Go potty about stylish ceramics
The popularity of the handcrafted pottery trend shows no sign of declining. Liz Connor discovers its clay time
Thanks to Instagram, interiors trend inspiration is never far away. First we had Millennial pink walls, and then came the obsession with velvet. But right now, ceramics are getting all of the limelight.
The craft scene is flourishing, and pottery has emerged from car boot sales and second-hand shops into the realm of luxury interiors. Gracing our side tables, bringing joie de vivre to tableware or adding a hand-thrown touch to floral arrangements, ceramics are all the rage for spring.
so, if you’re looking for a simple and inexpensive way to update your home, here are a few ticks and tips for bringing some fun and quirky style statements into the mix.
Clear out your odd mugs
Many of us have cupboards filled with mismatched, chipped and faded mugs. Lockdown is a great excuse to de-clutter and treat yourself to some new earthenware that sparks joy – after all, we’re spending so much more time in our kitchens right now.
If you can afford it, you can make coffee breaks that little bit more special with the koa Breakfast Mug in Ink £20, (thirteenthirtyone.com), or we also like the rugged craftmanship of the Thea Stoneware mug from Bloomingville, £12, was £14 (nordicnest.com). Popping on the kettle and pulling out one of these beautiful ceramic pieces will bring an extra bit of cheer to your day.
Light it up
Whether you live in a city loft apartment or a country cottage, clever lighting is often the key to making a house feel like a home. a ceramic table lamp can add some wow factor to any living room, especially one that’s hand-painted like Pooky’s blue and white striped Ellie table lamp (inset), £75 (pooky.com).
If you are picking up a statement lamp, make sure your lampshade is a single colour, and partner it with simple accessories, such as coffee table books or small trinkets, so the base can do the talking.
GROWING your own food from seed is probably one of the most rewarding acts of gardening. It’s exciting to watch tiny seeds develop into plants, it’s fun to nurture their growth, and then the best bit is that you get to eat them!
Home-grown food always tastes far better than anything you can buy, mainly because it’s so fresh, but the enjoyment is also enhanced by a sense of accomplishment.
So the good news is that it’s time to get sowing some seeds, namely tomatoes. These are started now so the fruit will be ready to absorb as much summer sunshine as possible to grow and ripen to their best. You can sow a bit earlier but this can often result in leggy seedlings which simply do not flourish in the low light of January and early February.
First think about what type you’d like to grow and what space you have available.
There are indoor and outdoor varieties so your choice will depend on whether you have a polytunnel, glasshouse or conservatory, or none of the above.
Where space is limited, you can grow bushy varieties in pots or grow cherry tomatoes in hanging baskets. If you don’t have soil and your growing space is a patio or balcony, grow bags will be sufficient to accommodate two tomato plants. Growing from seed will allow you a huge choice in terms of varieties available or you can plump for popular reliables such as ‘Sungold’, ‘Moneymaker’ and ‘Tumbling Tom’. If you’re going for outdoor, delay sowing seed for around another month.
For a tomato seed to germinate, it needs heat. A heated greenhouse is perfect but you can also use a small heated propagator or a sunny windowsill so long as a minimum of 18C is obtained.
The seed is small so either sow them shallowly or surface sow and cover with some sieved compost or a scattering of vermiculite and water in.
Once leaves develop, prick them out and pot individually – a small yoghurt pot would be around the right size. As the plant gets bigger, you can pot on or into a grow bag.
You will need to harden off before planting outside. If your plant has become a bit leggy by the time it comes to planting out in the polytunnel or garden, you can plunge the plant in a bit deeper, burying some of the stem which will produce roots.
Cordon plants can be quite rampant when they get going and it’s for this reason you keep them in check by pinching out side shoots. The aim is to confine the growth to a single stem and direct the plant’s energy into flower and fruit production. Once you have six trusses or bunches of flowers, you pinch off the top of the cordon to stop more growth. For outdoor varieties, you leave just four trusses.
Cordons need support such as bamboo cane, or you can grow up a string support – use twine as hessian string can rot over the growing season. If you’re a beginner, start with bushy varieties which don’t need support or pinching out. So what’s the secret to great tomatoes? First, plenty of food – they are hungry and as soon as they put on roots, start using tomato feed and increase to a fortnightly feed when the flowers emerge. Secondly, maximum heat and sunshine.
Remember they are tender plants so if you’re growing them outdoors, they can’t go outside until after frost has gone in May or even later depending where you are. And thirdly, you need to provide consistent watering for plump, juicy fruits.
If this has whetted your appetite for veg growing, it’s also time now to start sowing seeds of chilli peppers, aubergines and peppers, all of which require a warm environment to get going.
DESIGNED, developed and engineered in Europe, the Kia Ceed Sportswagon merges individual style with space and practicality.
Lower, wider, and with a longer rear overhang than its predecessor; straight lines now replace rounded off edges, while its Kia Stinger-inspired nose and now familiar and ‘ice-cube’ LED daytime running lights also help it stand out.
Looking at it, it’s hard to believe it’s based on the same platform as its hatchback sibling. The wider body creates greater shoulder room for rear passengers, while a lower seating position creates more knee and leg room for them. Despite the low roofline, the platform and lowered front seating create greater front-row headroom.
The lower rear bench also ensures similar levels of headroom for rear passengers.
The interior of the vehicle is a pleasant place to spend time too, featuring quality black cloth trim and matching faux leather bolsters. There are also plenty of softtouch surfaces, glossy trim, and Kia’s easy-to-navigate 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system – itself handily angled slightly towards the driver. This features Bluetooth multi-connection, enabling occupants to connect two mobile devices at once, as well as Apple Carplay and Android Auto.
All versions are well equipped but the list of kit on the top ‘3’ grade is virtually endless – privacy glass, dual automatic air conditioning, automatic headlights, rain sensing wipers, electrically adjustable and heated door mirrors, reversing camera and rear parking sensors, LED front and rear lights, and front fog lights. You also get a smart leather-trimmed steering wheel, a six-speaker audio system with DAB radio, cruise control with speed limiter, front wiper de-icer, electric windows all-round, a fast charger for portable devices, and 17-inch alloy wheels.
That long rear overhang helps give it a boot size of 625 litres, plus there’s also an underfloor storage area for stowing smaller items, and a bag hook to prevent groceries rolling around the load bay. The split-fold rear seats are fitted in a 40:20:40 configuration and can be folded remotely with a single touch from a lever just inside the tailgate. With the seats folded, the boot floor is completely flat and the space extends to 1,694 litres.
A choice of petrol, diesel and plug-in hybrid engines is available. There is a 1.0-litre petrol but if you need, or just prefer, a little more poke from your petrol, there is also the company’s 1.4-litre T-GDI, which on the ‘3’ grades comes matched to a seven-speed automatic dual-clutch transmission (DCT). It’s a bit clunky at times but is generally good enough.
The engine’s turbocharger ensures a wider torque band than the earlier 1.6-litre engine, making it more responsive in a wider range of driving conditions, while also reducing emissions. A plentiful 242Nm of torque is available from 1,500 to 3,200rpm. It’s officially capable of returning 44.8mpg though I managed just 33.3mpg.
The Ceed Sportswagon is not really what you’d call ‘a driver’s car’ but, as its ride was developed on European roads, it feels safe and stable, regardless of whether its cruising down the motorway or taking on a twisty stretch somewhere.
A fully independent suspension system provides drivers with more agile and immediate handling responses than you’d expect.
Electronic stability control and Kia’s Vehicle Stability Management (VSM) system fitted, helps reduce understeer. As well as seven airbags, Lane Keeping Assist, Lane Following Assist, High Beam Assist, Driver Attention Warning, Hill Start Assist Control and Forward Collision-avoidance Assist – City are all included as standard.
Not bad for a car costing less than £25,000.
All versions are well equipped but the list of kit on the top ‘3’ grade is virtually endless