My Catherine Archer Sampler

My Catherine Archer Sampler

I may have mentioned once or twice before that I am obsessed by stitched samplers. I hope this is something we have in common, so you will forgive me dedicating this Jotting to one sampler in particular. It was stitched by Catherine Archer in about 1865 and is one of...
And down came the trellis

And down came the trellis

Hardy’s Cottage Garden Plants is a wonderfully inspiring nursery Our courtyard garden has been a joy this year with a froth of white and pink cosmos and Japanese anemones practically taking over wherever they can. This garden is surrounded by rather an ugly...
Don’t you just love vintage linens?

Don’t you just love vintage linens?

I am not sure when I started hunting for old linen pieces, sheets, kitchen textiles and so on. I just know that I love this fabric and I have always enjoyed wearing it, which is why I look permanently creased but I am told by my family to refer to my crumpled state as...
Dahlias, dahlias everywhere!

Dahlias, dahlias everywhere!

Dahlias almost as tall as I am! After the rush to buy my Claude Monet’s Garden Silk Collection, I thought I had better speed up my plans for the next collection. I’m thrilled they have proved so popular.  As I explained in a previous Jotting, I...
The excitement of an auction

The excitement of an auction

It has been a while since I attended a real live auction, but I can still remember the feeling from all those years ago. We had been living in Pinks Barn for some months and had completely bare stone floors throughout downstairs. Not pretty stone either, just old...
Becoming an author

Becoming an author

Ahem, not wishing to show off but I do have a whole shelf of my own books! I cannot describe the puffed-out chest and butterflies when my first book was published. It was something I did not expect to happen, and I can assure you that my father and a couple of my...