Treasures close to your heart - Sac à Bolduc

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Over at Aesthetic Alterations talk has been of treasures close to your heart. I pondered this for a while whilst tending to a neglected border. A few things came to mind.

DD's christening gown, a very simple affair but made with love (and skill!) by her paternal grandmother.

DS first coat, an incredibly soft and thick duffle coat from the softest denim I have ever encountered and lined with a bright check pattern. He probably outgrew it fifteen years ago but it is still in my wardrobe.

The shoebox of family photographs which I took to a framer some years ago. I really wanted a selction of them on permanent display in the house and he kindly framed a good dozen for me. Now DD can see the grandad she never knew, uncles which she hardly sees as we live in another country, and a way of life that no longer exists, at least in our part of the world.

Last but not least, a bag I made, the "Sac à Bolduc" from the title.
For a long time, I have been admiring the design of the Marwari bag. I prefer my bags leather lined if possible and closed on top. I also baulked at the price point for an essentially fabric lined bag. But I needed a simple small messenger-style bag for errands.
Having been collecting Hermes silk scarves (on and off) for many years I have accumulated a fair amount of the ribbon Hermes uses to fasten their boxes, the Bolduc.
When DH was recovering from an operation last year I spent a few weeks at home. To while away the evenings, the bolduc and the sewing machine came out and I made myself a Marwari/Bottega Veneta inspired bag. Never did I realise just how much ribbon would be needed. Fellow scarfies from around the globe came to my rescue and sent me more. Their sheer generosity and support for my design and craft project were so helpful for me at the time.
The result whilst not perfect is perfectly wearable with a "busy" side  and a "quite side" made from the reverse of the bolduc.

Catching up

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Today is beautiful and sunny, a summer's day straight from a picture book.

I remembered that I had put my name down for a Sunday flower rota and went to raid the garden for suitable offerings.

Strong contenders were Dahlia 'Olympic Fire' and 'Bora Bora'. I settled for  orange 'Olympic Fire' and teamed it with lavender.

Olympic Fire

'Bora Bora' is really showy, an orgy of pink and yellow. Whilst I like it, it does look best on its own and in large quantities which alas were not available.

Bora Bora

Don't be fooled by the size of the picture, the flower heads on this dahlia can easily reach the size of a baby's head.

Oriental poppies are a bit of in indulgence for me. Whilst incredibly beautiful to me, they do not flower very long and don't make good cut flowers. Once finished flowering, the foliage just becomes a mess and has to be cut right back. Still, when in flower, they are stunning, so they are with me for good. The variety I grow is 'Patty's Plum', as the name suggests a plum coloured variety.

In autumn last year I had taken root cuttings, applied slug pellets and for months I watched anxiously for signs of life. In winter I promptly forgot about them.
To my surprise I saw signs of growth in Spring - and plenty of evidence of abuse by slugs. I probably potted them on a bit too early (and really should have gone for P9 rather than 2ltr pots) and was much more on the ball with slug pellets. Slow to establish they now are proper little plants, ready to be planted out in autumn

My final job for today was more seed sowing. It is easy enought to be caught up with harvesting July's bounty to forget that if you want to eat your greens in autumn and winter you need to sow now. I have sown more

• lettuce 'Merveille de quatre saisons' (have grown this lots this year and am still not tired)
• oriental spinach 'Mikado' (not tried before)
• rocket (nearly too late for it)
• coriander (dito)
• mixed salad leaves 'Niche'

High summer favourites

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I got a chance to walk past the front of the local primary school today and noticed how the purple and yellow bed is looking up.

The bed is behind a wall, so I was looking for tall plants that can be seen by parents and children alike.

The verbena bonariensis, tall sunflowers and rudbeckias are fitting the bill just fine. School has just broken up for the summer but these beauties should still strut their stuff when school opens again in September.

Another bed has a mixture of rudbeckias. Two years ago I discovered a new cultivar, Rudbeckia x hirta 'Cherry Brandy'.

It was supposed to be an annual and after a failed germination attempt I bit the bullet and bought plug plants. They gave a great show throughout summer and autumn and whenever I worked in the school garden, a passer by would invariably enquire about them.

When it came to tidying the bed, some of the plants looked in good condition, so they got away with a haircut. So glad I left them in because they now form good sized clumps.

Sous le Cedre II

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I finally had a chance to break out my new to me Sous le Cedre.

It appears this scarf has not been worn much if at all and it is still rather stiff. I love the mosaic effect along the hem and the colours are spot on for me, so glad I did not pull the trigger on the orange base I saw many months ago.

Late July bounty

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July brought lots of loot in the rectory garden and today was no exception. I harvested the first potatoes, first apples and as the herbs badly needed a trim bundles of herbs for the kitchen.

The potatoes are volunteers from last year and they were driving me mad when the foliage appeared this Spring. Who can hold a grudge though when you lift these unexpected treasures (either Lady Balfour or Cara)? There are lots more but I will lift them five pounds or so at a time. From plot to plate in hours I hope.

Due to the unexpectedly warm April this year, apple harvest has begun in earnest and the rectory's eating apples are ready to be picked. I'm not sure which variety this is, I suspect it may be Discovery. Anyway, the fruits are plump, juicy, without blemish and oh so tasty. Good job I was asked to take a bucket home.

One of the more enjoyable jobs today was to shear the herbs which are overspilling their pots. Most herbs have done very well with the exception of basil which took several attempts to sow and is still rather ... measly.

Chives, tarragon, rosemary, thymes and oregano are all doing phantastic and are tied up in little bundles ready for the rectory kitchen.



I have started to shear the lavender as it was barring the entrance to the greenhouse and I have potted up some young strawberry plants.