I shot this post last Friday and as if by magic the sun came out and bathed my dining table in so much beautiful light, which made such a wonderful difference to what has been a long run of very dark days (and VERY frustrating attempts to photograph things for the blog). And you know what? I achieved at least three times as much on that sunny, bright day as I had done in the dark days leading up to it. Anyhoo, the point is I really enjoyed putting together this little shoot for Urban Jungle Bloggers, the theme being Plants and Coffee. UJB is a project run by Judith and Igor and is about living with plants – in your home, in other interiors, in public spaces: “We want to highlight the beauty and benefits of houseplants and other greeneries in urban spaces”.
The plants I have featured in this post were inspired by a most gorgeous tutorial over on A Quiet Style by Emma and Caroline of Wild Rubus. I spent a joyous hour or so removing bulbs from their pots and trying my best to remove all of the soil, as you can see above, and you then re-pot the bulbs in glass jars with water instead of soil. Do check out the lovely tutorial and try it for yourselves – thank you ladies for the inspiration!
So, here are my plants and coffee pics. Enjoy…
It’s coffee time! My new Brixton wall clock by Newgate £85.
The daffodil roots were quite sticky and I couldn’t remove a lot of the soil as well as Emma and Caroline did. However, Caroline very helpfully suggested leaving the roots to soak overnight and then try again to remove all of the soil, which worked wonderfully well but, unfortunately, I had already taken these photographs so I will have to show you the final result another time. I love glass planters as they let all the light through and I think the bulbs themselves are rather beautiful and it’s a shame to hide them under earth.
I love these Weck tulip jars and they are perfect for the onion shaped Hyacinth bulbs.
I made this gingerbread syrup for Jules as a Christmas present (he said it was his favourite one) and he now has it in his coffee every morning (out of control!). Thank you to Laura for her recipe on Circle of Pine Trees. I’ve had to make another huge batch since Christmas as he loves it so much – Laura, I will be blaming you when his teeth fall out!
Thank you, as ever, to Igor and Judith for their inspiration. Are you geeing up for the coming of Spring and planting that needs to be done? Or are you just relaxing with a cup of coffee with gingerbread syrup?!
Katy x
I saw the same tutorial and you’ve made a wonderful job of putting it to work here! So simple and effective. These images look so inviting. Thanks for sharing!
Georgie x
Thanks, Georgie! Such an easy tutorial to follow and they look so much prettier in glass, I think X
So clean and pretty, it makes such a difference when the light is good. I had no idea you could remove the soil, they look so much prettier in glass jars without it!
Yes, do it! It also solves the problem that I have no nice plant pots xx
They look gorgeous! Mine are now flowering, and will be in my Styling the Seasons post tomorrow, better late than never 🙂
Oh yay! Can’t wait to see it. Once again, thank you so much for the inspiring tutorial x
Beautiful Katy, lovely tutorial and that cushion is so pretty! I know what you mean about weather conditions – Dark days are tough.
Dean and I were shooting on location yesterday outdoors in gale force winds, hail and sea spray! It was mayhem hahaha xxx
Ha ha! I can just imagine it – products going flying, cameras getting wet, tempers getting frayed. Must pop over now to see your UJB post.
P.S. Cushion is from Ikea 😉 xx
Tell me about dark days and photography. Stealing a moment here and there when the sun decides to make an appearance.
Gingerbread Syrup. Never heard of it but looks wonderful. What a creative Christmas gift!
Good luck with the daffodils. All looks lovely xx
Stealing moments is right, Tina! Very frustrating but never mind. Yes, the gingerbread syrup is very good apparently and very easy to make. We promised not to spend money on each other at xmas so we did homemade presents xx
Lovely bulbs, especially in those littles glass jars.
Ooh, you have most certainly given me a reminder that spring is on the way and that the garden will be in need of attention in the very near future. x
I know! I need to get planting! x
Katy, what can I say other than: impeccable styling and beautiful photography! I am so happy you are part of our little green family!!!
Thank you so much, Igor! Such kind words. Loved your post today too x
Oh my, your styling looks so pretty Katy! It makes such a difference when there is beautiful sunlight coming in (no such chance here in France these past few days though…). Your bulbs make me long for spring. Can’t wait for some dots of color in the garden. Also love your wall clock! Thanks for being a green family member 🙂
This was such a fun theme, Judith – I loved your post! Thank you so much for your kind words and I hope you have some light over in France soon! xx
Oh, Katy, what a lovely post and what a lovely blog you have! I enjoyed Emma and Caroline’s tutorial as well, very glad to see it in action here. We are still in the throes of summer but your bulbs are making me wish for grey days brightened by cheery daffodils and hyacinths 🙂
Thank you so much, Kate – what a lovely, lovely comment! X
aaaahhhhhch I LOVE this…so much so, it’s tempting me to try a hand at the ole gardening/planting antics. I seem to be cursed with keeping anything green alive but bulbs, succulents and cacti might just be the way for me! Thanks for sharing….and as always, stunning photos missy! Which reminds me….I need to get my styling the seasons posts up SOON if I can steal some time tomorrow for a bit of photography! eeeeeek! 😛 xx
Do you know what? I have no idea how to use my camera and I usually take a million shots and have to edit heavily. However, when I shot this post it was the first time I uploaded the pics and they were all pretty decent and I didn’t have to go back and try again. Basically, I MUST do a photography course as I waste so much unnecessary time. Can’t wait to see your post! Loved that sign you were working on yesterday xx
lovely photos. So funny that we have the same blue and white plates. But only a few of each size left. We seem to lose 1/year.
The plates belonged to my grandmother – I only have two of them. Do you know where they are from? I’d love to get some more x
Isn’t it amazing how much more you achieve on a sunny day vs a grey day! I think I must be solar powered 🙂 I love your photos here, everything looks clean and bright. I do want to just sit down with a coffee and enjoy!
Thank you, Ruth. I think I must be solar powered too – you can’t get anything out of me in the dark! Xx
I love this, Katy! Gorgeous styling and photos – and the bulbs look so beautiful. It’s so lovely to see their roots. I need to crack on with some styling/shooting now as the sun is out and the sky is blue! HURRAH! Happy Friday x
Thank you, Ruth! Annoyingly, I did shoots yesterday when today would have been perfect. Hope you have a lovely day xx
Wow, just so many gorgeous shots in this post I don’t know where to start! I really love the idea of having the bulbs in jars/glasses instead of pots so thanks for sharing the link to the tutorial. I think that’s something that I’ll have to be trying out this weekend.
It’s so much nicer, isn’t it? And takes no time to do. Hope you have a wondrous weekend xx
Hehe, go Jules! Glad he likes it 🙂 The bulbs look so pretty like that. I just picked up some tete a tete bulbs for 50p a pot from Lidl, will have to give this a try. Have a lovely weekend xxx
Happy weekend, lovely Laura xx