Floral display outside my favourite restaurant – “Danny Minnie’s”
I live in County Donegal, on the north west coast of Ireland, which was recently voted “The Coolest Place on the Planet” by National Geographic Traveller (UK).
My village has been participating in Ireland’s national “Tidy Towns” competition for several years. One of our star attractions is our “Bikes in Bloom.”
The village car park complete with colourful seating, bicycle and wildlife information
A dedicated team of volunteers maintain the bicycles, and embellish their baskets with flowers each spring.
The bikes are painted in colourful hues…
They stand to attention along walls, telegraph posts and outside shops and other village establishments.
They light up a couple of uninhabited cottages.
They smile at visitors who travel along “The Wild Atlantic Way” – a tourism trail that passes through nine counties from Donegal’s Inishowen Peninsula in the north, to Kinsale, County Cork in the south. The trail covers 2500km and is depicted by the blue wave sign seen in the photograph above.
I smile every time I pass a “bike in bloom”. I wonder how many other smiles they create in a day?
Brigid P. Gallagher is a retired natural medicines therapist, passionate organic gardener and author of “Watching the Daisies- Life lessons on the Importance of Slow,” a holistic memoir dedicated to the art of mindfulness and healing from debilitating illness.
You definitely got a smile from me!! oh how colorful… and what a special grouping of pics.. your neighborhood looks homey!!
lovely written post –
Kind Regards and sunshine abounds – K
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Thanks K. It sure is homey. Blessings to you.
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What a lovely idea!! The bikes remind me of days gone by and the colors along with the flowers gives them that added umph – beautiful!
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Yes, they attract a lot of photographers!
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I can see why. 🙂
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It all looks so pretty!
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Yes, I smile every time I pass them. There are LOTs of them through the village now…
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They certainly made me smile today. You live in a very pretty town.
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Thanks Barbara. I know I am very blessed to live in such a beautiful place. Take care.
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I’m smiling! I love the baskets of flowers on the bikes.
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Yes, it is such a simple idea and all those lovely old bikes have a new lease of life!
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Re-cycling at it’s best!
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Definitely brightened up my day seeing this post. Innovative idea.
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Thank you. Its been copied now in other villages!
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[…] Watching the Daisies: Echoes of my Neighbourhood – Bikes in Bloom […]
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Thanks Nikki. I am a bit behind with being on holiday. Its great to be appreciated.
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What a delight! These are so pretty 🙂
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Yes. They light up the village. They are such a simple idea too.
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[…] must say that Brigid’s Irish village’s Tidy Town practice with the blooming bikes is such a delightful aesthetic and horticultural idea. From Ireland, we traipsed through a little […]
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Thank you so much. I appreciate your kind thoughts.
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Ah, we could use more “Tidy Town” ideas in this world. The photos are both tidy and beautiful.
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Yes – they put everyone into community minded action. It has made a HUGE difference in my village. Great to get your comments. Thank you.
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It put a smile on my face! Thank you so much for sharing this. How creative and fun. What a beautiful place to live. Many blessings ❤ Have a wonderful weekend.
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Thank you. The bikes create lots of joy and such a simple idea. Blessings.
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Ohhh Daisies, I’m so glad that you sent me in search of this blog post! Awww… this is just incredible and what’s more … it’s made me feel that I’d rather like to do something along the same lines. So I’m going to keep my eye open for an old bike that no one wants anymore. Something shoved at the back of a shed or garage somewhere. It might not happen this summer (doubt it will) but I am going to hope for next year. If it happens, I’ll blog about it.
Thank you so much for telling me about this.
Bless you. ~ Cobs. x
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I knew you
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Indeedly doodly!
You most certainly do! ❤
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I knew you would enjoy it Cobs. Since our village started displaying the bikes a few years ago they have been copied worldwide. They are well photographed by visitors… It’s such a simple idea. Have a great weekend. 😍
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You too, Daisies. ❤ ~ Cobs. x
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What a wonderful idea! They all look so pretty and surely put a smile on my face!
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They sure do Miriam. Lots of people stop to take photographs which is lovely. 😊
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I would, if I were there! 🙂
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Such a LOVELY idea. Isn’t it proof that the simple things done beautifully bring the widest smiles?
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Thank you Osyth. It sure does. These bikes stop lots of people on their roadtrips and are well photographed.
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How beautiful and chic! You live in such a beautiful place.
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Thank you Pradita. I feel very blessed. 😊
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You’re welcome 😊 😊
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Suddenly makes the phrase ‘on your bike’ sound more welcoming as it could bring a sense of peace and satisfaction working on one’s bike.
Any idea as to the origins of this practice?
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Thanks Val. I dinnae Ken 😉
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What a refreshing post, love the photos. I love Ireland. Have visited the Dublin twice with trips to Wexford, Howt* and Avoca. I love the place, people are friendly and the scenery is breathtaking a bit like Scotland with better weather I think 😉
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Thanks Etta. Scotland is beautiful too especially Stirlingshire. 😊
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Yes it is, the Highlands are favourite though.
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Well this post and those bikes definitely made me smile. How lovely to have them scattered around your town. Thanks for sharing your patch of the world Brigid. xo 😊
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My pleasure Miriam. The bikes are well photographed. They are a star attraction and such a simple idea. xx
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Reblogged this on Smorgasbord – Variety is the spice of life and commented:
Fantastic post from Brigid Gallagher with not only a restaurant recommendation but some stunning photos of her beautiful village in County Donegal.. and great idea for old bikes.
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Bless you Sally. X
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These are beautiful photos. I love the bikes in bloom idea. I really want one myself! 🙂 xxx
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I hope your wish comes true. 😍😍
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Hello ‘Daisies’ 🙂
Just a little note to tell you that I’ve nominated you and your really lovely blog for a Liebster Award.
You can read more about this here: https://thecobweboriumemporium.wordpress.com/2017/06/14/liebster-award-nomination/
You don’t have to accept the award if your blog is award free.
I’ve placed a link to your blog on my own blog, so that people can come and check you out. 🙂
Congratulations on being worthy of nomination. Your blog really is such a joy. ~ Cobs. 🙂
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Bless you Cobs. I am award free but appreciate the nomination just the same. 😍😍😍
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I love you anyway, Daisies. You are very worthy of the nomination.
❤ ~ Cobs. x
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😇😇😇
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Those are very nice displays, original too!
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Thank you. They make me smile. 😊
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You’re most welcome. They have the same effect for me.
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Oh I love vintage bikes and the thought of using them as a flower displays in my garden! What pretty photos xx
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Thanks Hayley. They are a joy. 😊
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You got a smile from me too. So pretty 🙂 You live in such a beautiful place !! 🙂
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Thanks Judith. I feel very blessed to live here. 😊
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Wow this is pure bliss…now you makes me wanna go there..
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You will be given a big welcome here in Ireland. 😊
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Add my name to the list of those who smiled wide while reading your post…
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Thank you Laura. It has been a really busy day with lovely comments. I am really thrilled. 😊
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What a wonderful idea, Bridget. These bikes would definitely make me smile too.
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I have had so much lovely feedback today Robbie. I will pass it on to the Tidy Towns team. They will be thrilled. 😊
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Delightful! 🙂
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Thanks Bette. 😊
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I love this. So cheery! My husband blogged about a bike this in our town. We only have one though. 😉 Sharing this post. 🙂
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Thank you Nikki. They have brought a lot of positive feedback today. 😊
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A fun idea. Is this also a bike friendly town? I enjoyed your photos.
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Thanks Ali. We get a lot of cyclists but the roads can be a bit bendy. We do have lots of lovely side roads that are perfect for cyclists.
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Thanks for sharing the “bikes in bloom” what lovely sites to inevitably bring a smile.
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My pleasure. They create lots of smiles. 😊
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beautiful!
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Thank you. 😊
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Thank you 😊
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Smiling! A pretty “cool” idea for the coolest place on the planet!
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Thank you. They created a lot of smiles this week. 😊
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[…] week’s Bikes in Bloom post attracted a lot of lovely feedback, and many of you commented on the natural beauty of my […]
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What a lovely idea and some great photos. Love it 🙂
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Thank you much. They have been really popular. 😊
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Hello Brigid,
What a gorgeous idea… I really loved the blue bike with the yellow flowers…
And such great recognition for your county too. It’s a definite must visit now when we come to Ireland.
Thank you for such a lovely post 🌟🌟💕
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You are welcome. I have had so many lovely comments on this post and I shall pass them on to the Tidy Towns team. 😊
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I’m sure they create many smiles. They are so colorful and pretty. I know they made me smile. The photos are beautiful. What a lovely idea. 😀
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I have had such great feedback this week and I have passed it on to the Tidy Towns team. They are delighted. 😊
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Oh I love that idea and they are so colorful and pretty…I bet they must create thousands of smiles!! What a lovely site, how could you not smile when seeing that.
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They have attracted lots of lovely feedback this week. The Tidy Towns team are delighted. 😊
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As they should be and proud too!! They look splendid, such a creative idea. ☺
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“The coolest place to live on the earth!!” That’s fun to hear! I’ll bet you just thought it was your own dear home– cool or not. But it does look totally charming Brigid!! Love when you share photos like this… xox
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Bless you Rhonda. These bikes are famous and well photographed these days. 😉
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This are so cute!! Do you have pots planted in your yard?? Was fun to see parts of your garden!! Sunday night here. How was your weekend Brigid?? xox
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I have some pots. A dozen or so…I had a lovely quiet weekend. I made apple pie and elderflower cordial for a friend visiting. X
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lucky friend!! take care Brigid… xo
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Now I have to go out and get an old bicycle and fill its baskets with flowers. 😀 Beautiful post, Brigid!
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They are very smiley aren’t they… There will be flower filled bicycles around the globe soon. 😉
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I really love this idea and the pictures made me smile. Such a thoughtful and creative idea!
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Thank you Kelly. Bikes in Bloom has become everyone’s favourite post.
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Awesome post. Really like it. We are also working on a new travel blog. Check our posts at http://namastevizag.com/NV/destinations?id=1eff9cfe-a0100040-1e6d1a89-f51495d1 Follow us if you find it interesting.
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Thank you. I shall pop over.
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[…] Bikes in Bloom […]
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