I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and are looking forward to celebrating the arrival of 2014.  I can’t quite believe just how quickly 2013 flew by but now that I’ve looked back at what happened over the course of the year, it makes complete sense!

What sticks in my mind the most is the barmy weather we had.  Freezing cold temperatures lasting well into spring and then scorching hot sunny days in the summer, it was one extreme to the other and another rather confusing time for nature.

The leaves were very late to arrive but we were well into December before they fell and if we hadn’t seen stormy weather over the past couple of weeks, I wonder whether there would have been leaves on the trees over Christmas!

2013 was a great year for me and I saw the completion of five projects ranging from a town garden in Walton-on-Thames to a large informal garden in East Horsley.

All the projects had their challenges, mostly caused by the weather I might add, but I’m thrilled with the end result of each and my clients thankfully are too.

But 2013 wasn’t all about work.  I finally got to see Rome (my delayed 40th birthday present!) which was absolutely everything I thought it would be and more.

I studied Ancient History once upon a time so it was wonderful to see some of the monuments I had written essays about.  The Forum and Colosseum for me were the highlights but I’d love to go back again and see the things we didn’t have time to see.

Another highlight was being able to visit the RHS Chelsea Flower Show on press day again.  I don’t take this for granted at all, not everyone gets to see the show before it officially opens to the public.

I love getting there really early when all the exhibitors are putting the final touches to their gardens and displays, there’s a real buzz in the air.

Photography has also played a part in making 2013 a very enjoyable year.  I love the fact that writing The Room Outside gives me a reason to get out with my camera regularly.

Particular highlights of the year include a day with Robert Canis taking pictures of wildflowers in the Kent countryside and the other of course has to be winning the Loseley Park photography competition!

I hope when you reflect on what’s happened to you over the last year that it brings you good memories too and that 2014 brings you much happiness and success, whatever you do.

Happy New Year!

I’ve been dying to share the pictures of my Leatherhead project with you.  It’s been quite a while since the construction took place, but every time I’ve had an opportunity to take some photos, it’s just been too bright.
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We finally got around to doing some work in our own garden this weekend.  The sunshine and warmth helped to get the motivation going and we spent a bit of time in the front, weeding and moving a couple of things around. Read more

I spoke with one of my landscapers this afternoon because I’ve just sent over the drawings for my project near Muswell Hill.  He can’t get started on his quote until next week because he’s working on a tender for a large job in London and this will take him the majority of the week to pull together. Read more

As some of you may know, my parents have a nursery in Somerset.  They specialise in growing hardy perennials but they also sell shrubs, trees and some seasonal bedding such as primulas and violas. Read more

If you read my blog regularly then you’ll know that the construction phase has commenced at one of my projects in Leatherhead.  Sods law it rained the minute the garden was stripped out and this means that the conditions on site are now a bit challenging. Read more

The construction phase started at my Leatherhead project on Tuesday.  I’m really excited about this project because it’s quite a sloped site and the new design will make it much more usable.  The clearance work has almost been completed and the machinery arrived yesterday so work will start today setting the new levels. Read more

Last week I presented three different concept designs to a residents association in Leatherhead who are looking to improve the entrance to their estate.  The area in question is a large grass verge area which is currently quite overgrown. Read more

I presented the planting design and construction costs to my client in Leatherhead last week and we should be all ready to start the build phase of the project in March. Read more

You may remember me blogging about this project in Leatherhead a couple of months ago but I thought it would be nice to share the final designs with you too. Read more