A day of Floral Inspiration

RHS Chelsea Flower Show

1759.

That’s how many photos I took in a single day at Chelsea Flower Show because there was just SO MUCH inspiration to soak up. My excuse is that I’ll draw from them (which I will, but let’s be honest I won’t draw from all 1759!)

And don’t worry, I’m not sharing all of those today!

I woke up early and jumped on a train up to London to be there just after the gates opened (in the hopes it would be quieter in the morning, turns out it’s heaving all day - my only negative of the show!) and spent a full 11 hours wandering around and admiring all of the gorgeous gardens, plants and florals.

I was overwhelmed with inspiration all day, from the Show Gardens and Specialist Floral Displays to the wonderful sellers of handmade goods. It’s really too much to take in in one day and I could have spent a week exploring it all!

A favourite flower grouping I spotted and loved:

• Foxgloves

• Lupins

• Wild Roses

• Geraniums

• Irises

This combination was in the Bridgerton Garden so of course it also came in the most beautiful colour palette with soft pinks, lilacs and cream.

Other floral favourites from the day:

• Fleabane

• Geums

• Nasturtiums

• Peonies

• Fuchsias

While I haven’t come close to using all 1759 photos (yet), I have been using a good selection of them as references for artwork since my visit. I’ve been drawing mainly the Irises, Nasturtiums and Fuchsias so far. These have been great inspirations for my quick timer drawings (if you missed my posts about those, find it here!), sketchbook drawings and paintings over the last 2 weeks, and I’ve got plenty more ideas of how to use them.