Turners - Making History at National Trust's Blicking

Turner's latest commission has been to create a bespoke cistern feature for National Trust property Blicking Hall.

The brief for the new piece, destined for the courtyard - a busy visitor thoroughfare - was to provide a contemporary yet sympathetic piece which echoed elements of the historic architecture.

In creating the design, Turners' worked closely with Trust staff to incorporate key motifs found around the buildings, which tell the story of the site.

This process was in itself a nod to posterity, since the original motifs themselves would have been conceived by successive owners and architects to reflect the unfolding fortunes of the incumbent families.

After the design was agreed, a painstaking process of molding in wax was undertaken, to create all the elements for the final pattern boards.

The finished cistern can now be viewed by the public in situ, in all its glory.

David Wynne Stags Restored to Greatness

Painstaking restoration work has saved a Norfolk art treasure as Turner's reinstates twin stags to lofty heights at Ditchingham.

The paired stags, a unique work of art by celebrated British sculptor David Wynne OBE, had suffered structural damage due to inadequate support fixings, which threatened their stability.

Turner's faced a major challenge in removing, restoring and re-installing such priceless, delicate and unique sculptural pieces.

Turners - Finalists in LCA Murdoch Awards

Turners Ornamental Leadwork have been shortlisted as finalists for this year's prestigious Murdoch Award "the ultimate accolade in leadwork" - from The Lead Contractors Association.

The Norfolk leadworks has been selected by a group of industry-peers for the firm's specialist work on the Chelsea M&G Garden for Bunny Guinness.

Guinness Garden Scoops RHS Silver Gilt

Visit the RHS website by clicking on the image above to view more pictures of our award-winning garden, including an innovative 360 degree panorama!

Turner's 'Arts & Crafts' Designs Praised by TV Style guru Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen

"Bunny Guinness's garden is actually a bit like a walk-in William Morris wallpaper, because here, nature rules OK. It's curvaceous, it's crammed full, its voluptuous.

"It's about vegetative beauty - and also it's not all that highly coloured - but, just like a William Morris print, look closely at the content.

"Look at this fabulous artichoke. William Morris loved things to be pretty in the garden, but he loved it even more when they were beautiful and useful." Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen.

Turner's Chelsea Garden Work Unveiled

Fellow collaborators Brian of Turners and top plantsman John of The Romantic Garden Nursery enjoy the view from the glass platform at the M&G Show Garden.

"It's been hard work with not a few technical challenges - but looking out over the garden now, to see what we've all achieved together, it is really magnificent," said Turner.

Taking many months from first concept to final realisation, the leadwork aspects of the project provide structure, contrast and detailing to Guinness's high-intensity planting scheme.

The finished plot is a design homage to the 'grow-your-own' concept. Raised beds, dotted with decorative lead artichokes radiate from the central hub of Turner's dunking pool, to provide a productive yet tranquil garden oasis for the urban family.




Bunny Guinness talks about the ideas and inspiration behind her new Chelsea design.

Behind the Scenes in the run up to Chelsea

Camera crew in tow, team Guinness beats a path to Turners in Norfolk, to see how the leadwork features in Bunny's Chelsea scheme are shaping up...

Turners' Chelsea Centrepiece for sponsors M&G

Chelsea Sponsor picks Turners for focal feature...

Chelsea sponsors M&G have now released visuals of their 2011 garden plan - designed by Bunny Guinness.

The scheme is a modern take on a traditional kitchen garden, combining a beautiful decorative space with a working plot producing fruit, herbs, vegetables and flowers.

The garden features raised beds where cabbages and beans mingle with clematis and roses. Lavender and herbs add fragrance and terracotta pots containing fruit trees appear throughout.

The focal point of the space will be a large lead chalice-style water feature, designed and made by Brian Turner at his Norfolk workshop.

Turner commented 'Bunny's project has been a real technical challenge - as the outer bowl of the chalice must be bossed in a single piece from a flat disc of lead almost 2m wide. At a finished diameter of over 1.5m and weighing in at just over 1100 kilos this will be the largest water feature of its kind that Turners have ever made - something totally unique!'

The scheme will also feature a number of artichoke-shaped lead finials which will add decorative and structural height to the scheme.

Turners - in the frame for Chelsea 2011

A dazzling shortlist of show gardens for the 2011 RHS Chelsea Flower Show has now been confirmed - including the return of multi-gold-medal-winning designer Bunny Guinness.

Sponsors M&G have selected the renowned landscape architect, along with leadwork collaborator Brian Turner, to design their very own showpiece - a modern take on a traditional kitchen garden.

'It's always a pleasure to work with Brian as nothing is too much of a challenge! We're looking forward to our next leadwork collaboration - for Chelsea in 2011,' says Bunny.

Spotlight on Sand Casting...

Since Hampton Court Turners have been hard at work on a number of major new commissions, as well as developing a brand new limited edition series of equestrian wall plaques (watch this space!)

As many of our clients are fascinated by the leadworking process, we thought we'd record some recent sand casting work to give a video-taster of the inner sanctum of Brian's workshop...

Fun in the sun at Hampton Court

We've had a terrific reception so far - from the party of school children on day one - who stood back, whispering to each other 'It's beautiful' - to the happy customer yesterday (returning for more) - who told us 'It's so lovely and tranquil. The kind of area that absolutely everyone would love to have waiting for them back at home, in their own garden.'

'The most popular features so far have been the unique ornamental pineapple and pine cone fountains which we have on display - always an enormous lure on a hot, summer's day - and of course the lovely benches!' Brian Turner


Images: courtesy Keith Holmes

Preview Day at RHS Hampton Court...

'Brian's leadwork and attention to detail is legendary' Andy Marshall, Managing Director, BBC Magazines.

It took our hard-working team of six (plus one very patient forklift driver) three long, hot days to transform the contents of a 40-foot artic into the sedate, calming oasis that is the 'Gardens Illustrated' Show Garden.

The project - to bring to life George Carter's opulent topiary design at the grand entrance to the show's central pavillion - has involved the deployment of 4 tones of shingle, 3 tons of lead (23 custom-made planters and two bespoke fountains), 32 prime topiary & architectural plants, two benches and untold gallons of water (mostly drunk by the crew!)

The result?

'It's lovely!' Alan Titchmarsh

'Hard work, but - standing back now with a glass of champagne in hand - it's all been well worth it for the quality of the space we've created and the comments we've already received - and the show hasn't even started yet!' Brian Turner

Turner's at Hampton Court for Gardens Illustrated

The past few days have seen the Turners' team hard at work at Hampton Court...

The trio of Turner's, George Carter and The Romantic Garden Nursery have been commissioned by BBC Gardens Illustrated Magazine to construct an exciting new Topiary Garden, to run the length of their grand Pavillion at the RHS Hampton Court Flower Show.

The show will run from 6-11th July 2010 with a special press preview evening on Monday 5th July.

To find out more or to book tickets for the event, click on the poster to the right, for a direct link to the RHS website.

All leadwork pieces used for the garden will be available for sale after the show. To request a price list click here.

Private Preview Invitation - 7th/8th May 2010

We hope that you can join us to celebrate the launch of our new collections at The Romantic Garden Nursery...

This two-day event will showcase our very latest designs in lead planters, cisterns, urns and fountains.

Other Event Highlights will include:

Swannington Manor gardens - exclusive access by kind permission of Mrs and Mrs David Prior.

George Carter Chelsea gold medal winner, will have a selection of his books available for sale.

Why not join us for lunch..?
Complimentary hot lunch and drinks will be served between 12 noon and 3pm.

Event opening hours: 10am-5pm
The Romantic Garden Nursery
The Street, Swannington
Norfolk NR9 5NW.

Turner's Fountains featured in EDP

Turner's acclaimed Chelsea installations feature in the EDP as Norfolk-based garden designer George Carter offers his expert insight into the world's biggest flower show...

'At Chelsea forget reality. The designer's task is to produce a stunning theatrical display in which everything's perfect and at its peak on one particular day.'

Turners in Carter Lifestyle Profile

Turner's featured in House and Garden's 7-page Lifestyle profile of polymath design guru George Carter...

'George Carter is perhaps best known as a garden designer. '

'He has won many consecutive gold medals at Chelsea - many of them in conjunction with Brian Turner and The Romantic Garden Nursery, which is based close by in Norfolk - and is a master of modern gardens in the formal tradition, good examples being the Contemplative Garden for the King's College library at Chancery Lane, and the Garden of Surprises at Burghley Houe, Stamford...'

Bunny Guinness praises Turner's in Telegraph

Chelsea Judge Bunny Guinness picks out the best in water features from the stands...

'The most impressive was the lead pine cone, a towering 2.3 metres high, and trough made by Brian Turner (master lead craftsman) as part of his Galena collection. The centre piece, which includes the water tanks, fountains and pump, contains three tons of lead.

Brian also makes lead apples with copper leaves, or anything else you could possibly want in lead.'

House & Garden spots Turner's as top trend

House & Gardens' top plantsman Keith Kirstein shares his thoughts on the greening trend at Chelsea...

'It was the best-ever Chelsea. The Millennium madness has passed and in its place were clean, slick and well-constructed gardens...'

' I admired the good balance between hard and soft landscaping... '

'This year's show was essentially a masterclass of the basics of gardening taken to an entirely new level of accomplishment, even sophistication....'

Turner's work featured in top garden design book

Unique ornamental leadwork pieces from Turner's award winning garden collaborations are set to feature in a new reference work by garden design expert George Carter.

The new book showcases the cream of the capital's secret gardens - commissioned by top clients including writers, sculptors, fashion and interior designers, actors and celebrity hairdressers.

Designs range from minimal roof terraces and surreal spaces to a geometrically abstract topiary garden and an illusionistic stage-set of a garden with shell water features.

These exciting urban gardens - many seen here for the first time - are beautifully captured by the spectacular photography of Marianne Majerus.

Brian Turner Profiled in House & Garden

Thanks to House & Garden's 'People Specialist' Jennifer Goulding, for her excellent profile of Brian, featured in the September issue.

'Ornamental-leadwork specialist Brian Turner creates bespoke pieces for private gardens and award-winning exhibits...'

'Impressed by Brian's work, George [Carter] asked him to make an obelisk water feature for the garden he was designing. It was then used at The Romantic Garden Nursery exhibit at Chelsea Floweer Show, which won a gold medal. George, Brian and John Powles from The Romantic Garden Nursery have since collaborated on numberous projects, including several other gold-winning gardens at Chelsea Flower Show.'

'George and Brian have also worked on many private gardens...'