Tuesday, 24 April 2012

Spring Flowers and Cushions






A few spring photos of the garden from last week when the sun was out for a while. 

I have more flowers out now which I hope to capture the next time the sun comes out. 
Ha! 
Could be June at this rate!

So for those of you in the UK (and indeed anywhere else!) currently suffering under the miserable, dark, gloomy grey skies, persistent heavy rain and the chillyness that goes with all of that, 
and which depressingly seems to be our set weather pattern for the foreseeable future,  
I thought these photos might help bring a little sunshine into your day. 





and a few photos of some springlike floral cushions










What was it we used to chant as a child?

"rain, rain go away
come again another day"

and then I had to google it as I couldnt rememebr the rest, which goes.......

"Little Johnny wants to play;
Rain, rain go to Spain,
Never show your face again!"

Apparently the origins of this rhyme date back to the reign of Queen Elizabeth 1 and are connected with the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588. The attempt by the Spanish failed not only due to the swiftness of the English fleet in their smaller ships, but also due to the stormy weather scattering the Spanish ships, hence the ryhme!

For the full story  have a look at this link!















18 comments:

  1. I like the rain very much mainly because we have had such a long drought! your pictures are marvellous.

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  2. Now I always wondered why we sent the rain to Spain!!! Our rain has gone whether it's to Spain or elsewhere but we have a lovely sunny Tuesday here (so far)! :)
    Your garden pics are beautiful Gill, I love those gorgeous orange tulips and aren't fritillaries just the most amazing little flowers!
    Beautiful cushions as always!
    Happy Tuesday,
    Vivienne x

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  3. Hello Gill:
    It is always a real treat and pleasure to be reminded, as we are here, of English flowers and gardens at this time of year - something which is sadly missing in Hungary!

    It would seem, from all that we hear, that April, despite the drought, has been a very wet and gloomy month in England. We shall hope for a better May for you.

    And, we had no idea previously of the origins of the rhyme. Interesting.

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  4. What lovely flowers, I do love snakeshead fritillaries, I have a few in my garden and they're blooming away at the moment. We used to chant rain rain go away, come another washing day. I never knew the end of the rhyme or indeed it's origins, very interesting.

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  5. March winds and April showers bring forth May flowers ... Lovely photos. M x

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  6. Thank you for sharing the photos of your gorgeous garden. It has been bucketing down here today, together with cold temperatures, so your photos are just the tonic I needed.
    Anne xx

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  7. Lovely pretty post i used to sing that with my boys when they were little ;-) Love your cushions, dee x

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  8. Lovely garden pics. It's nice to see spring arriving in all it's colourful glory.
    I didn't know there was an ending to the rhyme or even a history behind it. I'm teaching about the Tudor's this term so I shall share this with my class!
    Hope Bella enjoyed her birthday and that her first driving lesson went well.
    Becky x

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  9. So many pretty flowers! The windowbox is gorgeous, and I'm completely enthralled with the delicate shape of that last flower. Your turquoise ginghan yoyo buttons are FABULOUS!!

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  10. Gill, you take the most breathtaking pictures of all the flowers. I love flowers. You honestly have a talent for capturing them in a very special way.

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  11. Hello Gilly

    The spring flowers are just beautiful.What is the asparagus like plant, so rich in colour.

    Before you know it the sun will be shining and gardens will be in bloom

    I will join you in rain rain go away rhyme
    Helen xx

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  12. thanks for the lovely comment...the exhibition is at the fashion and textile museum in bermondsey called
    Designing Women: Post-War British Textiles. It includes work by Jacqueline Groag and Lucienne Day. really fabulous stuff if you like vintage textiles.....my colleague suggested it was just a load of unpicked curtains!!

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  13. A much welcomed blog post Gill! I adore those snakes head fritillary (Spelling?) They are just amazing the way they are coloured. Such pretty, pretty flowers!

    And your cushions are awesome! You always make me think "I must do more!!" :o)

    Happy happy day my dear.
    Take care,
    Love Donna x

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  14. I enjoyed seeing all your gorgeous flower pictures in this post, Gill! I love the colourful tulips, and the fritillaries always look so sweet and as if they've been hand painted! Your cushions are lovely too, the fabrics are so fresh and spring like.
    Hope the rain does go away...the rest of that rhyme and it's meaning was very interesting to hear about.
    Have a happy day!
    Helen x

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  15. Ah, lovely! I have really been getting in to tulips lately but daffodils remain my absolute favourites. Yes, grey skies going on and on... not nice.

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  16. Hi my friend...I am not sure if my first comment went through so will leave another one. Your last tulip photo is stunning...well they all are.
    Thank you for your sweetness over the cushions...I will keep watching your shop as I am sure the perfect one will be found there to match my others in my home. Hugs. xoxoxo

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  17. Lovely shots! I wish our gardens were that vibrant already!

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Thanks for visiting and for taking the time to leave a comment - I love to read them!
Gill x