Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2024 i Country Homes & Interiors

EDITING A MAGAZINE is a form of time travel. This February issue is on shelves at the start of January, but I’m writing this letter in December, having just had a conversation with my husband about Christmas presents for our kids. My head is already in March and April, planning how to celebrate the arrival of springtime in these pages. And our homes editor, Sara, is scouting out houses that are dressed up for the season and might appear in our festive issues at the end of 2024. All the time, we are trying to consider what’s important to you right now, as you sit with your cup of tea or glass of wine (thank you to everyone who shares their pics when their new issue arrives; I love to…

OCEAN BOUND Sistema has launched a range of lunch boxes and water bottles made using ‘ocean bound plastic’ – that is, plastic waste that’s not disposed of properly. OBP is thought to generate over 80 per cent of plastic marine pollution, so reducing it is essential. There are two oceanic-inspired hues to choose from, prices start at £5.29 for a 480ml bottle. Explore the range at argos.co.uk TIME WELL SPENT… DOWNLOAD Birda; this fun, free app turns birdwatching into a game with challenges, leaderboards and rewards, birda.org BROWSE and buy from supportsmalluk.co.uk – it’s a great source of quality products, and you’ll also get a warm fuzzy feeling knowing you’re supporting independent and creative UK-based small businesses. JOIN The Countryside Charity’s annual star count (between 17-24 February) and do your…

Shelter from the elements in shades of russet and plum, paired with cooling accents of grey and blue. Focus on textural tapestry-style hangings and tactile weaves Celebrate the beautiful and the useful, with vintage jars used to store cutlery, baskets for linens, and simple pegs for keeping essentials in arm’s reach Handcrafted and intricate details add a touch of rustic romance. Scour vintage shops for tinware, embroidered pieces, lace panels and beautifully worn rugs to dress your space…

Red in a decorating scheme is often seen as a bold and brave choice. Associated with passion and power, it can be used to add just a little fizz or to fan the flames of a room’s décor. First made from clay soils, berries, vegetables and even insects, red pigment has featured from ancient times in tapestries, pottery, painting and weaves. The hue is a symbol of luck in China, where brides don the colour. Even today, we roll out a red carpet at important events. In country homes, red’s resonance is often linked to the seasons and natural settings – blazing autumn, vivid sunsets, the breast of a robin… Today, our homes continue to benefit from red’s brave and brilliant impact. But the hue can also be explored in…

BASKET WEAVERS ‘Baskets are a practical way to store vegetables and fruit, allowing air to circulate to keep them fresh. They also add beautiful texture to your kitchen,’ says Simon Temprell, interior design lead at Neptune. Choose baskets to suit the depth of your shelves. Smaller baskets can be used as condiment carriers, bread baskets, shallow box trays for organising spaces or utensils, or as a tote for drinking glasses. ‘They can be a lovely way to bring warmth to work surfaces,’ Simon adds. Look for baskets with removable zinc liners to protect surfaces from draining water, such as Neptune’s Littleton baskets, from £60 each, which can be used as windowsill planters for herbs. PANTRY POSSIBILITIES ‘A walk-in pantry can be created in surprisingly little space,’ advises Richard Mason, furniture…

Beetroot borani SERVES 4 Earthy beetroot lifted with yogurt and a touch of vinegar, the toppings adding extra dimensions. 1kg beetroot100g walnut halves250-350g natural yogurt1-2tbsp white wine vinegar100g feta, roughly broken into chunksBunch of dill, leaves pickedSea salt flakesExtra-virgin olive oil or confit garlic oil, to serve 1 Trim the tops off the beetroot. Add them to a saucepan and cover with water. Add a decent pinch of salt and bring to a simmer. Add a lid and cook for 1-2 hours until they fall off a knife when pierced. Top up the water when needed. 2 Preheat the oven to 200°C. Toast the walnuts for 8-12 minutes until golden. Once the beetroot are done, drain them and refill the pan with cold water. Let them sit until you can…

GLEN DYE CABINS & COTTAGES At Glen Dye you will feel deep within the Scottish wilderness without having to sacrifice the comforts of home. This is the vision of Charlie and Caroline Gladstone, who renovated what was once a bunch of dilapidated houses and farm buildings. Glen Dye is now a fun, sustainably-minded retreat for all ages to enjoy outdoor living. There’s room to roam, vegetable gardens, a tiny cinema, and big starry nights to admire. Festoon lights twinkle in the pine trees and wood-fired hot tubs and outdoor rainfall showers allow you to connect with nature as you unwind. If camping isn’t your thing but you want to introduce the kids to the great outdoors, this is the place. Rooms The accommodation is eclectic: an American Airstream trailer, a…

I live in Monmouthshire with my husband. We have a stone farmhouse built in the 17th century, looking out over the Wye Valley. The view of limestone cliffs, forests and fields is beautiful; every time I see it, my heart takes a leap. At this time of year, you get the ‘dragon’s breath’ – a mist that hangs over the river like the dry ice in a 1970s pop video. I’m usually out at dawn as the sun comes up, and I have a moment with my view when we say hello to each other. We are like a retirement home for nearby farms, so I go out and feed whatever animals we have staying with us – at the moment, it’s a sow and two of her litter. Then I…

A long-term obsession with pattern (and a touch of ‘post-pandemic FOMO’) inspired Louise Parker to set up her own creative studio, Ray de Soleil, producing hand-printed patterns using a range of materials including potatoes, foam, lino and wood blocks. Her debut collection, The Footpath, is a series of striking designs inspired by the ‘everyday’ things she notices on her daily dog walk through the West Sussex countryside, from wild pansies to barbed wire fences. Have you always been creative? I’ve always had an enthusiasm for making. At school, my maths teacher told me off for covering my book in doodles, and I’ve been seeking the perfect creative outlet ever since! How did Ray de Soleil come about? Between lockdowns, my husband booked us on a one-day printmaking course. The focus was…

Whether large or small, a bedroom that lacks storage space will be a messy one. Create a home for all your clothes for an organised and peaceful space, where you can have a good night’s sleep. Q Should I buy custom or bespoke fitted furniture? A Fitted furniture is the generic term for furniture that is fixed to the walls or floor of a room and comes in two forms: custom and bespoke. Bespoke furniture is unique to your space. This is ideal if you have an unusually shaped room and want to make the most of nooks and crannies. As expected, this service commands a higher price than a custom design. Custom furniture adapts a pre-existing shell to your needs – altering the height, depth and interior to suit…

My house should have been called Snowdrop Lane or something along those lines, on account of the glorious drifts of delicate stalwarts covering the garden at this time of year. I adore them. Especially the first perfect cluster that appears beside the kitchen garden gate. For me, they herald a welcome turning point and the beginnings of a slow but steady meander towards spring. I’ve been out picking little bunches this morning, to place in bud vases scattered around my home. They’ll often last up to a week in my draughty old house, especially if picked right when their outer petals first open. The snowdrop theme continues with the inherited tiles in the master bathroom, which makes me think the previous owner here at Greenfield adored them just as much…

When I was small, I was obsessed with a dress my mother made for me. It was a perfect pale blue with mother-of-pearl buttons, and was a thing of beauty. When I see this colour now, I am transported to feelings of security, nurture and happiness. It is, of course, one of the first colours that I made for my paint company and I always find a place for it wherever I live. Rhythms of childhood memories, as well as marks and fragments in later life, all form our unique feelings about colour. Every life choice or expectation affects what we would like to live with. And this is how you find your personal palette. Last month I shared the importance of making a moodboard as an integral part of…

‘CLOTHES HAD TAKEN OVER THE BEDROOM’ Their Georgian style house was built in the 1980s and was in need of refurbishment by the time Roísín and her fiancé Max moved in. ‘The main bedroom was always untidy, not helped by an ugly mirror-fronted wardrobe with sliding doors, with contents that were hard to see and an interior that was awkward to use,’ explains Roísín. THE FIX Roísín and Max have busy jobs and wanted to transform their bedroom into a tranquil retreat to relax in after long days in the office. ‘The key was to create organised storage with the right amount of hanging space and shelving, so it was easy to find our clothes and shoes, and we didn’t feel overwhelmed by clutter,’ says Roísín. ‘I also wanted a…

As anyone who surfs will know, despite the crash, chaos and roar of the ocean, there is a strange moment of peacefulness when you ride a wave. It’s a quality that glass artist Dreya Bennett is somehow able to convey in her sculptures – waves with energy coiled, froth and spray all around; or a shoal of fish thrust along in a swirl of water. The sense of movement is tangible, yet all is captured within a freeze frame. ‘It’s hard to describe the feeling of being in the sea,’ she says. ‘You take a deep breath and relax, even though the adrenaline is flowing if the surf is big or it’s wild and windy.’ Dreya grew up in Lagos, Nigeria, swimming daily in the ocean, before moving to Cornwall…

FREE! WORTH £6.99 Wouldn’t it be lovely to have a serene and clutter-free home? Sadly, day-to-day life often gets in the way of a stylish and organised interior. But this bookazine can help. Inside, you’ll discover ideas and solutions to help you tackle clutter and tidy every room in the house. You’ll learn how built-in storage can work for you, how to make a feature of a stylish storage solution, how to repurpose your furniture for your unique needs, and explore a range of clever tips that will minimise, hide and clear away your clutter. HOW TO CLAIM Scan the QR code below to download your free copy of Declutter Your Home. Offer available from 04-31 January 2024. CHECK OUT MORE AMAZING BOOKAZINES AT WWW.MAGAZINESDIRECT.COM/GUIDES-AND-SPECIALS…

The best miniature bulbs are those that appear early and help us get through the short days of a cold and soggy winter. Nothing quite raises the spirits like the emergence of the first bulbs and there are dwarf spring bulbs that fit in anywhere, whatever size your garden. Autumn is the traditional time for spring bulb planting, but if you miss the window you can think about dwarf bulbs in early spring, too. More and more spring bulbs are sold in pots, in bud or in flower, at garden centres. Slip them into window boxes and mixed containers, then plant the bulbs out in the garden once the flowers have faded. Fertilise and water them well and when the buds open next spring, you’ll thank your good sense in…