THE MODERN MINT BLOG
Kites and Strings is a podcast about creativity, hosted by US-based Stephen Ploum and Catherine Chinnock.
Back in March they asked me to come onto their podcast and talk about topiary, my past writing plays, the stand-up I did and how creativity can fit into your life.
The Kites and Strings podcast was great fun and Stephen and Catherine are fantastic hosts. Listening back today I am surprised by some of the ideas I talked about (somehow I even started to describe a future where I run a ‘School of Creativity’ by the sea…. where did that come from?!) but it all felt comfortable and open enough to discuss ideas that just came up, in the moment.
Near the end of the podcast, Stephen even mentions using some of my words, words I wrote inspired by the talk we had, and turning them into a song. Haha of course! Topiary to lyricist….? That seems a… direct link.
But somehow it all makes sense when you listen.
So please do find just under fifty minutes to take a listen to the Kites and Strings Podcast.
Listen here
Check out the other episodes in series one and be inspired to get creative!
Find more of the Kites & Strings Podcast here.
And you can see more of my topiary work made here in the snow…
Or for a little brighter, warmer photos of my work, go here – topiary work.
Why I Wrote The Book Modern Topiary
I have written this book, Modern Topiary, because I wanted a collation of useful information that would give people access to everything they need to know in order to start making topiary. Topiary is an amazing (and niche) line of work to follow – amazing because it offers up opportunities to travel all over the world, making gardens, meeting people… but also, the work is intensely physical, hands-on, yet requires creative thinking in order to solve the puzzle of how to make the shapes you want. This mixture of the craft and the art is what I love the most …
Buxus the Norfolk Terrier In Modern Topiary Book
This is Buxus, our Norfolk Terrier, who I acknowledge in the acknowledgments of the book of Modern Topiary. The book of Modern Topiary can be read, for free, here. There you go. Buxus the dog on ‘doorstep duty’ at a friend’s house in Edinburgh. For those asking what he looked like!
What People Think Of Modern Topiary, The Book
Yesterday I put out the book – Modern Topiary – that I have spent the last six years writing. Download for free a pdf of Modern Topiary here. And what seems amazing to me, is that not only have people actually been reading it, but then responding to it. So below are a number of comments I have been sent from those who read it last night, and this morning…. “Brilliant read, exactly the right amount of info to take in and digest.” Rachel, a gardener “I love your book, the advice is so straightforward and your writing is so …