Home & Garden Show celebrates record visitor numbers

More than 10,000 people visited the Home & Garden Show 2008, held over the weekend at Chester Racecourse. Visitors explored cooking, gardening and interior design zones, each with famous names presenting demonstrations. The show featured sets from interior designer Laurence Llwelyn-Bowen, celebrity chef Simon Rimmer, interior designer Laura McCree and TV Chef Tiffany. Actress and model Gemma Atkinson, who also starred in I’m a Celebrity Get me Out of Here, met three teenage cancer patients in a room she designed in conjunction with the Teenage Cancer Trust and Arighi Bianchi.

Gemma’s room won the judges’ special award in The Northern Design Awards, which took place on Saturday 30th May at the Chester Grosvenor Hotel & Spa. The room will form the basis for a suite for teenage cancer sufferers which Macclesfield’s Arighi Bianchi will go on to create full-scale for Christie Hospital in Manchester.

Event director Mandy White, said:

"This year's Home & Garden Show has been a big success, not just for us but for Chester as a whole. We were delighted to attract big names such as Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, BBC chef Simon Rimmer and a host of other stars to the Racecourse and look forward to welcoming even more celebrity guests to our event next year, firmly establishing the Home & Garden Show as a key event in the design calendar."

Speaking to a packed audience, interior designer and broadcaster Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen re-affirmed the place of design in the stalling property market and heralded the return of wallpaper:

“There has been a big surge of property shows over the last five years that have promoted what I would call “make-unders” instead of make-overs. People have been painting their homes in boring beiges and ‘bogey’ colours. There is a fear that if you create something interesting you won’t be able to sell your home. I think this is rubbish and as the property market is calming down, people are realising again that their home is not just an asset, but a living space. People are interesting and should have interesting interiors.

“Wallpaper has moved on from the dowdy image of 15 years ago. Wallpaper is art. When I create new designs, it’s about taking a line for a walk and creating a viewing experience that should be a constant pleasure. Wallpaper is a versatile medium that has an ability to dissolve corners and make rooms seem more spacious. Above all, wallpaper shows decorating with real commitment.

“Don’t decorate to sell, imitate your parents or keep up with the Joneses, decorate for you.”

Next year’s event will take place on 29th-31st May.