tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post7338257288283469769..comments2024-01-18T11:39:21.989+00:00Comments on HATTATT: Come into the Garden, MaudJane and Lance Hattatthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comBlogger208125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-1685290896648791922015-03-16T16:25:23.604+00:002015-03-16T16:25:23.604+00:00Dearest Jane and Lance,
How truly happy I am for ...Dearest Jane and Lance, <br />How truly happy I am for you on this new adventure! The enchantment of a cottage and how you will transform it and the grounds with your artist eyes will be a delight to see unfold. Your accomplishments (all the books! and nationally recognized gardens- I would guess more internationally) are more than impressive. I cannot wait to see what grows from all of this. I hope your visit is proving a happy and rewarding one. I am imagining it is spring there now. Safe travels you most special of people. Love, CarolCarolhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01067132532095325169noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-43941375186890687252015-03-11T22:29:18.911+00:002015-03-11T22:29:18.911+00:00It sounds to me as though inspiration for your new...It sounds to me as though inspiration for your new enclosed garden has already struck, Jane and Lance. The photograph from Pinterest is beautifully evocative of a secret Italian garden and I look forward to the first of the 'before' photos to whet my appetite for the 'after'. Happy gardening...Perpetuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-9333015585251663192015-03-11T06:46:21.951+00:002015-03-11T06:46:21.951+00:00We are delighted to welcome you and thank you so m...We are delighted to welcome you and thank you so much for signing as a Follower. It is indeed a small world!!Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-51159053729207721942015-03-10T19:54:28.346+00:002015-03-10T19:54:28.346+00:00Just popped over from Tom Stephenson to find a pic...Just popped over from Tom Stephenson to find a picture of a book I own that you seem to have written! I love it and how small the blogging world is. Em Parkinsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04789754528697848623noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-20230255710620489092015-03-09T08:43:23.509+00:002015-03-09T08:43:23.509+00:00We are currently working on ideas for the new gard...We are currently working on ideas for the new garden and have had some exciting thoughts about the conversion of the outbuilding to a folly. Let us hope that it will all be within budget!!Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-24065586659779494462015-03-09T08:41:40.897+00:002015-03-09T08:41:40.897+00:00The books, Poppy, of which if we recall correctly ...The books, Poppy, of which if we recall correctly there were, or are, a dozen or more date from the period of our lives when we were very involved with gardens and gardening. All great fun at the time but we do not miss the work nor the responsibility.<br /><br />We are having great fun planning how the Norwich garden should be and hope to make something which whilst of interest is as low on maintenance as it is possible to achieve. The current outbuilding will, hopefully, convert to become a focal point.Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-41091821838831370932015-03-07T19:05:05.848+00:002015-03-07T19:05:05.848+00:00I look forward to seeing before and after photos o...I look forward to seeing before and after photos of your garden designing adventure, and the Pinterest photo shows a lovely scene for inspiration for you. Water feature and folly never go amiss.Terra https://www.blogger.com/profile/04396481049075747940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-76064503960771925782015-03-07T13:12:40.899+00:002015-03-07T13:12:40.899+00:00Dear Jane and Lance,
I am so surprised, (although...Dear Jane and Lance,<br /><br />I am so surprised, (although I shouldn't be), to find that you are the authors of all these wonderful books - I had no idea! That last photo of your Herefordshire garden is absolutely stunning! I don't think I would have ever left such landscape luxury!<br /><br />But, now, you have a seaside cottage awaiting you, (and we are eagerly awaiting pics!), whose garden space needs some strategy, and I know you will decide on the most beautiful design, in the end, to complement its existing architecture, surroundings, and air.<br /><br />Best of luck and keep us updated!<br /><br />Poppy<br /><br />Poppyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08980323586402386609noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-19458372709105665392015-03-06T14:08:26.074+00:002015-03-06T14:08:26.074+00:00Would it be too much to hope that you might set yo...Would it be too much to hope that you might set your phone to "Record" as you step through the gate? A simple walk to that new, promising door, and the sound of your voices, just once, as you gaze on your prize.<br /><br />I'd be so excited I'd leave phone on the train, dash out of the car in front of everyone, and run quite out from beneath my hat in my headlong rush.<br /><br />And that would be for a week's rental, should there ever be one again.<br /><br />I'd be past bearing with a deed and a key.<br /><br />I love that you're having this adventure, and that you so kindly share.<br /><br />rRachelDhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11204947567574886675noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-22843512126238540542015-03-06T11:33:19.369+00:002015-03-06T11:33:19.369+00:00How kind of you to refer to our possible foolishne...How kind of you to refer to our possible foolishness in buying a house unseen as 'exciting news', Elizabeth, but we are much buoyed up by it!! It is now only a matter of days before we see exactly what we have bought but at this point we remain hopeful!!<br /><br />To have a garden again is something to which we look forward although it will have to be very, very low maintenance as it must be capable of being left for long periods. After 25 years, which we are certain you can readily appreciate, we do not miss the work and responsibility of a large, formal garden which was regularly open to the public.<br /><br />You too have a peaceful and restful weekend.Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-65924943967153311292015-03-06T11:26:31.023+00:002015-03-06T11:26:31.023+00:00Dearest R,
We do so hope that it will all prove t...Dearest R,<br /><br />We do so hope that it will all prove to be as idyllic and straightforward as you portray. Whatever, shortly we are leaving for the UK, will post our whereabouts, and so it will not be long before we know exactly what we have been wise or foolish enough to have bought!<br /><br />You have, we know, had the most dreadful of winters and you must, by now, be so looking forward to the arrival of spring. Here it continues to be cold, but not terribly so, and we too are seeing much in the way of sunshine. If anything we seem to have endured days of wet which is quite unusual in Budapest.<br /><br />You are wonderfully romantic and we should not wish to shatter your illusions as to life in an English cathedral city. We rather suspect that for many of today's clergy 'The Church' is a business to be kept afloat during difficult times allowing little opportunity for taking tea with parishioners. <br /><br />Now, lured by this talk of wine.....!! Be careful, you may find yourself with our knocking on the door!! You too take care. xxxJane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-23755446378227581232015-03-05T18:33:00.517+00:002015-03-05T18:33:00.517+00:00Lance and Jane,
I do not know how I have missed a...Lance and Jane,<br /><br />I do not know how I have missed all of your exciting news...never mind, I am here now. Congratulations on your new house! I am intrigued by the prospect of purchasing a house "sight unseen" and hope it all works out for the best.<br /><br />I think the small desolate garden will be a wonderful challenge after your break from gardening. Funny that after 25 years you did not miss it even a little. <br /><br />Have a wonderful weekend! And congratulations again!Elizabeth@ Pine Cones and Acornshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06044933540074342177noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-28143197630336574922015-03-05T17:27:39.026+00:002015-03-05T17:27:39.026+00:00What a bright prospect to continue this New Year! ...What a bright prospect to continue this New Year! I imagine your alighting from the train at your new town, coming anew to the place meant for you, as you open that welcoming gate and step onto the grass of Home, planning all the while those sumptuous Dairy-Queen sculpts and cunning nooks for a cup of tea or a chat or a book. Possibilities before you untold.<br /><br />I hope you're staying well and warm over there, wheresoever you are at the moment. Our views vary from vast white cushiony wastelands, to bleak frozen clumps breaking through, to sodden spaces of brown and gray, sere grass and forgotten lawn chairs seeing the light of day for the first time since Christmas. We're sunny lots of days, with the rays streaming down the stairs promising much and delivering an uplift of spirits and energy. Bur SOOOO Cold.<br /><br />Do keep care of each other, stay warm and well, and enjoy every minute of this bright new place you're going to make and mark your own. Such lovely beginnings, and I'm smiling at the whole prospect of place and time and atmosphere in a place I've longed to live. Do say the vicar has visited, and the Ladies' Garden Society, and you've been invited to tea at five places soon as you're settled.<br /><br />A small, bustling, very smart older lady in an interesting hat, a village fete at a Great House, a few evenings of whist and music, an invitation to a Small Dance, and I can deliver you happily into their hands, secure that you're HOME.love and,<br /><br />r<br /><br />PS When you visit, there WILL be WINE---Caro likes it, and there are quite a few bottles about the house at all times. And Chris had quite the reputation in our small Alabama town for his Muscadine Wine, as well as Pear Cordial and The Infamous Christmas Champagne. And I DO confess a fondness for a wee glass of tawny port on a snowy evening.<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-36206351272687876762015-03-04T14:08:29.145+00:002015-03-04T14:08:29.145+00:00Welcome Ann and how pleased we are that you have f...Welcome Ann and how pleased we are that you have found your way here via our dear friend Madelief. We shall now have great pleasure in seeking you out in Blogland although from what you write, we are to be near neighbour's in the real life too!<br /><br />How kind of you to mention 'Gardening with Colour', a curious book for us to have written given that we spent most of our time in Herefordshire removing anything 'colourful' from the garden. That is every colour except green, of course, which we found ourselves often having to remind people was and is and ever shall be a colour!<br /><br />We hope that you will continue to be interested in what we write and look forward to your returning.Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-17164957273231271552015-03-04T12:34:07.208+00:002015-03-04T12:34:07.208+00:00Hello Jane and Lance, having come across your love...Hello Jane and Lance, having come across your lovely blog via Madelief (how did I not find you before now?!), I was excited to read of your garden plans for your terraced house in Norwich which is near to me. I adore that type of property which, as you say, are all over beautiful Norwich. I am looking forward to seeing and reading about the results. (I have a well-used copy of Gardening with Colour on my bookshelf!). Ann Anna @Suffolk Pebbleshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04229313451402371443noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-73171717512044421512015-03-04T08:42:36.626+00:002015-03-04T08:42:36.626+00:00Darling G, we are so very touched by the quotation...Darling G, we are so very touched by the quotation. If the garden we produce can live up to this in any small way, then we shall be the richer emotionally for it. Let us hope.....<br /><br />We know the garden at Garsington well. The perfect backdrop as it now is for opera in the garden which the current owners occasionally hold there. Now, that will be an idea......the outhouse as the artist's studio in La Boheme.....or, perhaps as a Chinese house in Madame Butterfly.......so many possibilities, but there go our imaginations running away with us, not to mention the pound notes with them!<br /><br />You are so right to encourage us to continue to experiment rather than stay to the tried and tested routes. Plants which work well, no matter how mundane they may appear, have always held a special place in our hearts. There is no point in cosseting precious gems which do not grow strongly when a sea of Alchemilla Mollis, for instance, will provide a breathtaking show all year round. Derek Jarman's garden is indeed an inspiration to us all and we shall recall this when tearing our hair out at what to do with our barren plot!<br /><br />But, joy of joys, a caravan! Friends of ours with a wonderful garden at Wollerton Old Hall in Shropshire have just that and how we have always envied them for it. The perfect retreat but, as you say, the practicalities of removal and installation make these ideas just that.....ideas. Still, what are gardens for if not to dream.......?!Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-43426285641495279342015-03-04T08:28:28.320+00:002015-03-04T08:28:28.320+00:00It is true that in a large garden there is room fo...It is true that in a large garden there is room for an exploration of more ideas, but we have often found that small spaces can be the most interesting. When space is a premium, every thing has to earn its place and must be considered more carefully. Simple is usually best, but, we shall see....Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-53104593760273334272015-03-03T21:44:18.905+00:002015-03-03T21:44:18.905+00:00My dearest Jane and Lance,
Your garden in Herefor...My dearest Jane and Lance,<br /><br />Your garden in Herefordshire and the colours are breathtakingly beautiful. It looks something out of a Lady Ottoline Morrell's garden. Your prolific horticultural writings and publications are truly impressive. It seems to me that you have tried almost every trick, so to speak, in the book. I am not surprised that you prefer not to have a garden in Budapest or if you had a garden, you probably want only two colours which you once said in one of your writings if I recall correctly. While it is always comforting to go back to tried and tested methods, one needs to be careful not to become formulaic.<br /><br />I am utterly hopeless in gardening although I love both flowers and gardens. The sound of brick built outhouse as a focal point in the garden sounds absolutely enchanting. A few months ago, I found a painted caravan which comes with an indoor stove for sale in the village. I would have loved to put it in my garden and used it as a place where I could go and write like a summer house. But I gave up with the idea after I faced so many complications and challenges such as how on earth the removal men would be able to lift the whole caravan into my garden over the iron gate or the idea of taking the whole caravan apart and re-assembling in the garden was beyond my capabilities.<br /><br />I would like to highly recommend "The Land Gardeners blog" if you have not discovered them already. http://thelandgardeners.com/blog<br /><br />My dears, the sound of "barren strip of ground" is quite bleak. However, if one looks at what Derek Jarman did with the rawest ground at his Prospect Cottage, near Dungeness nuclear power station, one could see the poetry, balance and harmony in the barren strip of ground. <br /><br />Once you are standing in front of your new house, all your inspirations and ideas will come back to you. I am very excited for you and looking forward to seeing how you will bring an idea to fruition. Good luck with it.<br /><br />Lastly but not least, I've always loved this quote from an author you know very well:<br /> <br />"The garden is the place I go to for refuge and shelter, not the house..... out there blessings crowd round me at every step - it is there that I am sorry for the unkindness in me, for those selfish thoughts that are so much worse than they feel, it is there that all my sins and silliness are forgiven, there that I feel protected and at home, and every flower and weed is a friend and every tree a lover. When I have been vexed I run out to them for comfort, and when angry without just cause, it is there that I find absolution.' <br /><br />Elizabeth von Arnim (from Elizabeth and her English Garden)<br /><br />With best wishes,<br /><br />ASD xxxA Super Dilettantehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02640893790909916004noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-46642327320866163252015-03-03T18:47:40.546+00:002015-03-03T18:47:40.546+00:00I know it's hard to turn a small garden into a...I know it's hard to turn a small garden into a beautiful and welcoming place ... because I have a tiny garden ...<br />I am curious to see how you are going to do! I'm sure you will find the right solution, you have the good books for that ;)Menthe Blanchehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17202810171470031103noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-24553049208872158752015-03-03T17:55:19.280+00:002015-03-03T17:55:19.280+00:00Grass is incredibly time and money consuming to ke...Grass is incredibly time and money consuming to keep looking green and lush. You were wise to not include any in your garden plan, Diane, and nor shall we.<br /><br />Our trouble is that we have far too many ideas racing round our heads, even before we have seen the garden to be, and plans are made and remade hourly. It will be interesting to know what we shall do if there is no outhouse at all........indeed, we trust there is a house to match the pictures we have seen online!!Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-33750855824031101462015-03-03T17:50:23.898+00:002015-03-03T17:50:23.898+00:00Photographs may be a while in coming as the idea h...Photographs may be a while in coming as the idea has not even taken shape on the proverbial drawing board yet!<br /><br />We have never been wholly successful with containers apart from when we decided to use ordinary terracotta plant pots, paint them black and fill them with grey leaved Hostas. They need watering though, so probably no good for this situation. Concrete......never!Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-38522881384470781892015-03-03T17:46:43.537+00:002015-03-03T17:46:43.537+00:00Pinterest has become something of an addiction for...Pinterest has become something of an addiction for us, we have to confess. In the labyrinth of visual images that one can lose oneself amongst, there are, we think, some real treasures to be found. If our efforts can even remotely resemble the Pinterest image, we shall be overjoyed!Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-61958930426396846072015-03-03T17:43:42.860+00:002015-03-03T17:43:42.860+00:00As we have not possessed a television for more tha...As we have not possessed a television for more than thirty years, sadly, we did not see this series. It sounds as if it would have been just our cup of tea and well worth the licence fee!<br /><br />Folly is a word which can apply to so many aspects of our lives so to have one in our back garden would be nothing new. We never learn.........Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-23599259478743649792015-03-03T17:39:56.677+00:002015-03-03T17:39:56.677+00:00Mirrors, lemon trees and gin and tonics.......can ...Mirrors, lemon trees and gin and tonics.......can one ever have too many? We have seen mirrors used incredibly effectively in small gardens. They not only make the space appear bigger, they create a quality of light which is quite remarkable both in the day and at night. They do serve to make the area they are placed in something of a stage set, but that is what we are aiming for, and, possibly, you are too.<br /><br />In our imaginations, bearing in mind that we have yet to see the outhouse, the Hattatt Folly as we believe it will become grows larger, becomes more decorated, is better heated, better lit and better equipped than ever the house itself is going to be. Needless to say, the afternoon teas served from it will rival those at The Ritz and the sundowners will put Harry's Bar to shame. Dream on......Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8102162146315706774.post-9599913580007404112015-03-03T17:31:38.789+00:002015-03-03T17:31:38.789+00:00And we shall drink a toast to you and a Genie for ...And we shall drink a toast to you and a Genie for absent friends at Mate Orr's exhibition opening tomorrow night!Jane and Lance Hattatthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16831890261259302647noreply@blogger.com