You can't get much cooler (in a white minimal kind of way) than this folding Ensombra parasol from Valencian design company Gandia Blasco, whose output is almost exclusively white and minimal and best seen on terraces overlooking an azure sea.

Posted by Ros

Turn your garden into a magical wonderland with these brass lanterns from the Indian Garden Company. They come in pairs complete with hanging chains for £32.35.
Cheaper, if less hardwearing lanterns are these ones from Debenhams in pink, orange or turquoise at just a tenner.

A quick way to create an outdoor lounging base would be to get a decking kit package from Dunster House. This one is £585 but basic modules start at £34. I would strew it with mattresses and cushions (see our Sit section) and accessorise the pergola with dingly dangly things and lanterns whilst waiting for my vine to grow.

Posted by Ros

Who needs environmentally hostile outdoor heaters? I plan to spend chilly evenings sitting round a brazier on which the man of the house has previously grilled something succulent. This Direct Designs terrace grill from Forsyth4 (£99.99) will do the business.
A cheap and funky alternative is this pink mini bucket barbecue from Debenhams for just £20.

Carry this prettily striped grand-pêre folding mattress from La Redoute's French furniture line AM.PM outside in the summer and loll on it with a chilled drink. It is just as useful as a mini futon in the kids' bedroom. Just £55.

Greenfingers is for all you serious gardeners out there. It has everything you need to purchase and know about the garden. Not only does it have a whole tips and queries section, you can also post your own questions and take part in their gardening club. Being shallow I will purchase their Solar Magiglobe and for £39.00 will watch the colours of the rainbow for the next 12 hours. The globe features an integral solar panel and can be sat on the table using its stand, spiked into the ground or left to float in your pond.

Posted by Carole

If you've had enough of looking at wooden garden furniture sets, then why not try something different from Heals. This dark and sexy Kira Zinc set is a hardwood construction covered in sealed zinc metal sheets. The bench costs £150 and the stools are £95, rather worryingly there is no price for the table. They also have some fantastic acid coloured parasols and a great chair range.

Finally, these pine Bambisitter chairs are quite unusual and cute and cost from £195. Heals has a somewhat unfair reputation for being expensive and quite aloof, which you shouldn't allow to get in the way of you taking in some well priced and well crafted stuff for your home.

I wanted to tell you about the 20 wooden sheds that Argos
have to offer, but couldn't once I'd clapped eyes on this. I've been looking for a play thing for the bottom of our garden and this could be it. Don't be put off by its' title of 'Boyz Playhouse' as we all know the girls would love it too. It's an activity playhouse with a climbing wall and a polyhemp climbing net. It measures 207 cms by 180 cms and costs basically costs £500 or £499.99 if it feels better to you? Do be put off by the fact that it arrives flat packed, needs a wood resistant coating and further painting if you want it to be really groovy or blend into the background. Not as practical as a shed but a lot more fun.

...You're bound to find a home office at the bottom of it. If this look goes with your home then it's not a bad idea to start your office browsing at the Sanctuary site. If you need convincing, then read their price' section. It breaks the cost down to either a straight £15,000, a less painful £800 a year or a practically painless £15 a week. By then you start thinking - Let's get one, who cares that I don't actually work.

My property guru Sarah (Beeny to you) reckons it will add 5% to the value of your house and even Andrew Marr has been extolling the virtues of his work hideaway. Seriously, this makes sense as in most cases it does not need planning permission and if you are really shrewd can save you tax in other ways. This wouldn't be the one I would choose, I'll let you see that when they let me have the picture!

I really like the look of these weathered utility crates. I did think, well I could do that, but then realised that this would require actually finding the crate and stencils. By then, it would become a task to be added to the already out-of-control 'To Do' list. Plantabox is therefore a neat idea.
They have sourced a load of Baltic pine boxes, stained them in 3 different water based stains, popped a stencil on and well, there you have it. Well almost, the added touch is being able to request a personalised stencil on the front of herb, lavender or geranium or whatever you fancy crate. Empty the boxes are £24.90 or filled would be £39.90 - great for a gift with a twist.

Chris Kabels' sun parasol, like many of the outdoor goods at the Conran shop is beautifully made and not exactly cheap. But then, where else would you get a vivid green plastic canopy' which is designed to give the user the illusion of 'sitting beneath a tree'. Ok, so this dappled light is going to cost you £335 (this does not include the base) and has to be taken indoors when not in use so practicality is questionable here, but it reminds me of our Tord Boonjte garland light, which when I gaze at it, never fails to make me smile.

When I think of Crocus, I think of a series of bright mini-catalogues which I flcik through when having a 'must do something about the garden' moment. I then proceed to gawp and drool at all the spectacular and beautiful plants on offer to me. This ritual is finished when said catalogue is put down and I then head to a nearby diy store to purchase a selection of plants which I will then undoubtedly malnourish and eventually kill.

So given my appalling plant parenting history, I have decided that online plant shopping is the way forward to me. At least if I order these 6 litre pots of mint, sage, thyme, rosemary and flat and curly parsley for £11.95, I also get a patients care pack thrown in.

Crocus like many online sites is also a mini plant surgery, where help, advice and plant likes, dislikes and behaviour information are at hand. If all else fails you could always take advantage of their design service by sending them a sketch of your garden and from £30, they will send you a planting list. If all else fails, forget waiting for Summer and treat yourself to a stunning bouquet, then sit down, inhale the scent and dream on.

Now I need to find my staple coriander, basil and rocket plants to replace the ones I killed last year.

We've recently had these fencing panels installed in our garden. They cost £29.99 each and are 1.8 metres by 1.18 metres from homebase . Initially I was a bit disappointed by the orange tinge to the wooden supports, but like a lot of new things, time has made the hue fade in my mind's eye.

If I hadn't been juggling a very small baby and had time to do some research, rather than leaving quite a few decisions to the very capable and and efficient Nathan at Theories Landscapes, then I might have chosen these 6ft by 6 ft boxed in windrush willow panels. They comes in 4 different sizes from windrush willow and are a pricier choice at £85 per panel.

If the budgets been blown on the plants, then you could always opt for a 5 x 1.5 metre roll of bamboo fencing for £49 at Greenfingers. This is perfect if your fence is not needed as a feature, but needs a quick fix and hide solution.

That's Colin in the picture, he's one of the employees at baileys . Apparently he's been waving his duster amongst other things for over 20 years there. This is a pleasure site, you may not purchase from Colin, but you will have a few little lust moments. The garden section is smallish with a good selection of well crafted and quite original pieces. Nothing to do with gardens, but do take a peep at their lighting and make a note of their recycled products too.

In the garden section what caught my attention were these lovely aniseed, sage or willow green Parisian garden chairs for £110-132 each.

These very tactile looking driftwood pebbles are good value at £3 each. Baileys is based at Whitecross farm in Herefordshire, worth popping in, if you're in that part of town.

I had to select this product because it has seriously never occurred to me that I could design my own lawn. Yes, you read that correctly. Gone Gardening has lots of really practical garden things but this is what we must all surely have.

Mohon designer grass seeds comes in two varieties and colour, so you can create your own stripes, circles or swirls when you sow the seeds. Maybe you could sow a marriage proposal or even shorter, 'Go Away'. Mind you you'd have to plan your message well in advance.

I hate the sight of big brown or green wheelie bins, so it makes sense to cover them up and make them as aesthetically pleasing as is possible. When I considered disguising ours about a year ago, I remember there being just one sort of hedge design you could select. So I didn't bother.

Now I have to give my bins a make-over because there are some cracking designs at to choose from at wheelie bin art , to choose from. Jazzy sunflowers, vibrant poppies and purple tulips swaying in the breeze. The dual set costs "24.95 and are 100% waterproof, washable and uv fadeproof.

Having just made the conversion to the concept of indoor wallpaper I hear it's now outdoors too. You can see why Susan Bradley won the Graduate of the Year award in design and decoration in 2005 because her work is seriously different.

Her outdoor wallpaper can be used as a garden trellis as shown above or as screening for your balcony/ walll front or can be pure decoration.

You can choose your wallpaper material from brushed aluminium to acrylics in various colours, the size, depending on your space and the price - well you have to contact Susan for that.

Ok so it was only a matter of time before we got the pop us greenhouse (£17.95) but it had to be Lakeland who did it. I forgot how mad but useful this shop and online store are till this weekend. My sister whipped out her Lakeland silver apple corer which like magic sliced and cored a Bramley. This was followed by a demonstration of the wine/mark rubber which actually does exactly as it says - shame it wouldn't work on my very stained wine brain. You can also get a grow bag greenhouse ( £14.95) if this is too large.

If keeping your plants alive is enough of a challenge then maybe like me you could do with a self watering spike. It's ingenious and probably a better gardener than me, not that this is very difficult. Not only can it take care of your plants for 3 weeks, but can also sense when the temperature hots up so will release extra water. For £6.45 this could save you and me an awful lot of dead shrubbery.

For once I hope the weather people are seriously wrong about the water situation because we've just laid a new lawn. If, like us, a water butt is an essential item for this Summer, then why not make it a recycled plastic one. This one from even greener holds 190 litres and comes with a stand, rain diverter kit and lid - it costs £35. If this looks hideously big then why not opt for a mini butt which holds 100 litres and costs £30.

While David Cameron and Gordon Brown battle it out to see who is the greenest and fairest of them of them all - get your water butts from the recycle now site along with your wormery and recycled garden trug for all those nasty weeds. The site also allows you to enter your post code and do a quick check on what your council collects and when. Maybe like ours in Hackney, they've just introduced a waste food collection scheme which thankfully removes the need and guilt of a compost bin.

When I step into Debenham's the onslaught of the perfume counters induces me into a slightly bewildered catatonic state. I suddenly feel the urgent need of a guide to help me around the store (Selfridges has an even worse effect on me). Hence I buy very little there, so was pleasantly surprised at Debenhams online shopping service as it is simple, efficient and has a small but very solid amount of goods on offer. This Striped Sling Deckchair costs £30 and can be teamed up with it's companion Striped Directors Chair for £24 (reduced from £30) . Should you go mad and enter multiple figures then you'll get a free striped parasol thrown in.

If you lose the children amidst all these stripes, then why not get them their own pink or turquoise Moon Chair for £15. Failing that a pink, orange or lime Folding Chair for a mere £10. If you think you have a little angel that needs seating you can even get this monogrammed onto a mini deckchair.

If you are going to kick a ball around the park this summer in a bid to relive the World Cup highs and lows, then why not make it a Fairtrade Football. This 32 panel, size 5 ball is produced by the first company in Pakistan to sign up to a fair trade scheme. Whilst spending £9.95 on some pleasure (pain in my case) you are also providing village-based work, which particularly benefits women as they can work part time.

Posted by Carole

There is something fresh and clean and well wholesome about the plant connection website. It specialises in bedding, young, organic and herb plants - all delivered to your door for free. I like the fact that they have an environmental impact section where they reassure you that they are seriously attempting to minimize their energy and chemical use.
Plus you have a selection of pictures to let you know what they are up to in the greenhouses. It's simple and clean and should I order from their site, then I will undoubtedly feel a slight sense of worthiness. To date I have killed every herb I have tried to cultivate, so maybe; just maybe, theirs will have a superior green quality.

I am a big big fan of Woolies and can't get enough of their vases and housey bits. So I'm made up that they have now turned their attention to some fun outdoor stuff. This Bug's Bench is fantastic value at £7.99 reduced from £15.99, it also comes with a table priced at a mere £6.99.

I don't know about you but I find that my Woolies experience varies depending on which store I visit, so this is website is a fantastic shopping experience because I've never seen half the products before. If you log onto the Woolies website then make sure you clock their cheap and cheerful turquoise patio set for £29.99 and if you must have a chimnea then theirs is a snip at £39.99. Can I say it again - I love Woolies.

Are you stuck for a wedding gift for the couple that have everything? Are you about to get married and want your guests to help you plant your garden? Would you like some commemorative trees planted for you? If yes to any of these questions then log onto The Wedding Garden Company and browse gift ideas such as the fun ceramic snails (why would anyone purchase these?) to the beautiful love seat featured here. You can even have a poem or marriage date engraved or how about a list of all the does and don'ts of what you expect from married life - actually forget that the seat is not big enough.

Fair and Weathered is a site which makes me feel a tinge of green jealousy mixed with I want. It's named after it's creator Philip Fairweather who has the enviable job of traveling around the globe to source beautiful and unusual home and garden products. I was surprised at how reasonable the prices were. The featured Hungarian panelled box bench is £220 whilst the bird cages come in white or cream, square or round, £30 or £35 - minus the bird of course.

However like a lot of these sites she fails to mention where and from whom did these exquisite products come from? If only to salve my conscience, I would like a little more history on the items, just to check that a child in Borneo hasn't slaved for a year so I can park my butt on a distressed looking piece of wood. I suppose if you fancy a piece you can always email her or arrange to meet and chat. I mention this because there are quite a few things I like the look of.

When you have a small space you have to be very canny about the furniture you choose. This Tahiti patio set is part of a versatile collection from John Lewis It really works for me because it all neatly folds away and you can choose from four cushion designs to ensure complete comfort. It's made from a durable South American wood which apparently 'weathers over the years from a warm, natural cinnamon colour to a silvery grey'. This could be a polite way of saying it will eventually look really knackered! The table costs £99, the chairs £89, the cushions are £18.50 each, so it will be £314 if you are planning a cozy twosome.

If metal is more your thing then you can always check out their lightweight aluminum set from the Tulip range which is not badly priced at £199 for the lot.

These are rather special paraffin lamps as they are based on the original miners lamps and are actually made in Wales. Rural Living doesn't have a huge amount of products on its site, but it does have a strong sense of real people in the country feel to it. Read the 'Feature' page, this gives you a good indication of the tone of the site and an introduction to Jessie the Springer Spaniel. Anyhow, they've just opened their first shop near Guildford where it would definately be worth popping into. Check out their triangular bird box kit - a great gift for a twitcher.

Posted By Carole

All the big stores have pulled out the stops this summer - maybe they know we're in for a scorcher after such a miserable winter. Anyhow first stop is B & Q,which once you've loaded up with your essential lawn mower, shears, plants, and peat free compost, you can now browse for pure desire objects. This Memphis Retro style Gas Barbecue is top of my shopping list. Not only will it match my Bright red Smeg fridge but it also looks a bit like a fat version of the Angel of the North -sculpture and a cooking vessel in one. It costs £149.98 and also comes in cream, pink and blue.

Posted by Carole

Jardinique is a specialist outlet for Garden & Architectural Antiques and Garden reclamation together with garden ornaments. This wrought iron garden seat is not only practical but also quite a beautiful feature to have - that's presuming you have a tree which you can wrap it round. It measures 180 cm in diameter and costs £950 - not cheap but might be worth skipping a holiday so you can have a permanent seat to view your garden from.

If your view is spoilt by your big green composting bin then for another £130 you could also purchase their composting bin disguised as a beehive and while you're at it they have a great selection of wooden trogs and leather tool rolls to keep you busy filling it up.