A Picnic in a Garden of Roses

Sunday was the first truly hot day of Summer in London, with temperatures up to 26C/80F.

Apart from the inspiring plane trails soaring across the sky to and from Heathrow, and one or two whispy clouds, it was a vibrant, brilliant blue.

After a morning pedicure at The Nail Boutique in the Chelsea Farmer’s Market I headed home to decide on the best place for an afternoon picnic!

There was no way Jorge and I were staying indoors.

After packing our new bamboo basket with goodies, we headed to our favourite local green spot: the picturesque public gardens next to St. Luke’s church.

This time of year, they are bursting with roses, an assortment of other pretty flowers and full green leafy trees.

We chose a quiet green patch, away from the children running half-naked through the sprinklers on the other side of the park, just next to a lovely circle of roses.

I loved the contrast of the bright colours against the deep blue sky.

When London is sunny, it really comes to life.

Blanket spread, we settled in with a bottle of wine.

Which we polished off by the time we left.

I apparently forgot sunglasses existed, hence the look on my face in this photo!

Next up, food!

We had lots of nibbles: Spanish omelette, a few types of cheese, grapes, olives, chorizo, ham, pate, baguette, salad, crackers, prawns, sun dried tomatoes.

Jorge even bought fun yellow plates from Anthropologie and matching yellow silverware. Not to mention pretty napkins and a checkered blanket.

Love it when guys pay attention to all the little details!

After lunch, we poured a bit more wine and lounged around for a while.

I took a few photos of the pretty park.

Jorge, of course, knows all the names of the flowers, which he was telling me, and of course I’ve already forgotten…

Aren’t they pretty?

At certain angles, the sun shone through the petals, making them look translucent.

Around the garden, there were couples lying on blankets, men with canes resting on wooden benches quietly observing life go by, a few dogs chasing pigeons.

I was happy enough to be outside without a coat, so the sun was a real treat.

Eventually we even moved to find some shade!

I went on a hunt for tea and a cappuccino from Paul and we fiished up with some mango and passionfruit cheesecake.

I got a bit snap-happy with the flowers, but they were just asking for it.

So many colours really stand out when the usually grey London sky turns to Summer blue.

It was most definitely a beautiful and memorable mid-Summer’s day!

If you’re in the area, head across the street for a drink or lunch at the new Bumpkin Secret Garden restaurant or have a wander around Chelsea.