Tag: Berkshire

Raise the roof at St Bartholomew’s Church, Lower Basildon, Berkshire

Published on by chariswhitestylist7 Comments

I first visited St Bartholomew’s Church in my 20s to attend a friend’s winter wedding. As if on cue, Mother Nature provided the most perfect wintery backdrop of snowfall. The ice tunnel effect down Church Lane was like a scene from the Snow Queen. At the end of the lane, the medieval church welcomed us with its handsome 1734 bell tower and heavy open door. In the pews, we sat expectantly in our hats, layered up with happiness, velvet and tweed to see our friend walk down the aisle.

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White Door Brocante

Published on by chariswhitestylist4 Comments

It is exciting to see how a desire for sustainability and the vaccum of traditional high street retail is being filled with a renewed interest in pre-loved items. This burgeoning interiors and fashion landscape now extends from car boots and charity shops to smart antique shops as well as individual online sellers. But it is the concept of a French-inspired ‘Brocante’ which has recently caught my eye.

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The Old Rectory garden opens for The National Garden Scheme in Berkshire

Published on by chariswhitestylist11 Comments

Members of the wonderful National Garden Scheme are generously opening their garden gates for charity this summer, just when we need them most. The sheer joy of a visit to see some of Britain’s private gardens is going to bring a lot of happiness to many. The variety of gardens you can visit range from secret city rooftops to cottage and manor house gardens. The season starts for us on Sunday 23 May (2 – 5 pm) with a visit to one of Berkshire’s finest.

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English secret garden

Published on by chariswhitestylist3 Comments

One of the sweet spots of the summer season is the moment when our calendar gets filled with dates to visit gardens open for charity on behalf of The National Garden Scheme. More exterior than interior I suppose but fairly inextricably linked for floral/botanical design inspiration and for the patterns found in imaginative landscaping. These are usually private gardens and there is often exceptionally fine, freshly baked cake from precious family recipes. If you are lucky, proper tea cups and saucers with the odd plant to buy and a bit of bunting. Heaven really.

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