Tom Stuart-Smiths Garden.

NGS pics part one- the garden of my garden idol!

Hello my flower loving friends, this post is coming in two parts as it’s incredibly photo heavy and not even half of them made the cut. On Sunday I spent a glorious day at my favourite garden-designers garden as part of the NGS. I’ve been multiple times and I swear it’s better than Chelsea! I guess it’s cutting out the middle man as Tom has been awarded eight gold medals for his gardens at the Chelsea flower show amongst numerous other significant and quite remarkable achievements. I always come away from this one full of inspiration and a stash of unusual plants that you’d struggle to find anywhere else. His plant library is an utter joy to walk around, even more so when there’s tea and cake.

In this post I’m going to focus more on the beautiful buildings that are bedded down amongst the blooms and provide a stunning backdrop. It all seems so effortless but of course you know it’s all down to a creative brain and hard work.

I always forget to ask the colour of this door. I bumped into Tom in this exact spot last year but my husband was talking about plants, you know, the important stuff you want to ask a garden designer and my thoughts on paint quickly became forgotten.

The glass houses are always a favourite of mine! There’s something incredibly romantic about a very old greenhouse, filled with pelargoniums.

The textures of old wood, terracotta pots, rusted metal and corrugated iron all add to a pleasing composition and are elements I enjoy bringing into my own garden.

As this post has been photo heavy and near it’s limit, there will be a continuation- maybe three as I haven’t had much space to really write and there are more garden pictures to share- especially the roses and peonies!

On other news, I wanted to fill you in on a decision I’ve recently made before I head off. It’s something that’s been playing on my mind for a while. I’ve changed my paid subscriber benefits, there will be no new paywalled or exclusive reader posts as I want to share everything with everyone that needs it. The thought that there may be people out there that would find this journal uplifting, inspiring or helpful in some way- and couldn’t afford to read it… well that just doesn’t sit right. I want to be here for anyone that needs this. So at the bottom of this post you will find an option to donate £4.00 per month or £38.00 for the year as an Oak member. I’ve chosen the Oak tree as a symbol- as each member is a new branch in creating something lasting. As I said there are no exclusive posts, but if my words/pictures resonate with you, maybe help you at a time of need, then there is the option to support my publication, no pressure. Becoming a paid oak member means helping me spend more time writing these journal entries and bringing creative inspiration to those that need it, it also helps towards the costs of running a studio, art materials and a cup of coffee whilst I write. Thank you.

See you soon for part two!

Emma x