BLOOMCORE
Stylist & book author SELINA LAKE shares her on-trend styling ideas & glorious garden buys
Hello May days and hello to the garden blooming once again. Our plot is at its blooming best this month with our wisteria, lilac shrubs, honeysuckle and all the roses we planted almost 10 years ago now looking fabulous.
I’m excited to be attending the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, May 21-25, to be inspired by the gardens, flowers and design, so this seems an ideal time to introduce you to a new floral trend, bloomcore. A refresh on all things floral, it takes us perfectly from spring to summer. It’s being championed as the new flower-power trend featuring retro flower patterns and slightly kitsch accessories combined with more classic floral designs such as those by William Morris.
My top tip for styling a bloomcore look is to choose floral prints that you are drawn to, in bold colours that blend well together, then pop in an object, vase of flowers or fabric in a contrasting colour for an unexpected pop. Do include some items in plain block colours to avoid the florals looking too overpowering.
When styling a space for an alfresco meal, combine floral pieces such as decorative plates and napkins with pretty cut glasses that have floral motifs. Fresh flowers in ceramic and enamel jugs and little coloured glass bud vases will bring freshness, and a gingham tablecloth in a neutral hue makes a base for these pieces to sit on atop a garden table.
Add a bloomcore-inspired nook on your deck or patio with containers filled with in-bloom plants and pop floral cushions and throws on garden seating. Use your shed as a bloomcore HQ – I can easily while away a few hours making posies and floral arrangements on my potting bench. I hope you have a happy floral May!
First place table style
The ingredients for the perfect bloomcore table place setting include pretty floral patterned plates and classic-print napkins – the design seen here is Michaelmas Daisy Pink by William Morris. Add flowers arranged in different-size vessels from tiny bud vases to enamel jugs with vintage floral designs, and posies of dried baby’s breath flowers with freshly picked violas, or whatever flowers are abundant in your garden at the moment. Serve a homemade cake decorated with edible flowers and candied orange to bring the
