In the English countryside, pretty villages dot rolling
hills and cobblestones line narrow medieval streets.
Come in through the garden gate, and you'll find a steep
thatched roof overhanging ancient leaded glass windows.
Old garden roses creep around the carved oak door.
The grounds, whether a picturesque cottage garden or the
rolling parkland of the local manor house, are lovingly
cared for. Everything is fresh, tidy, and welcoming.
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On country walks one
passes by charming brick walled and slate roofed
homes surrounded by welcoming gardens.
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Rural England is best seen on foot or bicycle,
the better to appreciate ancient towns, medieval
chapels, hills full of wildflowers, and enjoyable
local traditions. The pace of life is slow, the
rural environment unspoiled. Some tiny hamlets
seem almost to have escaped modernity altogether,
and the summertime fete, the cricket field, and
the local rugby team provide the traditional focus
for community life.
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In ancient towns in the Cotswolds or the Lake
District, public space is built on a welcoming,
human scale. Honey-colored stone shop fronts
form a pleasing corridor along busy sidewalks.
Charming architectural detail, whether medieval or
Victorian, is still carefully maintained.
Slate roofs, thatched cottages, wood beam
ceilings, and flagstone floors evoke scenes from
Dickens or Hardy.
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Regional stones are
used to construct the walls of many country
cottages. While thatched roofs create cozy
character.
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Featured Product |
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The local pub is homey, with low ceilings, cozy
rugs, and dark wood bathed in warm yellow
lamplight. Stories, gossip, and local politics are
traded here over pints of local ale. For the
weary traveler, a bed and breakfast offers rustic
charm, time-darkened wood wainscoting, low-hanging
leaded windows.
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go for the Bangers and Mash,
or Fish and chips |
A pub interior is quaint and comfortable,
perfect spot to down a local English Ale
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Craftsmanship is important
in English country style: carved wood and stone,
wrought iron, the simple yet imposing lines of a
classic stone manor house. |
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English country colors
are natural and subtle: dark wood, gray or beige
stone, warm ivory walls, perhaps a dark red or
green accent wall. Furniture and wainscoting
are carved wood, with Victorian lines. Lamps
are key, with wall sconces or perhaps a rustic
iron chandelier creating intimate pools of light
and making hand-rubbed wood carvings gleam.
A rug in a nineteenth-century floral pattern can
add color, or perhaps a basket of dried
wildflowers.
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Most rural towns / villages have there
own summer 'fete'. Bringing together the local community
to celebrate with old fashioned fun, car boot
sales, games and vintage tractor rides
No visit to the English country side would be
complete without a visit to the cricket field, or a
stomp in the mud watching a rugby team
| In the summertime, the all-important cottage
garden serves as an "outdoor room" where
tea and lunch can be served. The lawn or
stone courtyard is surrounded by clipped hedges,
climbing roses, forget me nots, bluebells.
An old well cover, a low stone wall, or perhaps an
arch clothed by clematis add architectural
interest. Ever-practical, the English
cottager includes some vegetables in the
landscape: a cucumber frame, a fruit cage
for red currants and gooseberries. |
A local
street in Woodstock near Oxford. Flower pots hang from
every window.
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