An Inspirational Talk: Diarmuid Gavin, Gardener Extraordinaire

Well, this blog has been a looooong time coming! I attended a talk with Gardener Extraordinaire, Diarmuid Gavin's at the Ideal Home Show in the RDS, Dublin in April. The show will be coming back in October and I guess it got me thinking about the blog that never was.

I was the eager beaver. I arrived at the seated area waaaaay too early, Coffee in hand of course, wanting to get a spot before they were all taken. I was ready to hear about Gardening. I know NOTHING of the subject, so I really didn't know what to expect. What I didn't expect was to hear one of the most Inspirational talks that I have heard relating to MY passion: Design. And this is just a little summary:

Diarmuid Gavin {DG} jumped on to the stage and the energy was palpable. He started to talk about his own influences and here's where it gets really cute. He shared a photo of a garden in Rathfarnham he knew + loved when he was a kid, which made a statement...

"We all want to make statements" {Quote + Photo: Diarmuid Gavin}

Can you just about make out the gnomes?? There's a statue of Budda in there too. I don't know why but it's not exactly what I was expecting! But, it stands out. He spoke of other influences such as Landscape Architect, Capability Brown, and the possibly more kooky examples of Star Trek + Willy Wonka to name a few. "Shadow, Light and Natural Landscapes" {DG} were highlighted also. He introduced me to a 'garden' that I hope to visit one day. It's a Repurposed Train-Track in New York City, called the 'High Line'...

"Anything that's dramatic, I love" {Quote: DG | Image: Pinterest}


It took my breath away. He mentioned that he loved "...gardens that float or are in unexpected places" {DG}. He shared some images of gardens he had designed...

His Chelsea Flower Show win is probably one of his most famous designs + words can't express how much I love it! "Creating Gardens is all about Controlling Space" {DG | Image www.interiorsdirectory.com}

2 designs also stood out for me: A Coastal Retreat in Ireland and a Penthouse Terrace in Altringham, Cheshire (...designed for a famous footballer, but he couldn't reveal who!!) and can be viewed at www.diarmuidgavindesigns.co.uk . And I was so inspired that I've added two more books to my ever-growing-wish-list (which just happen to include another Designer I admire!) :

He spoke of so much more: showing + describing his plans for his OWN garden at home in Ireland & talked about the designing of the challenging space for the garden at Temple Street Children's Hospital, Dublin. He finished the talk with some advice: to create something that suits you, to have fun with gardens and "...if possible, make people smile" {DG}. And what does the early bird also catch? Well, Diarmuid was only setting up when I arrived and very kindly posed for a pic, so, this budding Interior Designer went home with a smile xx

A little Monday Morning Chat!

Good Morning! I normally start off my week on my Facebook page with a little 'Hi' after the weekend & this mornings was getting pretty chatty, so I decided to pop it into a blog! Hope your weekend was fab? Ours was a flurry of Birthday parties {Yay!} and a Goodbye party {Sniff!}...So, it's a tired Hilda greeting you today!

It's Our Bedroom that I'm concentrating on this week. It needs an 'Autumn Clean' as I just realised that, out of all of the areas in the house, my vision for this room is the foggiest...I have some ideas of course, but I have chopped and changed on just how much colour I want to introduce. I had thought of a beautiful blast of Chinoiserie wallpaper behind our bed, but then, as I lay in bed one morning, a little "over tired" {Irish Code for Severely Hungover} from the night before, I felt maybe it may be a little too much. I enjoyed the Calm & Serenity that our nearly All White Bedroom was giving me...So! I'm going to Chronicle my little Bedroom Journey. There may be chops & changes but hey, that's the process and I may ask your advice a little along the way too. For the moment, I'm thinking mostly Neutral with some bursts of Colour but it's exactly HOW much colour that will remain to be seen. Here's my first glimpse of 'Pinspiration' - I love the Lamp, the Textures, the Glam feel it's evoking...You? And I've also popped up the original image that made me a Chinoiserie convert. So, See you back here soon for more bedroom fun! Oo'er Missus!!

www.decorpad.com

www.housebeautiful.com

Share It Friday #2

Friday? Again? Hope you've had a great week. Mine's been busy but good and here's a little round up of what's caught my attention + what I've been up to!

The lovely Marian from www.herbicarni.com has just announced a list of very exciting cooking demo's with Miele at City West Business Camp. Hope to make at least one myself! To book, click on the above link.

Candle Crush #1 from amazing Irish company www.gildandcage.com And they are €3 each. Yup. You read that right!

Candle Crush #2 is a limited edition and a collaboration from two of my favourite companies: Dyptique  +  Liberty London. Photo Source: Dyptique

Tiger Stores Ireland came up trumps yet again with these Ceramic knobs, retailing at €2 each. There is quite a selection. This is the combination I choose!

...And here's one in situ! On the door under our stairs which shall be  'made over' further; just haven't decided exactly what to do yet! {It will most likely involve wallpaper/paint!}

When I saw these Geometric Bowls from Dunnes Stores on line, I instantly fell in love with them.  They fit in beautifully with the Colour Clash that is occuring in my Dining Area!

I just couldn't resist popping up a pic of the beginnings of my Paleo breakfast the other day-just to show you how pretty everything looks in them + I love the deepness!

I repurposed a frame I recieved at the recent wedding I attended and popped a postcard in it that I  got at the Parisian Costume Exhibition at the Chester Beatty Library, Dublin Castle way back in March. I have 3 other postcards and they are going to go up in my downstairs loo!

Just to show you what the frame will look like against a sample of Farrow & Ball's Silvergate: my chosen wallpaper

#fridayfunny Courtesy of Clontarf Wines; photo taken by me!
Have a great one!! And, as always, I love to hear your feedback xx

A Country Church, A Family Wedding & Waterford Castle

Once Upon a Time...A girl who loves Design went, with her little family to a family wedding. They were blessed and privileged to be invited. The wedding was in a Country Church in Crook, Passage East, Waterford. The reception was in Waterford Castle {www.waterfordcastleresort.com} and they stayed in the Golf Lodges there. The Bride is French - Canadian and the beautiful motif on their Invitations, Wedding booklet & Cake reflected this. The happiness + love filled the Castle. On the way home, she stopped at a café and took a photo of some words on the wall which seemed apt & rang true. This is her story. They are only beginning theirs♥

All photo's © Hilda by Design