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Tag: daisies

  • Jo Thompson’s ‘The New Romantic Garden’: Design Ideas to Steal From Her New Book

    All week, we’re revisiting the most popular stories of 2025, including this one from March.

    Anyone who knows British garden designer Jo Thompson’s work will not be surprised by the title of her book, The New Romantic Garden. Over the decades that Thompson has been working as a designer she, has always created atmospheric gardens with a softness and sense of atmosphere and mystery. The 30 gardens that fill the book show how a modern romantic aesthetic can be applied anywhere—from a tiny city garden to the meadows of a country estate. Thompson’s text is delightfully laced with romance, too, with references to fairies, sun goddesses, and Narnia.

    Benton irises and roses mingle in this romantic London garden designed by Thompson. Photograph by Jason Ingram.
    Above: Benton irises and roses mingle in this romantic London garden designed by Thompson. Photograph by Jason Ingram.

    The “new” in the title reflects the fact that while Thompson’s work may feel nostalgic in some regards (there are many an English rose in this book), it is firmly of-the-moment. A longtime advocate of organic gardening, Thompson designs to support biodiversity and soil health, which are on all gardeners’ minds today. There’s also a looseness and a naturalness that will appeal to fans of the new perennial movement and more naturalistic styles. This book is a fresh perspective on what a “romantic” garden is today.

    Photography courtesy of The New Romantic Garden by Jo Thompson (Rizzoli).

    1. Start with the story.

    Romantic and natural, this garden has a real sense of place and to whom it belongs (writer Justine Picardie and her husband, Philip Astor). The wildflower meadow of mostly native grasses is peppered with a few nonnatives to extend the season of pollen and visual interest. Photograph by Rachel Warne.
    Above: Romantic and natural, this garden has a real sense of place and to whom it belongs (writer Justine Picardie and her husband, Philip Astor). The wildflower meadow of mostly native grasses is peppered with a few nonnatives to extend the season of pollen and visual interest. Photograph by Rachel Warne.

    For all of her designs, Thompson develops a story for the garden based on her clients’ desires and the place itself. For Thompson this involves “beating the bounds of the place and really getting to grips with the space,” plus trying to understand its history and what might have been there before. But she says, storytelling can be a delicate dance. “You want to avoid creating a pastiche,” she cautions. “If I’m working with a Tudor cottage near Canterbury, I’m not going to create a little Tudor medicinal garden, but there might be elements, like medicinal plants within the planting.” Likewise, Thompson says she trusts her intuition not to take a garden too far from its roots.

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  • Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy and Daisies Partner on a Pickle Pastry Called ‘Dill-Co’

    Wilco’s Jeff Tweedy and Daisies Partner on a Pickle Pastry Called ‘Dill-Co’

    Concertgoers love an encore. Daisies set a standard in January with its croissant collaboration with Wieners Circle, as the Logan Square pasta power created a croissant filled with the familiar toppings of a Chicago hot dog. Partner and pastry chef Leigh Omilinsky has since teamed with the Chicago Blackhawks on a limited-time offering.

    Daisies found an unlikely collaborator with Wilco, the Chicago-based alt-country band passionate about supporting small businesses. Starting on Friday, September 20 Daisies will sell a limited edition croissant that celebrates the band’s 30th anniversary and all things pickles. Tweedy and Omilinsky take Wilco fans on a nostalgic journey on social media using song references while Tweedy provides his rationale.

    “Every song I’ve ever written is about pickles,” Tweedy deadpans in an Instagram video posted on Wednesday, September 18 announcing the croissant.

    While the Daisies/Wieners Circle croissant included a pickle, nothing matches the pickled prowess of Daisies’ newest creation, called Dill-Co. The croissant will be available for a limited time and launch in conjunction with Tweedy’s upcoming appearance on Saturday, September 21 at Navy Pier, part of Chicago Live!, a free festival featuring more than 100 performances. Sales from the croissant will benefit the former Lakeview Pantry, now known as Nourishing Hope.

    Daisies has long celebrated pickling and fermenting techniques in its food and drink, so pickles weren’t an odd request for Omilinsky. While the world of pickles is vast, Tweedy and his camp wanted pickled cucumbers. Knowing that Omilinsky needed something to hold the pastry together, and turned to Jewish delis for inspiration, opting for a dill cream cheese. She adds chopped pickles, giardiniera, dill, and dehydrated pickle powder.

    This isn’t Wilco’s first food collaboration. They also partnered with Foxtrot in 2022 as the chain produced a snack mix with the band’s branding.

    Omilinsky has spent the last few weeks at Green City Market in Lincoln Park, selling pastries on Wednesdays and Fridays. While they won’t sell the Dill-Co pastry at the farmers market, she says it wasn’t hard convincing Tweedy to collaborate: “People are pretty cool, and I think that’s a good thing to remember in this day and age,” she says. “All you have to do is ask.”

    She adds she was taken aback filming the video at the Loft, the legendary practice space turned studio. Omilinsky says Tweedy had stories for every trinket inside.

    Daisies co-owner Scott Goldstein and his brother-in-law, Dave Yakir, were again in charge of putting the video together, as their company Streeterville Productions specializes in such content. Goldstein says coming up with the pickle jokes was a challenge, but once he fixated on Wilco’s song, She’s a Jar, the floodgates opened. Goldstein was also very complimentary of Tweedy’s acting talents.

    “It’s a crime we can’t play guitar and sing as well as he can tell jokes,” Goldstein says.

    Dill-Co at Daisies, starting on Friday, September 20.

    Ashok Selvam

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  • Your Weekend Playlist: New Music To Listen To Friday

    Your Weekend Playlist: New Music To Listen To Friday

    As you read this, imagine me to be sitting somewhere on a beach in New Jersey (hold your horrified gasps) surrounded by friends and a Bose Soundlink Max speaker blaring my favorite tracks. I’m always on aux, dear reader, as I’m sure you can imagine. My Spotify playlists are highly sought after by a specific group of people (my friends).

    And yes, it’s also worth mentioning that it’s a holiday weekend. For those of us in the good ole United States of America, it’s the Fourth of July during a very terrifying election year. So, in order not to think about the current state of our country, we must listen to music. And lots of it. Doctor’s orders.

    So that’s where the good new comes in: each week, there’s a whole set of new songs released. Especially during the summer, because artists know you’re looking to stream. And patiently, as I wait for Harry Styles to drop new music (it’s been two years, H), I have this weekly segment where I round up the best new music released.

    I comb through press releases, Spotify curated playlists, and the charts to find the next big songs that will get you and your friends dancing.

    If new music sounds like something you need right now, let’s get listening!

    Lana Del Rey x Quavo – “Tough”

    Welcome back, rapper Lana Del Rey. After being spotted hanging out with Quavo in Atlanta and performing the song at her sold-out Fenway Park show, the friend duo are here with “Tough.” It’s highly anticipated for a reason- combining Lana’s earthy, crooning voice with Quavo’s ability to craft a hit rap song.

    With two seasoned veterans, it’s hard to go wrong…and Lana Del Rey is the ultimate risk-taker when it comes to music. Expect a sonic shift, but the same voices you know and love. It’s both country and rap bundled into one song that makes perfect sense.

    Good Neighbors – “Daisies” 

    Good Neighbors deserves all of the hype they’ve been receiving so far. “Daisies” is the perfect dose of summertime in one song…and how perfect, as it’s about falling back in love with yourself. It feels just like that- with the synths, the vocals, the instrumental breaks envelop your senses, sending you into sunshine and a field somewhere.

    After the mega-hit “Home” and follow up single, “Keep It Up,” “Daisies” proves Good Neighbors is on the right track. This new era of indie pop is just what we needed right now.

    Eminem, BabyTron, Big Sean- “Tobey” 


    Shady’s officially back- with new album The Death of Slim Shady (Coupe De Grace) on the horizon, he releases “Tobey” alongside Big Sean and BabyTron. It’s high energy, and even though industry giants like Eminem have been around for over a decade, “Tobey” feels fresh.

    And, of course, Eminem waits to come in at the very end and close out the song with fire verse after fire verse. It’s a fun sneak peek into what comes next in the final era of Slim Shady.

    Louis The Child, Laszewo, Pluko- “Slow” 

    Louis The Child is a name synonymous with summer hits. Just in time for your days spent lounging on the beach and hanging with your friends, this song begs for a relationship to slow down. It’s about taking things slow, and showcases the collaborators sounds perfectly.

    “It flowed like water,” Louis The Child say. “It’s a song about wanting to dive straight into a relationship, about feeling all the right emotions and not wanting to hold back or take things slow.”

    Felix Jaehn, Sophie Ellis-Bextor- “Ready For Your Love” 

    Two icons: Felix Jaehn and Sophie Ellis-Bextor (yes, of “Murder On The Dancefloor”) are here with “Ready For Your Love.” It’s entrancing- an ethereal beat mixed with Ellis-Bextor’s lilting voice that floats over the house track. It makes you want to dance, it’s perfect for the electronic house renaissance we’re having this summer.

    I can hear this playing in New York City clubs for the foreseeable future…and it’ll be well-deserved. “Ready For Your Love” is an instant hint.

    KATSEYE- “Debut” 

    Ahead of their debut EP, SIS (Soft Is Strong), KATSEYE is here with “Debut”- a symphony of powerful vocals from this brand new girl group. KATSEYE has already proven they’ve got what it takes to be the next big thing in the industry, and “Debut” solidifies they are taking stardom in stride.

    Their vocal diversity makes “Debut” an exciting listen- starting strong and building throughout its entirety. Definitely not the last time we’re going to hear from this group, but a promising beginning nonetheless.

    Listen To Our Playlist on Spotify!

    Jai Phillips

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