discovering hellebore

Today I’m going to tell you all about my morning with Laura the owner of “The Unsual Garden” where I had the pleasure of discovering new varieties of hellebore. I met Laura in September in Mantua where she was showing off her recent crop of tulip, daffodil and iris bulbs. I immediately bought some colorful tulips and daffodil and so now I can’t wait to see them bloom. In the last few months I’ve been keeping in touch with her in order to know when the hellebore was ready to blossom. Usually they start blossoming in December but this year it was delayed due to lack of rain and the intense cold. Finally the message arrived and so I jumped into the car and went to see her.

Twenty years ago Laura and two families bought a piece of land where they built their homes. They left the garden unfenced so as to enjoy the countryside at its best. On clear days they have an amazing view over lake Garda and the nearby mountains and it’s a haven of peace and tranquility.

In spite of the greyish day, the garden had a magical atmosphere. I was immediately attracted to an impressive tree boasting tiny red apples and to delicate bunches of Viburnum dawn foresi. Laura was the perfect host accompanying me to explore her garden, pointing out the different varieties of hellebore scattered all over the garden. I even discovered some uncommon ones such as: hellebore picotee with delicate burgundy veining, a polka dot variety, a doubled petal one and even a blue one (I couldn’t resist buying one of the blue ones and I can’t wait to see it bloom).

Having spend a wonderful morning with Laura I’m anxious to return in April when the garden will be in full bloom.

Just a word about caring for your hellebore. It’s a hardy perennial, rustic plant and starts blooming at the beginning of winter until April. This plant likes half shade, and in April when it finishes blossoming it’s essential to keep it in the shade until autumn. In the Uk and northern America it‘s also known as the Christmas rose as it was traditionally used as a Christmas decoration. The most common variety is the Helleborus niger with its pure white flowers.

Hope you’re keeping busy in the garden as spring is on its way!

See you next time!

inspiring home decorations

Last Saturday I found inspiration in the beautiful greenhouse of Villa la Valverde. I started choosing the flowers and vases to use in the decorations the day before.

I combined a range of different berries with Norway pine, moss and hyacinth bulbs. Berries are an absolute must for any Christmas decoration for their amazing colours and textures. I decided to resume a Swedish Christmas tradition. In December in Sweden all homes have bulbs and when the flowers blossom, the scent spreads through every room. Bulbs are very easy to take care of. You need to water the bulb and the flower every 3 to 4 days. When kept indoors they blossom after 10 days. When the flowers wither, cut the leaves and the flower and store them in a paper bag in a dark, dry place. You’ll be able to plant them either inside or out next year.

As you can see from the photos, I used different types of bottles, small vases and other things that I found in the greenhouse to create interest. Always try to use at least 3 elements and dare to be different by making unusual combinations. For examples I put a succulent in a simple pottery pot together with an old wooden tool box which gave an unusual twist.

Don’t miss my next post about Christmas table decorations!
Have you put your decorations up yet? Send me your photos!

Notebooks and gift wraps from Lino’s & Co.

ideas for decorating your home at Christmas

In the last few days I’ve been checking out the latest Christmas decorations. Out of the many Christmas images I was always attracted to a natural and cozy atmosphere.

Let’s start with some useful tips:

• As I wrote in my last post, do start by choosing your colour palette (maximum 3) and the style you desire to have in your home. These two tips will make it easier for you to focus on what you like best and how to make it. (Do take a look at what you have at your disposal)
• Do use a lot of candles, they help a lot to create a warm atmosphere.
• Do try to decorate all your home so each room will look festive

By the way the official date to start all Christmas decorations is the 8th of December, but we can start them a little bit earlier to make the magic last longer!

I love to use what nature offers in this season, so I’ll give you a list of foliage that you can buy at the local florist or find in the woods

Pine

Pine is the king of this season. In the shops, you may find two different varieties that don’t lose needles and last for all the period: Norway pine (bottle green colour) and silver pine (silver green). Not forgetting the very perfumed strobus pine.

Cypress

Silver and green cypress branches always remind me of vintage lace and will add an unusual twist.

Eucalyptus

When dried, eucalyptus silver green leaves change to an ash grey colour. I personally love the silver berried eucalyptus as they look like little fireworks when blossoming.

Berries

You’ll be spoiled for choice with berries: from pillar box red right down to a wide range of browns and burgundies.

Moss

Moss is an absolute must for any festive occasion. Its softness will add a fairy magic to your home!

Here are some photos of easy and interesting things to make.

In a nutshell try to use different kinds of foliage to add texture to your creations. And don’t forget a splash of colour!

Do you find this post helpful? Send me your feedback and photos about your creations.

Some pics are mine, other from Pinterest!

journal of a winter wedding

Today I want to tell you about Martina and Alessandro, a young sweet couple who got married in January. Their desire was to have an elegant, romantic wedding in the delicate tones of white and light pink. Light pink was the main colour of their day: from the invitation cards, the party favors, right dowun to the bride’s shoes...

THE CHURCH

The romanesque parish church of San Giorgio Ingannapoltron was chosen, which was located in the beautiful wine area of Valpolicella. From the little churchyard, there was a stunning view of Lake Garda. The church itself with its little cloister is built from local stone and has a clear cut design. The couple wanted the floral decorations to be soft and graceful. I suggested flowers with a roundish corolla. The traditional winter flowers anemones and ranunculus were perfectly matched with the elegance of white roses and the softness of baby’s wreath. Seeing als Christmas wasn’t very far away I decided to choose dark green buxus to use in all the creations.

THE BRIDAL BOUQUET

Martina, picked a very romantic wedding gown with an ample tulle skirt. The perfect choice of flower for her bridal bouquet was light pink cloni ranunculus. The cloni ranunculus started to become popular a few years ago and is an absolute must for a winter weddings. This particular flower has all the elegance of an English garden rose and the beauty of a peony. The older they get the more beautiful they become; the blossom opens up more and more to reveal their silken petals.

WINTER FLOWERS

Just another word about anemones and ranunculus. Anemones are effervescent flowers with their black centres and the their delicate silk like petals. You’ll be spoiled for choice by the vast array of colours to choose from. Pillar box red to deep burgundy and right down to every shade of purple. There is a lot to write about ranunculus check out my blog for more information about varieties and colours.

Which flower do you go for in winter? Drop me a line and let me know!

A special thanks to Martina and Alessandro and to Sergio Sarnicola the photographer for his outstanding work. (Some of the photos are mine which I took during the preparation)

A fairytale wedding at the Byblos Art Hotel

These are our floral arrangements created for a wedding which took place at the beautiful Byblos Art Hotel, Villa Amist, in collaboration with Palazzo Eventi.

Potrete vedere il video dell’evento in onda su Sky Sposa TV, canale 425, sabato 25 gennaio alle ore 22:15 e domenica 26 gennaio alle ore 19:25. Una preview qui: