Worcester College Gardens
Jul 17, 2019 - POSTED BY Monique Halloran - Whats Hot
As you first enter Worcester College your eye is drawn to the magnificent building and the simplicity of the garden this building looks out onto. Worcester College was founded in 1714, but there has been an institution of learning on the site since the late 13th century. Its predecessor, Gloucester...
My Top Picks from London Design Week 2017 at Chelsea Design Centre
Mar 20, 2017 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - Whats Hot
There were so many wonderfully creative ideas on show at the Chelsea Design Centre last week, it is difficult to choose which ones to highlight here. One of my favourite new finds is the stunning, hand painted, silk wallpaper range produced by Fromenthal www.fromental.co.uk . In Photo 1 you can...
Flooring Trends for 2017
Feb 13, 2017 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - Whats Hot
Are you looking to redesign or redecorate your living spaces during 2017? Well, one of the areas you may not have looked at in too much detail is which flooring to choose. However, it is of course essential in any room, but keeping on-trend with your flooring can be a...
Small and Beautiful Town Garden
Nov 21, 2016 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - Gardeners Choice , Whats Hot
‘Who needs to go to Giverny?’ That was the comment one visitor made when she first laid eyes on this small and evocative town garden situated in Old Headington, Oxford. The garden is constantly on view from the house, so it was really important to create an ever changing picture...
Finally Finished
Oct 12, 2016 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - How To... , Whats Hot
One of the most rewarding elements of my work is looking at your schemes once they are completed, seeing all of those design ideas in reality. That’s never truer then when it’s your own home. After writing first about our home in Oxford in 2014, we have this year put...
A Quiet Garden in the City
Apr 20, 2015 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - How To... , Gardeners Choice , Whats Hot
Gardens evoke thoughts of tranquil, green oases – places to relax in and unwind after a hard day’s work. But if you live in the city centre you are probably surrounded by constant noise and then some of that noise will intrude into your relaxation. I have recently had a...
Creating an Oasis in the Centre of Oxford
Nov 3, 2014 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - How To... , Gardeners Choice , Whats Hot
Sometimes you can’t see the wood for the trees, but in this case I nearly couldn’t see the trees for the weeds! This small back garden in the centre of Oxford had been neglected for several years by previous owners, and then had to wait its turn till the house...
Oxford mess transformed into dream home
Aug 15, 2014 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - How To... , Market Trends , Whats Hot
After buying our dream home only two months ago, turning it from a derelict mess into our dream home hasn’t been easy, but after some pretty frightening hiccups I couldn’t be happier with the result. Living and Dining Room The open plan living and dining room grew by a metre...
Five Rhododendron AGM Winners
Aug 14, 2014 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - Gardeners Choice , Whats Hot
In Joyce's 'Ulysses', Rhododendrons play a significant role in the early courtship of Leopold and Molly, and amongst the Zomi tribes of India, they are used poetically to signify a lady. They are the state flower of Washington and West Virginia, as well as of several states in India and...
Plan, plan and plan some more
Jul 24, 2014 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - How To... , Whats Hot
Winston Churchill wisely said ‘let our advance worrying become advance thinking and planning’, a concept which I’ve clung to these past few weeks. Every project I try to turn worry and over thinking into planning, in the hope of avoiding any major slip ups. Inevitably each new development teaches me...
Week two - electrical first fit and plastering
Jun 27, 2014 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - How To... , Whats Hot
The highs and the lows The first few weeks of any property development will give you more highs and lows then a night on the Las Vegas strip, but for us the first week definitely felt like we were on a losing streak. In the first three hours of being...
Week One - The Rip Out
Jun 18, 2014 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - How To... , Whats Hot
The first on site activity of any property development is the ‘rip out’ stage. You need a mixture of muscle, structural knowledge and guts. Most of the problems of the entire project will come out during this stage, so you have to be prepared to make some difficult calls, change...
Turning your derelict pit into your dream home - How to Blog Day One
Jun 9, 2014 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - How To... , Whats Hot
Day one of any new project can be daunting, but when that project contains ammunition, worms, rats, broken glass and most likely much worse, day one can make you want to run in the other direction. Luckily for me I love a challenge, so this morning stepping into my newly...
Grow your own herbs
Jun 4, 2014 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - Gardeners Choice , Whats Hot
Many of the herbs grown in the UK originally come from the Mediterranean and so are happiest in a sunny spot. However I've found most herbs do fine in what's termed semi-shade, where there's about 4 hours sunlight per day, and some more vigorous growers, such as chervil, coriander and...
Can you help the bees?
Apr 15, 2014 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - Gardeners Choice , Whats Hot
Bees need pollen and nectar for food and we need bees to survive to pollinate the crops that provide our food. If you have a garden or any outdoor space why not plant a tempting menu for bumblebees? Why bumblebees in particular? Different bees have varying characteristics and the bumblebee...
Sow your seeds today and reap the rewards in the summer
Mar 11, 2014 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - Gardeners Choice , Whats Hot
Thompson and Morgan have their own breeding programme and have introduced a stunning new variety of one of my favourite poppies, Papaver Patty’s Plum. T & M’s new variety is called Papaver Orientale Plum Pudding and it is both long flowering and strong stemmed. It has a beautiful plum colour,...
Stuck for ideas for your last minute presents?
Dec 20, 2013 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - How To... , Whats Hot
Stuck for ideas for your last minute presents? Here are some high street steals from £4-£65. Idyll Home After Septembers’ issue of Elle Decoration, I wanted to source some affordable tie die grey cushions. This pair from Idyll home could be used in the bedroom or living room to add...
How to look at just the structural bones when searching for your perfect london pad
Oct 31, 2013 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - How To... , Property Search , Whats Hot
Finding the perfect property is rare and so the trick is to find the most amount or potential square footage possible in the desired location, and to view the property as an open space with a few ‘structural‘ bones. It does help to have experience to draw on, but if...
Bathroom Conundrum
Jan 2, 2013 - POSTED BY Anna Halloran - How To... , Property Search , Whats Hot
As you can see from the existing floor plans below, the layout meant you had to walk through the second bathroom to gain access to the roof terrace! Not the most inviting way to usher guests on to your roof terrace for a candlelit dinner on a summer’s eve. We...
