Modern Gardens - October

Dark
FLORALS
Stylist SELINA LAKE is the author of seven
best-selling books. Here, she shares her inspirational
styling ideas, glorious garden buys and on-trend,
easy craft projects with you every month
The trend in fashion for dark florals
works in the garden too, bridging the
gap perfectly between the last days
of summer and the start of autumn.
October is my birthday month and I always
like to celebrate with a party. I love the idea of
using the dark florals catwalk trend for an
evening soirée, and calling it Midnight Garden.
If you think that evening garden get
togethers are only for balmy nights in high
summer, think again. If you wrap up warm
against the evening chill, light a firepit or other
form of outdoor heating and add lots of
candles, you can create a cosy space that’s
perfect for a special evening gathering.
Although the leaves are starting to turn
from green to gold in our garden, we still have
lots of flowers blooming. The gorgeous
dahlias, particularly my favourite, ‘Cafe au Lait’,
have been putting on a fabulous show since
July, as well as the cosmos in chocolate, white
and pink that I grew from seed. The more I
cut, the more they come. I will be picking the
last remaining flowers and arranging them for
the party. If you’re planning a little get together
of your own this month, make sure you
snap up some black candles from Tiger
(tigerstores.co.uk) and add a few cosy
blankets to set the scene. Here are some
more ideas to inspire you…
Selina
Moody hues
Match party accessories to your dark floral
theme with the Talking Tables Baroque range
(talkingtables.co.uk) of paper plates, cups and
napkins, from £3.49. This collection features
elegant floral prints by Dutch painter Rachel
Rysch, who specialised in painting flowers.
Flower decoration
Give home-grown cut flowers their
last hoorah with this simple decoration.
You will need a galvanised steel
bucket, a dish or plate, jam jars or
bottles, a black candle in a short holder
and some flowers. I used a mix of
cosmos, zinnias, pansies and heathers
from my garden.
Place the dish in the centre of the
bucket and position the candle in
the holder in the middle. Fill the jars
and bottles with water. Add the
flowers and loosely arrange them
around the candle for a dramatic look.
Trending
now
Floral prints and patterns have
long been a favourite of
artists and designers and
as we head into autumn,
they take on a darker, more
moody tone.
PHOTO: FIGURE PICTURES FIGTREEPICTURES.COM
24 MODERN GARDENS OCTOBER 2017