Saturday 24 May 2014

Dyrham Park


























We recently visited the beautiful house and grounds of Dyrham Park in Gloucestershire, where I took these photos. In a lovely setting, the house sits at the bottom of a grassy slope. Deer wander around the grounds and the formal gardens are really pretty and well looked after. We heard, as we were being driven back up the slope in the little free bus, that the house was built at the bottom of the slope so that water from the spring at the top of the hill could be piped down into large tanks and provide water on tap - a rarity at the time. 

My favourite rooms were the Victorian kitchens and the cool dairy, covered in blue and white Delft tiles, where they believe the butter for the household was made. The orangery was also delightful - light streaming in the windows and fruit trees lined up - it was a tranquil spot to sit and contemplate.

And those topiary hedges at the front of the building certainly made us smile. Lovely face on the left but is that a bottom on the right too? I think we'll be going back often to explore the gardens more, maybe picnic by the lake and have some more of their lovely cake.

Take care people,
Melanie