About Shannon Kettleman

I’m so glad the craze for mismatched tables and chairs has passed on – there’s nothing that jars on my senses more than seeing one table in a coffee  house, with 4 completely different chairs around it.   The most annoying aspct of this was that most of the chairs had been bought as groups and could have been put round the tables in in sets of four, but they’d gone to the trouble of splitting up every suite of chairs just to be arty!   I was overjoyed last week when I popped into a vintage tea rooms in a town I don’t visit often – last time was 4 years ago, they were extreme in their quacky design of mismatched chairs.  The afternoon tea was good though and was served on gorgeous china plates – with the cake stands absolutely chocker block with all the stuff I don’t eat these days!  I remember tbut no no no  to mismatched chairs!

I went out on a spur of the moment jaunt the other day.  Having spent too many days idling after the new year holidays, I suddenly had a  “let’s go and find more garden furniture” moment.  I knew just the place I was heading for.  A decent little family run garden and plant centre some way off but always a favourite of ours.   We  had bought my  much admired and coveted patio set there some time ago.   I did eventually reach the village, but to my horror I discovered my dear little garden centre was no longer.  Instead, brasher national chain garden centre stood in its place.   The range of outdoor articles had changed and I was crestfallen at first, but then I spied exactly the thing.  A couple of really super steamer loungers that fold into themselves to make armchairs.  Ah the old adage, if at first you don’t succeed . . . . . .

One of the more interesting things about the Christmas period is the way families interact with each other.  The children tend to get on top of each other in the house, most folk staying indoors and not venturing much further out than the bins in the back garden.   The extended family gathers for the festive period and much door opening and shutting goes on.   In days gone by, before centrally heated houses, the uinversal cry “shut that ….. door” could be heard across the land at regular intervals, as the cold air from the hallway met the slightly warmed air of the sitting room.

For really effective water and heating systems to do their best for families, thought must be given to the effeciency of the systems in place.  Engaging the services of a company dedicated to these services will help us save our money and perhaps a bit of the planet in future years.

I was taking my borrowed doggy pal for walkies recently when we had to stop by a nearby house to collect something.  We were invited in with hearty enthusiasm.  It’s funny how friendly evryone is when you’re being tugged along by a small Irish Wolfhound.   I was a tad anxious about the dog being allowed in that particular kitchen.  The whole house is tue immaculate to be true but the kitchen is doubly so.  The dog was very good, but evidently wanted to go and explore the magnificent garden.  Hmm. my nerves were even more shredded when she disappeared for minutes at a time. . she was happily rummaging in the back of the shrubbery – looking for rabbits and squirrels.   It was more relaxing when she reappeared and seemed very contents to climb up on the patio sofa next to me.  It’s a lovely cane effect one with huge cushions that are firm but gently hug one.  There are two sofas and two arm chairs – all very gracious living as they match the coffee table perfectly.

At the start of spring, when the more awful of the winter weather has finally swanned off elsewhere, it can be very tempting to whizz out and buy up any old patio set for the garden.  There are so many mismatched suites gumming up the space that should be as neat and elegant as the front of house styling.  There are many suppliers of the cheaper plastic sets – these are fine for everyday when the children are haring about knocking things over but if you want to entertain in a more upmarket manner, cocktails at the yardarm and all that, then the better sets of seating are called for.  One is judged by guests if the wrong set up is visible.  There are a couple of truly awesome online sites that supply all manner of patio corner suites and table sets – they come in cane, teak, polypropelene – being unbreakable, they can withstand some fairly hefty treatment too.

When we talk about home interiors it is usually the design, colour scheme or the furnishing ensemble that takes much of our interet.  We are bombarded by television and magazine advertising campaigns to visit this store or that and to have these windows or that furniture.  There are millions and millions of pounds spent every year to entice us to do a bit of updating and as a nation, we do tend to follow that urge.

What we tend not to do very often is to look long and hard at the efficiency of the houses we live in – how much is it costing to run the house.  There are the mandatory outgoings such as council tax, water rates, energy supplies, before we even open an eyelid each day.  The latter could be greatly reduced if we also engaged the services of efficient interior design and lighting specialists to help us get the best out of our homes for now and the future.

There are many things about modern living that differ greatly from when I was growing up.  In those days   we were expected to eek out Dad’s income by growing all our own fruit and vegestables.  This was quite normal for many families anyway – there being far less shops available, we would have gone pretty hungry without the home grown produce.  We had a nice grassy patch to play on and a few paving slabs arranged outside the back door.  My parents would put out their deck chairs on high days and hiolidays.  The patio table was in fact an upturned orange or potato box with a tea towel over it.  My how much more sophisticated things are today.  With really lovely patio sets and to set off a warm autumnal evening, we can have lighting schemes to enhance the shrubbery.  Professional installation is critical to ensure safety – cutting corners is never a good idea.

When you open your garden for local village neighbours to visit for a fund raiser, it is critical to include somewhere for your patrons to sit and while away the odd few minutes with that all essential cup of tea and selection of home made cakes.   Having toured a set of gardens recently, I was struck by the care and attention to detail that some owners showed.  The tea tents varied between simple large parasol shaped shelters to full gazebo affairs.  The chairs and tables were all substantial, whether the much derided plastic sets or the full blown teak patio tables and matching chairs.    Once the oil cloth table covers, pegged to table legs, and seat cushions are in place and very gratefully being used by the hoardes of visitors, then no one actually cares a jot about the materials or age – in fact I watched some of the husbands quite clearly deciding the newer plastic chair ensembles were going to suit them and Madame’s substantial frames more safely!  These are definitely things to take into consideration if one has ambitions to join in opening the garden.

I know of a dear old lady up the road who has sadly lost her hubby this summer.  She’s trying hard to be cheerful and not get mournful but it is seriously difficult.   There were so many things they used to do together, the list seems to be endless and travelling was high on it.  They always looked out botanical type gardens in every city they visited.  There’s something calming about wandering along immaculately cared for borders, display beds and greenhouses when you’ve been travelling.  In a very hot climate these gardens are a mini oasis with lakes, ponds and other water features.  Another real benefit of visiting a garden anywhere in the world is being able to see plants growing in their own natural habitat or as near as.  Some plants in the desert struggle to exist but when transported to a city based botanical collection the staff ae trained to nurture and protect them so they keep up their survival.