• Interiors

    Flowers from the garden

    Sunday is our planning day and the diaries are getting busy with visits, exhibitions and events that we can’t wait to share with you all. We’re also catching up with some other chores today so are keeping things simple with…

  • Art

    Entangled Pasts at the Royal Academy

    They say every picture tells a story so perhaps an art exhibition is an anthology of works with the objective of looking at a subject from many and varied perspectives. This is certainly true of the new ‘Entangled Pasts’ which…

  • Art

    An English Woman Abroad

    In the 17th and 18th centuries young gentlemen were encouraged to take a tour of Europe in order to complete their education and broaden their horizons. It enabled them to discover the cultural wonders of Europe and perhaps to sow…

  • Interiors

    Interior Inspiration

    We’ve been working on a house renovation project for some time now and have had to focus on all the necessary but less exciting tasks: roof repairs, rotten beams, new windows, new boiler etc. But FINALLY, this year, we can…

  • Heritage

    Barons Hall at Raby Castle

    There are a few historic homes that we come back to time and time again, Raby Castle is one such place. Having visited on a number of occasions, exploring both the wonderful grounds and splendid interiors, we often think what…

  • Antiques

    Snowdrops

    Yesterday’s finer weather has brought out more of the snowdrops in the garden. They are cultivars and we pick one bunch every year, to enjoy indoors. They have a very delicate scent and we have a few different varieties, including…

  • Art

    Beckford’s Tower

    If you drive into Bath along the Lansdown Road you will pass Beckford’s Tower on the right. This extraordinary architectural folly was built in 1827 in the neoclassical style on Lansdown Hill. It was financed by an eccentric, wealthy local…

  • Interiors

    Weaving some magic

    We’re looking back to North Norfolk today to view this stunning room at Blickling Hall. It was created to accommodate the large tapestry which depicts Peter the Great defeating the Swedes at the Battle of Poltswa in 1709. We believe…

  • Art

    The Society Beauty

    Sophia Catherine Musters was a noted society beauty and here Sir Joshua Reynolds has portrayed her, at the age of 24, as Hebe. The latter was the Goddess of Youth and cupbearer of Mountain Olympus. This rather daring portrait at…

  • Studley Royal Grounds
    Exteriors

    A moment of reflection

    It’s the last day of January and already there is a feeling that Spring is on the way. The evenings are a little bit lighter and give us hope when too much of what is happening in the world at…