Innholdsfortegnelse for August 2020 i Homes & Gardens

It feels like more than five months have passed since I wrote my last letter. The realities of lockdown have radically reshaped the magazine industry but there is no doubt that advice, entertainment and inspiration are more important right now than ever. We are adapting and there have been some creative responses to new challenges, from my indefatigable team obsessively exploring new ways to connect with our audience virtually to the subscriptions department securing a 6 issues for £6 offer (don’t miss this deal, details are on page 120). We started working on this issue before Easter, when the pandemic was at its peak. At that point, we had no real idea of what August 2020 would look like. Travel on hold, gatherings restricted, celebrations cancelled…? The only certainty that…

Atypical summer’s day at the Majorcan home of Mercedes and João Marques Pinto starts with an alfresco breakfast beneath a shady olive wood pergola, followed by a hike into the Tramuntana mountains with their dog Pollock. ‘Our house sits within a World Heritage Site and so we are surrounded by the most beautiful scenery,’ explains Mercedes. Mercedes, who is originally from Madrid, and her husband João, who hails from Porto, bought the property 16 years ago as the result of a desire to create a constant in the lives of their now grown-up children, Victoria and João. ‘We had been living in Portugal and then in the United States and we wanted to find a place that they could grow up with,’ says Mercedes. ‘We weren’t looking for a typical…

MANY of us are navigating a new pace of living and searching for ways to make a positive change; Natalie Walton’s book, Still: The Slow Home is a visual journey of beautiful abodes across the world, looking at steps the residents have taken for a more balanced life. At its core, the book explores the central ideas around the slow movement and creating a more sustainable environment, discussing thought-provoking ideas around the choices we make and how they impact daily life. Natalie explains: ‘Our lives are full to bursting. We spend our days in perpetual motion, chasing lists, deadlines and dreams and our own expectations.’ She goes on to suggest that streamlining our homes is a good place to start. Aside from the slow movement philosophy, the book is a…

As Annemarie O’Sullivan stands outside her workshop, she eagerly eyes a large bolt of willow. ‘This material connects me with the earth,’ she enthuses of the 20 or so varieties of willow she grows on a half-acre allotment nearby. The bolt has been drying, tied top and bottom like bunches of asparagus, since being harvested in winter. Annemarie is an Irish born, East Sussex-based basketmaker, and transforms home-grown willow and locally coppiced woods into curvaceous, capacious forms. Her studio is in a peaceful spot between the garden, greenhouse and 16th-century house she shares with husband Tom McWalter (who joined working with Annemarie full-time in 2017) and their two sons. It’s here that she crafts her magnificent baskets, elegant platters, bushy or woven pendant lights and sculptural installations, practising methods that…

GO-TO COLOUR I have a natural affinity with blues and greens. They are colours, yet they are also usable neutrals that can be both light and dark. My new favourite is Green Smoke by Farrow & Ball. BIGGEST INDULGENCE Spend money on lamps – they are like useful sculptures. Design bespoke furniture to fit perfectly, as it makes spaces feel instantly considered and works the hardest for you. FAVOURITE DESIGNERS For fashion it is Anya Hindmarch, Celine and Rupert Sanderson. DESIGN HEROES Too many to name, but I love a combination of Joseph Dirand, Anna Spiro and Kelly Wearstler all merged together. LAST THING YOU BOUGHT FOR YOUR HOME Howe’s Mr Men wallpaper for the master bedroom – I am so excited to get it up.…

GO-TO PALETTE I tend to incline towards neutral shades – stones and whites – and then a few simple touches of colour depending on the mood. OUTDOOR DECOR TIP Keep things simple. Use natural materials as well as sun- and water-resistant fabrics. FAVOURITE PLACE ON THE ISLAND Ses Ortigues, a cove with crystal-clear water that is only accessible by boat. There is no wireless or phone connection, so we can really relax! WHERE DO YOU FIND INSPIRATION From travelling around the world but especially the Mediterranean, which I love. LAST THING YOU BOUGHT FOR THIS HOUSE Some aubergine pottery from Bordallo Pinheiro. CREATIVE HEROES Moredesign for my lovely house; Manolo Blahnik for my shoes; Peter Beard for art.…

Q What’s the garden philosophy at The Newt? Everything we do comes from an insatiable curiosity combined with a deep love for the land. We constantly question the boundaries of what is doable and love coming up with new ideas, hoping to engage our visitors with all the things that excite us about gardening and horticulture. “I WAS IMMEDIATELY BEWITCHED BY THE SCOPE OF THE PROJECT AT THE NEWT. THE PASSION FORHORTICULTURE IS UNAVOIDABLY SEDUCTIVE” Q Tell us a little bit about yourself… I have always been fascinated by the natural world, perhaps because I have been immersed in it since childhood. My grandmother was marvellously green-fingered and would allow me to push the wheelbarrow around her Norfolk garden aged three, wearing a path through the borders of sweet peas…

ANGELS FARM POTTERY, HAMPSHIRE A few years ago the art of ceramics saw a huge soar in popularity, reflecting wider trends towards the appreciation of craftsmanship. We recently featured the Studio Pottery London project and their sleek makers’ space, but here’s something different. Angels Farm is tucked away in picturesque countryside just outside of Lyndhurst in the New Forest and offers visitors friendly, welcoming surroundings in which to develop their clay technique. Beginners and experts alike are all welcome on a range of weekend courses and evening classes, taught by experienced potter Jo Osman in her wisteria-clad farmhouse, angelsfarm.co.uk. EASEL & LENS’ ARTIST IN ITALY, TUSCANY Where could be more inspiring to hone your landscape painting skills than the endlessly rolling hills of the Tuscan countryside? The Easel & Lens’…

MOST SUCCESSFUL PART OF THE PROJECT The relationship between the designer, myself and the contractor. BIGGEST INDULGENCE The vintage rugs are what we splurged on the most. They were the starting point for many of Katie’s schemes. GO-TO COLOUR For life, it would be black. For this house, it’s a natural brown. SECRET ADDRESS I’ve been very inspired by Jenni Kayne, a designer here in LA. I love her blog Rip & Tan. I also like the Nickey Kehoe shop. SMALL CHANGE, BIG IMPACT We talked consistently about fresh paint. It changed the feel of the entire house. LAST MUSEUM VISITED The Broad, a contemporary art gallery in Downtown Los Angeles.…

SECRET ADDRESS The Arezzo antiques market, where our favourite dealer has a stall. It’s held on the first weekend of the month. BIGGEST INDULGENCE Air conditioning – Italian summers are hot. MUSEUM TO VISIT Bramante Cloister in Rome – a peaceful oasis with visiting exhibitions on show upstairs (chiostrodelbramante.it). YOUR STYLE IN THREE WORDS Upscale, relaxed, rustic. BEST GIFT RECEIVED A portrait of myself with my father by Australian art photographer Bill Henson. It was commissioned by my husband to mark my father’s 80th birthday and my 50th. LAST ITEM BOUGHT FOR YOUR HOME A very pretty set of 19th-century Italian porcelain plates by SC Richard.…

BELINDA FRIKH studied art at L’École Supérieure d’Art in Annecy, then the École d’Arts Appliqués in Lyon. In 1996, she moved to London. Her intention was to stay for three months, but she ended up living there for 21 years, having been drawn to the buzz of the city, its cultural heritage and cosmopolitan feel. When did you start drawing? I can’t pinpoint the exact time because, for as long I can remember, I was drawing, always drawing, to the exasperation of my parents. I drew on anything and everything: cereal boxes, books, official documents, letters from school complaining about me always drawing at school. How would you describe your style? It’s a free-flowing mix of art nouveau, Pre-Raphaelite and a touch of 1980s glamour. Why are women the focus…

MODERN REFINEMENT For pure luxury, look no further than this bathroom by Australia-based Conrad Architects, with its core palette of silver-toned marble and polished plaster. Rugged stone-look textured wall tiles provide the appeal of a spa-style hotel bathroom, which met the owners’ brief. By limiting the number of materials a clean, fresh feel was achieved, while the freestanding bath is the main visual element: crisp, sculptural and elegant. KEY FEATURES Picasso Stone resin freestanding bath, from £1,295, Lusso Stone. Limestone Blazed wall tiles in Clay, £126sq m; Limestone Honed floor tiles in Clay, £106.80sq m, both Cotto D’Este ELEGANT OPULENCE The richness of this scheme is brought about by using paint in two deep shades, selected after designers Sam Hart from Roundhouse and Paul Carter of Vivid Consultancy studied how…

Q Can you tell us a little bit about your background? I started out at Weymouth College in my home county of Dorset where I trained in architectural stonework and conservation. After this I moved on to City & Guilds of London Art School and trained as an architectural stone carver. This led to work on buildings and locations like the Albert Memorial in Hyde Park, Highgate Cemetery, Kew Palace and the Tower of London. I moved back to Dorset in 2017 to focus on my own work. Q Where do you look to for inspiration? The grown world. Mainly unspoilt woodlands within the rolling hills of Dorset. I spent a lot of time in these places growing up, as a connection to nature has always been important to me.…

As the entire human world grapples with a new normal, the non-human world might be anticipating our next steps. Mother Nature could be wondering if we have received the forest fires, disastrous flooding or the pandemic virus as a signal that our pre-2020 normal was a little out of control. There have been many calls for a better world on the other side of coronavirus, and as we dust ourselves down we are offered an opportunity to consider the systems of consumption we rebuild. During lockdown, we have been forced to re-evaluate our purchasing, often building relationships with local small suppliers who offer an appealing degree of transparency and trust. It’s possible to ask your local greengrocer where its goods have come from. I think that in the coming years…

VÄSTERBOTTEN QUICHE SERVES 8-10 250g plain flour, plus extra for dusting Pinch of salt 150g unsalted butter, cubed and very cold 4 eggs 200ml double cream 200g Västerbotten cheese or other sharp, mature hard cheese, grated TO SERVE Soured cream Red lumpfish roe (optional) Dill ■ Sift the flour into a bowl. Add the salt and butter and rub into the flour to form breadcrumbs. Beat two of the eggs with 3 tbsp water and slowly add, stirring between additions until a dough is formed, adding more water if necessary. Bring together to form a ball. Wrap in cling film and chill for at least 30 minutes. ■ Mix the cream and the remaining eggs in a bowl and season. Add the cheese and set aside. ■ Preheat the oven…

Bunny Turner and Emma Pocock, founders of design studio Turner Pocock, are no strangers to reconfiguring townhouses. Indeed, since 2007 they have become synonymous with reimagining tired homes into spaces that are loved and enjoyed. With this detached Victorian property in Kensington, the creative duo were invited to gut the run-down interior and totally rethink the flow. ‘For us it all starts with the client. Our approach is personable and fun, but we take pride in ensuring the process is calm and polished,’ says Emma. Working with the owners, a couple in their mid-30s with two children under three, it was agreed their home needed to meet the demands of busy family life, while balancing a desire for sophisticated bespoke finishes and the sensibilities of practical utility space, usually found…

MOST SUCCESSFUL PART OF THE PROJECT The house just flows. Naturally and gracefully and functionally. It’s so comfortable. BIGGEST INDULGENCE The basement. It has two en-suite bedrooms, a billiard room, lounge, wine cellar and gallery. OBJECT YOU’D NEVER PART WITH A mounted industrial lens on a stand that sits on my desk in my bedroom in New York and was given to me by my ex-husband. SECRET ADDRESS Marche Paul Bert and Marche Serpette at the Paris Flea Market. I shop there six times a year. GO-TO COLOUR When in doubt, paint it white. But I also like the dark, moody colours and greys we’ve used in this house. WORDS TO LIVE BY I want to create houses that are real, that are lived in and really used. You shouldn’t…

GREEN CREDENTIALS Bringing the outdoors in by having green walls in your home is always a good idea; the nod to nature will create a calm atmosphere however busy the space, so integrating the colour into a well-used sitting room works just as well as in a spa-style bathroom. Greens are also said to inspire creativity, making them ideal for a home office. Benjamin Moore’s Veronese Green would find the perfect setting in an east-facing room, as the moody feel of its blue pigments will feel brighter in the morning - while calming that strong early light – and cosier in the afternoon and evening. Veronese Green soft touch matte, from £11 for 118ml, Century collection, Benjamin Moore WHITE ON White has so many nuances and selecting the right one…

1. LIVING SCULPTURE  The art of clipping shrubs or trees into ornamental shapes – topiary – can create pattern through repetition and combination. At Knightshayes in Devon, topiary statues, mirrored and repeated in a grid flanking a long path, play with perspective and focus. 2. LAWN ART From spirals, curves and zigzags to full-on mazes, you can cut a lawn into whatever pattern you want, even enhancing it with taller-growing ornamental grasses – like at the Wrekin Garden in Shropshire by Alan Gardener. Cut at different heights – some areas on the lowest mower setting, some on the highest and some not cut at all. 3. SHOW A UNITED FRONT  Texture-patterned stone spheres by David Harber feel at one with the shapes of topiary around them. Consider repeating the pattern…

1. I’ve always been drawn to what women do in the kitchen and their attitude to feeding people, so among my heroes is Alice Waters for her sustainable food ethos, working with producers and serving seasonal food in her restaurant, Chez Panisse in California. 2. An ingredient I can’t do without is Italian extra virgin olive oil from Tuscany or Liguria. 3. My small luxury is booking a pedicure. I’m working on my feet all the time so I think they deserve some civility! 4. Preparation is my rule in the kitchen. Get all the ingredients ready before you begin to cook; it’s amazing how much this helps in approaching the task with pleasure. 5. Among a wealth of young talent, I admire chef James Henry, whose restaurant, Le Doyenné…