Strawberry, Melon and Kiwi Fruit - a Color Palette for all seasons!

So far, April has been mostly dry and sunny - and remarkably warm for spring. 

Almost summer-like, in fact, and I've seen plenty of people in t-shirts and shorts in town, though I wouldn't go quite that far myself!

But I do have buds on some of my roses:

And it won't be long before this dark corner of my garden is brightened up by the wonderful bright blue Ceanothus; the fluffy buds are all ready to open!

More of this summer-like weather is forecast for the rest of the month so, with that in mind, here's a luscious 'Summer Fruits' colour palette that caught my eye while I was shopping -

It's a mouth-watering colour scheme 

with so many applications! 

It would give a small, dark room a warm and cosy feel, all year round. But it could equally be used with a lot of white - and maybe some black? - to bring a summery feeling to a larger, lighter room.

What would you use it for?

Looking Forward to Summer with this Seaside Colour Palette

Now that the evenings are staying light longer, it's beginning to feel as if winter really is on the way out. 

At times, the past few days have almost tempted me to get out my t-shirts and flip-flops - almost! So spring has definitely sprung - before we know it, it will be summer! And don't you think these bead necklaces have a 'summery' feel about them? 

I suppose it's partly because I can't imagine wearing a sea-shell necklace with a thick, warm sweater, but it's also because the colours remind me so strongly of days at the beach.

There are the brilliant blues of the sea and the coral pinks of crabs and shrimps, contrasting so well with the light beiges and greys of the sea-shells and pebbles! They all add up to a day out at the seaside - can't you even hear the waves and smell the sea?

I think it's amazing that we can find wonderful colour palettes so close to home - provided we keep a look out for them. So there's never any need to lack inspiration.

Could you make a pattern using this colour scheme? If you do, I'd love to see it - perhaps you could post a link to it in the comments?

Daffodils for a Beautiful Spring Colour Scheme

This clump of mixed varieties of daffodils and their soft green leaves creates a wonderfully typical Spring Colour Scheme, set off beautifully by the purplish grey of the wall in the background - 

Spring is not my favourite season of the year - I love the late summer and I even enjoy a lot of aspects of winter (apart from the bigger heating bills!) 

Years and years ago, I used to paint watercolour landscapes and they were almost always winter scenes. I love the muted browns and purples in the winter hedgerows and copses and I also like the mellow golds and browns of late summer into autumn. The spring landscape, on the other hand, seems to me too strident with its brilliant yellow/green foliage - a colour that somehow seems to irritate me. 

But I do love daffodils, especially the ones that are almost white - maybe because of the soft green of their leaves.

If I were using the colour palette above for a decorating scheme, I'd probably stick mainly to the three more subtle colours in the bottom row, with maybe some of the pale yellow and white above - and then introduce either the brilliant orange or the bright yellow as an accent.

How about you?

A Colour Palette for Early Spring

This lovely Aubretia grows on the outside of the big hedge that runs along the side of my house.

I didn't plant it and I don't know who did but I love the fact that it can be enjoyed by anyone passing by. (And I just hope that people will be understanding about the way it makes the pavement slightly narrower!)

Have you noticed that most spring flowers are either yellow (primroses, daffodils, cowslips . . .) or purple (violets, bluebells, aubretia . . .)? Crocuses, of course, can be either purple or yellow but I notice every year that it's the yellow ones that the birds prefer - sometimes they are torn to shreds!

I'd love to make a pattern using this colour palette but I have a thick folder full of 'patterns pending' so it might be a while before I get around to it.

But if you want to use this palette, please go ahead  - and I'd love to see what you make of it!

Pomegranate - Friend or Foe?

I haven't eaten a pomegranate since I was a small child.

And there's a reason! Born during WW2 and growing up during 'rationing', I can vaguely remember that imported fruits weren't always available. But somehow pomegranates found their way into my diet and I loved them, not so much for their taste as for their novelty value. Unlike other fruits, it's the seeds that we eat and it was that peculiar difference that made them so attractive to me.

But then, a week before my eighth birthday, I was rushed to hospital with a burst appendix and I found myself on the 'critical list' for a week. I can't remember who it was, but someone told me afterwards that it was eating pomegranate seeds that caused the emergency - and I took this to heart and have avoided them ever since.

But I'm sure that the pomegrate seeds weren't to blame and, reading about the potential health benefits of this rather unusual fruit, I'm tempted to give them a try again while they're still in season.

As fruit, I don't think they look particularly tempting. But their colours caught my eye in the market, ranging from cream to orange and pink to crimson, especially vivid against the bright blue of their packaging -  

I wonder how they'll taste!