By Caren Barry
There’s something magical about a walled garden, don’t you agree? I’m sure that I’m not alone in believing that a walled garden is one of the most special places within any garden space. I love their timeless beauty and the mystery of what could be hidden beyond those twelve-foot high weathered brick walls.
It’s no secret that in recent months I have been indulging in many day trips across the English countryside. My desire to travel has grown enormously over the past few years, especially after leaving a full-time job where I was on my feet all day (to now working mainly from my home studio), I seem to constantly crave the wilds of the outdoors. In part, this is why James and I invested in a joint National Trust membership for our second consecutive year. Since joining, we have made a point of visiting at least one National Trust property every weekend – be that locally or further afield. We love travelling and it has really motivated us to visit parts of the country that would otherwise have gone unexplored by us. So if you are currently undecided on whether to sign up I would absolutely encourage you to give it a try!
In early February, one of my favourite brands, TOAST invited me to visit my local store in Cambridge to photograph and take a closer look at their new window display. Installed in the Cambridge store window is the beautiful artwork of Alice-Andrea Ewing (Alde & Ore, 2016); two bronze river maps that represent the landscape of her childhood.
Pythouse Kitchen Garden is a beautiful 18th Century walled garden, restaurant, bar and venue, tucked away in the beautiful landscape of South Wiltshire. I first discovered this place back in April while researching things James and I could do when visiting dear friends who live in Swindon. In the end we didn’t manage to make the trip there with them, so I knew that our
I love the kind of holidays where I can include places to visit into the journey. Just before we left for our break in the Devonshire countryside, I asked friends on Instagram if they had any suggestions on places local to where we were staying that we simply must-see. One recommendation that instantly grabbed my attention was Bicton Park Botanical Gardens.
Last week, my family and I went on our first holiday together in almost ten years. It was a long time coming and unquestionably a wonderful prospect (and experience) to create new family memories together, with the addition of my partner James and my twin sister’s fiancé – also named James, much to our family’s amusement. Devonshire is just beautiful, the rolling hills and coastal views, it’s glorious and if James and I ever decided to relocate anywhere in the UK then I think Devon would be very high on my list – even a location for a second home would be lovely because my beloved Cambridge and all those beautiful surrounding villages have always had a strong hold on my heart.
With some long weekends ahead free of any plans, James and I decided to take a day trip to Cambridge and do some exploring. We always enjoy days out like these and it’s something we’ve neglected to do for quite some time. When the lovely people at TOAST invited me to take them through a day in my hometown, I felt what better way is there to reconnect with this beautiful city than to celebrate the opening of a new TOAST store in Cambridge. Wandering further from the typical tourist routes I decided to give them a guide to the best places to visit…