Lavendula - Callington

Your average nineteenth century Police Station with cells, was normally a dour, sombre affair. And so too was the Callington Station until Chris Wilkinson got her hands on it. Built in 1867, the station operated until the turn of the century with the cells offering, well let's say short term accommodation for those who played up when Callington was a boisterous copper mining town. They were the holding cells, so anyone that had been involved in being drunk and disorderly or petty crimes they were locked up here overnight and taken to Adelaide." From what was once a Victorian era detention centre to what's now a splash Mediterranean colour, Chris has created a courtyard effect which would make any Greek Islander feel at home. "Speaking about colours and textures, the garden, did you set out a master plan and place the terigeron there and the salvias there and the bronze flacks there. How did it all happen?" "No not at all, Everything you do you must have passion. Because you become very daring when you have passion, you don't think about is it right is it proper, you just say this is it. And you start to put plants here, for instance a big plant here a nastersean coupled with a fine leafed plant which is a salvia and then another fine leafed plant an arrigeron and so the eye is able to detect these fine points." "It's almost as though you got a packet of seeds and got all the seeds and threw them in the air and see how they came down." "But isn't that nature you see. Nature looks uncontrived. It isn't in straight lines, it's meandering, it's like what's around the corner there." And around the corner, another garden, like another room this one containing the underground water tank, a pre-requisite here at Callington where the rainfall is half that of Adelaide. But that hasn't stopped Chris from creating all this next to the cafe where diners can have a Devonshire tea or light lunch and enjoy an explosion of colour. "I'm not presuming that it looks anything like the structure of Monet's garden but when the impressionist painters come and they start to use these lovely subtle colours like a tapestry of colour and then the Iris come in the spring, you say well definitely it is a French connection , there is a French connection here." For Chris, designing a garden is all about risk taking and taking hold of emotions buried deep within. "With all due respects to the experts, forget what they say in the main. Just say now what do I love? Close your eyes, what do I love? What brings back good memories, what perfumes do I remember that are involved with happy thoughts in my life." The interior of the old Police Station, now Chris' home, reflects the same approach. "This would have been the kitchen in the old days." "And over here is where they would have cooked their stews in the cast pot." "Rabbit stew of course and Kangaroo." "Absolutely." There's no ornate Victorian stencilling here, more a free and easy approach to decoration, in keeping with a French Farmhouse. It's here and in the gardens that Chris conducts her all day seminars on "Decorating on a shoe string budget". Lavendula is also open for lunches and afternoon teas from Thursday through to Sunday. The Old Callington Police Station is on Montefiore Street, Callington. Decorating Seminars run from 9.30am - 3.30pm and cost $50. Lunches and afternoon tea are from Thursdays thru to Sunday. For bookings contact Chris on (08) 8538 5138.

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