
getting right now….  

 

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Ashley Pearson

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