Well, May is just round the corner and for garden enthusiasts that means No Mow May is on its way from the plant charity Plantlife, who are asking us all not to mow our lawns.

No Mow May is all about giving Power to the Flowers, and letting your lawn (or at least some of it) grow.   Why?  Plantlife say that about 97% of flower-rich meadows have been lost since the 1930s, and that means that vital food and habitat needed by wildlife has gone as well.  Wildlife need things like clover, knapweed and long grass to help themsurvive and thrive. 

So they are asking us all not to mow our lawns with a campaign called #NoMowMay.  Different flowers give different resources for different wildlife,  so it’s good to have a variety.  Leave a mix of grass lengths in your lawn and help nature!  You can find out about it here – if we had a sprinkling of longer lawns across the UK, that would really help nature.   Watch for #NoMowMay  on social media!  And then follow on with Let it Bloom June!  Plantlife have lots of help and advice for your garden lawns to help nature and wildlife. 

Take a look at Plantlife's You Tube Channel

We’ve decided not to mow some of our lawn – we haven’t got a big one, but flowers are starting to appear on it, and they look very pretty!   Plantlife has advice on how to increase the number of wildflowers in your lawn, and they’ve got a guide to a nature friendly lawn too!

Dig here for more information.

And if you’re looking for a gift for a plant lover, you could think about giving your loved one a Membership to Plantlife or adopting a reserve, a flower, lichen or fungus, an acre, or a veteran tree.  They've also got very pretty sustainable bags.  Find out more here.

It can be really difficult to come up with gifts that are a bit different.  Those fabulous people at Paper High have had some new gifts in recently and I wanted to share some of them with you!

How about this duck?  Introducing from Paper High, Janhvi,
the Small Quacking Duck Wire Garden Ornament.
For £26.95

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Or how about this Multicoloured Jute and Cotton Oval Rag Rug
from Paper High?   For £44.95

For people who love writing in a journal,
Paper High have this Large Sari Fabric Journal 
for £16.95. 
There are different colours to choose from, 
and they could be used as a diary, travel journal, sketchbook or simply for to do lists!

How about a Vaani Multicoloured Saddle Crossbody Bag from Paper High:


These are handcrafted from recycled leather.
Designs are a patchwork of bright colours,
stylish patterns and animal prints.  For £64.95
 

Paper High's products are unusual, eco-friendly products carefully crafted by artisans in India, Sri Lanka and Nepal.  The products on their site are handmade from recycled and sustainable materials.  What's more, purchases made on the Paper High website supports Fair Trade artisans in Sri Lanka, India and Nepal AND it helpls fund the planting of 200 trees a month!  

They work with Tree Nation, who are on a mission to reforest the world.  Every month, Paper High plants 200 trees wherever they are needed most, be it Africa, America, Asia or Europe.  Tree Nation's efforts help to  restore forests and protect biodiversity, to create jobs and support local communities.  

And if you leave a review on Feefo, it will help Paper High fund the planting of 50 trees a month with Treefo/Ecologi.  Find out all about it here. 

Visit Paper High here

If you’re looking for a  toy for someone who loves to collect them, you could look at the Jellycat range.

They have a huge range of toys of all shapes which are rather amazing from fruit and vegetables to cakes and waffles – and, of course, lots of animals!

In 2024, the most wanted toys were the Bunny, Dragon, Octopus, Marshmallow and Croissant, so that gives you an idea of the types of plushies Jellycat produce!

English Heritage have the Plush Odell Octopus Little for £27.00...

With eight soft curly arms and shiny eyes,
this octopus is H23 x W11cm.
Find out more from English Heritage

Introducing the Plush Moon Cactus


The Plush Moon Cactus is £25.00
The dimensions are H21 x W7 cm 

and for tennis lovers, how about the Tennis Ball Plush Toy

For £25.00, this Tennis Ball Plush Toy is H9 x W9 cm

English Heritage have more Jellycat toys such as a sausage dog, 
a corgi, a frog, a lamb, a bee, a snake, a carrot and more!
See them all here.

You can buy the Jellycat brand online from the world famous London toy store, Hamleys...

This is the Jellycat Amuseable Heart Bag for £29.99.  It’s got space for keys, feelings and wallet and a shoulder strap so that you can keep your hands free! 

This is the Jellycat Amuseable Heart Bag for £29.99

Here's the Amuseable Avocado Bag Charm, with a suedette stone and dangly tan cord legs.  You can clip it onto any bag!  The bag is 19cm high and 9cm wide. 

This is the Jellycat Am  useable Avocado Bag Charm for £22.99

Now, you can also buy Jellycat toys from the National Trust's online shop.

There's this Jellycat Birdling Mallard for £15.00.  This mallard loves a cuddle rather than paddling on a pond, as the National Trust says!  The dimensions are H10 x W7 x D9 cm.  Quack, quack! 

This Jellycat Birding Mallard is available
from the National Trust's online shop for £15.00

Introducing the Jellycat Amuseable Acorn for £18.00.
I love the fuzzy beret and swede stalk! 
The acorn comes from the National Trust's online shop.
The dimensions are H11 x W9 x L9cm

And this is the Jellycat Amuseable Rainbow.
The dimensions are:H17 x W32 x L9 cm 
A colourful addition to any collection! 
The rainbow is £30.00 from the National Trust's online shop.

Personal gifts make for great momentos, giving frequent reminders of a cherished moment together or experiences over times – special moments, occasions and those times you had a good laugh, shared a moment together, experienced something – or just enjoyed the moment.

Inkifi has products such as photo printing, retro prints, square photo prints, personalised photo books and personalised notebooks!

 The Caption Photo Book means you can add text alongside the photos

They’ve also got calendars  You can create your own cards, too, including Christmas cards to send.

This is the Classic Frame

This is the Montage Gallery Frame

 This is the Moments Frame (the one right at the end of the hall)
It takes 52 photos - perhaps one for each week of the year?

This is the Inkifi Walnut Desktop Calendar

They use products that are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (the FSC for short).  They’re also a member of the 1% for the Planet foundation, so 1% of their annual turnover goes to environmental causes.

Visit Inkifi.com here.

It is amazing how a small acorn can lead to a huge tree.   And one chance meeting can lead to a something which brings about lasting relationships which help everyone. 

Let me tell you about Paper High because this chance meeting is how this company started.   From an acorn, Paper High has grown into a big tree.

Paper High sell unusual products which have been skilfully crafted by artisans in India, Sri Lanka and Nepal.  They include photo albums, notebooks, gloves, hats, socks, throws, bags, rugs, Christmas decorations, garden decorations and more!

Paper High began when Mark and Claire (who are behind the company) went on a round-the-world trip.  The seed was sown as a result of a chance meeting with a paper maker which came about as an unexpected change in a destination, a longer stay in Kathmandu.  Today, Paper High work with a strong network of relationships with small family businesses, charities, community incentives and accredited Fair Trade organisations.  Everyone benefits.  All their products are hand made from sustainable materials which - wherever possible - have been recycled.

These are recycled newspaper photo frames and gifts

Some of these materials are unusual.   For example, how about a photo album which has been made mainly from elephant poo?  Or a photo frame which has been made from recycled newspapers? 

How about a large Colourful Elephant Dung Notebook
or other elephant dung gift?

They’ve got goodies made of recycled plastic, natural cork, recycled leather and recycled newspapers.  And of course elephant dung has gone through the elephant already.  They've also got mango wood items:

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There are socks to help keep your feet warm!

   

They've got a great selection of animal hats!
Koala, giraffe, donkey, sheep, leopard, frog, crazy cat,
cow, penguin & more!

 
How about some Christmas decorations, such as this felt penguin in a Santa hat?  
See more Christmas decorations here 

Visit Paper High here to see all their beautiful products!