Lessons for hedonists: this is how you can bring that happy holiday atmosphere to your back garden

Going on holiday is really enjoyable, but coming home is just as nice. Why not bring the holiday atmosphere to your back garden all year round? The best of both worlds. We’ll give you some tips on bringing the wide world under your patio canopy.

Give souvenirs a place of honour

Something you picked up at a market in Montenegro, or in your favorite design store in Helsinki? Don't let your souvenirs gather dust in some cupboard, but exhibit them. Choose to display the items in groups, where you can play with highs and lows. Or choose one key item and place it under a glass bell jar. Inge Moerenhout: ‘When I’m on holiday, I’m always on the lookout for souvenirs that I can use every day. One of my favorite objects is a wooden bowl from Gambia: it serves as a fruit bowl or eye-catcher, both outside and inside. And on my last trip in Prague, I found exactly the same wine glasses as the set that I received from my mother-in-law 25 years ago. One of the specimens bit the dust recently. So you can imagine how great my joy was when I found those exact same glasses. These kinds of souvenirs give my interior an extra value, and let me travel a little every day.’

Dolce far niente

One of the obligatory statements about holidays: ‘Doing nothing is so good, we should do it more often at home.’ Are you bringing any souvenirs from your trip to Italy? Then put some dolce far niente in your suitcase, the Italian expression for ‘deliciously doing nothing’. Embrace the pace of the South, and block off a few hours a week in your diary to enjoy the outdoors. Put your smartphone away. Flop down in the outdoor salon under your louvered roof pergola and take some time for yourself.

Aromas and flavours