British greenhouse manufacturer, Alitex, was due to celebrate its 60th anniversary at the show, so to mark the occasion and to pay tribute to the magic of Chelsea, it has diverted this year’s energy to the allotment, greenhouse and garden at its headquartersin Torberry Farm, Hampshire. SeeThe RHS announce virtual Chelsea Flower Show 2020 ‘Chelsea is always a manically busy time for us, but it’s hugely rewarding when all of the planning and preparation comes together. We also get to enjoy spending some quality time with our friends from the industry, so it was great to be able to work with some of them for this project too,’ says brand Director at Alitex, Nelly Hall. ‘One of those friends is stylist and author, Selina Lake, who styled the Alitex stand at the Chelsea Flower Show stand last year. The greenhouse was awarded a ‘5 Star’ award from the judges and it was one of the most Instagrammed stands of the show.’
HOW TO CREATE A CHELSEA FLOWER SHOW GARDEN
Selina was inspired by the countryside and meadows that surround Torberry Farm, so chose blue and white-toned wildflowers such as cornflowers, nigellas & cow parsley to decorate the greenhouse with. She paired these with dried grasses and wheat, which work well with Nelly’s homegrown deep purple sweet peas. ‘For me, RHS Chelsea means a week full of floral inspiration and opportunities for garden styling. The Alitex greenhouse at Chelsea is always a firm favourite amongst attendees and provides inspiration for keen gardeners, expert growers and novices alike. I was so excited to hear about their plans for the allotment and was delighted to help style the space,’ says Selina.
1. CHOOSE A THEME
This could be based on a collection of colours, a particular pattern, a trend or a destination. Don’t overthink it!
2. TAKE A MOMENT TO ENJOY YOUR SPACE
With more time at home at the moment, in theory we should have more time to sit and relax but life doesn’t always work like that. Position a comfy rattan armchair inside your greenhouse, somewhere you can easily take in the garden views, and this may encourage you to pause for a moment each day.
3. STYLE A DISPLAY TO PERFECTION
As a stylist, Selina takes any opportunity to create a garden display utilising decorative planters, jars, galvanised buckets and vintage wooden boxes. Taking time to make surfaces look beautiful will bring you joy and it is easy to refresh them with the seasons. Try utilising the shelving in your greenhouse and dressing with items you already have such as balls of string, plant labels and vases of freshly cut flowers.
4. TRANSFORM YOUR SHED
After the shed was repainted at the Alitex Allotment, Selina made a simple linen blind to complement the new colour using an off-cut of fabric and a couple of bamboo canes. To give the shed some Chelsea magic, Selina also made a garland to fix above the window using Rosemary, Smoke bush and Ivy cut from her own garden, with some dried wheat and blue statice flowers. To keep us motivated and inspired until Chelsea 2021, Alitex will be revealing all of the details of its allotment makeover on Instagram. Follow @Alitex (opens in new tab) and @SelinaLake (opens in new tab), as well as the hashtag #AlitexAllotment, to see the team’s progress. Alitex, alitex.co.uk (opens in new tab)
