'I Go Into My Garden, and I Come Out a Better Person Every Time' – Pamela Anderson On The Everyday Magic of Her Vancouver Island Home

From washing vegetables in the ocean to planting seas of garlic, everything about Pamela Anderson's lifestyle at her Vancouver Island home is a bit wild and unexpected.

'I always said I'll make my life beautiful no matter what, and I've said that since I was a very little girl,' she tells Homes & Gardens from the mahogany warmth of her book-lined office. She continues: 'And even if people throw wrenches into your life, you just figure out: how can I make that beautiful?'

Since dedicating herself to renovating her grandparents' 7-acre estate in Ladysmith, British Columbia, in 2020, Pamela has brought this vision to life with her tastefully rustic house and fairytale vegetable garden.

Every inch of the property has a story. We called Pamela at Arcady (meaning a peaceful, rustic place) to chat about her home, garden, and the latest launch for her holistic skincare line, Sonsie, parsing out the history and vision that inform each.

Much of Pamela's gardening philosophy is rooted in mindfulness. It's an approach where nature is left to make its own decisions, and she's eager to follow.

'I'm a little bit more of a wild gardener,' the actor explains. 'I don't like straight lines. I love things that self-seed. I have big planter boxes, and I rotate, you know, my tomatoes, but then a tomato will pop up in the corn, and then that's my favorite thing. I love the surprises that a garden offers.'

Pamela's wild gardening approach helps to bring out these unexpected moments, creating a seamless integration between vegetables and florals.

She continues: 'I keep it manicured, but not too manicured. There are lots of flowers in my garden, very provencal in some places. I'll grow the stuff for bees and butterflies, but also a vegetable will pop up in there, and then you kind of just let those little surprises flourish instead of pulling them out and putting them where they're supposed to go, because maybe they know something better. Maybe they know something we don't.'

For Pamela, gardening is just as much about personal growth, a form of green therapy, as building something beautiful. She states: 'I go into my garden and I come out a better person every time. That is for sure.'

The garden is a major creative inspiration for the actress, starting with the latest flavor of her Basic Balm lip product from Sonsie, Wild Groundcherry, which Pamela invented after discovering the fruits unexpectedly in her garden. Pamela says: 'You never leave the garden without inspiration for something.'

She says: 'I didn't know what they were. I thought they were tomatillo tomatoes. So when I bit into one, I did not expect the flavor. They're kind of citrusy, but earthy. I became obsessed with them.'

'If I discover something new in the garden, it's going to be a lip balm eventually. That's my goal,' she jokes.

Shop Pamela's Garden Favorites

For anyone who wants to get started with their own beginner garden, Pamela recommends leaning into the process as a journey where you learn as you go. She says: 'It's most fun to plant your own garden. You need a lot of help, definitely have friends come in, but it's very personal.'

Pamela continues: 'You want to know where everything goes. I like things to flow together, and there are vegetables and fruits that like each other, and then there are some that don't. So you learn companion planting. But you also want to create a beautiful, magical experience. For example, I just planted my garlic, and I planted like a sea of garlic. So, if you were looking over it, you would see something kind of like a painting. That's what I love about planting.'

The surpises in the garden don't have to be completely random; you can also curate unexpected joy for yourself. Pamela recommends: 'Plant some things that you've never tried before. Whether it's japanese sweet potatoes or kohlrabi. Anything that's new, and then just start playing. I think that's really fun.'

Though she calls her garden the 'beating heart' of her property, this atmosphere of discovery is also central to how Pamela lives in her home. It's unexpected, but deeply personal.

She says: 'I find the most exciting part of life is to keep surprising yourself, to keep trying new things. So, my house is a little quirky. It's very relaxed and calm, and, it's one of those things where my kids come over and they're like, "Oh, Mom, why did you put that there? Why'd you do this?" I'm like, you just enjoy it. Those are the things you're going to remember.'

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