Your CartI love this month of May! Do you?
I can’t quite believe that May is already here, but I’m so grateful for this gorgeous month. Around here at FrenchGardenHouse, May is a month filled with beautiful days, warmer weather, and lots of sunshine. The garden is filled with an abundance of flowers.
My FrenchGardenHouse in the back garden is covered with our sweet little pink climbing rose, Cecille Brunner. It grows so fast, it’s intertwined itself with the old gingko tree, and I haven’t had the heart to cut it out yet, since there are so many little roses. When I open our bedroom curtains in the morning, this is what I see.
On my walk around our neighborhood, our neighbor’s gardens are filled with colorful blooms as well. May…it’s pretty much perfect here in Southern California!
I know that if you have visited me for a while, you get that I’m not really a real gardener. I’m more of a waterer…leaving the real gardening to my John. I do, however, buy plants, plan borders, fill pots with colorful seasonal flowers, and “decorate” my outdoor rooms to my hearts content.
I love spending time in both of our gardens, in front of our house, and in the back! Because all of my BFF’s are “real” gardeners, who love nothing more than digging in the soil and planting things, and many of my clients adore gardening too, I’m always looking for beautiful gardening antiques, and gardening aprons and handy little gardening gifts for our French GardenHouse shop.
Arles French Country Garden Carrier
This year, our garden collection is really proving to be extremely popular with all of you! Thank you! I’ve had sons and husbands call and order up a storm of every single thing related to gardens for their Mom or wife for Mother’s Day, and many of my favorite gardening helps have sold out.
Luckily, I was able to re-order some, and most of these are now back in stock! One of the things I am most excited about are these French Country style zinc carriers. I’ve had a few emails and a conversation or two with some of you avid gardeners about what a “real” gardener wants, and this zinc carrier is one of the results of those conversations.
I love them because they are lightweight, sturdy, and have four handy compartments for tools, string, gloves, seed packets and smaller pots. Stenciled by hand with the name of some of our favorite towns in the Provence, France in Blue, this one is Arles, the town Vincent van Gogh loved so much. It is perfect to take to the garden, but it works in your home for storage too.
French Country Digne Zinc Garden Carrier
I’ve had several made for just for us, this one is stenciled with DIGNE, another great town in the Provence area famous for its open air markets, potter, and healing hot springs and spas. The wood handle means it will never hurt your hands when carrying heavy pots inside.
Of course there is nothing like the charm of a true antique French garden carrier, this one was used at a community garden, it has the allotment plot number stenciled on it still.
Antique French Metal Garden Tote
I love decorating our outdoor potting bench with antique and vintage pots, too. Planted with pretty spring flowers, or even unplanted, they make me smile each time I see them. I’m always wondering who used them to pot up their favorite flowering plants or herbs long ago.
Although these aprons were specifically made for gardeners, I wear mine doing all sorts of chores. I love both of these. The half apron is so very handy, for tools for the garden, but also when doing crafts, and I always need a pocket for my glasses and phone too!
The full apron is made of oil cloth – it’s perfect for cooking, crafts and everything else. I’ve been painting our outdoor planters and the oilcloth gives me full confidence that I won’t get paint all over myself. Oh, and yes, of course, this one is perfect for gardening. {I feel like a true gardener when I wear it, even when I’m just dead-heading the pansies!}
Ps. If you watch Netflix, have you seen these two gardening shows? My favorite one is LOVE YOUR GARDEN. Alan Titchmarsh hosts this uplifting show in which he and his team travel the U.K. planting dream gardens for deserving people.
What they are able to do is amazing, I’ve actually learned things about gardening along the way {yes, ME!} and the people they’ve chosen to plant a garden for, well, they are deserving and then some, and the resulting garden will make such a difference in their lives. {Even Mr. FrenchGardenHouse has been known to pinkie away a few tears once in a while.}
Show #2 is called BIG DREAMS SMALL SPACES in which garden writer Monty Don helps England’s budding horticulturists plant and grow the gardens of their dreams. If you love gardening, or just sitting in the garden and enjoying it like I do, you will love these two shows.
I hope you’ve enjoyed the garden post today, brought to you by someone who LOVES her garden, is not really a true gardener, but cheers all of you who are on in every way she can!! And loves giving gardening gifts and sending gifts along to your gardening friends.
By the way….did you know that I can send a lovely hand written note with your personal message with every gift order you wish to send from FGH to your beautiful family and friends? It’s such a joy for me to take the time to do so, selecting a pretty note card for the one receiving your gift, and writing your thoughtful and loving message on it, then sealing it in the envelope, always hoping it makes your gift that much more exciting to receive!
Before I forget, I have a WINNER for the great book by Kristy Woodson Harvey and a bottle of sparkling goodness! Our winner for this GIVEAWAY is JEAN VAN!!
Congratulations!! Kristy will be mailing you your prize just as soon as I hear back from you about your address. Thank you ALL so very much for joining in and leaving such lovely comments. I cherish each one, it makes us feel like a circle of friends.
See you next time!!
à bientôt
Lidy, your garden is so beautiful! You are so fortunate to be in Southern California where the light and temperature seems to be so perfect.
Sharing and pinning your pretty post. 🙂
Your garden is very inspiring! Now I can’t wait to finish my coffee and get outside in mine.
Yes, I love May, and your garden is so lush and lovely. Of course, you know how to accessorize a garden int he best ways with your finds!
I see we love all the same plant Lidy, especially Cecile Brunner. I’ve had one for years and years. Sadly my arbor fell apart and haven’t been able to afford a new one but I was lucky to be able to save the roses. Nothing smells like a Cecile Brunner rose. Also I see an abundance of Japanese Anemone, hydrangea etc. All looks beautiful. My garden is “stuffed” but as I get full sun mostly,by June it will be pretty dried up.If all goes well I’ll be in UK by then enjoying the summer of amazing gardens. We have a caravan in Scotland with lots of pots that will need filling again – I doubt if much survived the hefty snow they had right up until last month. But…there is a very old house dating back to 1600s where the community gardeners sell their plants. Can’t wait to walk through orchards of 400 year old pear and apple trees. TMI as you say in US…..Stay well. Love Janet
Janet, your Scotland summer home sounds just so beautiful! How fortunate you are to be able to go every year! Happy gardening friend.
Lidy, a lovely post. I am a bit crazy for the garden. It is so rewarding to gaze upon your hard work and enjoy fabulous blooms. It is amazing to see all your beautiful things in bloom. I love your Cecille Brunner climbing into your gingko. The gingko is my favorite tree.
Here in North Central West Virginia, spring is still trying to arrive. Although, we have the promise of her arrival this week. All the peonies are still in tight bud and I am praying the frost didn’t visit my Jasmine.
Happy Gardening Lidy!
Sandra, I so love peonies, how lucky you are to be able to grow them. I too hope the frost didn’t visit your Jasmine, jasmine is so heavenly once it’s blooming, isn’t it?
So now I’m envious of your garden too. Waking to that view would be a dream come true for sure. Just want to add that garden lovers can tune in to P Allen Smith’s show on PBS to get lessons on gardening and he cooks sometimes.
Alice, I’ve watched P Allen Smith on PBS too. It’s on Saturday on our local station, during the day, so I’m not often able to catch it. But it’s a good show too, thanks for adding it.
I so enjoyed this post! Gardening is a passion of mine and I so loved these beautiful pictures! I am particularly enamored with your Cecille Brunner climbing rose and your potting table with that magnificent rose next to it! Thank you! Now if only we could smell all those delightful fragrances! Oh,
and congratulations to Jean Van for winning the contest!
Your garden is just beautiful. My problem with gardening is simple: the reality is always less than my “vision” of what will happen this summer! Thank goodness the roses perform like champs and the hydrangeas will look spectacular! And the spring bulbs never let me down.
Be still my heart the zinc carriers are so wonderful!…I love your gardens as I know that they are truly beautiful and a pleasure to be in. The climbing rose is magnificent…cannot imagine how wonderful it is see this beauty first thing in the morning!….Love your potting bench so perfectly styled with your garden pretties! Enjoy your gorgeous weather!!
Thank you Shirley, I do cherish the view! Our garden is tiny compared to yours, and it’s planted to within an inch of its life, it’s a constant source of natural beauty for us.
I am so envious of your garden and pretty roses! It would be heavenly to walk out thievery morning.
All of your garden items are perfect for gifts, and maybe the occasional reader (!!!). I love the caddy and the apron.
Its almost that time here in the Midwest to get out the garden gloves. Happy May, Lidy!
Jane
Oh Lidy what an amazing backyard you have! That is how I dream of our backyard looking some day but I have no idea where to even begin.
Congrats Jean Van! I hope you enjoy The Secret To Southern Charm & One Hope wine!
Lovely garden photos… My sister misses her California garden filled with flowers and vegetables. How wonderful to gather a bower of Cecille Brunner roses to bring inside.
Judith
Stunning! What a sight as I read this on a very rainy cold Michigan morning. Thank you Lidy!!