Country Homes & Interiors April 2022

Seeing inside the homes we feature, and the care and love the owners have put into them, is always a highlight of my job. But this month is even more special, as we’re featuring the Winners and Runners-up from our Reader Home Awards. The size and age of each property is very different, and they’re decorated in a variety of styles, but they are all quintessentially country homes, full of warmth, character and charm. Head on over to take a look, from page 23. If you’re inspired to refresh your own interiors, we have lots of ideas to help you get started. Think about a subtle and luminous shade of pink for a room revamp (page 72), discover what it takes to create a stylish and practical hallway (page 80) and…

Our picks for you…

KEEP CALM AND DRINK TEA In a bid to combat food waste and encourage mindful moments, Jessica Nester founded Tea in the Moment – a unique tea brand that uses the discarded shells of cacao beans to create a tasty range of sugar and caffeine-free infusions. ‘The name represents the need to pause, reflect and bring yourself back to the present,’ she says. There are seven flavours, including mint, rose and chai, £6.99 per 50g box of loose-leaf tea. Did you know OVER 7 MILLION MATTRESSES ARE SENT TO LANDFILL EVERY YEAR? BUTTON & SPRUNG HAS LAUNCHED A NEW COLLECTION WITH 100% NATURAL FILLINGS, DESIGNED TO BE FULLY RECYCLABLE AT THE END OF THEIR LIFE. AND THEY’RE SUPER-COMFY, TOO. SEW EASY Enjoy the calming effect of embroidery and create something beautiful with a beginner-friendly kit…

Emma Alington has been creating beautiful, hand-thrown ceramics since 2013. Once an old Scout hut, her Berkshire studio’s rustic walls are covered with inspirational imagery, ‘like an ever-changing mood board’. Following fashion’s foray with scallop patterns, her new collection features decorative ric-rac trims. Talk us through the design process. ‘I’m a 3D thinker, so everything takes shape on the potter’s wheel. My ideas for new forms typically come from things that I love and use around my home already. Once I’ve created a shape, I then ensure it ticks all the functionality boxes before having plaster moulds made, followed by initial slip casts. Batches are made in bone china at the factory in Stoke-on-Trent, then sent to us at the studio to decorate. I love experimenting with different clays and glazes.’ Tell…

As with many things in life, there were two sides to the coin when it came to celebrating Easter during my youth. There was the strict convent school side, where nuns would guide my moral learning towards the strictest of the season’s sensibilities – in short, making sure that it didn’t begin and end with thoughts of cakes, feasting and the giving of chocolate eggs. The fun part happened at home – with the gravitas of cakes, feasting and the giving of chocolate eggs! These days my Easter celebrations at Hill House are a mixture of ceremony and celebration. There’s the joy of being among family and friends, and a feeling of gratitude for the imminent onset of spring and the burgeoning beauty that comes with this time of year. Easter marks the…

It was always our dream to design a house ourselves and build it from the ground up,’ says Lisa Wallace of the beautiful home she and husband David have constructed. For Lisa, it was important to create a calm and unique home that centred around family life, with a work space nearby to give a good work-life balance in her job as a reiki practitioner. Lisa and David had searched for years for land so that they could fulfil their dream. Eventually in 2019, the perfect plot with planning permission came up for sale down a nearby rural lane and Lisa and David were keen to buy it. They hadn’t sold their house and there were complications and setbacks around the purchase, but eventually it was theirs. They changed the planning…