From homes to style to food, it’s all about housekeeping! This month…
Garden-inspired beauty buys
PHOTOGRAPHY AND SET DESIGN: NOCERA & FERRI (
NOCERAFERRI.COM, @NOCERAFERRI). RETOUCHING: LAURA CAMMARATA (@LAURACAMMARATARETOUCHING)
GHI-approved fans to beat the heat
Joyful summer bags
Eco-friendly picnicware
Take two
Want to give your kitchen a dynamic look? Opt for two colours for your cabinets instead of one. Here, a lovely lush green is complemented by a warm pale pink to create visual interest and a welcoming feel. ‘Paint your main run of cabinets in one colour and your island in another,’ says Cathryn Sanders from eco paint company
Earthborn. Cabinets painted in Earthborn Claypaint in Riverbank and Thimble Lane, £61.50 for 2.5L.
Strawberry fields
The humble strawberry is no one-hit wonder — pick yourself a punnet and experiment with our favourite ways to serve this brilliantly British offering.
SNACK ATTACK
Mix Greek yogurt and honey and spread on a lined baking tray. Dot with fresh strawberry slices and freeze. Simply snap off pieces when you need a speedy healthy snack.
IN A JAM
For a quick and easy home-made jam, combine strawberries with granulated sugar and lemon juice and simmer for 15-20min, until thick and jammy.
ALSO DELICIOUS FOR BREAKFAST WHILE IN SEASON
SUMMER IN A BOWL
PHOTOGRAPHY: GETTY, STOCKSY, IN THE WHITE ROOM
Sprinkle halved strawberries with icing sugar and lemon zest and leave to macerate for an hour in the fridge. Top with Greek yogurt and granola for an easy pud.
WORDS: RACHEL LOOS, SARAH AKHURST.
BERRIES AND BUBBLES
Cook strawberries with sugar until jammy, then add gin. Leave to steep for a couple of hours, then strain the gin into cocktail glasses and top up with fizz.
DRESSED TO IMPRESS
PHOTOGRAPHY: GETTY, STOCKSY, IN THE WHITE ROOM
Spread a sheet of baked puff pastry with sweetened ricotta and top with halved strawberries – an elegant dessert on the table in under 30min.
WORDS: RACHEL LOOS, SARAH AKHURST.
Escape to the garden
Want to create a special spot in your garden? A bespoke steel louvred panel (see Maze Living for similar) makes a perfect backdrop for the birch tree, its trunks creating a striking feature (buy a mature tree from a specialist garden centre). Shade comes via a pergola in the same soft blue as the panel, with a retractable fabric roof (try Abri Home). Planting, from the white chrysanthemums to the purple toadflax, softens the entire design and adds colour.