Innholdsfortegnelse for June 2024 i Country Homes & Interiors

I’M WRITING THIS FROM MY HOME OFFICE with the sun finally shining outside. What a relief after what seems like months of rain, wind and grey weather! That skin-warming, heart-lifiting, smile-inducing feeling of summer is what we’ve brought to this issue, which definitely has its feet planted firmly in the garden as well as walking us through our homes. Let’s start with the readers’ houses we’ve visited (from page 19). I love how they create that indoor-outdoor sensibility in such different ways, from the traditional conservatory in Vintage Charm to the contemporary glazing in Fields of Vision – both owners have considered the views outside as much as their beautiful interiors. We have gardener and author Rachel de Thame welcoming us to her Cotswold plot (page 106), plus Sarah Raven’s…

The phrase ‘third time lucky’ rings true for Alison Coldridge and her husband Simone, as she recalls the ups and downs of house hunting. They endured their first and second choices falling through before finally succeeding with a period gatehouse not far from the Hampshire town of Winchester. ‘We had our hearts set on a three-bed maisonette and put in an offer immediately after visiting.’ Sadly, it was declined and the couple had to look again. ‘But it made us consider Winchester as an option,’ Alison adds, describing the appeal of this idyllic part of the country, with its ‘happy, healthy community, good schools, beautiful architecture, history and green spaces’. They pursued a second property nearby and the offer was accepted. But when the survey highlighted concerns, the pair pulled…

Don’t play it safe when it comes to soft furnishings. Curtains and sofas follow the red line for directional country styling Take candy stripes into the kitchen to bring a characterful lifestyle feel to your cookspace. Or add dynamism to the dining room with go-faster chevrons Up and down or side to side, red-striped wallpaper can widen a room or make it look taller – all while bringing a touch of jollity and joie de vivre…

I live in an old house in the Cotswolds, and I’m passionate about helping it be the property it’s supposed to be. The décor is in keeping with the period of the house without it looking too much like a museum. It’s quite an eclectic mix of things, and it’s a very personal space as well. I love antiques and I love art, and I have a magpie instinct for snapping up things that I spot. I find lots of vases for 20p in charity shops! It’s the same in the garden – I see a plant, fall in love with it, and can’t resist taking it home. Our garden looks onto the neighbouring fields, which means I have this incredible borrowed view. It looks like the garden just goes…

On this, the third day of my week-long staycation, I’m up with the larks to soak in more of the early summer garden. A gentle breeze, warm and comforting, rustles the large swathes of cow parsley – an overlooked weed by some, but a symbol of summer’s entrance and the promise of a fresh season to me. I will let today unfold without a rigid plan; instead, I aim to give in to the whims of the moment, in an effort to balance the many upcoming summer adventures penciled into my calendar. In the cool dawn light, I’m perched outside on the old daybed, immersing myself in the early morning chorus. The kitchen garden is awash in saturated colours and dark shadows, with only touches of light on the tips…

Sunflower seed tahini dressing with mixed leaves, grapes, almonds and Parmesan SERVES 4 While true tahini is made with toasted sesame seeds, sunflower seeds make a perfectly delicious alternative. FOR THE SUNFLOWER TAHINI PASTE 150g hulled sunflower seeds1tbsp cold-pressed sunflower oil or olive oilPinch of salt, or to taste FOR THE DRESSING 50g sunflower seed tahini (see above)30g plain yoghurt1 garlic clove, crushed2tbsp light olive oilJuice of 1 lemon1½tsp maple syrup, or to tasteSalt and black pepper FOR THE SALAD 200g mustardy greens, such as wild rocket, watercress and red mustard, washed100g sweet red grapes, halved25g toasted flaked (slivered) almonds25g toasted sunflower seeds10g Parmesan, shaved sunflower petals, to garnish 1 For the sunflower tahini paste, preheat the oven to 180C/Gas 4. Spread the seeds over a baking sheet. Place in…

Without much sunlight, we are all a bit more restricted in what we can grow but sometimes that can be a good thing, narrowing the choices down a little. In shade we all need to be cleverer with shapes and forms, rather than colours. To get darker spaces glowing and brighter than they truly are, white or eau-de-nil and soft pale green are your best flower colours, alongside strong leaf shapes. Here, based on 30 years of gardening, are my shade-tolerant favourites. ANNUALS & BIENNIALS There’s a limit on what will grow and perform in shade. In autumn, we plant out as many white and soft-pink foxgloves as we can fit, allowing them to settle in well over the winter (they’re totally hardy) before the demands of flowering. Alongside these,…

When it comes to planting bulbs, space and cost are crucial considerations. With regards to the former, the number of bulbs and the way in which you plant them will be dictated by the land you have available to you. If you have a lawn or garden, then planting your bulbs directly into the ground can make for a beautiful carpet of colour come spring. Alternatively, if you have limited space, such as a balcony or a small patio – or you want the flexibility of changing locations – you can plant bulbs in pots for a movable display that you can protect from the elements. Why not try… LASAGNE PLANTING This fun method, known as Dutch bulb lasagne, may not produce a delicious Italian pasta dish, but it does…

Spring tidy up Q I didn’t tidy up the garden in autumn. Can I use the dead leaves I‘m sweeping up in the garden now to turn them into compost? A Garden leaves make great compost, but they can take longer to decompose than other softer greenery. The best thing to do is to put them in their own compost bin or pile rather than mix them in with the rest of your compost. Lawn care Q I want to give my lawn a head start for summer. When should I start cutting it and does it need feeding in spring? A If the winter has been mild and your lawn has continued to grow, then yes, you should be cutting your lawn right now. Feed your lawn with a high-nitrogen feed to…

It’s so tempting to go to the nursery on a sunny day and buy a variety of plants that you like the look of, without researching what they will work well with or where they will thrive. That’s where garden designers come in. We think of gardens as a whole, creating areas that share a common visual language and planting schemes with different environments in mind. Spring is a great time to be planning your borders for next spring and summer. Not only are the bare root plants and trees available to buy now much less expensive, but you will be giving your new border plenty of time to get its roots in, at the same time as sowing seeds and planting bulbs. Plus, as we head into the darker…

If you don’t have a garden with a dedicated veg patch, growing vegetables in pots is a great alternative. Those with tiny outside spaces, paved-over gardens, balconies or even just a windowsill in the sun can turn their hopeful green thumbs towards growing edible plants in pots Growing crops in containers is accessible, flexible and as satisfying as growing into soil if you know how to give your plants what they need to grow and thrive. It’s a great option for those who only have little pockets of outside space, rent their homes or aren’t comfortable with kneeling down and would rather garden without bending over. Although it’s true that not everything will grow happily in a pot, there are benefits to container gardening. Your pot dwelling crops will require…

Make your own compost Use grass clippings, vegetable peelings and prunings, then mix with shredded newspaper. Buy a bin or use an out-of-the way corner. Turn the compost occasionally with a fork. In six months to a year you should have a lovely, crumbly mix. Give wildlife a home Let a section get overgrown. Try leaving a patch of nettles or a pile of prunings in a corner. Put up bird and bat boxes, and design a bug hotel. Make a 15x15cm hole in the base of a fence to welcome hedgehogs. A hedge is far more wildlife friendly than a fence or wall, as it offers nesting sites for birds. Plant for the bees The recent decline in the number of bees and other pollinating insects could have serious…

1 Plant deciduous scented winter shrubs, such as witch hazel and winter honeysuckle (left), in your front garden, or where you’ll see or smell them from the house. 2 Winterproof your garden and move pots away from areas that are susceptible to wind. Put pot feet under containers if you haven’t done so to stop the soil from freezing. Buy covers for outdoor taps, to prevent them from freezing over. 3 Begin to plan next year’s crop rotation. Potato plants can go in your brassica spot, peas and broad beans can replace onions, and swap tomatoes for onion and garlic. This will boost soil fertility and help keep disease at bay. 4 Attach a colourful Christmas wreath to your front door and add some sparkle by popping welcoming solar tea lights on…

For their modern farmhouse, built where two derelict barns dating from 1850 once stood, Janine Crimmins and her husband Andrew Loudon were keen to create a synergy between the heritage of the former brick buildings and the meadow landscape. So they devised a harmonious inside-outside design and decorated with a nature-inspired palette that suits the property’s location amid three acres of Cheshire countryside. Living here is all about the views, with every door and window placement carefully considered. For instance, the bedroom window is aligned so it is opposite the bed. The outside is brought into the living room by opening the large, aluminium-framed doors to the terrace. Janine says: ‘With my gardens, I think in terms of vistas, light and symmetry. For a property, you have to correlate views…

PRE-LOVED PURCHASE Good kitchens are built to last, but are often replaced long before they are worn out. ‘A pre-loved kitchen is a great way to extend your budget, buy quality and tread lighter on the earth,’ advises Helen Lord, founder of Rehome. ‘Reusing a kitchen saves on average 5,000kg of carbon – that’s one year of being carbon neutral for a family of four.’ When looking for a second-hand or ex-display kitchen, have the measurements of your room to hand. Buying a bigger kitchen than you need, if possible, will give you a little extra furniture to play with to create the perfect fit for your space. Remember that it may be possible to negotiate for worktops and appliances as part of the deal. LONG-LIFE COOKING Cast-iron cookers are…

Less intrusive, faster to build and generally far more affordable than an extension, a garden room can be a great solution for working from home, hobbies, or extra living space. By definition a glazed structure with a fully tiled roof, a garden room can either be freestanding or attached to an existing building. Which you choose will depend on the space you have available, your budget and the purpose of your new room. Q What factors will affect the construction of a new garden room? A Most garden room designs, with sliding glass doors or a deck, for example, will need to be built on site by a specialist. Once the concrete base or piles are in, installation can take from one day to two weeks. To make things quicker…

CLAY VESSELS These clever clay catch-all vessels are pretty enough to have on a counter, small enough to fit inside a dresser drawer and durable enough to survive a toddler. They also glow beautifully with the addition of a small tea light. SUPPLIES AND TOOLS DAS air-hardening modelling clay Rolling pin or wooden dowel (optional) Biodegradable latex water balloons Plastic wrap or film (a single sheet can be used multiple times) 1 Soften a large handful of DAS clay, working it between two hands and forming into a ball. 2 Flatten the clay ball using the palm of your hands to form a disc. Continue to press the clay outwards until the disc is 15-18cm in diameter. You can use a rolling pin if desired, but do not roll it…

FREE! WORTH £7.99 Whether you’re a confident gardener or someone who is looking to grow their skills and experience, this free digital magazine is for you. After all, who doesn’t want to take life a little easier from time to time? Gardening Made Simple is your essential guide to growing and planting, to help you create the perfect outdoor space. It’s packed with beginner-friendly advice from the experts to take you through a year of nurturing your plot. Plus, step-by-step project guides that will excite even seasoned gardeners. Find out how to brighten your borders, grow your own produce, create a haven for wildlife and lots more. HOW TO CLAIM Scan the QR code below to download your free copy of Gardening Made Simple. Offer available from 2 May-5 June…

In 1999, Rosebie Morton founded The Real Flower Company with a vision to grow and sell beautifully scented flowers, while championing provenance, sustainability and good business ethics. The lack of scent in most cut flowers inspired Rosebie to create the company so that her customers could experience the joy of fragrant English flowers, herbs and foliage. The Real Flower Company specialises in creating beautiful bouquets, wedding and event displays and wreaths, with flowers freshly cut on the company’s farms in Kenya and Hampshire. Having also opened two flower shops in London, Rosebie and her team delight customers by running a fair and sustainable business that grows the best naturally scented, luxurious bouquets. READER OFFER This exclusive offer gives readers of Country Homes & Interiors a 15% discount on any items…

If you’ve ever picked wild honeysuckle and tasted the nectar at the base of the flower, you’ll be familiar with the sweet, sugary hit. No wonder bees love it. This might be a delicacy you last tried in childhood, but it’s time to rediscover the joy of edible flowers. In many cultures, flowers have long been part of a broad diet of grown and foraged foods, prized for their nutritional value. But traditional gardening methods mean that for a long time, we have favoured a more separatist approach, nurturing lush green leaves, fruits and seeds for eating and flowers for ornament. We’re only just beginning to reacquaint ourselves with flowers as a flavoursome and beautiful source of food. Organic grower Sinead Fenton specialises in edible flowers at Aweside Farm in…

£19.99 EACH SAVE £5 ROSE PRIDE & PREJUDICE ® This flower’s form is beautifully constructed to give elegant detail to every bloom. For every rose sold, we are proud to donate £2.50 to Jane Austen’s House (Registered Charity no. 1156458) Item code 530661 3ltr ROSE HIGHCLERE CASTLE With deep pink to purple shades that are particularly striking, this flower’s form is eye-catching and memorable, and is certainly going to turn heads when blooming in your garden. Item code 530734 3ltr ROSE JANE AUSTEN ® A delightful soft apricot-yellow colour rose, with subtle streaks and speckles to the edges and a soft, but durable, texture. For every rose sold, £2.50 will be donated to Jane Austen’s House (as before). Item Code 530838 3ltr ROSE LADY CARNARVON This rewarding bush rose boasts…

When it comes to gardening, few activities are more grounding and rewarding than planting seeds and watching something grow from almost impossibly small beginnings. It is also a very economical way to grow a greater range of flowers and produce – including some of the more unique and diverse plants like heirloom or heritage varieties. To put it simply, growing from seeds is far cheaper than buying plugs or ready-grown plants, and it’s a much more rewarding way to fill your garden with flowers and produce. With so many different varieties of seeds available you are also guaranteed plenty of choice, allowing you to be creative when deciding what to grow in your space. For example, there are over 10,000 varieties of tomato grown around the world for consumption, all…

Scarify the grass September is a good time to scarify your lawn. Go over the grass with a spring-tine rake, raking in one direction to remove loose thatch and moss. This helps rainwater seep down where it’s needed most. Repeat again in April. If you have a large lawn, consider buying or hiring an automatic one. Mud coils At this time of year, you might start to notice little coils of soft mud and slime appearing on the surface of your lawn. These are worm casts. Don’t tread on them, as they will spread into the grass and breed weeds and moss. Instead, wait until they dry and then lightly brush them away with an old-fashioned broom or the up-turned head of a rake. What to avoid Don’t walk on…

What is no-dig gardening? There are three key things to remember: first, the soil is left undisturbed so beneficial organisms can multiply. Second, the soil is fed with organic matter. Third, compost mulches are topped up annually to improve soil structure. Decide on sizing You don’t need a large area for a no-dig plot. One bed of 1-1.2m width and any length is all you need to get growing. And you don’t need raised beds, which attract slugs when they start decaying and can be expensive to install. Prep the chosen area Cover the patch with cardboard as it will biodegrade over a year, killing the weeds underneath. Top with a layer of compost or well-rotted manure, at least 15cm in the first year, then add another 5cm every year.…

Cambridge Imprint is very much a family enterprise. All artists by trade, sisters Jane Powell (a textile artist) and Ali Murphy (a ceramicist), and sister-in-law Claerwen James (a painter), decided to combine their creative skills in 2013. What started as a sideline has flourished into a full-time business, and their vibrant products are now sold in independent shops worldwide. Claerwen tells us more. Where are you based? We’ve recently moved into a light and airy studio space in an old converted mill in central Cambridge. Having spent a few years designing at our kitchen tables, it’s been so nice to work alongside one another again, trying out ideas that aren’t constrained by space or the need to be tidy. Why paper? We wanted to make something for everyday use; to…

NEW! FULL DIGITAL ACCESS TO 100+ BACK ISSUES WHEN YOU SUBSCRIBE TO PRINT!** Subscribe now and receive a free gift worth £33* Covered in the popular Sophie Allport Bee design, this mini Oundle bag, worth £33 – in matt oilcloth with faux leather detailing – makes a fabulous everyday handbag. Visit magazinesdirect.com/XCH/D24S or call 0330 333 1113 and quote D24S Offer closes 6 June 2024. Offer open to new UK subscribers only. Please allow up to six weeks for delivery of your first subscription issue (up to eight weeks overseas). Payment is non-refundable after the 14 day cancellation period unless exceptional circumstances apply. *Welcome gift(s) are only available to new UK print subscribers. Your gift will be delivered separately within 60 days after your first payment has cleared. Gifts are…

Despite it officially being a ‘non-colour’, white is one of the most symbolic shades. In different cultures, it can signify innocence and perfection; it may be used in spiritual ceremonies; and it can represent welcoming a new life or denote the passing to a different one. White pigments are found naturally as clay and chalk. Some of the first-known uses for these were in prehistoric paintings and sculpted imagery on hills – think of the horses and figures bestriding British uplands. White and bleached fabrics were used to dress the wealthy and worthy, and toxic face paints were a sign of nobility in Elizabethan times. Shades of white are one of our most explored paint palettes in our homes. With links to nature – think of hues reminiscent of frost,…

Like the piping on a cushion or coving on a wall, a crisply delineated lawn border can provide the perfect finishing touch to your garden landscape. Without it, the borders of your grass are blurry and undefined. With a neatly defined edge, you maintain a picture-perfect appearance with minimal effort. Edging your lawn will help to prevent grass from spreading into the border, makes lawn maintenance easier and provides a decorative touch to your outdoor space. ‘Garden edging is not only a stylish way to bring extra layers of colour and texture to your outdoor space, but it also adds a sense of shape and keeps everything neat and tidy,’ explains Lee Dunderdale, product manager at Bradstone. CHOOSING THE RIGHT STYLE ‘Garden edging is perfect for lining flower borders or…

Set just off the high street in increasingly trendy Charlbury you’ll find The Bell, a characterful 17th-century coaching inn. It now forms part of the Daylesford Stays collection, following a stylish – and sustainable – refurb from the founder, Lady Carole Bamford. Having previously stayed at its sister pub, The Fox at Oddington, we had big expectations. And it didn’t disappoint. On arrival we were shown to one of eight rooms above the pub (there are another four dog-friendly rooms above the barn; a separate dining space that’s also available for private hire). All have been individually decorated in keeping with the brand’s signature smart-rustic style – think antique furnishings, hand-blocked prints and four-poster beds fashioned from the branches of estate trees. Downstairs, there’s a series of snuggly rooms where…

Bohemian rhapsody Gardening Bohemia: Bloomsbury Women Outdoors is a new exhibition at the Garden Museum exploring the green spaces created by Vanessa Bell at Charleston, Virginia Woolf at Monk’s House, Vita Sackville-West at Sissinghurst and Lady Ottoline Morrell at Garsington Manor. A fascinating review of planting, creativity, art and literature. Admission £14, gardenmuseum.org.uk…

Offering such exquisite beauty and fragrance, and in a dazzling variety of forms, roses are the quintessential feature of the English country garden. Species or wild, roses like to sprawl in a natural style, are mostly single-flowered and many have colourful hips in autumn – look for R. rugosa, R. glauca, R. moyesii and R. canina. Roses from before 1860 are known as old garden roses and grow as large, graceful shrubs with mostly one flowering a year. They are richly fragrant and include Rosa x alba and R. gallica, plus damask, cabbage and moss roses. Modern roses – which are those bred from the early-20th century onwards – are repeat flowering, with good disease resistance, vigour and flower quality. These include hybrid teas, floribunda, landscape, climbers, miniature and David…

Home is the Manor House at Glyndebourne, which is also home of the opera festival founded by my grandparents. The festival celebrates its 90th birthday this year, which is quite an achievement for an independently funded cultural event. We are surrounded by the South Downs, now a national park, and a walk up into the hills, through the woods and valleys, never fails to lift the spirits and alleviate the stresses. Ideally, my family and dogs would be with me, but I am quite happy on my own if the brood or the dogs are not in the mood. I have six children – Romulus and Jackson are both 27; Alexander is 24; Ivo, 22; Bacchus, eight; and Sheherazade is three. We also have three dogs – a Portuguese water…

WILDLIFE-FRIENDLY Plants packed with pollen and nectar help the declining numbers of bees, butterflies and other pollinators 1 BUDDLEJA Buddleja davidii ‘Sugar Plum’ is a new undemanding shrub bearing deep pinkish-red flowers on a low-growing plant that is attractive to a wide range of butterflies and bees. Remove faded flowers to encourage more. Plant in sun or partial shade. H3m 2 HELLEBORE Hellebore species and hybrids are a welcome source of food for bees early in the year. Grow in shade and add lots of organic matter when planting. Trim the away the old leaves in winter before the new flowers appear. H50cm 3 PHACELIA TANACETIFOLIA Not just for the bees, phacelia attracts many other beneficial insects such as lacewings and ladybirds. The faded stems can be dug in to…

Trees are the most dominant and important plants in a garden. The right tree in the right place adds greenery, structure, height, and perhaps flowers, fruit or colourful bark; it lures and encourages wildlife; and – being so big – adds a soulfulness that other plants simply can’t offer. Choosing which tree to buy is a fun task, and time should be taken to get it right. ‘There is a suitable tree for every situation,’ says Tony Kirkham, Head of the Arboretum, Gardens and Horticulture Services at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and author of a new book: The Kew Gardener’s Guide to Growing Trees (£12.99, Frances Lincoln). ‘Having estimated the maximum size that the space can accommodate and the conditions in the potential site, you can then go deeper into…

1 Plant bulbs in the green. Woodland-loving plants including winter aconites, snowdrops and bluebells, grow better when planted in active growth just after flowering. 2 Cut a few winter-flowering shrubs, such as Daphne and honeysuckle, for indoor scent. Bashing out the woody tips of stems allows them to take up more water. 3 Give your house a facelift with a hanging basket. Use a coir based liner and newspaper for insulation. Plant bright cyclamen, which will flower happily from September to March, along with pretty pansies. Finish with ivy. 4 While the garden is dormant, you can relocate plants. Water the plant well and prepare the new hole. Dig out with as much of the surrounding rootball as possible. Place in its new hole and fill in, firming well. 5 Lift and divide…