Obsessed or what!

We’ve had a cousin staying with us recently. Not one of those you feel obliged to invite and hope they won’t accept, but a welcome guest, good company and an excuse for putting work on the back burner for a few days and having a bit of time out. We have a lot in common including only ever wearing comfy shoes, watching Merlin on TV and a love of the chained library in Hereford Cathedral (well worth a visit) and have both had a career in horticulture, but hers has been in practical down and dirty hands on gardening, whereas mine has been in clean finger nailed, warm and cosy in an office, design. A conversation we’ve had where I described my living room as being decorated in ‘metal’ colours left her with the sort of expression on her face that told me, albeit kindly, that I’m quite deranged. I know that most normal people don’t obsess about colour combinations like designers do but then we aren’t really that normal. I once painted an arbour to tone with the blue tits which were the most common avian visitors to the feeder hanging from it, even the colour of the pencil I pick up in the morning is dictated by the colour of the clothes I happen to be wearing on the day and this time of year things go from bad to worse with the arrival of Christmas cards. I don’t think everybody can be this picky about their positioning around the house but I have to have them arranged in rooms where their colours tone best with the décor and each year I live in hope that the latest fashion in cards will favour ice bound snowdrops or polar bears – the kitchen is mainly white, or three richly dressed kings – to go with the gold in the ‘metal’ living room. Robins are always popular with my relatives and along with the compulsory jolly Santas cause a bit of on issue for me because I have very little red anywhere in the house. You can see that my cousin does have a point but to me this behaviour isn’t odd, it’s all to do with an appreciation of my surroundings and colour is of course only one aspect of it, which makes placing Christmas cards even more complex when you think as well about their shapes and proportions. These must be considered by putting the long thin ones on furniture of similar proportions and square ones with decorations like candles of the same shape. I know I’m more than a bit odd but it does make for an interesting life. To look at the things I live with and analyse how they relate to their surroundings uses the same skills I employ to see the potential in every garden I design so to me it’s essential. It can be very time consuming though, especially at Christmas, thinking of which it's about time I bought some cards....now what colour is my cousin's living room...