Holker Hall

Holker Hall is a great place to visit, for the gardens and the house.
The house has two wings. The family live in the older, Tudor part, built by the Prestons and inherited by the Cavendish family, and the part we are shown round is the Victorian wing, rebuilt by the 7th Duke of Devonshire following a fire in 1871.
The rooms are large, spacious, and quite light. The oak is a mid oak colour, not yet aged very much.  Very little is roped off, as the rooms are used when not open to the public. There were five guides on duty, ready to talk about the rooms or answer any questions, or just leave you to absorb the atmosphere. There are many fine paintings and pieces of furniture, dating from before the Victorian era, brought by the Duke in the days when the house was part of the Chatsworth estate.  Lord Cavendish is second cousin to the 12th Duke of Devonshire.
We had already peeked into the library and drawing room, admiring the geraniums growing in the bay windows, as we walked in the gardens. Each had a desk placed in the bay window, making best use of the natural light, but the large windows gave both rooms a large bright and comfortable feel.  Even with every wall lined with books, the library felt like a living room.
The furnishings were bright and bold; blue sofas and curtains against deep red wallpaper in the drawing room, vivid green wallpaper in the billiard room, two heavy carved spiral columns either side of the dining room fireplace, but the rooms were large enough that it was not overwhelming.
You could imagine upstairs feeling like a comfortable family home. All the rooms were off a long gallery, with rocking horse and see-saw and card tables, as well as a real live fire in the fire place.  Each bedroom was a sizable living room, with fire and sofas and chairs. You could say that there were eight bedrooms rather than four, as each came with its own adjoining dressing room, where the valet or maid would sleep, ready to attend if needed.
In 1875 the house had all mod cons, including a bathroom. It may not have been used that much, as each bedroom had its chamber pot and wash stand.  Two rooms now have en-suite. One was made for Queen Mary in 1937, by dividing up the bathroom - she had a modern bath but the original WC and basin.  The other was added in 1939 when the Duke of Gloucester came to visit. In many ways the Duke's bedroom was best, being above the drawing room and having the same rounded bay window projecting from the corner of the house.
As well as the house there is the gardens. Next to the house is a formal garden with a fairly refreshing feel, having been laid out in 1993. That leads on to the summer garden, also laid out quite formally, with trees shaped very  square and severe. It feels quite architectural, but there is a lot of floral interest from the border on the long side nearest the house, backing onto the private garden. At the far end a corner gate leads to the rest of the gardens, and an end gate leads to the meadow, with wild flowers, a sundial and a labyrinth.
There is a fountain, at the foot of a cascade leading up to a statue of Neptune. The fountain is at a beautiful spot, surrounded by tall rhododendrons.  One of the famous features of the garden is the Holker Lime, which is certainly impressive for its girth, but we nearly missed it as we expected it to be freestanding. We ended up at the sunken garden, which was a very restful spot to enjoy the late afternoon sun.

Blackwell House

Blackwell House was built in 1900 by M. H. Baillie Scott, as a holiday home for Sir Edward Holt, a Manchester Industrialist and one time Lord Mayor. Baillie Scott was part of the Arts and Crafts Movement, inspired by John Ruskin and William Morris, and the house has a more restful relaxed atmosphere than the busyness of the average Victorian home.

It was acquired by the Lakeland Trust 10 years ago, and has been open to the public since 2001. As well as admiring the quite beautifully restored internal decoration, visitors also get to see craft exhibitions as they are housed in the upstairs rooms. It is located south of Bowness, on the hillside affording wide views of Windermere and the Coniston fells beyond. Visitors to the tea room can either sit inside, or on the terrace, enjoying the views.

The house has a large hall, more like a medieval house, but like all the rooms, there is a an inglenook around the the fireplace, for more intimate gatherings. There is a second area of recessed seating with a superb peacock frieze in the opposite corner, and above the fireplace there is a minstrels' gallery.

There are two other downstairs rooms, a dining room, fairly formal with its wood panelling, but facing west, and with views over Windermere is the drawing room. The walls and ceilings are all patterned, but painted white, and the result is very light and restful. There is a recessed seating area around a window, with views over the lake, and as the other rooms, inglenook seating around the fireplace. There is a shelf, at picture rail height around the room, supported by slim columns. It really is a most restful and peaceful room.

Upstairs there is a bedroom with a dressing room, and one smaller bedroom. This room has some pictures of the time the house was used to re-house a school during the war time. The other upstairs rooms house craft exhibitions. At our visit we saw an exhibition of glass made by James Powell & Sons. There were also sculptures by David Nash.

The exhibition changes each few months, so we can look forward to visiting again next year.