Clouds are coming

Monday the First of June was Whit Monday, which is a bank holiday here in Belgium, making my already long weekend even longer.

Waking up feeling languid, as if hungover from all that fresh air I'd breathed on our nature walk on Sunday, I was clearly not up to doing much at all. This wasn't helped by those dreaded end-of-a-long-weekend blues and exacerbated by the temperatures, which were once again nudging towards the high twenties.

Already battling with stickiness inducing humidity quite early in the morning, I opted for breezy, lightweight fabrics in a distinctly non-vintage skirt and blouse combo. OK, I could have gone sleeveless, but that would have meant defuzzing my underarms, which would have been too much exertion for my lethargic state of mind.

The bright orange floral skirt is an old and much loved retail buy, while the thin cotton blouse was a charity shop find, originally from H&M. I think it picked up the blues in the skirt perfectly.

I defined my waist by adding a favourite tan belt, and accessorized with an orange beaded necklace and a very fragile vintage brooch, a flea market find back in August 2018.

Oh, and I just remembered I painted my toenails that day, choosing an aqua shade, so that I could at least wear sandals without having the fashion police at my heels.

Accompanied by Phoebe, who soon had enough and settled on her cushion on our garden bench, I did my daily round of the garden, checking the progress of plants and flowers and doing some light deadheading along the way. 

The Petunias I planted in one of our hanging baskets are blooming exuberantly, almost covering the basket itself. Aren't they a sight to behold?

On our previous garden centre visit, I'd succumbed to a pot of Nepeta or catmint, supposedly as a treat for Phoebe. However, after initially going mad, rubbing her head in it and chewing off a couple of leaves, she seems to be mostly ignoring it, so that I could safely plant it out in the garden.

We'd also bought a well developed Echinacea, which I'd planted in a big terracotta pot, putting some two-tone orange Tagetes and velvety purple and cream Petunias in front.  I used the pot as a stopgap between the new border and our garden bench, where the poor and sandy soil has prevented me from planting anything permanent just yet.

I was a novice gardener when we first moved to Dove Cottage, my only experience gained from our plant covered balcony high up at our twelfth floor apartment and - subconsciously - from the gardens of my childhood, in particular my paternal grandparents' enchanting little plot.

But my love affair with gardens and plants was instant and irrevocable and, even if it lay dormant for a couple of years, it's certainly back with a vengeance. And however jaded my soul is, it will be soothed by stepping out into the garden and visiting my garden friends. Currently going strong are, clockwise from top left, Gaillardia 'Wild Fire', Delphinium 'Dark Blue and White Bee', Helenium 'The Bishop' and Geum 'Lady Stratheden'.

That night, we were regaled by yet another glorious sunset, which was made even more spectacular by the murder of crows which is roosting on one particular rooftop, intermittently making short group flights, and creating a rather raucous cacophony.

My working week consisted of two consecutive days on Tuesday and Wednesday. But while Tuesday was very busy, taking me well over two hours to just go through my emails, Wednesday was quite tame and quiet in comparison.

It did start with a visit to the hairdresser, as I'd finally been able to make an appointment for a colour and cut. They even opened the salon half an hour earlier, especially for me!

Having to wear a mask - I obviously used a disposable one and not one of the nice cotton ones made by my lovely stepdaughter - was a bit weird, as was having my hair done by an alien-looking creature wearing a mask as well as a face shield. It was nice chatting to Michel, though, and he did an amazing job as always. We also marvelled at the fact that I've been visiting the salon for 25 years!

After I'd caught up with work, I felt inspired enough to don my mask and venture outside again. I popped into the post office next door to send off a surprise card to someone I won't mention as they might be reading this, and then walked to the nearest Think Twice shop. This felt even weirder than going to the hairdresser, but I wanted to continue giving them my support. 

There's a one way system and only a limited number of people are able to shop for a maximum of 30 minutes, but there were hardly any customers. I was in there for under 15 minutes, tentatively going through the racks of clothing without feeling the need to buy.

Before leaving the shop, however, I spotted this moss green vintage handbag, which is just the right size to serve as a workaday bag. Resistance was futile!

On Thursday, the sunny Summer weather which had been with us for weeks suddenly came to an end. It was cloudy and dull and quite a bit cooler, but although rain had been forecasted, precipitation was limited to some scattered drops.

The distinct lack of sunshine, however, meant that I was forced to provide my own, which I did by wearing this symphony of green, yellow and orange on white.

I accessorized the dress, a true vintage one from Think Twice, with an ochre belt and beads, and added an orange and green mottled brooch.  My ochre long line cardigan, to which I'd clipped an orange flower corsage, completed that day's outfit.

While Jos was doing the weekly food shop, I exchanged the tired looking vinyl tablecloth covering the kitchen table with a cheery wipeable one featuring lemons on a bright pink and white zig zag pattern, which I'd got when I went to buy the towels the previous week.

Instead of putting back the peeling placemats which were well past their sell-by date, I made some new ones, using transparent plastic L-folders and vintage wallpaper.

After lunch, we made a trip to the DIY store, as I've got plans to breathe new life into the vintage 1960s cane chair which lives under our awning. The chair was part of the furniture Jos and his late ex-wife started married life with back in 1968.

We bought the necessary paints (it's going to have a minty green top coat) and brushes but I'm currently awaiting better weather conditions to start the project.

Meanwhile, Jos was able to harvest some of our rhubarb and make a tiny single portion of stewed rhubarb, which he loves but I don't. 

Phoebe really is an all-weather girl, although she does draw the line to heavy rain, when she takes refuge in her box under the awning, often stubbornly refusing to come inside even when it's pelting down.

And still, regardless of the weather, flowers come and go in a dizzying parade of colours and shapes.

I do hope that the one and only flower bud in our oriental Poppy will keep from flowering until the predicted rains have come and gone. It would be such a shame if its life were curtailed and we - and the resident bees - were denied its intoxicating beauty.

I'm leaving you for now, with a view of the new border which is looking lusher by the minute. As you can see, the Nasturtiums I sowed around the obelisk are producing huge leaves, but there's no sign of any flowers as yet. I'm living in hope that some rain will do the trick.

I'll be back with more garden news and adventures in a couple of days. Meanwhile, as always, do stay safe, my friends!