Largest Santa?

There has been the usual wide variety of festive decorations this year and I suspect that this Santa in Maguire Drive is the largest.

Cupola repairs

The former stables for Ham House are always attractive because of their design and detail and on this day I also appreciated the colour of the tree, the structure of the scaffolding and the drama of the bright sunlight.

Tree maintenance

Quite a bit of work was done in the last year or two to trees by the towpath alongside Burnell Avenue Open Space and a little bit more has just been done with the thinning out of one small clump.

Extension iin Buckingham Road

This was meant to be one of those posts about a construction project hidden behind sheeting where I speculate about what might be to come but by the time I got around to posting this "before" picture the "after" had already been revealed!

The revealed extension fits in quite well with the original house and neighbours thanks to the careful choice of bricks. The grey windows do mot match though, and they rather spoil an otherwise good job,

Jolly window

Perhaps it was because of the extraordinarily long run-up or the unseasonally warm weather but Christmas seemed to lack some of its usual fizz this year ao it was good to have this jolly window in Ham Parade to mark the festive season.

Chipped path

The footpath that was created about a year ago along Church Road, past the Richmond Chase development, has been made more substantial, and obvious, with the addition of wood chippings.

Cherry Garden at Ham House

The brief winter sunlight was as kind to the Cherry Garden at Ham House as it was to the house itself.

Silent Space

The Cherry Garden at Ham House, filled with lavender and santolina. has been designated a Silent Space.

Ham House in winter sun

A rare sunny day allowed the south side of Ham House to look its very best.