It's nearly the weekend and may well be warm and dry enough for some gardening. My garden is small and I'm no Alan Titchmarsh but whether you have a window box or acres of lawn, make a statement and reflect your personal style in the space you have.

If you like colour and don't have many flowering plants, or you're too impatient to wait for budding flowers to appear , use bright pots and pieces of coloured glass to add vibrancy.

Plastic containers, tins or iconic labelled vesssels, like Coca Cola bottles, look contemporary and more tongue-in-cheek. Galvanised metal weathers really well and can look both contemporary and classic.

Rotund, ceramics add a traditional feel, but need frost protection. I'm rubbish with plants and none of these need them - they can exist in the garden as ornamentation in their own right.

The use of white is a good contrast against a stark, green backgroud like grass and can accentuate colour in plants. In the picture above, I have treated this border as an oversized, outdoor, mantle piece and have used planters as architectural ornaments, along with the Magis puppies to add colour to a flower-barren space.

The planters are available in Habitat at £60 and £70. The puppies can be found in Utility Design , Liverpool.
By forming squares around trees, with large white pebbles, new and interesting textures are a quick creation for lazy garden design!

Have a good weekend!