Flower Show Awards & Bitch Slaps
Hello m' red carpet luvas,
I know to do what we do, you gotta be able to take people heckling you over the garden wall, saying stuff like "eh, you've left your fog lights on your car", or "I saw I rat by the compost heap yesterday", deliberately distracting words such as "would you like some freshly baked chocolate beetroot cake". And you gotta be able to take it when people say you are crazy for talking to plants. In this business, you gotta have to be able to have people disrespecting you, saying the previous owners had the garden lawn looking all pristine and immaculate, and you gotta smile and you gotta pretend like its ok. Well this is a beautiful moment. *I just want to say thank you to all you lovely readers for wishing me luck and ....... [cue over riding exit music].....
*Large portions stolen from Will Smith's 2022 Oscar Speech
Disclaimer: no real 'bitch slaps' were handed out in the making of this post. That's just silly.
Ok, so I didn't get to do a speech, but I did get FIRST PRIZE in Falmouth Spring Flower Show's bowl or miniature garden (succulent or cacti) category!!! GET IN!!! and other such related football talk. There were only three entries, so I was guaranteed to get a certificate, but enough of that, I beat Cormac and that's what matters (Cornwall Council's Gardeners).
Before we get to the awards section, let's take a moment to stop by the bench, as Ann in Antwerp (Polyester Princess) would say, and take a look at what I was wearing. Ol' Glass Eyed Mumrah assured me that she had taken a good picture -
It's ok, Mumrah insisted she'd got a better shot the second time...
Well, I think she absolutely nailed it, don't you? I've told her she must enter the 'finger over the lens' themed photography class at next year's show.
Now, on to the serious business of my sole winning entry -
Of course the kids did some kiddywinkle entries, but stay on me, this is all about MEEEEEEEEE (said like Professor Brian Cox) -
The pretty mini floral arrangement below came from one of my 2019 show competitors (who is the sister of an old teenage boyfriend, small world 'eh). I saw her during the week and she said "Where were you, I was counting on you entering something!". I said I was far too busy conquering the mini succulent garden category, but rest assured, I would return next year to the mini florals arena!
As usual, there was a fierce contest in the springy sprig categories between Tremough, Cormac, Falmouth Town Council and Trebah Garden.
A beautiful winning Magnolia from Tremough garden (snapped in situ last week here)-
Of course there were plenty of Rhododendrons too, but I'd like to save them for an upcoming Rhododendron special!
Some more floral entries bursting off the stands, like Carol Klein's wavy expressive arms -
This flower's not real. It is made from recycled materials. Isn't it great!
Camellias, pansies and daffodils -
The flower show has a long history dating back to 1910, when ladies wore fabulous hats and men had fabulous mustaches. Princess Christian, Queen Victoria's daughter, opened the first one.
Polar explorer Ernest Shackleton opened the flower show in 1912, the same year the Titanic sunk. Shackleton had given a lecture showing ice pack and ice berg slides from his attempted 1907-1909 South Pole expedition. That year, the flower show committee donated half of the show's takings to the Mayor's Titanic Distress Fund. Three years later, on another Antarctic expedition, Shackleton and his crew would abandon the ice trapped Endurance. This was astonishingly recently found at the bottom of the Weddell Sea, in miraculously good condition.
Above (pink arrow): Shackleton by the Falmouth Pavilion bandstand.
Is it just me ? - Does Ernest Shackleton look a bit like Andy Burnham (Mayor of Greater Manchester) in this picture -
The Falmouth Pavilion Edwardian bandstand, as it looked on Saturday -
#bandstandappreciationsociety
Canary Island Date Palms (Pheonix canariensis)
Good job little squirts!
My grandmother told me that talking to plants is absolutely essential. I can imagine that having people comment on one's garden must be trying. Any kind of competition is a challenge.
ReplyDeleteA beautiful weekend weather for a summer snow for sure, though.
I just love that sea view!
That mini succulent arrangement really stole my heart.
Your outfit is fabulous. The maxi tartan dress is beautiful and I love your leather bag bag. Is it hand made?
Cornish snow looks like fun:). It was a pretty sunny day I see, possibly too sunny for snow to stick. We don't usually get snow at low altitudes here, but on the hills and mountains (anywhere higher up really), it can be found during the winter month. That's great because when you're craving snow you can just hop in the car and go look for it.
To answer your question, I'm fine and just about to get myself that cuppa. :)
Good ol' grandmother Ivana ❤ ❤ ❤ I should point out that I have wonderful neighbours - the best that one could get - and I love all the banter that happens over the garden wall. Sometimes we have funny shouted conversations from four or five houses away !
DeleteI've had that old brown leather satchel for years, from before The Cambridge Satchel Company revived them and put on a hefty price tag. I'm not sure if it is handmade - the stitching looks machine done possibly - hmmm, but it must be hand assembled. It could do with a little leather conditioner and TLC.
You are lucky in Croatia to have the best of both worlds - mild coast and snowy mountains. Thank you for your kind words and I'm glad you grabbed that cuppa xXx
Congratulations! Your succulent garden is exquisite and I love the artistically placed drift wood. I'm so glad those Cornish types saw sense and gave you first prize. I bet you're planning next year's entry already! Your outfit is definitely Oscar worthy too. (Thumb over the lens photos really should have their own genre. That made me chuckle). The Will Smith story is going to run and run I think. Any sympathy I might have had for Will Smith evaporated when he started crying and talking about the pressures of fame. As my great grandfather inexplicably used to say in his Black Country accent: "He wants hitting on the 'yed with a puddin' bag." Anyway....a very impressive array of flowers on display in Falmouth and how fascinating to read that Shackleton opened the first one. He was my late Dad's hero. He would, like the rest of us, have been enthralled by that footage of The Endurance. He does look a bit like Andy Burnham too. More bandstand shots? You're spoiling us! xxx
ReplyDeleteThank you Claire :) I have a stash of collected driftwood that needed to be used! Of course I am thinking about next years entry / entries ;) It used to be my dad banned from taking photos, due to the thumb over lens method. Mumrah is meant to be the better photographer :0 When I was a child, I had a thumb for a head.
DeleteI think it was the third show that Shackleton opened, only because he had a friend in the area (MP Sydney Goldman of Flushing). He is know to have said he was more at home opening a tin of sardines than a flower show.
Lulu xXx
P.S. Haha, I love that 'yed with a pudding bowl phrase!
Your succulent garden is gorgeous and well done for winning first prize. I love that you shared the history of the show you are walking in the footsteps of luminaries. Ernest Shackleton was an inspirational person, I have read so many books about his life and I never cease to be amazed by what he achieved, I am always left with the impression that he merely thought he was doing the right thing, I am feel sure that is why he was such a great leader. I think I might just have missed something on the Will Smith speech, your words on that have gone over my head, I will fetch them back and go look that up.....
ReplyDeleteThank you SM :) It was great that they displayed old historical pictures and articles at the show. I think what you say about a leader seeking to do the right thing is very poignant and can seem quiet alien today, when too much leadership seems to be driven by personal gain. I think I must now watch a couple of programmes that I missed about Ernest Shackleton. Of course, a book is always better :) You have only missed lots of silliness on my part, and Will Smith's part, with the Oscar reference ;) xXx
DeleteGet in, indeed! I'm so proud of you, Lulul! Your succulent garden is absolutely lovely and so deserved to win, it's gorgeous from everyu angle a bit like you in that bobby dazzler of a frock. Nice photo, Mumrah!
ReplyDeleteUseless fact, I spent a large portion of my working life in the John Lewis building in Birmingham when it stopped being a shop.
The kiddiwinks did a cracking job with their paintwork!
Ernest Shackleton does look rather similar to lovely Andy Burnham.
I wish this snow would do one, I'm so over thermals! xxx
Arghh, thanks Vix ! :) Monsieur joked that I really did manage to get the mini garden from every single angle (hmmm, was he insinuating there were too many pictures maybe..). I wondered if you knew the Birmingham building, but how funny - you worked in it!!! I am very proud of the kiddiwinkles, plus the project kept them quiet for a little bit ;) The Shackleton - Burnham eye and eyebrow resemblance is uncanny! Be gone the snow and the thermals... xXx
DeleteDear Lulu
ReplyDeleteHuge congrats on your excellent and well deserved first prize! A lovely post too. It's been snowing and hailing on and off for the past two days so far...roll on Spring!
Have a great weekend
Best wishes
Ellie
Bless ya, thank you Ellie :) Brrrr, I am very cold right now, but I am crunching icecubes :0 Bring back the spring, or 'nearly spring' as you call it !; ) xXx
DeleteFirst of all, I am not at all surprised at you winning FIRST PRIZE for your succulent mini garden, as it is absolutely exquisite! Such a shame you didn't get to do a speech though. That one would have been a winner too. And let me express my appreciation for stopping by the bench and showing you your red carpet outfit. But what, no hat? As for the photos themselves, well done, Mumrah! Thank you for the shout out, by the way.
ReplyDeleteWell done kiddiwinkles too!
Exuberant blooms all around. I'm still chuckling about Carol Klein's wavy expressive arms here. xxx
I know, how rude, I had the speech planned and everything Ann! ;) It's a shame I didn't have a feathery, flamboyant hat to wear. The ladies in the old Edwardian photos had fabulous ones. I'm glad you liked the red carpet bench moment, totally inspired by your good self. I had a bit of chuckle at Gardeners World on Friday night - gotta love Carol. Thanks m' luverly xXx
DeleteHuzzah! Jolly good show! Congratulations all round😁xx
ReplyDeleteThank you Kate! Greatly appreciated :) :) :) xXx
DeleteAndy Burnham needs to get himself on Ancestry, that guy has to be related! Congratulations on your winning entry - it looks packed with interesting succulenty things and I would be proud to have it displayed in my conservatory any day... you look lovely in the photo (with a big bag ready to carry away your winners certificate) ... Can we have a pic of one eyed Mumrah one day please by the way? (without finger over lens) ... So neighbours heckling you is something I haven't encountered over the fence, they are no competition for me luckily - both sides have lots of mud and a lawn, no flowers, bbq takes pride of place ... sterile ... if only we could knock fences down and all share and make it jungly and wild - wouldn't it be wonderful!... oops sorry, rambling a bit there - so you must enter the flower categories next year - please do :) btw that fake flower in the competition is incredible, someone must have spent hours hidden away lovingly creating that one petal at a time and it is deserving of a prize. But the biggest prize goes to Long Mizzle, clearly a very specialist category (only three people brave enough to compete) and I would display my winning certificate in my window so all the neighbours can see (and a copy in the car window too probably)... ttfn
ReplyDeleteHello Betty, if we lived closer, I'd make you a little succulent garden in an old cake tin :) Mumrah is very illusive and camera shy! One rarely sees her face - just her big bottom stuck in the air, head rummaging around in some box of vintage glass.
DeleteWe have a mix of low walls, fences and hedges here - so lots of heckling and banter between gardens. I do remember seeing a episode of Alan Tichmarsh's 'Love Your Garden' where they put up tall fences all round a 90 year old dear's back garden. I found that odd - as they'd previously said she lived on her own and loved to have a natter with the neighbours! Surely a good design would have involved some natter holes cut out especially for 'FenceTime' as a friend calls it :0 !
Glad you like the fake flower made from recycled materials Betty - I was very impressed with how beautiful it looked. Thank you, great ideas for displaying my certificate - I am off to get it photocopied, laminated, plus I may even get it printed onto a T-Shirt ! ;) xXx
Well done getting 1st place, the floral arrangements are lovely and really great photos too. Well done to the kids too, a lot of work went into their entry.
ReplyDeleteYou put a lot of work into your blog posts, such a wide range of topics too. The video amazed me, not for the lack of snow, call that snow? Pahh! No, I was amazed with your garden, palm trees, succulents and such a lot of colour already. Weve got Daffs & Primulars and that's about it.
Great blog, must have a cup of tea ready first before I read any more. David 😊 🐢 🐕
Thank you David, very kind :) I love what my kids and little nephews produced - though I am biased. It also kept them quiet for some time - so I will be sending more projects their way ;) The snow settled when we had the 'Beast From The East' - I think that's the only time the kids have played in snow. Cornish kids go nuts at the slightest sprinkle - it is such a rare sight down here. Hope the cuppa did the trick xXx
DeleteCONGRATULATION!!!
ReplyDelete(imaging singing and dancing and throwing confetti here)
your miniature garden is absolutely beautiful! so dainty and pretty and fairy tale like..... <3 <3 <3
and despite the wonky photos - you looked pretty too. the dress is very intriguing - looks like something from vivian westwood........
thanx for all the photos of the flowers and the historic ones - find the shackleton connection interesting - he´s a hero of mine (from my times i went mountaineering).
like david i grin about your cornish blizzard ;-D but your garden looks so very beautiful already!
xxxxx
Thank you so much for the singing, dancing and confetti Beate, and for the kind comments too :) Now, I wish the dress was Vivian Westwood, but it is M&S 'Holly Willoughby' - via the charity shop of course! I don't wear dresses often but I thought I'd scrub up for the occasion and this one's a good fit and very comfy.
DeleteThat blizzard got so thick at one point I couldn't see the cup of tea in front of my face ;) Great to hear Shackleton is a hero of yours xXx
So sad the snow didn't last but, of course, it rarely does so in Cornwall - but happy news that you were a winner and what a great display it is. I think your garden is special, full of character and a one off. Oh yes, it's good to talk to plants - I was just having a conversation with 'Spikey' the other day. I think he got the message and is looking quite special now, All good wishes.
ReplyDeleteThank you Mike :) Our littlest one eventually stopped crying about the no stick snow! We added a swing rope to the mini garden, so the resident fairy could cross the creek and come and go as she pleased ;) Your chat with Spikey certainly sounds like it did the job. Have a great week xXx
DeleteHuge congratulations on your win! Very well deserved I might add.
ReplyDeleteAnd that dress is so fabulous, I didn't even notice the finger over the lens :)
Hello Jules, thanks duck. It's nice to get out of the action clothes sometimes and put something swirly on, red carpet or not. I've heard the finger over the lens look is going to be très in vogue this summer ;) xXx
DeleteYou star! Sorry for late reply - been abroad - North Devon - and then to the Fella's for a few days so am way behind. Fantastic news and very well deserved. I love the dress - you look the star you are! Sorry I missed the Flower Show - will go next year. XXX
ReplyDeleteBless ya, thanks Sue :) It was so lovely to have the flower show back, I have missed it these past couple of years. Will be over soon for a catch up... xXx
DeleteLove those B&W pictures. So much history is hidden in each frame.
ReplyDeleteGlad you like them Joe :) I certainly found the history very interesting xXx
DeleteCongratulation on winning the 1st prize, you have a lovely garden and and a lot of beautiful flowers. And I love that beautiful dressof yours. It looks good on you. <3
ReplyDeleteThanks for visiting and commenting Kimberley! Nice to cyber meet ya :) xXx
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