I am delighted to announce that in September 2019 I became a published photographer, that is, I had my first ever photographs published in a book, The Gardener’s Travel Companion to England, by well-known Australian author Janelle McCulloch which features a variety of beautiful English gardens.
Read moreChurches in Sussex (9th & final day trip)
We’ve come to the 9th and final day of my day trips to Sussex to find tiny ancient churches. I certainly saved the best until last as these little churches blew me away with their beauty - in the centre of a village, in the middle of a field, hidden down a farm track, on the top of a hill ………
Read moreChurches in Sussex (8th day trip)
Apologies for taking so long to post the 8th day trip visiting churches in Sussex. The delay is due to my moving to Sydney to live in late October. As you can imagine it was a bit stressful in the weeks prior to departure. Once I arrived in Sydney I had to find a home to rent (another story!). If you are interested in following how I furnish my Victorian rental house in Sydney’s Paddington, on a budget follow me on Instagram (@angelabuntcreative.com
Read moreChurches in Sussex (7th day)
I’ve called Day 7 ‘Churches in Sussex’ for consistency but in fact it involved churches in Surrey and Hampshire! I had planned to visit Sussex churches but I decided to combine a visit to a friend in Hampshire.
Read moreChurches in Sussex (6th day trip)
After five of these day trips in search of historic little parish churches in Sussex, I couldn’t wait to research and plan the next one. I was still fixated on Sussex so this time I selected the following six churches and one historic house, Firle Place.
Read moreChurches and Great Dixter (4th day trip)
Day 4 included a visit to Great Dixter gardens. Given that it’s a fair schlep to Great Dixter, I identified three beautiful Kent churches to visit in the vicinity.
Read moreChurches in Sussex (3rd day trip)
I was really starting to enjoy these days out on my own with my camera so decided to venture back into Sussex a week after the previous trip, armed with another list of churches.
Read moreChurches in Sussex (2nd day trip)
If you read my previous blog post, Visiting Churches in Sussex (day 1), you will know that I am doing day trips to Sussex in search of the little churches often found in woodland, at the end of lanes, in hamlets or villages – steeped in history. I’ve focused on Sussex as it’s not too far to travel by car and it’s a beautiful county.
Read moreChurches in Sussex (1st day trip)
I decided not to have a summer holiday this year and instead do day trips to Sussex which is only about 80-90 minutes from home, on my own with my DSLR camera for company. I wanted to focus on visiting historic little Sussex churches in obscure places.
Read morePetersham House Open Gardens
This post is for all you garden lovers. If you are lucky enough to live in London you have the chance to see the gardens of Petersham House, the home of the owners of Petersham Nurseries, Gael and Francesco Boglione. Their home is adjacent to the Nurseries and is a stunning Georgian house with extensive gardens, swimming pool and tennis court. They have a substantial vegetable garden which is used for the restaurant in the Nurseries.
Read moreSydney Sojourn - Coogee to Bondi Coastal Walk
Sorry for my radio silence since my last post on 31 October - in the run up to Christmas I was manically busy with client work and in January I headed to Sydney for five weeks.
I thought I'd kick off with one of the highlights of my Sydney sojourn - the coastal walk from South Coogee (where I was staying) to Bondi, a distance of about 10k with some of the most spectacular scenery. I did this walk last year with a friend but this time it was just me, my iPhone and my DSLR. The weather was cloudy, windy and about 26C so perfect for a long walk.
Read moreLampshade painting at Charleston
A couple of weeks ago a friend and I went to Charleston, the home of the Bloomsbury Group, to do a lampshade painting workshop with Cressida Bell who is the talented artist granddaughter of the artist Vanessa Bell and daughter of Quentin Bell. I wonder if you are as passionate about the Bloomsbury Group as I am? I devour books about them and have often visited Charleston, Berwick, Firle and Monk's House.
Read moreA visit to Sissinghurst Castle
At the end of August I paid a visit to Sissinghurst Castle Garden. This was my second visit to Sissinghurst (I went a couple of years ago) and it is one of those places that you could visit two or three times a year and always see something new.
Read morePetersham Nurseries - a source of inspiration
Petersham Nurseries is one of those places that is good for the soul. It is all about beauty and style, both outside and inside. I'm there at least three times a month and have rarely left there empty handed!
It's a half hour drive from my home which takes me across Richmond Park, another place that is good for the soul. It's hard to believe that you are in a big city when you are in the middle of the park surrounded by trees, bracken and deer.
Read moreItaly - my spiritual home
It’s been a few weeks since my last blog post mainly due to been manically busy with client work but I also had a two week break in Italy over Easter. As many of you know, I was married to an Italian and lived in Italy for ten years so it’s my spiritual home and I try and go back at least once a year. I stay with friends who live in the Piemonte region and we usually jump into their camper van and head off somewhere for a few days.
Read moreDecorex 2016 here we come!
On Tuesday my friend Jane Fitch, also an interior designer, and I made our annual pilgrimage to Decorex at Syon Park. Decorex is internationally renowned for being THE event to discover the very best and most coveted products from 400 exhibitors. Decorex has been running for 39 years and this is the third year that I have been.
We were not blown away by much this year as it was very much the same exhibitors as last year. However some new blood gave a much needed injection of interest. I've included below a few newcomers as well as some highlights.
Naomi Paul beautiful crocheted lampshades were a feature in the VIP lounge as well as on their stand. Their ethos is to create beautiful functional textile objects by highly skilled craftsmanship and they certainly have achieve this. The lampshades are simple, stylish and elegant.
Bert and May are another newcomer to Decorex. They are committed to raw materials, natural pigments and fine craftsmanship which they certainly have achieved in their products. They launched a fabric range at Decorex which were beautiful subtle colours and bold geometric designs.
Santorus is another exciting newcomer. Brother and sister, Fabian and Tara have a rich cultural heritage of Indian and Italian parents and their products certainly reflect this. I adore the patterns and colours of their fabrics and wallpapers.
Tom Raffield is a relative newcomer to Decorex. Their beautiful wooden lighting and furniture are made in a woodland workshop in Cornwall where the company is based.
Tom Faulkner is not a newcomer to Decorex but I am always interested in visiting their stand and seeing their exquisite handmade furniture.
No visit to Decorex would be complete without a vist to the Ochre stand. I am always in awe of their celestial pebble light!
There is always the obligatory over-the-top glitz and these Murano chandeliers by iDogi were no exception!
I always look forward to the floral displays on the exhibition stands but they were few and far between this year and very disappointing. The one that stood out for me was on the Sir John Soane Museum stand which was designed by Ben Pentreath and the magnificent display of dahlias was grown and designed by Ben's partner Charlie McCormick. This stand stood out from all the others for its design and colour.
To finish this whistlestop tour, here are a few more shots that I took.
I hope you enjoyed seeing a few of the highlights of Decorex. It was a long day as there were over 400 stands to see. A few glasses of bubbly in the VIP lounge with canapes helped to keep up our energy levels!
Did you go to Decorex this year? What did you think of it and what were your favourites? I would love to hear so do drop me a note.
You may also like to read
Chelsea Physic Garden - a hidden gem
Last week I took a friend to the Chelsea Physic Garden for lunch and a wander. I'm a member of the garden and I love to pop in there to sit and read, have lunch or tea & cake, or a wander. I find it a real little oasis in the middle of Chelsea and a source of inspiration.
We parked in Battersea Park and walked over the prettiest of the bridges over the Thames, the Albert Bridge. I whizz over the bridge on my moped but can't stop to admire it or the view so it was a treat to be able to walk over it and take some photos.
Read moreA Bloomsbury pilgrimage
esterday I spent an absolutely amazing day out in Sussex with a friend on a "pilgrimage". Having been to see Charleston House and Berwick Church three weeks ago and becoming obsessed with the Bloomsbury Group, I wanted to return to see Monk's House, the home of Virginia and Leonard Woolf and also to visit the church in the village of Firle where Vanessa Bell, her live-in lover Duncan Grant and Vanessa's son Quentin Bell (from her marriage to Clive Bell) are buried.
It was a perfect English summer's day - cloudless sky, a lovely cool breeze and temperatures around 25C. Be warned now, I'm afraid this blog post is serious photographic spam!!
Read moreSleepover in the Cotswolds
Last Saturday early evening I headed to my friends' new house near Cirencester for a sleepover. They have built a stunning New England style home on Summer Lake which is part of the Cotswold Water Park in a beautiful rural area in the Gloucestershire countryside, with 147 gravel-quarry lakes, formed over time and enriched with diverse wildlife and natural resource. Summer Lake is the last of the lakes to be developed and there will be 45 of these luxury detached lodges.
I arrived at 8pm as the sun was setting. The house was bathed in the early evening light and the setting sun over the lake was simply magical. One lone paddle boarder glided past in a world of his own.
There were six of us and we ate a leisurely supper with the doors open and the evening air wafting in
The next morning the sun shone and I could really appreciate the lake and surroundings. Some of us bird watched with binoculars, others dozed in the sunshine. The indoor/outdoor flow of the house works so well.
After rising around 10am and having a coffee & croissant breakfast we headed into Cirencester about 10 minutes away. I've never been before and found it to be the most delightful, quintessential English town with the beautiful church of John the Baptist in the centre.
The centre of Cirecenster has some fabulous architecture. In one of the shops on the main street was a fantastic antiques market which was a rabbit warren of rooms. I could have spent hours there browsing.
We stopped for a liquid refreshment at the Kings Head hotel opposite the church. It has been beautifully but sympathetically designed inside
Then it was back to the lake house to pack and return to London. Who needs to go abroad when you could own a house on a lake like this one!!
You may also like to read
Featured
Perfect design inspiration - the Bloomsbury Group
For those of you who don't know Charleston House, it is the home of the Bloomsbury Group and became a country outpost for a group of artists, writers and intellectuals. It started in 1916 when the painter Vanessa Bell, her husband Clive and their two sons Julian and Quentin moved there from London on the recommendation of her sister, the writer Virginia Woolf. With them were another painter Duncan Grant and his friend David Garnett. They rented the late 16th century farmhouse and despite the house having no hot water or heating, guests increased the household. It became a rather unconventional household of friendships and relationships - they didn't separate or divorce, they just reorganised!!!
Read more
Design Week 2015 at Chelsea Harbour is the perfect environment for meeting and greeting the great and good of the interior design world. Find out all the juicy design details of my first day at the Design Centre.