Wealden Times | WT176 | October 2016 | Kitchen & Bathroom supplement inside

PRICELESS

OCTOBER 2016

Wealden Times

The lifestyle magazine for the Weald

KITCHEN AND BATHROOM SUPPLEMENT inside

Inspirational Interiors • Fabulous Fashion • Delicious Dishes

76/78 High Street, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN1 1YB

Tel. 01892 534018 | Fax. 01892 510536

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Designers and and makers of of handmade kitchens

The The difference is is in in the the detail

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Sevenoaks, Kent Kent TN15 0ES 0ES

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81 81 Calverley Road Road

Tunbridge Wells, Kent Kent TN1 TN1 2UY 2UY

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Email: cranbrook@kingsfords.net www.kingsfords-solicitors.com

We offer an excellent, swift and friendly service.

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KingsfordSolicitorsWT172.indd 1 10/05/2016 11:20

wealdentimes.co.uk

8

SkinnersKentAcademyWT176.indd 1 26/09/2016 15:19

Contents

October 2016

54

151

Supplement 8

22

35

54

85

87

100

SHED AHEAD

John Graham-Hart

salutes the hidey-hut

OCTOBER NOTEBOOK

Interesting things to

do this month

PRIDE, NO PREJUDICE

A Georgian stately home

gets a chic contemporary

makeover - and a new purpose

GET THE LOOK

Give your house the

Goodnestone treatment

SWEET DREAMS

A plumpelicious bedstead makes

your bedroom into a luxury zone

WINTER WARMER

Treats to look forward to at

this year’s Wealden Times

Midwinter Fair

126

128

143

147

149

151

KITCHEN & BATHROOM

SUPPLEMENT

32 pages of inspiration

for your home

WHERE ENDS MEET

Cosy autumn menswear

for outdoor pursuits

BALMY HIGH

Josephine Fairley

moisturises madly

WEALDEN BEAUTY

Susannah Hewett of Eggs to

Apples shares her regime

HEALTH

Expert information for Breast

Cancer Awareness month

THE STAFF OF LIFE

A sourdough masterclass

with baker Emmanuel

Hadjiandreou

162

166

169

175

177

183

184

FROM A TINY ACORN...

Sue Whigham celebrates

the mighty oak

THE GREEN GODDESS

Penny Kemp on upcycling

LATERAL THINKING

Alternative education options

assessed by Sue Elkin

GRAMMAR LESSONS

Sue Elkin revises the key points

for choosing a school

WHAT’S ON IN OCTOBER

Apples, art and Halloween fun

COMPETITION

Win a knife set worth £225

from Flint & Flame

FABLES FROM THE FARM

For Jane Howard autumn

is a new beginning

102

LOVE SHACK

John Graham-Hart is smitten by

a beach house with the X factor

159

SQUASH UP!

Jo Arnell gets misty in

her pumpkin patch

Published by JPS Media Ltd, Kettle Chambers, 21 Stone Street, Cranbrook, Kent. TN17 3HF. Tel: 01580 714705 Fax: 01580 715983.

Email info@wealdentimes.co.uk wealdentimes.co.uk copyright JPS Media Ltd 2016©.

The views of the advertisers and contributors are not necessarily those of JPS Media Ltd.

9 wealdentimes.co.uk

Sandhurst

A family farmhouse on the edge of the village with impressive equestrian facilities

7 bedrooms, 5 bathrooms, 5 reception rooms. Swimming pool, tennis court. Substantial

outbuildings, stable yard, all-weather sand school, paddock. Triple garage with annexe above.

EPC rating C. In all about 25.72 acres.

Guide price £1,850,000

KnightFrank.co.uk/TNW150281

simon.biddulph@knightfrank.com

KnightFrank.co.uk/tunbridge-wells

01892 310700

@KF_TWells

KnightFrank.co.uk

Guide price £975,000

Cranbrook

An attractive twin roundel oast house within walking distance of the town centre

4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 3 reception rooms. Detached double garage, off-road parking,

immaculate gardens and grounds. EPC rating D. In all about 0.4 acres.

Our understanding of the ever-changing

market enables us to price your

property accurately.

Every day our properties are viewed

521 times through our award-winning

website, so you can rely on Knight

Frank to get you moving.

Call us today on 01892 310700 to

arrange your free market valuation.

*Figure correct as at 5th September 2016


Rolvenden

An attractive Grade II Listed oast house with wonderful views

5 bedrooms, 3 bathrooms, 3 reception rooms. Triple open bay garage with office / study

above. Gardens and grounds. In all about 0.56 acres.

@KF_TWells

KnightFrank.co.uk

Development Opportunity


Smarden

Attractive Grade II Listed former school house

4 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, 3 reception rooms. Situated in the

heart of the village. Walled garden with lawned area. Garage.

Offers in excess of £995,000

Wadhurst

Plot with full planning permission to create an impressive country

house

Created for modern family living, designs provide for a unique

home of up to 9,000 sq ft with a luxurious leisure complex, cinema

and games room. Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. In all about

11 acres. Brochure with full details available. *CGI

Hastings Old Town, East Sussex - £1,395,000

Grade II listed Regency Italianate villa with attached 3

bedroom cottage. Kitchen, dining room, drawing room,

tower room, lower ground floor with utility room and wine

store. 3 double bedrooms and 4th bedroom/sitting room.

Garage and secure off road parking. Large walled garden.

Brookland, Kent - £925,000

Lovely Grade II listed farmhouse on little used country lane.

Sitting room, dining room, kitchen/breakfast room, utility/

cloakroom, 4 bedrooms, attic room. Single garage with

office above. Parking. Garden and orchard of 1.25 acres.

Beckley, East Sussex - £750,000

Spacious house in rural position. Kitchen, utility, sitting

room, dining room, living room, conservatory, 3 first floor

bedrooms, study/bedroom 4, office/bedroom 5. Triple

garage with workshop. Swimming pool. Gardens & grounds

of 1.5 acres. Further land available. EPC E.

Rye, East Sussex - £499,950

Attached house in mews development in central location

in Conservation Area. Living room, dining room, kitchen/

breakfast room, main bedroom with en-suite and 2 further

bedrooms. Lovely courtyard garden. Allocated parking

space. EPC D

Wittersham, Kent - £475,000

Lovely 3 bedroom village house. Grade II listed with sitting

room, dining room, home office/gym, kitchen/breakfast

room, utility. Master bedroom with en-suite and 2 further

bedrooms. Garden. Off road parking.

Brookland, Kent - £395,000

Deceptive attached period cottage with generous living

accommodation on edge of village with rural views. 23 ft

sitting room, open plan kitchen/dining room, utility, study,

3 bedrooms. Rear garden. Single garage. Additional parking.

EPC F

RYE OFFICE 01797 227338

MAYFAIR OFFICE 0870 112 7099

phillipsandstubbs.co.uk

The Property Ombudsman

Sissinghurst Excess £1,100,000

An enchanting Grade II listed farmhouse with an excellent range of

outbuildings and land in a secluded setting• CSCA • No Onward Chain

• 3 Reception Rooms • Kitchen/Breakfast Room • 4 Bedrooms • Bathroom

• Substantial Outbuildings • About 7 acres in all

Biddenden Excess £925,000

A recently completed country house in a delightful secluded setting

overlooking its own land • CSCA • 2 Reception Rooms • Kitchen/Diner

• 4 Bedrooms • 3 Bathrooms • Double Garage • Open Bay Garage • Stables

• Outbuilding • In all over 6 acres • EPC B

Biddenden Excess £895,000

A spacious and well presented oast conversion with leisure complex amid

beautiful landscaped grounds with far reaching views • CSCA • 3 Reception

Rooms • Kitchen/Breakfast Room • 4 Bedrooms • 3 Bath/Shower Rooms

• Cart Lodge • Circa 2.3 acres in all • EPC E

Bethersden Excess £600,000

An individual village house providing 2,864 sq ft of stylish and flexible

accommodation • No Onward Chain • 2 Reception Rooms • Kitchen/

Breakfast Room • Master Bedroom with En Suite & Dressing Room

• Bedroom 2 • Shower Room • Double Garage • 0.6 acres of Gardens • EPC C

Hawkhurst Excess £550,000 Cranbrook Guide Price £525,000

An expansive duplex apartment set in a prestigious development on the A delightful attached barn and oast conversion with lovely south facing

popular Moor area of the village • CSCA • 2 Reception Rooms • Kitchen gardens in a convenient semi rural setting • CSCA • 2 Reception Rooms

• 3 Bedrooms • 2 Bathrooms • Double Garage • Private Terrace • Shared • Kitchen/Breakfast Room • 3 Bedrooms • Family Bathroom • Garage

Grounds of about 6 acres • EPC C

• Pretty Gardens • EPC E

coming 26 January 2015

SALES / LETTINGS / MANAGEMENT

VISIT US AT HUNTERS.COM

HERE TO GET you THERE

SALES / LETTINGS / MANAGEMENT

VISIT US AT HUNTERS.COM

HERE TO GET you THERE

High Halden £750,000 - £800,000

Stunning 16th Century Grade II listed country house set in its own

private grounds • Seven Bedrooms • Extensive Gardens • Paddock and

Natural Pond • No Onward Chain • EPC Exempt

Ashford £950,000

Imposing detached home set in a desirable location • Four Double

Bedrooms • Fantastic Kitchen/Breakfast Room • Heated Swimming Pool

• Triple Bay Garage • Detached Games Room • Two Ensuites • EPC C

Alkham £950,000

Imposing detached country home set in approximately 3 acres of

grounds with stunning views over rolling countryside • Six Bedrooms •

Heated Swimming Pool • Tennis Court • Wooded Grounds • EPC D

Brookland £625,000

Detached family home with countryside views set in a quiet country lane

• Five Bedrooms • Three Bathrooms/Ensuites • Double Garage • EPC TBC

Over 150 independently owned branches across the UK.

Smarden £1,150,000

Delightful Grade II Listed Oast House set in approximately 1.45 acres

• Six Bedrooms • Study • Flexible Accommodation • Three Bathrooms/Shower Rooms • EPC Exempt

ASHFORD 01233 613613

HYTHE 01303 261557

Over 150 independently owned branches across the UK.

TENTERDEN 01580 763278

FOLKESTONE 01303 210335

‘Our Focus ‘Our Determines Focus Determines Your Reality’ Your Reality’

harpers and hurlingham

COLLIeRS GReen £1,295,000

Grade II Farmhouse with Converted Barn · Two

reception rooms · Kitchen dining room · Four bedrooms

(one ensuite) · Detached two bedroom barn · Gardens

and paddock · CSCA · EPC: n/a

Sought after Rural Location

RURAL BRIGHTLInG £1,200,000

Grade II Listed Thatched Barn · Three reception rooms

· Kitchen/breakfast room · Utility room · Five bedrooms

(two ensuite) · Grounds approx. 1.3 acres · Detached one

bedroom annexe · Garaging · EPC: n/a

Stunning Far Reaching Views

RURAL Benenden £1,195,000

Detached Property with Acreage · Three receptions

· Kitchen/breakfast room · Five bedrooms (two ensuite)

· Detached building with planning permission · Approx

5 acres (including woodland) · CSCA · EPC: E

Tranquil Rural Location

BOUGHTOn MOnCHeLSeA £1,175,000

Unique Converted Barn/Oast · Three reception rooms

· Conservatory · Kitchen/breakfast room · Five

bedrooms (two ensuite) · Parklike gardens with

outbuilding · Double garage · EPC: E

Peaceful Country Lane Location

Harpers&Hurlingham

The Cornerhouse, Stone Street, Cranbrook

01580 715400

www.harpersandhurlingham.com

London offiCe: KenSingTon 020 7938 2311

Lettings Team

Sales Team

Chez Charlie Janey Jane Cathy Jane Sarah Debbie Catherine Caroline Dianne Helen

CHH_ADVERT_181x133mm.pdf 1 19/01/2016 15:39

MAXIMISE THE VALUE

OF YOUR LAND

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M

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CM

MY

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LH

CountryHouseDevelopmentsWT168.indd 2 20/01/2016 11:27

L i lle s de n Hou s e

h aw k h u r s t, k e n t

VIEWINGS BY APPOINTMENT

SANDHILL

HOMES

sandhillhomes.co.uk

LILLESDEN HOUSE, HASTINGS ROAD, HAWKHURST, KENT TN18 4QG

A future full of promise, in a setting from the past

Discover a range of charming & beautifully restored luxury apartments, surrounded by 28 acres of mature parkland

• Individually designed 2 and 3 bedroom apartments • Designer fitted kitchens with a range of high performance appliances

• Contemporary bathroom suites • Electrically operated security gates with entry phone system

• Private allocated parking • 10 year Premier guarantee

NEW APARTMENTS RELEASED | GUIDE PRICES FROM £375,000

To book an appointment please contact 01892 507005 or email tunbridgewellsrds@savills.com

savills.co.uk

wealdentimes.co.uk

16

SavillsWT176.indd 1 09/09/2016 11:26

www.hobbsparker.co.uk

01580 766766

Nr Rye • Kent Guide £1,500,000

A well appointed Edwardian country house with delightful garden room

extension and far reaching southerly views over Rye Bay and the Fairlight

Hills. In all just under 3 acres. EPC Rating F

Sellindge • Kent Guide £1,450,000

Exceptional and beautifully appointed Victorian country house with earlier

Georgian influence, fabulous 35’ orangery extension, fine undulating rural

views over its own land. In all about 4 acres (1.62 ha). EPC Rating E

High Halden • Kent Guide £845,000

A beautifully presented Kentish oast house between Woodchurch and High

Halden combining original character and contemporary décor.

EPC Rating E

Mersham • Kent Guide £799,500

A substantial part of a period former Rectory. 4 bedrooms (2 en-suite),

3 receptions plus large kitchen. Lovely walled garden.

EPC Rating NA

Rolvenden Layne • Kent Guide £875,000

A wonderfully presented 4 bedroom house on a quiet lane with well

maintained gardens backing onto fields, open plan reception area, superb

master suite. EPC Rating D

Challock • Kent Guide £845,000

A charming period farm house and separate cottage annexe surrounded

by about 1.1 acres of well kept gardens and grounds including outbuildings

(approx. 2,500 sq. ft.) EPC Rating NA

Hobbs Parker Estate Agents

Ashford: 01233 225371 | Tenterden: 01580 766766

The Coachworks

Appreciate

the Difference

“The size of the apartment and the

option of care facilities if required in

the longer term were important. The

purchase was outstanding value for

money and it has fulfilled all my

expectations.” Bob Jones, Apartment 14

Come along and view one of the

most spacious retirement schemes

in the area and enjoy a FREE meal

at The Bell Inn, an award-winning

pub located within a short walk *

Elegant independent living, exclusively for the over 65’s

THE COACHWORKS, HIGH STREET, TICEHURST, EAST SUSSEX TN5 7EX

• Spacious 2 bedroom apartments • Concierge & night porter

• Existing pets allowed • Welcoming community *subject to scheme rules

T: 01892 507005 | E: tunbridgewellsrds@savills.com | www.savills.co.uk

60%

already sold

Prices from

£305,000

Managing Agents

Selling Agents

SavillsWT176B.indd 1 09/09/2016 13:00

wealdentimes.co.uk

18

SJDprojectsWT176.indd 1 07/09/2016 09:41

Advertisement

Solving the property puzzle

Wealden Times learn from leading property expert Mandy Bissell of Garrington about how buyers and

sellers are successfully overcoming the challenge of moving home in the local property market

Historically, moving home seemed quite

straightforward; place your current home

on the market for sale and find a buyer

whilst spending time sifting through the

abundant choice of alternative homes for

sale and find the right one to purchase.

Fast forward to today’s market and

following multiple revisions to stamp duty,

shock effects of election and referendum

results, and available properties for sale at

record low levels, the market is no longer

free flowing and the process of moving

home is now far from straightforward.

Mandy, how do you help clients move

home and what do you do that they could

not do themselves?

“Garrington has for the last 20 years

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Sounds impressive, but what does this

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“It means that a client can benefit from

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Mandy Bissell GARRINGTON

“Clarity, knowledge and

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Can you give us an example of how this

has helped one of your clients move

home and the difference you made?

“We have recently helped a client move

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home for many years. They were wishing

to downsize now their children had all

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buy an easier property to manage with a

smaller garden so they could enjoy more

foreign travel. Having looked tentatively

at homes for several months they had

become disconcerted by the lack of choice

and the advice from local selling agents

that their own home would sell very

quickly and they might have to rent.”

“This feedback left them equally uncertain

as to whether to sell first, or try to find a

property to purchase. After being referred

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To learn more about Garrington’s services contact Mandy Bissell on:

Tel: 01892 882892 | info@garrington.co.uk | www.garringtonsoutheast.co.uk

Residential Sales

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wealdproperty.net

FAIRLIGHT, near Rye

POA

A HANDSOME AND BEAUTIFULLY SITUATED SEVEN BEDROOM, GRADE II LISTED PERIOD

FARMHOUSE. The property sits amid delightful gardens and land of approximately 17 acres

commanding unparalleled views from all rooms and includes a separate three bedroom Oast

conversion and high specification equestrian facilities.

HAWKHURST £1,295,000

A UNIQUE AND ARCHITECTURALLY SIGNIFICANT FIVE BEDROOM BESPOKE BUILT,

CONTEMPORARY DETACHED HOME SET IN A DESIRABLE VILLAGE LOCATION, sitting in

approximately 0.7 acres of mature gardens with delightful far reaching rural views being within

the sought-after Cranbrook School Catchment Area.

GOUDHURST £820,000

AN EXTREMELY RARE OPPORTUNITY TO ACQUIRE A BUILDING PLOT OF APPROXIMATELY

2.1 ACRES WITH THE FINEST VIEWS IN THE COUNTY, which importantly includes hard won

approved planning consent to build an architecturally significant 5 bedroom detached Eco

House designed by Sir Terry Farrell. CSCA.

GOUDHURST £835,000

AN IMPRESSIVE AND BEAUTIFULLY APPOINTED 5/6 BEDROOM OAST CONVERSION.

Situated in the sought after village of Goudhurst, being within the Cranbrook School

Catchment Area. Comprising in total approx. 2957 square feet and includes a magnificent

library in a roundel and feature Inglenook fireplace in the sitting room.

RURAL WITTERSHAM £740,000

AN EXCEPTIONALLY PRETTY FOUR BEDROOM GRADE II LISTED OAST HOUSE,

BEAUTIFULLY CONVERTED AND SET AMID ENCHANTING MATURE GARDENS in an idyllic

rural location at the end of a private lane.

BROOKLAND, near Rye OIEO £695,000

2 LOTS: LOT 1 - OIEO £695,000 – AN ATTRACTIVE, DETACHED FIVE BEDROOM GRADE II

PERIOD COUNTRY HOUSE in set in approximately 1 acre of attractive garden and orchard,

adjacent garage and stabling offering conversion potential. LOT 2 - PRICE ON APPLICATION -

1 further acre (approximately) with large barn ripe for conversion (conditionally sold with Lot 1).

2 Windmill Oast, Windmill Farm,

Rolvenden, Kent TN17 4PF

HOUSE OF THE MONTH by John Graham-Hart

1.

Get ahead, Get a shed

John Graham-Hart celebrates the small wooden hut

which holds such a special place in the British heart

As 11,000 athletes from more than 200 nations battled for glory beneath

the appreciative gaze of Rio’s Christ the Redeemer this summer,

another equally intense contest was reaching its climax under the

beady and critical eyes of an army of gnomes at the bottom of suburban gardens

all over the UK.

Cuprinol’s annual Shed of the Year competition had attracted a record-breaking

2,800 entries and the most magnificent 32 had made it onto the shortlist.

Themes ranged from nuclear bunkers to Viking boltholes, duck hotels to

Hobbit hideouts, crocodile homes to Hans Solo’s Millennium Falcon. The

excitement of sheddies throughout the country was making the Brazilian home

football crowds look positively apathetic.

The shed is a peculiarly and pleasingly British obsession. It began as a little

workshop where a man might tie flies or tinker with small unidentifiable pieces of

metal which he would one day unveil in triumph as a single, larger, unidentifiable

piece of metal. It was in short, somewhere to which he could escape for an hour

or two and slip his mind comfortably and comfortingly into neutral.

Sheds varied in size and shape but tended to share this essential

purposelessness. Today, however, they have evolved into valuable additional

family spaces - offices, summerhouses, gyms, studios, playhouses or, of course,

just somewhere downright weird.

There are regulations governing sheds and their placement but, generally,

planning permission isn’t required so you can build pretty well what you want.

However, whatever its guise, a shed rarely adds significant value to the

sale price of a house but it can be an attractive extra – which means all these

properties come with a useful little freebee…

1. Hurst Mill Cottage

Where? Hurst Mill Cottage is

beautifully situated well back off a rural

country road near Hothfield Common

a couple of miles from Pluckley (Google

Maps TN25 4LT).

What? A lovely Grade II listed cottage

dating from the 17th century, the property

is awash with period features from Dering

casement windows with stone mullions

to exposed timbers and beams and brick

flooring. Reception rooms include a triple

aspect drawing room with direct access

to the garden, a sitting room with woodburning

stove and a large third room that

could be used as an annexe.

On the first floor are two bedrooms and a

family bathroom and a separate staircase

leads to a further bedroom – with access

to a decked terrace - and bathroom. The

landscaped gardens which lie to three sides

of the house are a major feature of the

property and encompass paved pathways,

lawns underplanted with spring bulbs, a

variety of mature trees including impressive

willows, an old mill pond, a summerhouse

and a studio with power and light.

How much? Hurst Mill Cottage is on

the market at £850,000 and is with Savills

in Cranbrook. Call 01580 720161 or visit

savills.co.uk

wealdentimes.co.uk

22

2.

3.

4.

2.

3.

4.

2. Fairfield

Where? Fairfield is located on the edge

of the attractive and historic Wealden

village of Sissinghurst (Google Maps

TN17 2AR).

What? An attractive contemporary

property surrounded by well over an

acre of beautiful grounds, Fairfield is a

light, spacious and versatile family home.

Downstairs accommodation includes

living room with dual aspect picture

windows overlooking the garden, dual

aspect dining room, study, kitchen/

breakfast room with French windows to

the garden patio, two bedrooms and a

shower room.

Upstairs is a master bedroom, two further

bedrooms, playroom and bathroom.

Outside the gardens are mainly laid to

lawn but with a lovely range of mature

shrubs along with various trees and

mature plants, flowerbeds and landscaped

kitchen garden. There are three patio

areas, two greenhouses and a Scandinavian

garden lodge fitted with a central barbecue

and chimney, table top and seating.

How much? Fairfield has an asking

price of £799,995 and is on the market

with Peter Buswell in Hawkhurst. Call

01580 755565 or visit

peterbuswell.co.uk

3. West Lodge

Where? West Lodge is in a semi-rural

setting on the edge of the village of East

Farleigh a couple of miles from Maidstone

(Google Maps ME15 0HA).

What? An attractive single-storey

ragstone property that was originally

one of two gatehouses that served the

nearby manor house, the property has

been renovated and extended by its

current owners who have converted a

former tandem garage into a detached

single storey studio. In the main house,

accommodation includes a large drawing

room that is open–plan to the kitchen/

breakfast room, three bedrooms – one

with an en suite shower room – and

family room/fourth bedroom.

Outside, a large paved patio with ornate

cast balustrade overlooks the courtyard

and studio building. The gardens -

primarily laid to lawn and edged by

mature trees – encompass a modern

wooden chalet with power and light and

a large wooden deck provides superb

views over the adjacent orchards and

countryside.

How much? West Lodge is on the

market at £850,000 and is with Fine &

Country in West Malling. Call 01732

222272 or visit fineandcountry.com

4. West Cross

Where? No 3 West Cross is set on the

west side of High Street in the historic

Cinque Ports town of Tenterden (Google

Maps TN30 6JR).

What? The property is an impressive

Grade II listed Georgian town house

believed to date back to 1730 with

later additions. The property has been

sympathetically restored over the years and

is now an attractive family home with all

the conveniences of modern living. The

ground floor comprises drawing room,

dining room and a bright south-facing

kitchen/breakfast room.

On the first floor are two double bedrooms

and a family bathroom and, on the second,

there is a master bedroom and further

guest bedroom with en suite bathroom.

There is also a large basement utility room

which leads through to a games room. To

the rear of the property is a lovely southfacing

courtyard garden which has been

thoughtfully landscaped with a pretty

summerhouse and potting shed.

How much? No 3 West Cross has a

guide price range of £525,000 - £550,000

and is with Fine & Country in Tenterden.

Call 01580 766388 or visit

fineandcountry.com


Letting your property

it’s as easy as abc

Set up and underwritten by Ashford Borough Council, we have been

creating and supporting tenancies in the private sector for many

years.

We can offer you:

• Guaranteed income

• Variable length of contracts to suit you

• Out of hours service for tenants

• Full management of your property by experienced

professionals

www.ashford.gov.uk/abclettings • abclettings@ashford.gov.uk • 01233 330869 / 330378

Wealden HP.indd 2 02/06/2016 15:13:03

AhsfordBoroughCouncilWT173.indd 1 07/06/2016 17:17

Whole Of Market Mortgage Advice

In The Weald Of Kent

We understand that everyone is different and that’s why our qualified and

We understand that everyone is different and that’s why our qualified and

competent mortgage advisers will advise and recommend mortgages

competent mortgage advisers will advise and recommend mortgages

that will suit your individual needs.

that will suit your individual needs.

Rob

Stewart Rob

Tenterden Stewart

Office Tenterden

Office

Duncan

Thornton Duncan

Tenterden Thornton

Office Tenterden

Office

Sam

Hart Sam

Folkestone Hart

Office Folkestone

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Lee

Lancaster Lee

Hythe Lancaster &

Folkestone Hythe &

Office Folkestone

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Richard

Watts Richard

Ashford Watts

Office Ashford

Office

102 High Street, Tenterden, Kent TN30 6HT

102 High Street, Tenterden, Kent TN30 6HT

07483

07483

158073

158073

www.stewartfinancial.co.uk

www.stewartfinancial.co.uk

wealdentimes.co.uk

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.

Your home may be repossessed if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage.

We do not charge for our advice, however there will be an administration fee ranging

We do not charge for our advice, however there will be an administration fee ranging

from £250-£499 payable on the completion of your mortgage.

from £250-£499 payable on the completion of your mortgage.

24

StewartFinancialWT174.indd 1 05/07/2016 16:09

BUSS MURTON advertorial

Long established law firm Buss Murton

is to offer a fixed fee service

“

Effective dispute resolution requires

a clearly defined strategy, proactive

management and tactical skill in order

to deliver what clients want quickly and cost

effectively. It is not enough to simply advise

on the law.”

Justine Soutter, the new Head of Buss Murton’s

Litigation department explains.

Justine Soutter

is Head of

the Litigation

Department in

Tunbridge Wells. She

handles everything

from straightforward

contract disputes to

complex High Court

litigation.

She has particular

expertise in

Property Litigation

including advising

clients on anything

from high value disputes with commercial landlords

and tenants to agricultural property disputes and

obtaining possession from squatters.

Justine Soutter

Justine worked in the City for several years before

joining Buss Murton and delivers the service that

clients would expect from a City firm of solicitors

but at competitive Tunbridge Wells prices.

Justine says: “Litigation can be expensive. For clients

that have more straightforward problems, the firm

is now offering a fixed fee service for debt recovery

and possession of properties on Assured Shorthold

Tenancies. This will provide a solution for those

who need these services but for whom it is not cost

effective to instruct solicitors on hourly rates.”

Newly recruited

Litigation Assistant

Kamile Maskoliuniene

has considerable

experience in these

areas and will be

able to assist clients

who are owed debts

or who need to get

their properties

back from difficult

tenants.

Kamile Maskoliuniene

If you have a dispute that you would like to

discuss, please contact Justine Soutter at

jsoutter@bussmurton.co.uk or call her on

01892 510 222 www.bussmurton.co.uk

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BUY A TABLE AND SIX CHAIRS

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CRAFTSMANSHIP

It’s simply ingrained into everything we do. We aim to create the highest quality handmade

English Oak Furniture through time-honoured woodworking techniques.

Using traditional tools such as tenon saws, mallets and chisels, each piece of handmade furniture by Country Ways Oak

is constructed with sturdy pegged mortice and tenon joints to deliver strength and durability. Our traditional methods result in

furniture with timeless appeal, conveying enduring elegance and uniting form and function.

OUR WORKSHOPS CHRISTMAS SCHEDULE IS NOW OPEN

Workshop & Showrooms

Little Swailes Green Farm, Battle Road

CRIPPS CORNER, East Sussex TN32 5QU

www.countrywaysoak.co.uk

01580 830077

Shutters from Blind Design

For the ultimate in timeless elegance look no further

than Blind Design’s shutters range

Blind Design’s shutters are handcrafted to order from the fi nest materials and made-to-measure for a precise fi t.

Equally suited to contemporary or traditional decor, shutters provide a light and airy environment alongside privacy

and security – features which will add value and elegance to your room.

Call Freephone

0800 988 1071

For Your Free Home Visit

www.blind-design.co.uk

Unit 6, Harvington Business Park, Brampton Road, Eastbourne, East Sussex BN22 9AF

Mon - Fri 9am - 5pm, Sat 9am - 2pm • Telephone 01323 509 661 • Freephone 0800 988 1071

Living Will /

advanced decision

special offer

Living wills often known as advanced directives/decisions give

you the ability while fit and healthy to decide how you wish to

be treated and what treatment you want to refuse should you

become seriously ill in the future.

Everything from ensuring you always have your nails painted

to not wishing to be resuscitated under certain conditions can

be decided upon - well in advance - taking away the anguish of

such decisions from your closest family and loved ones.

Single living

Will just

£29.99 + vat

(£35.99)

Living Wills are best implemented alongside Lasting Power of

Attorney grants (LPAs) giving your nearest and dearest the Power

to speak on your behalf together with the words to say.

With our unregistered LPAs currently reduced from £399 + vat

(488.80) to just £99 + vat (£118.80) now is the ideal time to get

prepared for the next unknown chapter in your life.

BRIGHTON: 01273 911142

CRANBROOK: 01580 388584

EASTBOURNE: 01323 301383

EAST GRINSTEAD: 01342 459034

HASTINGS: 01424 316167

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HEATHFIELD: 01435 408515

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HORSHAM: 01403 541244

MAIDSTONE: 01622 296525

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TONBRIDGE: 01732 605411

TUNBRIDGE WELLS: 01892 278171

UCKFIELD: 01825 508113

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to live with complete peace of mind

www.thywill.co.uk

Women’s health – New technology

helping to beat Breast Cancer

We do

breast health

checks…

Our One Stop Breast Clinic now offers

3D mammograms helping to detect

Breast Cancer with greater accuracy

If you are over 40 with no

symptoms, you can

self-refer for a

3D mammogram*

We are currently the only private hospital

in Kent to offer the latest advances in

digital mammography; 3D Digital Breast

Tomosynthesis.

Patients seen in our One Stop Breast Clinic

will have the option of 3D mammography.

The benefits speak for themselves:

• Improves breast cancer detection by

approximately 25%

• Smaller cancers can be identified more easily

• Particularly benefits those with dense breasts,

especially younger women

• Fewer patient recalls

Early detection is key. Make Spire

Tunbridge Wells your hospital of choice.

What our patients say…

I found the whole experience whilst

having the scan to be very quick indeed

and more importantly I was made to

feel very comfortable by the staff’

TWells patient

I just wanted to say how lovely the staff in

x-ray department were yesterday when I

went for a mammogram.Everyone was so

friendly and professional

Local GP Practice Manager

To book an appointment in the One Stop Breast

clinic call our Customer Services Executive on

01892 741150

www.spiretunbridgewells.com

* Patients can self-refer for 3D mammograms if they are

experiencing no symptoms and do not have any family history.

Fordcombe Road, Fordcombe, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN3 0RD

WEEKLY BOARDING

FROM SEPTEMBER 2017

HAPPINESS FIRST

ACHIEVEMENT FIRST

INDIVIDUALITY FIRST

FRIENDS FIRST

ENRICHMENT FIRST

PROGRESS FIRST

ALWAYS FIRST

HEATHFIELD SCHOOL, ASCOT

Boarding and Day for Girls 11-18

VISIT US FIRST

OPEN DAYS

SATURDAY 15 OCTOBER 2016

SATURDAY 4 MARCH 2017

SATURDAY 20 MAY 2017

10am - 12 noon

PLEASE EMAIL:

registrar@heathfieldschool.net

TO BOOK A PLACE OR TO

ARRANGE A PRIVATE TOUR

heathfieldschool.net

City centre celebration...

Canterbury Festival has announced this year’s super sized line-up, with

events spanning three weeks from Saturday 15 October, and each day

providing something different and exciting. The English Chamber

Orchestra Ensemble will perform music spanning centuries, Australian

circus troop Circa are guaranteed to wow audiences and various talks

will take place to please wine lovers, keen gardeners and historians, with

speakers including Oz Clarke and Monty Don. With over 200 events

taking place within every available spot of city space, there truly is

something for everyone. To find out more and to discover where it’s all

happening visit canterburyfestival.co.uk

October

notebook

Exhibitions & events

near you this month...

Dance & dazzle...

Join the party at Assembly Hall on Sunday 30

October, as Magic Of Motown celebrates its

10th birthday. Having embarked on a sensational

nationwide tour, this theatrical treat will be wowing

audiences in Tunbridge Wells, with musical brilliance,

glittering costumes and dazzling dance moves.

Legends such as the Supremes, Jackson 5, Stevie

Wonder, Marvin Gaye, Diana Ross and many more

will be featuring in this stunning production. Book

now by phoning 01892 530613.

Creative coaching...

This October, West Dean College are offering a

series of short creative courses to give participants

the opportunity to learn traditional and

contemporary handcrafts. Explore outside oil

painting and investigate autumnal landscapes.

Choose from a diverse range of woodworking

and furniture making courses, develop your

gardening skills, pick up a camera and learn about

composition, build on a sewing project or try your

hand at blacksmithing and metal work. Prices and

dates vary, so find out more at westdean.org.uk

More than words...

Friday 30 September and Saturday 1 October will

be a celebration of reading and writing at Cranbrook

Literature Festival. Join Julian Clary, Sarah Raven,

Vanessa Nicolson, Luke Wright and Gyles Brandreth

and Benet Brandreth for performance poetry, creative

writing workshops, art, illustration and plenty of

stories. For tickets and further information visit

cranbrookliteraturefestival.com

Stroke of genius...

Kent Painters Group will be hosting their 26th

annual art exhibition and sale at Sevenoaks School,

over the weekend of Friday 28 - Sunday 30 October,

to raise money for local mental health and learning

disability charities. Entry is free all weekend, and

there’s an exclusive ‘meet the artists’ opportunity on

Friday evening. There are 60 acclaimed artists and

sculptors exhibiting this year and selling their works.

For more information visit kentpaintersgroup.co.uk

Freeimages.com/JarekZbozien

An apple a day...

After an amazing Apple Festival in 2015, the team

at Brogdale Farm in Faversham are planning another

great weekend on Saturday 15 and Sunday 16

October. The Red Sails restaurant will be providing

cooking demonstrations and you can enjoy craft

and produce stalls, talks, orchard walks and plenty

of family festival fun. To find out more visit

applefestivalkent.co.uk

Pretty ordinary...

Jerwood Gallery are offering a rare opportunity for

visitors to enjoy starting on Saturday 15 October.

Stanley Spencer - A Panorama of Life, gives art

lovers the chance to see works rarely viewed outside

Stanley’s home town in Berkshire. The paintings

celebrate the everyday and document life as it was in

the first half of the last century. They capture and are

a beautiful demonstration of ordinary life and work.

Find out more jerwoodgallery.org


SANTA SPECIALS

OUR POPULAR SANTA SPECIALS ARE BACK!

Christmas at the Spa Valley Railway

starts at Eridge station where visitors

are met with the smell of hot chestnuts

and a roaring coal fire in the festively

decorated waiting room. Whilst you are

waiting to board your Santa special

train why not visit our award winning

Bar Car "Kate" and sample our hot

or cold drinks together with either a

snack or light lunch.

• Saturday 3rd December

• Sunday 4th December

• Saturday 10th December




• Thursday 22nd December

• Friday 23rd December


ALL ABOARD FOR A DAY OUT

WITH THOMAS!

Meet Thomas the Tank Engine

and his friends, who are waiting

to meet you at Spa Valley Railway.

• Experience a ride behind a real steam engine

• Shake hands with The Fat Controller

• Take part in Thomas themed activities in the

Imagination Station

DAY OUT WITH THOMAS

at - Tunbridge Wells

October 1st, 2nd, 8th & 9th 2016

HALLOWEEN 2016

SPOOKY SURPRISES AT THE SPA!

Fright night express -

Saturday 29th October!

Join us as we take a ride into the unknown,

with our Ghost Trains running into the

darkness on Saturday 29th October!

Enter into our fancy dress competition as part of the fun!

We want to see lots of little witches, ghosts & ghouls,

so don your best costume and join us for a frightfully

thrilling ride, the best dressed will win a prize.

Come along and find out how you can prevent your home

having to be sold if you go into care.

FREE seminar with FREE lunch for 25 people being conducted

at:

ROFFEY MILLENNIUM HALL,

CRAWLEY ROAD, HORSHAM RH12 4DT

on:

THURSDAY 3 RD NOVEMBER 2016

Arrive 12.45pm for coffee and registration

Seminar 1pm - 1.45pm

Lunch served from 1.45pm

Draw at 2.30pm

Book your place in advance and receive your Golden Ticket.

During lunch we will draw one lucky winner who will get their

unregistered Lasting power of Attorney grants for Health and Welfare

and Property and Financial Affairs (as a single person or a couple)

arranged for them completely free of charge*.

*Only those individuals that have not previously had an appointment or consultation with us at their home or at one of

our shops are eligible to enter our raffle and attendees may only enter our raffle once at one of our seminars.

Call us now on 01403 541244

to reserve your place

www.thywill.co.uk

Numbers strictly limited to 25

Fosse Generic Postcard Rev 7/9/16 5:01 pm Page 1

Fosse Bank is a small independent school in a stunning building set in 26 acres

of beautiful grounds. Fosse Bank is for children aged 2-11 years who enjoy an

extensive curriculum and the individual care that being in a small class allows.

Forthcoming Open Days

Saturday 15th October

Monday 10th October - Friday 14th October - Open Week

Fosse Bank School, Mountains, Noble Tree Road, Hildenborough TN11 8ND

www.fossebankschool.co.uk • Tel: 01732 834212 • E-mail: admissions@fossebankschool.co.uk

Due to retirement CLOSING DOWN SALE

ALL ITEMS SIGNIFICANTLY REDUCED

FosseBankSchoolWT176.indd 1 22/09/2016 14:53

96 High Street, Tenterden, Kent, TN30 6JB. Tel. 01580 763 155

www.whitesjewellers.co.uk info@whitesjewellers.co.uk

wealdentimes.co.uk

38

WhitesJewellersWT176.indd 1 15/09/2016 14:35

BAGHAM BARN ANTIQUES

Canterbury Road, Chilham, Near Canterbury, Kent CT4 8DU 01227 732522

With a fresh look for Autumn, Bagham Barn has welcomed in

a variety of new dealers and valued services to inspire your

home decorating, gift ideas and personal well-being

For homes, we off er unusual items from antique fi ne

furniture to specially selected twentieth century pieces.

Need help with weddings? The barn features

award-winning designer dresses from The

Bridal Boutique and a large range of personal

gift ideas for special family occasions.

For a designer fi nish to your traditional or modern

beautiful home, Bagham off ers the expertise to

provide individual collections that are aff ordable,

high quality and unique to the individual.

Wide choice of study, home and office furniture

15+ years established

Professional advice guaranteed

Large free car park

Excellent tea shop

The largest and most well respected Antique Centre in

Kent transforms your gift shopping and buying of fi ne

furniture into a stress free and relaxing experience

Opening hours: 10am - 5pm

Tuesday through to Sunday

www.baghambarnantiques.com

My back pain was so bad

I thought I was going to

spend my retirement as

a disabled person…

Non-invasive disc treatment ends

Julie’s battle with sciatica

Three years ago, Julie Phillips from Woking cycled 500 miles

across the Rift Valley in Kenya for charity. At that point,

her lower back pain was just about manageable but as the

months rolled on, the pain worsened and she became more

and more immobile.

64 year old Julie explains: “I’ve always been an active person;

I was a keen horse-rider for over 30 years and love cycling.

About five years ago I started getting lower back pain and

discovered I had lordosis, an inward curve of the lower back.”

Julie’s pain gradually got worse as she approached her

retirement. “The pain was like a burning belt around my lower

back, worse on the left side. It was so severe I could only

stand or walk for a couple of minutes without needing to rest.

At 64, I really believed I was going to spend my retirement

as a disabled person…it was devastating to me after being

so healthy and active all of my life. My GP prescribed me

painkillers which I took daily but still the pain was crippling.”

Julie tried various manual treatments over the years without

success. “I had physiotherapy sessions and was given exercises

to do but they didn’t have any lasting effect. I also went for

injections in my facet joints but the relief only lasted for about

three weeks and the injections were incredibly painful. I was

then given stronger painkillers but these made me giddy; I had

palpitations and loss of memory.

At this point I needed to have an operation on my ankle which

resulted in ten weeks in a wheelchair which did help my leg

pain but as soon as I was out of the chair, the pain came back

with a vengeance.

IDD Therapy has changed Julie’s life

I felt very despondent

during this period and I

really didn’t know which

way to turn. Things

looked so gloomy that

my daughter bought me

a puppy because she

thought I was going to be

housebound for the rest

of my life.”

Things finally took a turnabout when Julie decided to take

matters into her own hands; she researched non-invasive

treatments for sciatica and found a targeted spinal disc

treatment called IDD Therapy.

“I made enquiries about the treatment and discovered that

IDD Therapy is particularly successful for patients with sciatica.

I knew I would be moving to Devon in a matter of weeks

so I wanted to start treatment as soon as possible. I rang

James Pickering at Wealden Osteopaths and Spine Centre in

Goudhurst and after an initial assessment at the clinic, he felt

sure that IDD Therapy could help me.”

ADVERTISEMENT FEATURE

Intervertebral Differential Dynamics (IDD) Therapy is a

non-invasive targeted disc treatment which gently draws

apart specific spinal segments where discs are damaged or

herniated (bulging). This relieves pain by taking pressure off

targeted discs and any trapped nerves and helps to relieve

muscle spasm.

“James explained that my condition was severe and would

need a series of IDD treatments: in fact, I felt huge relief after

just two. With every session the pain eased and I was able to

walk a few steps more. By session number six I was feeling

almost no pain.”

“I went for a four mile dog-walk with my

grandchildren… when we got home, the

kids and the dog were pooped!”

“I finished my treatment programme a few weeks ago and I’m

feeling like a new person; I’ve got no pain whatsoever now and

I’m completely active again. The other day I went for a four mile

dog-walk with my grandchildren; when we got home, the kids

and the dog were pooped! I’m so relieved to have found James

and IDD Therapy… I’ve truly been given a new lease of life.”

Wealden Osteopaths & Spine Centre is part of an international

network of over 1000 IDD Therapy Disc Specialists. The

treatment was developed in the US in the late 1990s and has

been adopted by clinicians in the UK following the exceptional

outcomes: practitioners report a significant improvement in

70-90% of patients.

Clinic Director James Pickering says: “Julie’s condition

was really quite complex and her sciatica was extremely

debilitating. I’m so pleased we could help her with IDD Therapy.

She’s made a very swift improvement with the programme and

got her life completely back to normal. IDD Therapy is hugely

important to us; it allows us to treat ‘difficult’ back pain patients

non-invasively.”

To find out about IDD Therapy and other treatments offered

at Wealden Osteopaths & Spine Centre call: 01580 212833 or

visit www.wealdenosteopaths.co.uk

The ultimate green spa for your garments has arrived in the Weald!

The new dry-cleaning is wet cleaning.

EcoFresh is faster, cheaper, friendlier and thanks to

Lagoon , is kinder to the environment with

cleaner, fresher, softer and brighter results too!

Experience our swift, ecological dry-cleaning

services this summer at refreshingly low prices

• Ladies long or short evening dress – just £10.00

• Ladies summer jacket or school blazer – only £5.00

• Men and women’s two-piece suit – from £10.00

• Curtains – amazing value at £2.50 per lb

• Collection and delivery available subject to viable arrangement.

• Ironing, repairs and alterations quoted separately. Summer offers expire 31st Oct 2016

EcoFresh is revolutionising the way household and commercial services are provided.

Enjoy the time, money and environment you will save when you off-load all your

laundry, dry-cleaning, ironing and repairs to Ecofresh.

01892 833529

95 Commercial Road, Paddock Wood

Tonbridge, Kent TN12 6DS

ecofreshlaundry.co.uk

/LoveEcoFresh

@LoveEcoFresh

©

FRESH

LAUNDRY

b y L a u n d e r C a r e • K E N T

LaunderCareWT175.indd 1 04/08/2016 11:38

VISIT OUR NEW STORE IN SEVENOAKS -

5000 SQ FT OF BEAUTIFUL FURNITURE AND GIFTS OVER 3 FLOORS!

W W W. L O N D O N R O A D F U R N I T U R E . C O . U K

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FARNINGHAM SHOWROOM

TEL 01959 533433 - LONDON ROAD, HALSTEAD, SEVENOAKS, KENT TN14 7AA

FARNINGHAM OAK BRANCH - TEL 01322 863230 - HIGH STREET, FARNINGHAM, KENT DA4 0DG


FarninghamPineOakWT176.indd 1 21/09/2016 09:41

Design & Planning

Restoration

New Build

Barn Conversions

Extensions

Joinery

www.coxrestorations.co.uk

For a free consultation please contact: 01233 714950

www.coxrestorations.co.uk

Established 1986


Jacksons Fencing

news, topical treats

and more...

Make an entrance

Above: one of the beautiful small garden gates we made especially for the Feel Good Front Gardens at the RHS Hampton Court show this summer

Gates are there for a very good reason - simply put, a gate helps

to keep the baddies out, and keep the goodies safely in. With the

darker evenings on the way, you might be considering tightening up

your security, whether that’s in a rural or urban setting. Wherever

your property is, one of the first things will be to look at your

perimeter, normally that’s the fencing.

Fencing style and height need consideration and will mainly be

dictated by your location and situation. This is a meaty subject and

there are masses of choices on our website, so if you are starting

from scratch or replacing fencing, you can gain valuable advice and

info right there. We even have a handy fence calculator app to help

you work out everything you need for your project.

That’s all good, but I’m sure it won’t have escaped you that

somewhere in your scheme you are going to need a gate, after all a

fence is marvellous and useful thing, but pretty inconvenient without

a gate. Whether it’s to allow you to put out the wheelie bins, let you

in and out, keep your dog, children safely in the enclosure, a gate is

an absolute necessity.

You may not even be in the market for a new fence, if this is so,

please ignore the last few paragraphs. However as a fence anorak,

can I at least make a suggestion?

Please make sure your gate, or gates are in a good state of repair. It

is vital. I have mentioned in these pages before how illogical it is to

have the perimeter of your property fenced to keep unwanted visitors

out, but then to leave the gate unlocked. We are often told that

Win a Jacksons Log Store...

To enter the free prize draw and be in with a chance to win a Jacksons

Log Store, just log on to your dedicated page, address below and follow

the easy instructions on how to enter. The draw closes 30.11.16.

To enter go to: www.jacksons-fencing.co.uk/ashfordlocal

For info on any of Jacksons products or brochures, please call

0800 408 4754 to talk to your local Jacksons Fencing Centre.

thieves are opportunists, always on the lookout, they may try a few

gates – if your gate stays shut, then they will move on to the next

one, it’s as simple as that. Of course, if your gate is a bit rickety, then

no amount of locking is really going to stop someone coming

through, which is another good reason to make sure that it is a good

sturdy gate and not a pushover!

So let’s hear it for gates, they can save you a lot of grief, and if by

chance you need a new one, we have a special offer running through

September and October - half price delivery on all gates in our Good

Fencing Guide range. And like all our timber products they have the

25 year Jakcure guarantee too. Full details and T&Cs can be found on

your dedicated web page:

www.jacksons-fencing.co.uk/ashfordlocal

louise@jacksons-fencing.co.uk

Above top: Jacksons entrance gates. Most of Jacksons garden panels

have a matching gate like the stylish Venetian shown above.

BRAMBLETYE

Leading Co-Educational Pre-Prep and Prep School for Children aged 2½ to 13

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15 October 2016

Open Day

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please contact

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100 Years of Education, 1000 Years of History

Battle Abbey School

Sixth Form Open Evening

Thursday 13th October 2016,

6.30pm - 8.00pm

Please contact the school for further information.

Tel: 01424 772385 email: registrar@battleabbeyschool.com,

Battle Abbey School, Battle, East Sussex, TN33 0AD.

www.battleabbeyschool.com

Recent University Destinations for Year 13 Leavers include:

Cambridge, Oxford, Exeter, Imperial, Warwick,

Southampton, Bath, Leeds, Manchester, Edinburgh, Royal

Holloway, Kings College London and Nottingham.

2016 A Levels

67% of all grades were at A* – B

85% of all grades were at A* – C

10% of all grades were A*

98% pass rate

Battle Abbey School 1912 - 2012

Battle Abbey School Times top 200!

As announced in The Times on 27th August Battle Abbey School comes in at 153 in the UK for

coeducational A Level results. This is based on the percent of A and A* grades achieved.

Outside Brighton only one other Eastbourne school ranked higher in East Sussex.

MADNESS

The Los Palmas 6

pay tribute to the Nutty Boys

BattleAbbeySchoolWT176.indd 1 20/09/2016 14:13

Saturday 12th November @ 7.45pm

Tickets: £15 Adults £14 Concessions £10 Students

Box Office: 01580 711856

www.queenshalltheatre.co.uk

Waterloo Road, Cranbrook TN17 3JD

wealdentimes.co.uk

50

QueensHallTheatreWT176.indd 1 22/09/2016 14:32

FREWEN

COLLEGE

The Dyslexia Specialists

Since 1910

Picture by Adrian Peacock

Editor’s

Letter

I’m firmly of the mindset which sees autumn as a fresh

start. All those exciting associations with shiny new pencil

cases stir my blood every year. This one more than ever

as I’m moving house, first into a temporary rental, as my new

home is currently a bomb site with no kitchen or bathroom.

So what perfect timing to be putting together a Kitchen

and Bathroom supplement for the magazine (page 126)

giving me licence to spend several weeks immersing myself

in the latest trends in these two key areas of the home.

Also inspiring my new decorative scheme are this month’s

two houses. Stately Georgian pile Goodnestone Park (page

54) has been updated with a perfect balance of period style

and contemporary chic which I can only aspire to, by design

duo Marcus Crane and Francesca Rowan-Plowden.

I’ve also found loads of brilliant ideas to borrow

and great sources of lovely things to buy from our

other house this month (page 102). This is a very

different prospect – a classic beach house – but in a

lovely link up it was also designed by Francesca.

I hope you find as much inspiration reading this

month’s Wealden Times as we have putting it together.

Prep

School

Senior

• •

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A unique Day & Boarding school for girls and boys

aged 7-19 with Dyslexia, Dyspraxia & Dyscalculia

Come and see how Frewen College

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OPEN MORNING

on Saturday 12 November 9.30 - 12 noon

Wealden Times Team

Editor ....................................................................................... Maggie Alderson

Fashion & Beauty Editor ...............................................................Helen Barton

Design .........................................................................................Powerful Pierre

Design Team ..............................................................................Anthony Boxall

Rob Cursons

Phoebe Gilbert

Tanya Goldsmith

Managing Director ........................................................................ Julie Simpson

Commercial Director ............................................................... Colin Wilkinson

Sales Team ................................................................................ Hayley Biddulph

Sarah Norwood

Becky Smith

Lisa Smith

Distribution .................................................................................Emma Murphy

Wealden Times Events Team

Sales Director ..................................................................................... Joy Adams

Events Marketing & Operations Manager ..................................Fiona Saunders

“Pupils’ rates of personal, social and

academic progress are strong and,

at times, exceptional.”

Ofsted 2016

To register, please call Annabel on:

01797 252494 or email:office@frewencollege.co.uk

Frewen College, Northiam, East Sussex, TN31 6NL

www.frewencollege.co.uk


FrewenCollegeWT176.indd 1 22/09/2016 11:31

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BPR 01425

where to find your copy…

Call 01580 714705 to find your nearest distributor of

Wealden Times or to have your free copy delivered for

12 months for just £22 postage

Distribution of Wealden Times

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ErasOfStyleWT175.indd 1 09/08/2016 16:13

wealdentimes.co.uk

54

Pride without

prejudice

Words: John Graham-Hart Photographs: David Merewether Styling: Helen Barton

The beautiful Georgian house,

Goodnestone Park, which may have inspired

Jane Austen’s most famous novel and is

still owned by the original family, has been

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BackfromBlackWT176.indd 1 13/09/2016 12:31

GOODNESTONE

PARK

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wealdentimes.co.uk

56

MulberryCottagesWT176.indd 1 26/09/2016 09:56

Previous page: The coffee table in the library was made from

an old leather gym vaulting horse. The painting above the

fireplace is by Paula MacArthur from a collection at McCully

& Crane Art in Rye Above: The drawing room walls are clad in

de Gournay silk. The painting over the mantlepiece is of Jane

Austen’s favourite niece Fanny Bridges. The sofas are from sofa.

com Below: The outer hall at the house entrance. The marble

fireplace was added in the Victorian era. The ginger jar was

found at Ardingly

Unlike our closest European neighbours, we’ve

never really been much good at chopping heads

off our aristocrats. We had a brief shot at it in

the mid-1600s and even bagged a king, but our heart

simply wasn’t in it. We only lasted a decade or so without a

monarch before inviting his son back from exile. Monarchy

and its supporting aristocracy were here to stay.

The real threat to our titled class would not come until three

hundred years later and not from the axeman but the taxman.

Before the 19th century, the British aristocracy enjoyed a life

relatively free from taxation. Staff were plentiful and cheap

and estates provided a good income. But during the 19th

century this began to change, the sums no longer added up

and throughout the country once great houses began to be

demolished by their increasingly impoverished owners.

The pace of destruction increased rapidly after the

war and by 1955 Britain was losing a major country

house every five days. It wasn’t until 1968 that legislation

requiring local authority permission to tear down

a historic building put a break on the carnage.


No stately home would be without a library and Goodnestone is, of course, no exception.

Leather armchairs, shelves groaning with worthy leather-bound tomes – including rare

Jane Austen early editions – and on the walls, more ancestors.

wealdentimes.co.uk

58

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Wealden Times Ads 1-4 (August 2016)_D&S 1/4 page 12/08/2016 10:58 Page 3

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wealdentimes.co.uk

60

AutenticoWT166.indd 1 10/11/2015 11:05

But perhaps the most important factor in saving the

British country house was a change in public opinion– the

nation finally woke up to the fact that these structures

were not merely the playthings of the rich and privileged

but an irreplaceable part of a shared national heritage.

This awareness increased as more and more owners

opened their homes to the public – and make no mistake,

these were their homes and this was a key element of their

attraction for visitors. These buildings were not museums.

The walls on which the portraits hung were not those of

galleries. The grounds were not municipal parks. These were

not museums, galleries or parks. They were stately homes.

Strangely enough the idea of opening their homes to total

strangers has also proved attractive to many owners. Those

I have spoken to over the years have all enjoyed inviting the

public in. They are understandably proud of these beautiful

buildings and also, of their ancestry and ancestors.

And so it is with Julian, the 22nd Lord FitzWalter,

who succeeded in 2004 to one of the most ancient

of England’s baronies. The 1st Baron FitzWalter was

Left: The shaker-style units and island in the kitchen were

custom-built and painted in Pigeon by Farrow & Ball by the

builders- BW May. The copper pans were from Ardingly. Below:

The breakfast room is a couple of steps up and through bronze

and glass doors designed by Marcus and Francesca. The panes

match exactly the panes in the Georgian sash windows


Above: Light pours into the breakfast room through two floorto-ceiling

windows. The oval table was designed by Marcus and

Francesca and made to order by the project’s main contractors,

BW May. The stone surround was custom made based on a

fireplace in the cellar, with the FitzWalter coat of arms added.

The painting over it is by Luke Hannam from McCully & Crane

Art, Rye. Marcus found the wonderful collection of leaf pressings

in the attic. Right: Between the dining room and the drawing

room is the Oval Hall, the original entrance of the house with

exquisite painted panels in the Georgian neo-classical style

the leader of the baronial opposition to King John, one

of the twenty-five sureties of Magna Carta in 1215, and

finally slipped into legend as the father of Maid Marian.

The stunning gardens of Julian’s much-loved family

seat, Goodnestone Park, have long been open to the

public but now the main house, too, will welcome

visitors – and not merely the kind who will wander

about, appreciate and leave. Julian’s visitors will be able

to rent the entire house and stay as long as they wish.

“My mother was the last of the family to live here and

she really only used three or four rooms. In winter it was

a pretty chilly business running down unheated passages

between them,” he says. “When she died, the house was in

need of extensive renovation and it was also clear that, in

today’s world, it was going to have to pay its own way.”

Built in 1704 by Julian’s ancestor, Sir Brook

Bridges, Goodnestone is a truly lovely Palladian

country house enjoying that uniquely Georgian

wealdentimes.co.uk

62

Rectory Interiors

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ThomasHaywoodSolicitorsWT175.indd 1 11/08/2016 14:56

West End House

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WestEndHouseGalleryWT176.indd 1 16/09/2016 HomepowerLtdWT164.indd 11:46

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Marcel Dyf (1899-1985),

‘Godetias’, signed, with Frost &

Reed label verso and studio stamp

dated 1966,oil on canvas,

53.5cm x 44.5cm

Sold for £7,500

For a FREE valuation on items you would like

to auction, simply email your images to:

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To arrange an appointment call:

01892 556 860

www.gorringesfineartauctions.com

Grosvenor House, Grosvenor Park, Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN1 2BF

wealdentimes.co.uk

64

4130 Gorringes (WT) (Oct 2016) 130x185.indd 1 06/09/2016 13:52

GorringesWT176.indd 1 07/09/2016 09:44

“Right from the start Lord FitzWalter was very specific about what he

wanted. He wanted it to be a home that would represent and reflect the

family, five-star standard, but never to feel commercial” says Francesca


combination of welcome, warmth and elegance.

Jane Austen was a regular visitor and wrote of the ‘great

pleasure’ the house and grounds gave her. Her brother,

Edward, married Elizabeth, the daughter of Sir Brook’s

grandson, in the local parish church in1791 and there seems

little doubt that Jane gathered considerable material during her

many visits for Pride and Prejudice, which she began in 1796.

Julian’s plans were to renovate and update the house

to a standard where he would be able to offer it as a

venue both for corporate events and five-star private

country house lets. However, this was not going to be

an overnight transformation. This was a project that was

going to take a great deal of time, considerable thought,

an equal amount of creativity and not a little love.

“We didn’t want merely to recreate a Georgian interior,”

says Justin. “We wanted a contemporary interior which would

showcase sympathetically the family’s art and heirlooms.

We were looking for a welcoming, informal elegance.”

Previous page: Julian’s mother’s piano sits at the bottom of the

glorious main staircase, which is lined with ancestral portraits.

Lord and Lady FitzWalter found the magnificent chandelier

with multi-coloured drops in a ‘shed’ in Essex Left: The portrait

and clock are family pieces. The armchair is covered in Ashwell

Sea Storm, by GP & J Baker Below: The largest of the twelve

bedrooms, the FitzWalter Suite is decorated with Colefax and

Fowler white rose paper. The built-in wardrobes are hidden

behind wallpapered doors. Light pours in from three fullheight

windows with glorious views over the grounds. Francesca

designed the corona over the bed in Colefax and Fowler silk

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wealdentimes.co.uk

68

EnsorInteriorDesignWT176.indd 1 06/09/2016 14:21

Above: The cushions on the bed in Effie’s Room are covered in a GP & J Baker fabric. The painting was found at an antiques fair

Above all, the designers would have one guiding principle: at

the end of what was going to be a very long day, Goodnestone

must still be a stately home – the FitzWalter family home.

The designers Julian chose were Francesca Rowan-

Plowden and Marcus Crane. Asked to pitch separately, they

decided to join forces and submit a single presentation.

“Had I been given the project, I would have involved

Marcus and vice versa so we decided to pitch together,”

says Francesca. “We knew we would bring complementary

talents to the project. Marcus’s strengths are in sourcing

interesting pieces, mine are in fabrics/textiles.

“Right from the start Julian was very specific about

what he wanted,” she says. “He wanted it to be a home

that would represent and reflect the family. He wanted

it to be five-star standard but never to feel commercial.

He had a very clear vision and it was great to be able

to work toward such a clearly defined goal.”

Also invaluable would be the continuing support and input

from Julian and his wife, Sally. “We would meet regularly to

talk through ideas, go through fabrics and wallpapers and

look at colours. We’d also go together to Ardingly, often

not looking for a specific piece but finding something and

thinking ‘that’s perfect for the library’ or ‘that would go well

under that picture in the Lady FitzWalter suite.’ It wasn’t a

project where you could just decide what you needed, order

it and move on. It was a project that grew organically.”

The project, start to finish, would take two-and-a-half years.

Taking an early 18th century house and positioning it

firmly in the 21st century was never going to be simple

but, surprisingly, it involved very little in the way of

the knocking down of walls and where it has had to be

done it has had the full blessing of English Heritage.

The only major remodelling downstairs was the knocking

through of the kitchen into an adjoining extension that

had served as an office. This has provided a spacious,

elegant and state-of-the-art kitchen capable of serving the

24 guests the house is now designed to accommodate.

The shaker-style units and island were custom-built.

The breakfast room is a couple of steps up and through

bronze and glass doors designed by Marcus. The panes match

exactly the panes in the Georgian sash windows. This is a

glorious, bright room, the light pouring in through floorto-ceiling

windows – the perfect place to start any day.

The oval table was made to order by the project’s main

contractors, BW May, and the chimney piece was found

in the cellar and given a new FitzWalter coat of arms.

On the walls is a wonderful collection of leaf pressings that

Marcus found long-forgotten in the attic, framed and gave

the pride of place they deserved. They are complemented by

the contemporary abstract by Luke Hannam which hangs


over the fireplace – a juxtaposition of old and new which

continues throughout the house, never inappropriate and

always gently contributing to the air of elegant informality.

Even the rooms such as the ‘formal’ dining room are

anything but. Here the superb dining table was commissioned

by Julian and Sally and made by Alastair Murray. The

star of this show must, however, be the stunning, bespoke

hand-painted de Gournay wallpaper. Hanging there in

all its delicate serenity, one wouldn’t know that it was the

one item in the whole project that was a major drama.

When the old wallpaper was stripped from the walls,

the man from de Gournay, he say no. “He said there

was no way that they could hang £30,000-worth of

de Gournay paper on walls in that condition,” says

Francesca. “This gave us a serious problem because

the new plaster would take months to dry. Luckily, we

discovered Stevensons of Norwich and they provided a

special fast-drying treatment that solved our problems.”

Between the dining room and the drawing room is the

Oval Hall, the lovely main entrance hall until the Victorians

decided to switch the building around by building a classical

portico at the back and making that the main entrance. The

Oval Hall still has its original painted panels - one showing

honourable WWII battle scars, from the time the building was

requisitioned and Canadian officers used the room for darts.

In the drawing room is more de Gournay, this time grey

silk to complement the ornate grey marble chimney-piece.

This room is an excellent example of how Julian, Sally

and their designers have so successfully brought together

family heirlooms, Ardingly finds and new pieces.

On the walls is a pleasing selection of friendly

ancestors including, over the fireplace, Jane Austen’s

favourite niece Fanny Bridges, said to be the

inspiration for Mansfield Park’s Fanny Price.

Clockwise from top right: The Pink Room is papered with

Lewis & Wood, Indienne. The wall sconces, portrait, green glass

lamp and console table are all Ardingly finds. The portrait is of

Jane Austen’s favourite niece, Fanny bridges. The Staffordshire

figures are family owned

wealdentimes.co.uk

70

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MadeWithLoveWT176.indd 3 16/09/2016 JonRayWT149.indd 14:40

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GrahamClarkeWT175.indd 1 19/08/2016 RobinsonWatersWT159.indd 16:51

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Above the original Georgian chimneypiece in the Jane Austen Drawing Room, on

the first floor, is a portrait of Margaretta, wife of the builder of Goodnestone

wealdentimes.co.uk

72

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wealdentimes.co.uk

74

GreenleafLightingWT175.indd 1 18/08/2016 15:45

Above: The walls of Henry’s Room are painted in Hague Blue by

Farrow & Ball. The sunburst mirror is from Barnstar, Rye

Left: The teal tiles are from Topps Tiles

Family treasures include two lovely bow-fronted walnut

chests of drawers, a delicate travelling chest and a beautiful tall

yew cabinet. Two of Julian’s mother’s chairs sit comfortably

telling tales of yesteryear to two new recruits from sofa.com.

No stately home would be without a library and

Goodnestone is, of course, no exception. Leather

armchairs, shelves groaning with worthy leatherbound

tomes – including rare Jane Austen early

editions – and on the walls, more ancestors.

But what’s this the sofa’s have gathered around with

such interest? Certainly not something you’d find in an

18th century library. At first it looks like a giant poof –

and so indeed it is but it’s made from an old leather gym

vaulting horse. And above the fireplace, mixing it with the

forebears, a big contemporary abstract by Paula MacArthur

from a collection at McCully & Crane Art in Rye.

And so on via Julian’s mother’s piano up the glorious

main staircase and past perhaps the most impressive

ancestral portraits to the first floor and the remaining


Above left: Francesca and Marcus found the pictures in

the stairway in the attic. The 1920s chair, with its original

upholstery, was found at Ardingly Above right: The chaise

longue in George’s Room is covered in turquoise velvet by

Clarke & Clarke and the sheepskin on the floor next to it is

from Hunter Jones, Rye Right: The headboard in Robert’s

Room is William Morris by Sanderson. The end table is a

family piece and the Victorian mirror is from Ardingly

reception room – the Jane Austen Drawing Room.

Above the original Georgian chimneypiece is Margaretta,

wife of the builder of Goodnestone and here too is a

picture of Julian’s father. On another wall there is a 1715

painting of the house’s original vast formal gardens.

Before the refurbishment, the house had 15 bedrooms

but only three bathrooms which must have made for

something of a traffic jam in the mornings. After a little

clever wall finessing, it now has 12 double bedrooms, all

but one of them with their own elegant bathrooms.

The largest and most beautiful is the FitzWalter

Suite, which was Julian’s mother’s bedroom, now with

a canopied bed and delicate new Colefax & Fowler

white rose paper. Light pours in from three full-height

windows with glorious views over the grounds.

There are simply too many superb bedrooms to do

justice to here but suffice to say that the principal ones

are named and subtly themed after the five brothers

wealdentimes.co.uk

76

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wealdentimes.co.uk

78

HeatDesignWT176.indd 1 19/09/2016 15:59

The principal bedrooms are named and themed after the five

brothers of the family and favourite retainers


Previous page, above: The chairs in the Games Room were upholstered by Richard Harris in Jane Churchill velvet. The cabinet

to the left is a family piece. The brass stags on the chimneypiece are from Cinque Ports Antiques in Rye. The white table lamps are

from Woodcocks of Tenterden. The portrait was found in the attic. The mirror was found at Ardingly Previous page, below: The

bedside lamp in Francis’s Room is from Oka. The painting over the bed is from Ardingly Above: The leather club chair and the

dahlia painting in Francis’s bedroom were both found at Ardingly. The chest of drawers is a family piece. The plaid curtain fabric is by

Colefax and Fowler

of the family and favourite retainers. Julian’s Room

displays his favourite plum and mushroom tones.

George’s Room reflects his passion for horticulture and

his standing as CEO of the National Gardens Scheme.

Henry’s has an equestrian theme reflecting his

role as a luminary in the world of horse racing and

breeding. William is a potter and his room sports

blue and white Japanese porcelain. Francis’ love of

the country translates into plaids and tweeds.

All of which is a further reflection of Julian’s determination,

from the very beginning, that the reborn Goodnestone

should be a celebration of his family both past and

present. So has he achieved his goal? Is he happy with the

result of two-and-a-half years of careful thought, detailed

planning and sheer hard work that Sally, Francesca,

Marcus and he have put into this challenging project?

Well, were he the kind of man who would jump onto a

table, punch the air and whoop at the top of his voice, he

might well do just this. But over the centuries his family have

found that aristocrats who indulge in this sort of behaviour

tend to have their heads separate from their shoulders. So

instead he just smiles quietly and professes himself ‘delighted’.

In my book ‘delighted’ is just fine. ‘Delighted’ will do

very nicely.

wealdentimes.co.uk

80

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FireplaceCompanyWT176.indd 1 19/09/2016 10:59

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Above: The splendid facade and topiary garden. This was originally the front of the house, leading into the Oval Hall, until the

Victorians decided to switch the building around by building a classical portico at the back and making that the main entrance

Address Book:

Goodnestone Park goodnestone.com

Marcus Crane marcuscrane.rpc@gmail.com

Francesca Rowan-Plowden francescaRowan-

Plowden@hotmail.co.uk

Alastair Murray Bespoke Furniture alastairmurray.com

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wealdentimes.co.uk

84

SackvilleSchoolWT176.indd 1 26/09/2016 14:11

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thefrenchdepot.com

French

re-upholstered

vintage bed, £1550

Respire Living

respireliving.com

Hypnos

Adagio divan with

mattress, from £1549.

Headboards from £299

William Hill Interiors

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Louvre

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Collingwood

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Hypnos Orthos

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Cobham Furniture

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Arlo winged

bed, £899

Living It Up

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Dolce Vita,

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Natuzzi Bed

natuzzi.co.uk

Honeycomb

glass side

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and Thyme

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Carvella

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Sweetpea & Willow

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com

Harrison

Trebah with

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William Hill Interiors,

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88

Sleep well, live better with a Vi Spring bed

Exclusive area stockist. Available to view in our Eastbourne store.

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Baby linen flat bed sheet

from £20, Little Treehuggers

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The Vintage

Rose Berkley

collection, £1495

Sweetpea & Willow

sweetpeaandwillow.com

Rose gold alarm

clock, £93.95

Rigby & Mac

rigbyandmac.com

Honeycomb cushion

cover, £34.50

Decorator’s Notebook

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Blossom rose

tealights, £5.95

Prezzybox

prezzybox.co.uk

Quatrefoil side table, £195

The French Bedroom Co.

frenchbedroomcompany.co.uk

Dusky pink beehive

throw, £58, The British

Blanket Company

thebritishblanketcompany.com

Snuggle luxe

Soft pink linen

robe, £125, Natural

Bed Company

naturalbedcompany.co.uk

Create a beautiful bedroom haven

with a few finishing touches

Copper desk lamp

£40, Marquis & Dawe

marquisanddawe.co.uk

Patterned Moroccan

leather slippers £27.95



Ivory sheepskin rug, £55

The French Bedroom Co.

frenchbedroomcompany.co.uk

wealdentimes.co.uk

90

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Golden botanical

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£69.95, The Farthing

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Double sided picture

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Linen pillowcase

from £60

The Linen Works

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Pure Morris cushion collection,

fabric prices from £66 per metre

Skinners of Tunbridge Wells

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Set of two nesting

trinket boxes

£20, Oliver Bonas

oliverbonas.com

Sleepy loose leaf tea

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Espresso cup and

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Faux fur throw

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Finney bedside table

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92

Sleepy scent, £7.25

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Come and discover beautiful bed linen this autumn at Fenwick.

Your bedroom is your sanctuary at the end of a stressful day and there

is nothing better than relaxing in a beautifully made bed. Let us help

you to create the perfect ambience that reflects your personality.

Whether you prefer a muted colour palette or stunning vivacious print

designs in seasonal shades, we have it covered. Plus, our collections have

beautiful co-ordinating knitted throws and soft cushions to make the look

complete.

Preparing for a good night’s sleep requires some attention to detail.

As autumn sets in and the nights become colder, you may be thinking

of investing in a warmer duvet. At Fenwick we have a wide selection of

duvets, hypo-allergenic, synthetic or with luxury goose and feather down

fillings, to suit your needs and budget. You also need to think carefully

about the pillow that you are using to ensure you have the optimum neck

and spine alignment. New for autumn you will find TEMPUR. The TEMPUR

Ergonomic pillow collection features ergonomic design and TEMPUR

Technology that contours to the shape of your body.

Let us give you a taster; introducing Elizabeth Scarlett, NEW for autumn

and NEW designs from Clarissa Hulse and Designers Guild; plus

sumptuous duvets from Brinkhaus, renowned worldwide for their superior

quality and innovative designs and the Tempur pillow collection.

Then come in store and see what else is NEW in the Linens department

for autumn 2016.

AUTUMN

ST YLE EDIT

LINENS

ELIZABETH SCARLETT

Elizabeth Scarlett is a luxury homeware brand, created by London based

designer Elizabeth Scarlett Elsey. Combining an enduring love of soft

textiles with an eye for detail, Elizabeth Scarlett was launched in 2013,

bringing soft, colourful cushions to the forefront. With a textile heritage

and a background in fine art, Elizabeth uses her signature hand painted

designs to uniquely embroider lifestyle products.

ANANAS : Inspired by the tropical fruits sold in Saint-Tropez market,

translated from a hand illustrated design of soft grey pineapples.

Duvet : King £100 : Super King £115 Cushion 45 x 45cm £35

Quilt 220 x 230cm 220 thread count £145

Only available in the Tunbridge Wells store

FENWICK CANTERBURY AND TUNBRIDGE WELLS

CLARISSA HULSE : MEADOW GRASS

Layers of swaying Wiltshire meadow grasses in hot pink and

turmeric are contrasted on a dramatic ombré background fading

from charcoal to ice grey, while spindly reeds are cleverly revealed

on the reverse. Digitally printed on smoothest 200 thread count

cotton sateen the range includes four sizes of duvet cover, an

oxford panel pillowcase featuring meadow grasses and a housewife

pillowcase in the reverse print. Accessorise with a striking cushion

decorated with an embroidered crescent leaf design and a grey

chunky knit throw with a bold turmeric coloured border.

Duvet covers : Double £95 : King £110

Oxford pillowcase £22 Housewife pillowcase £19

Cushion 30 x 50cm £45 Grey knitted throw 150 x 200cm £150


DESIGNERS GUILD : TULIPANI GRAPHITE

This dynamic yet graceful floral bed linen design has

been taken from the successful Designers Guild print fabric

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The luxurious modern floral bed linen design will bring a

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onto 200 thread count cotton with a soft grey plain reverse.

Duvet covers : Double £95 : King £110 : Super King £125

Housewife pillowcase £20

Hiranya graphite throw 140 x 200cm £120

Hiranya cushion 50 x 30cm £35


BRINKHAUS : THE GEM COMPONENT

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Brinkhaus duvets combine the finest fillings

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combination of two. A complete solution to suit

your individual needs.

Super King 260 x 220cm £659

Other sizes to order

TEMPUR ® : Pillow collections

TEMPUR offers a wide range of pillows to

accommodate a variety of preferences and

sleep positions. Made from unique TEMPUR

material, they respond to your body’s weight

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is filled with specially developed TEMPUR

Extra-Soft (ES) micro-cushions providing an

innovative balance of softness and support.

3 year guarantee £85

Visit our Linens departments and see what else is NEW for autumn. Be inspired by the beautiful selection of bed linen with

co-ordinating soft cushions and throws that will make your bedroom complete.

St George’s Street Canterbury Kent CT1 2TB 01227 766866 • Royal Victoria Place Tunbridge Wells Kent TN1 2SR 01892 516716

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Bang & Olufsen

of Cambridge

29 Magdalene Street

Cambridge

CB3 0AF

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Bang & Olufsen

of Maidstone

37 Royal Star Arcade

High Street

Maidstone ME14 1JL

Tel: 01622 756756

Bang & Olufsen

of Tunbridge Wells

66 Mount Pleasant Road

Tunbridge Wells

Kent TN1 1RB

Tel: 01892 527525

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TeePea design and craft beautiful hand-made

teepees. They caused such a stir at the Midsummer Fair,

we had to know more about Tunbridge Wells

mums, Emma and Ella.

Describe the essence of the business

Bright, colourful and lots of fun! We make beautiful cotton

teepees that provide the perfect pop-up space for imaginative

play and give children their own little hideaway, inside or out.

Why did you go into business together?

TeePea grew organically from our friendship as neighbours. We

wealdentimes.co.uk

100

both wanted to continue doing something creative, without

the London commute, that would fit around the kids. Ella

made a beautiful TeePea for her children - everyone instantly

fell in love with it and that was enough to get us thinking.

Tell us about the process of creating your product

Once we have a design concept and the perfect fabric and

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What makes all the hard work worth it?

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What can we look forward to from

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Alongside our signature range of spots and

stripes, our fun, new Winter Collection are the

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Midwinter Fair

Choose from hundreds of carefully

handpicked original gifts in five joined-up

marquees of Christmas gift shopping for all

your family and friends

Stegmann House Clogs, £65

Fire & Felt Ltd, fi reandfelt.com

Carnival Light (large), £50

Electric Pineapple,

electricpineapple.co.uk

Lip Therapy 7ml, £10

Ruby Red,

rubyredcosmetics.co.uk

Fountain pen, £59

Plooms, plooms.co.uk

Unisex Sweat, £30

Lounge Shorts, £27

Blue Blancmange, blueblancmange.co.uk

Handmade TeePea, £125

TeaPea, facebook.com/myteepea

Bolivia Cross Body Bag, £229.95

Grandala, grandala.com

Produce Candles, £21.99 each

I Love Produce Candles, iloveproducecandles.co.uk


Love shack

Words: John Graham-Hart Photographs: David Merewether Styling: Helen Barton

wealdentimes.co.uk

102

A classic beach house, which is also a cosy winter retreat – Francesca Rowan-Plowden

is just as at home rethinking the most relaxed of small-scale abodes as she is taking on

a total refurbishment of a stately home. Is there nothing this woman can’t do?


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104

PureArtsGroupWT176.indd 1 07/09/2016 16:37

Previous page: The kitchen island and the ‘wooden’ wall that runs from the front to the back of the house were designed by

Francesca and made by Hastings & Bexhill Wood Recycling from sanded, unpainted, scaffolding board. The industrial-style ceiling

lights were being thrown out of a café in St Leonards. Francesca found the real ship’s porthole on a stall in Hastings Old Town. The

table is from eBay and the chairs are from Dunelm. The tractor seat stools are from Strand Quay Antiques Above: The blue sitting

room sofa is from made.com and the white painted chest from – as many other objects of desire around the house – McCully &

Crane in Rye. Marcus Crane was Francesca’s design partner in the refurbishment of Goodnestone Park (see page 54)

This issue sees something of a Wealden Times first -

featuring two houses by the same interior designer.

Why? Well, the simple answer is that the work of Ms

Francesca Rowan-Plowden is in need of serious celebration.

Every month, when I walk into yet another breathtaking

home, I am stunned by what extraordinary flair and

talent so many owners have. Exposed to creativity on

such a scale, I find myself struggling not to blurt out

the opinion that they should do this for a living.

When I visited Francesca’s Georgian farmhouse near Rye

some years ago I remember totally losing this struggle. I

doubt very much if my career advice was taken seriously

but others considerably more qualified than I must have

expressed exactly the same opinion because Francesca has

since launched Rowan Plowden Design and become one

of the best professional designers south of the Smoke.

Actress, TV presenter, mother of four young boys and

founder of Rye’s popular Lamb Players, established

when she was curator of Lamb House, Francesca is

currently being fêted for her work with Marcus Crane at

Goodnestone, but one of her great strengths is versatility

- and little demonstrates this versatility as dramatically

as placing stately home alongside holiday home.

Field View, her own property on The Ridge at Winchelsea

Beach, was always intended as a rental so, although she

was the owner and would stay there as often as possible,

it was not somewhere she could indulge herself. Rather

than please one client – as she might on most projects –

she was going to have to please a wide range of potential

guests, none of whom she had ever even met.

Francesca and her husband, wine importer Piers Plowden, had

always liked the idea of a beach property. “As a child I used

to spend holidays with my aunt and uncle in Nantucket,” she

says. “Piers grew up in Bermuda and our favourite holiday

spot is Île de Ré” (an island off the west coast of France.

“We saw the Winchelsea house advertised just before

we went on holiday and thought it would be gone by

the time we got back but it wasn’t so we met the


Above: The original sunroom is now used as a dining/breakfast

area. The table and bench were made by the Hastings & Bexhill

Wood Recycling with wood reclaimed from Hastings Pier. The

steel walls lights are by Cox & Cox and the walls are painted in

Farrow & Ball Ammonite Left: the chair is from Strand Quay

Antiques and the sheepskin from Hunter Jones, both in Rye. The

wooden stag’s head is from Eras of Style in Bexhill

The woodburner is set into a

central chimney that is all that is left

of the original wall that separated

the front and rear rooms

wealdentimes.co.uk

106

Styled by Skinners of Tunbridge Wells

Distinctive Interiors

www.skinnersoftunbridgewells.co.uk

Email: sarah@skinnersoftunbridgewells.co.uk

6 Castle Street, Royal Tunbridge Wells,

Kent TN1 1XJ Tel: 01892 532003

SkinnersWT176.indd 1 14/09/2016 JosephMcCarthyWT176.indd 14:13

1 15/09/2016 16:08


JerwoodGalleryWT176.indd 1 09/09/2016 12:22

owner – a very sweet lady – and put in an offer,” she

says. “We then got gazumped but the lady very kindly

turned down the better offer and went with us.

“We knew it was going to make an amazing beach house but

we wanted to take it a step further and make it somewhere

people would want to come and stay year round,” she says. “It

was not only going to have to have a cool bright summer feel

but a warmth that would make it a cosy retreat in winter.”

It was also going to need a considerable number of walls

knocked down and a considerable number more put up.

When the couple took possession the ground floor consisted

of two rooms and a sunroom. These have now been

knocked though into one large living area which opens out

through matching glass doors onto new decking front and

back made from old, black-painted scaffolding boards.

The sunroom remains a sunroom but is also now a dining/

breakfast area with terrific views down over the fields

toward the beach and a table and benches made by the

rightly-celebrated Hastings & Bexhill Wood Recycling,

with wood reclaimed from the old Hastings pier.

Right: Over the door into the kitchen the Fish sign is from

Wishbarn Antiques in Rye Below: Francesca “doesn’t do” fitted

kitchens. The natural wood shelving and a work surface were

made by H&B Wood Recycling. The full height cupboard was

made by Francesca’s father from old wooden tractor trailer doors.

Blue curtains in denim by Merchant & Mills in Rye cover the

dishwasher, freezer and washing machine. The kitchen walls are

painted in Ammonite and Stiffkey Blue by Farrow & Ball

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Field View was an instant success. Its first posting on Facebook had 4,000 hits


17th Sept - 16th Oct

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BRIGHTON TO RYE

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Rye Art Gallery

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112

SofasAndStuffWT176.indd 1 06/09/2016 10:52

Previous page: The four-foot-high framed poster of Gary

Cooper is from McCully & Crane Above: The bed in the master

bedroom has been raised to be on a level with the windows

looking south over the fields to the sea. The headboard and

cushions were designed by Francesca, part of a new range she

is now developing. Right: Chest from Hunter Jones, rug from

Hunter Jones, painting from Lion Street Store The lamp, made

from an old wooden-cased voltmeter, is from McCully & Crane

On the walls are works by two Rye artists – mermaids by

Richard Adams and a delicate ladybird drawing by Lincoln

Taber. Flanking the window are two galvanised steel nautical

lights by Cox & Cox. “There are odd nods to the seaside

here and there,” says Francesca, “but nothing too obvious

– I didn’t want to start going down the seashell route.”

Also delightfully conspicuous by its absence is any evidence

of The Dead Stuffed Things School of Interior Design. True,

there is a stag’s head above the woodburner in the living area

but this is a lovely wood carving from Eras of Style in Bexhill.

The woodburner is set into a central chimney that is

all that is left of the original wall separating the front

and rear rooms. “It was the most expensive item in

the house to buy and to install,” says Francesca, “but

I really wanted to make sure that the house was a real

home for all seasons and it certainly does its job.”

The fireplace is now open from both sides of the chimney,

heating and cheering both the sitting room area and the

kitchen behind. The sofa is from made.com and the white

painted chest – as many other objects of desire around

the house – from McCully & Crane in Rye, owned by

Marcus Crane, who you will remember was Francesca’s

partner in the renaissance of Goodnestone Park.


The former garage has now been converted into a twin bedroom, games room and a bathroom. Above: The desk and chair in the

twin bedroom are from Francesca’s childhood. The Tintin print is from Eras of Style. The rug is from Hunter Jones

wealdentimes.co.uk

114

Above Left: The headboards are Rowan Plowden. Francesca bought the old painted toy box serving as a joint bedside table from a

stall in Lydd. The ceiling lampshade is from Hunter Jones. The wall behind the beds is painted in Stiffkey Blue by Farrow & Ball.

The hurricane lamps on the chest are from Dunelm Above right: Over the free-standing bath in the in new bathroom is a picture by

Francesca’s artist uncle, Nick Maddison.

The majority of walls throughout the downstairs are

Farrow & Ball Ammonite but a great feature of the

ground floor is a superb ‘wooden’ wall that runs from

the front to the back of the house and is clad floor to

ceiling in sanded, unpainted scaffolding board, effortlessly

giving the whole area a lovely beachy, driftwood feel.

Pièce de résistance in the kitchen area is a stunning

central island designed by Francesca, built by H&B

Wood Recycling and incorporating a huge hidden

kitchen storage area and lit by two industrial-style lights

that were being thrown out of a café in St Leonards.

In one side wall is a real ship’s porthole which Francesca

bought from a stall which appears and disappears Brigadoonlike

in Hastings Old Town and is run by a bloke called John.

At one end of the island is virtually a wall of glass, with

doors out into a magical shingle garden. At the other end are

parked two tractor-seat stools which serve as extra seating to

a circular dining table, joining a matching set of stylish steel

chairs that only Francesca could have found at Dunelm.

In an existing extension is the business end of the kitchen

– and as Francesca “doesn’t do fitted kitchens,” it’s all

natural wood shelving, a work surface made by H&B Wood

Recycling, a superb full height cupboard made by Francesca’s

father from old wooden tractor trailer doors, and pretty blue

curtains covering a dishwasher, freezer and washing machine.

At the end is a former loo, now a wetroom which means guests

can come in straight from the beach through the kitchen

door, down the tiled-floor kitchen and into the shower.

On the landing is a four-foot-high framed poster of Gary

Cooper from McCully & Crane, one of a pair of lobsterpot-y

string lampshades from made.com and a smart blind designed

by Francesca with ticking from Merchant & Mills.

wealdentimes.co.uk

116

Over 2000 sq.ft. of Antiques,

Collectables, Vintage, Retro,

Handcrafted & Unusual Items

The Old Forge Emporium

The Street, Appledore, Kent TN26 2BJ 01233 758585

abbeylace@aol.com www.theoldforgeemporium.co.uk

Hotline 01428

684494

Crafts for

Christmas

Opening times: Fri - Sat 9.00am - 5.00pm Sun 9.00am - 4.00pm

4 - 6 November

Maidstone Pavilion,

Kent County Showground, Detling, ME14 3JF

An opportunity to meet Britain’s most talented makers

and purchase inspirational gifts and festive foods.

At the event: Adults: £7.00 Seniors: £6.00

In advance: Adults: £6.00 Seniors: £5.00

(subject to 60p transaction fee)

rca@ruralcraftsassociation.co.uk www.ruralcraftsassociation.co.uk

OldForgeAntiquesWT174.indd 1 18/07/2016 RuralCraftWT176.indd 17:24

1 13/09/2016 11:09

COSI

Log Burning

Multi-fuel Stoves

& Range Cookers

Full Installation Service

Chimney Sweeping

Servicing & Repairs

Call for a free Survey

01227 787 587

www.cosi.co.uk

58-60 Wincheap, Canterbury CT1 3RS sales@cosi.co.uk


CosiWT175.indd 1 12/08/2016 16:51

Top: The sofa in the games room is from sofa.com while its

cushions and those on the Lloyd Loom chair are covered in

fabric by Merchant and Mills. The high desk, used as a side

table, is from McCully & Crane Left: The vintage Conran

Shop lamp and delphiniums tapestry are both from McCully

& Crane. The knitted sea urchin poofs are from Dunelm

The games room’s south-facing glass

doors lead out onto an area of decking

wealdentimes.co.uk

118

OakDesignsCoWT176.indd 1 22/09/2016 09:45


EmmaFreemanWT176.indd 1 13/09/2016 16:37

Quality

hardwood floors

supplied & fitted

by craftsmen

Showroom: The Barn, Main Road, Sundridge, Sevenoaks, Kent, TN14 6EE

For a free no obligation estimate call us on 01959 563063

visit our new website: www.dbwf.co.uk

We pride ourselves on the fi nest craftsmanship.

Offering Free expert advice, Free site surveys,

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NEWLANDS JOINERY

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dif colour logos 21/06/2012 11:38 Page 1

Tel | 01959 522981

Mobile | 07501 725227

Web | www.newlandsjoinery.co.uk

Shoreham Nr. Sevenoaks

nole House

furnishers

DavidBrownWT176.indd 1 23/09/2016 NewlandsJoineryWT161.indd 12:06

1 22/06/2015 12:41

THE GREAT £174,000 STORE CLOSING SALE

Lounge Dining Bedroom

nole House

furnishers

nole House

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Over £174,000 of quality home furnishings, beds and

accessories will be sold at liquidation sale prices.

Everything is reduced, Sofas, Chairs, Dining Room

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Special discounts will also be on offer for you to place a

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wealdentimes.co.uk

120

nole House

furnishers

The Old Town Jail. 14-18 London Road,

Sevenoaks, Kent TN13 1AJ

Telephone 01732 458150

www.knolehousefurnishings.co.uk

nole House

furnishers

KnoleHouseWT176.indd 1 19/09/2016 10:48

Downstairs, the former owner’s double bedroom now sports a

high bed on a level with the windows, so that when you open

your eyes you are looking south over the fields to the sea. The

headboard was designed by Francesca as were the cushions

– among the first of a new range she is now developing. On

the chest of drawers is a light made from an old woodencased

voltmeter, almost a trademark of McCully & Crane.

The former garage has been converted into a twin bedroom,

games room and bathroom. Again, the headboards are Rowan

Plowden and serving as a joint bedside table between the

beds is an old painted toy box Francesca bought from Lydd

from another resident of Brigadoon, a bloke called Drew.

The double aspect window sports more Rowan Plowden/

M&M blinds. The lampshade and the rug – as do most of

the rugs gracing Field View – comes from Hunter Jones.

Over the free-standing bath in the new bathroom is a

picture by Francesca’s artist uncle, Nick Madison. The

Left: Stairs painted in Purbeck Stone with runner in Railings

lead up to the vaulted master bedroom with a view to the sea

Below: The wall of the master bedroom is clad in the same sanded

scaffolding planks. The bedside lamps are from McCully & Crane.

Francesca designed the headboard. The cushions are covered in

Ralph Lauren fabric and the throw is from John Lewis


Above left: Wrought-iron daybed from IKEA. Francesca designed the Roman blind, which is in Ralph Lauren fabric

Above right: The shuttered mirror in the bathroom is from Strand Antiques and the industrial style light fitting is from

Cox & Cox. The blue glass is from LSA International

games room’s south-facing glass doors lead out onto an area

of decking and while this room would have made a superb

bedroom, it sits below local sea level, so this is verboten.

Instead, equipped with large TV, it’s an elegant bolthole for

the young. The TV cabin came from H&B Wood Recycling

and the high desk from McCully & Crane. A nice touch are

the woollen sea urchin poofs which serve as mini bean bags.

So onward and upward to the top of the house and an

absolutely magical vaulted bedroom suite from which

there is not only a great view out over the fields but

one can also see the blue ribbon of the sea beyond.

This area was just one large one, stepped into from the

top of the stairs, but Francesca has remodelled the whole

floor to provide a landing, spacious double bedroom,

lovely bathroom accessed through a pair of elegant

reclaimed wood doors and a secret, curtained child’s

sleeping cubbyhole made from an old attic cupboard.

The brilliant touch here is the reclaimed scaffolding

cladding behind the Rowan Plowden headboard, made

all the more dramatic as bed and cladding are what

greet you the moment you step into the room. In the

window is an Ikea wrought-iron day bed. The table

lamps are, of course, McCully & Crane. The blinds

in both bedroom and bathroom are Rowan Plowden

designed and the fabric is Ralph Lauren while the

bathroom’s three industrial lights are Cox & Cox.

Predictably, Field View was an instant success. Its

first posting on Facebook had 4,000 hits and it’s

never looked back, proving virtually as popular a

winter bolt hole as it has a summer escape.

So what’s the secret of its immediate success? Why does

it stand out from the crowd? Why is it that one feels

at once so impressed and so at home when one walks

into, not only Field View, but any Rowan Plowden

gig? What makes the difference between a gifted

amateur and such an accomplished professional?

Personally, I have no idea whatever, which is why I try so

manfully to keep my views to myself as I wander around

yet another property in which I would be delighted

to spend the rest of this life and most of the next.

wealdentimes.co.uk

122

monarchoak

Oak Frame Buildings

Over 50 years’ experience making oak frame buildings

• Garages

• Garden Rooms

• Complexes

• Gazebos

• Bespoke Buildings

01323 765410 Quality in its finest form

www.monarchoak.co.uk

MonarchOakWT147.indd 1 15/04/2014 GraceyardWT167.indd 15:06

1 26/11/2015 12:00

23 New Road

Brighton

BN1 1UF

01273 605574

sales@mistersmith.co.uk

www.mistersmith.co.uk

Croft Road

Crowborough

TN6 1DR

01892 664152

info@mistersmith.co.uk


MisterSmithInteriorsWT176.indd 1 19/09/2016 10:43

Multi-Award Winning Swimming Pool Installer

SPATA Pool Contractor of the Year 2015

Specialists in indoor and outdoor swimming pools,

servicing, maintenance and improvements.

XL Pools Ltd, The Parlour, Saracens Dairy,

Pluckley Road, Pluckley, TN27 0SA

Telephone: 0845 20 60 420

Email: enquiries@xlpools.com

www.xlpools.com

Above: The cabinet in the master bedroom is from Hunter Jones. The lamp is from Strand Quay Antiques, the mirror from McCully

& Crane. Francesca created a secret, curtained child’s sleeping cubbyhole from an old attic cupboard. The curtain is in ticking from

Merchant & Mills

Address Book:

Rowan Plowden design rowanplowden.com

Cox & Cox coxandcox.co.uk

dunelm dunelm.com

Eras of Style erasofstyle.com

Farrow & Ball farrow-ball.com

Hastings & Bexhill Wood Recycling recyclingwood.org.uk

Hunter Jones hunterjonesvintage.com

Lincoln Taber alincolntaber.co.uk

McCully & Crane mccullyandcrane.com

Merchant & Mills merchantandmills.com

Rectory Interiors rectoryinteriors.co.uk

Strand Quay Antiques 1-2 The Strand, Rye. 01797 226790


Potts Ltd

Kitchens, Bathrooms & Interiors

Superior Surroundings

Kiln Barn Road, East Malling, Maidstone, Kent, ME19 6BQ

01732 848444 www.potts.ltd.uk

Kitchen&

Bathroom

A Wealden Times Supplement

View the new Kitchen & Bathroom Directory online at wealdentimes.co.uk

LIVING SPACES MADE BEAUTIFUL

THIS KITCHEN WAS DESIGNED AND INSTALLED BY HKS

OUR DESIGN

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WT Kitchen & Bathroom Supplement

Contents

VISIT OUR

LARGE

SHOWROOM

Extensive Range

of Wall and

Floor Tiles

8 English Houses

Inspiring free-form kitchens from Ben Pentreath’s

magnificent new book

13 Colourful Character

Kitchen designers share their expert tips on how to

get colour into the heart of your home

18 Bright and Beautiful

Rainbow-hued kitchen accessories

21 Greenhouse to Our House

Jo Arnell advises on the best plants for bathrooms

Freelands Tiles

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Tel: 01732 459 765 | OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK

www.freelands-tiles.co.uk

FreelandsTilesWT172.indd 1 23/05/2016 12:53

The complete kitchen service...

25 Washstand and Deliver

The new trends for basins and baths

29 Bathing Beauties

Luxurious bathroom finishing touches

31 Colour Supplement

Brilliant, bright and bold tiling ideas

32 Directory

The best kitchen and bathroom resources, A-Z

Cover: Ceramic Tile Warehouse Above: West One Bathrooms

...from a hinge to to a complete makeover

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KITCHENS

FOR REAL COOKS

It’s time for a new kitchen, the

one you’ve always wanted.

Editor’s Letter

I’ve loved the grey years. It’s such a uniquely calming

colour and just about everything seems to look better in

it, but it has got a little ubiquitous, hasn’t it?

So perhaps it’s not surprising that rich dark blues, cerulean

and turquoise, shades of green from apple to bottle, sunflower

yellow and fuchsia are springing up in houses again – and not

just separately.

At the trendsetting end of the interiors world these colours

are popping out in fabrics, painted furniture and even – sharp

intake of breath – patterned fitted carpet. Imagine that!

It might take a while for most of us to get our heads round

that idea, but colour is already starting to look very appealing

again in kitchens and bathrooms. Ben Pentreath’s magnificent

new book English Houses has some wonderful examples that

inspired us to ask kitchen designers for expert advice on how

to bring colour back into the heart of the home.

Colour is also coming back into bathrooms, with taps and

fittings in lovely warm metals and even basins and baths in

colours other than white. And in both rooms patterned tiles

are a great way to bring in glorious colour.

I’m not giving up on grey entirely - the exterior of my new

home is painted a wonderful Dior shade - but remembering

how much I enjoyed living with the blue loo (above) in my

old house, I can’t wait to start full spectrum decorating.

We hope this supplement will make you feel as excited

about the return of colour as we are.

Craftsmanship modern & ancient

www.hammertons.co.uk

01435 868611

Sunset Farm • Heathfield Road

Cross in Hand • TN21 0UJ

HammertonsWT176.indd 5 05/09/2016 15:54

STUNNING HANDLES FOR DOORS & DRAWERS

www.theseplease.co.uk

• A simply stunning range of over 600 gorgeous handpainted

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ThesePleaseWT176.indd 1 08/09/2016 10:08

MINTERIORS

JFine hand crafted kitchens and bespoke furniture

01580 291221 jminteriorsuk.uk Biddenden Showroom


English

eccentrics

Ben Pentreath’s magnificent new book, English Houses,

is a luscious tour through beautiful – and quirky –

homes, with kitchens as free-spirited as their owners.

Some of them have been designed from scratch,

others have evolved over time; what they share is an

organic quality, rooms that aren’t fixed in decorator

aspic, but continue to evolve and mature with use.

As he puts it “...a perfectly decorated room without people

to occupy it, love it, and live in it, is meaningless.”

THE BATHROOM SHOP

Independent bespoke bathroom specialists

k Bathroom installation

k Radiators, modern and traditional

k Sanitaryware, modern and traditional k Bathroom tiles supplied and fitted

k Taps and showers, modern and traditional k Accessories and toiletries

k Shower enclosures and bath screens k Robes, towels, bathmats etc…

k Fitted and free-standing furniture

11 East Cross, Tenterden, Kent, TN30 6AD k Telephone: 01580 763207

www.the-bathroomshop.co.uk

BathroomShop

@TheBathroomShop

BathroomShopWT176.indd 1 02/09/2016 15:37

Image: Original Style

Left: This flat in Cleveland Square is owned by Lulu Lytle of

Pimlico interiors shop Soane Britain. “Lulu and Charlie knocked

out the walls of three rooms to make a wide, welcoming kitchen,

installing oak cabinets and a copper-wrapped island that have

stood the test of time (like fixtures in all the best kitchens). The

walls are lined in turquoise glazed tiles from World’s End Tiles; a

copper Owl lantern from Soane Britain hangs above the dining

table, with its set of beautiful, battered leather Soane Casino

dining chairs—an iconic and timeless design.”

Above: A house on the Lloyd Baker estate in Islington, owned by

landscape gardener Maisie Rowe. “I love Maisie’s simple kitchen,

installed by the previous owner, architect Steven Mullen, in the

1970s. The cooking is still done on his lipstick-red AGA or on

Maisie’s vintage gas stove. Plates, bottles, saucepans and colanders

hang from hooks or rest upon heaving shelves. The whole effect is

one of happy chaos.”

TIle Library Co. Ad. 61W x 63H 20/1/09 17:09

Kitchen Tiles. Bathroom Tiles. Floor Tiles.

Shear Farm Oast, North Road, Goudhurst, Kent TN17 1JR

Mon-Fri 9.30 - 4pm | Wed 9.30 - 3pm | Sat 10 - 4pm

Tel: 01580 212700 www.tilelibrary.co.uk


TileLibraryWT176.indd 1 19/09/2016 15:42


Left: A country house in Northumberland.

“The chatelaine is a woman of great character

and beauty, who brings wit, humour, and an

irrepressible effervescence to the place. When she

inherited the house, she took the bold decision

to move the kitchen from a chilly service wing

to the sunny and light-filled old entrance hall,

facing south-west across the park. Sunshine

streams in from morning to late afternoon. At

one end is a cream-coloured AGA, seeming

quite at home amongst the bolection panelling

and sash windows; at the other is an old

Georgian fireplace with comfortable armchairs –

perfect for an afternoon nap.

Above left: The pantry, next door, is idyllic; it

has not been touched for decades, a sublime

example of timeless country-house decoration.

Above right: Wardington Manor, North

Oxfordshire, owned by Bridget Elworthy of

The Land Gardeners. “The kitchen is a warmhearted

room, with a wide table around which

all family life takes place. Bridget’s kitchen style

can be distilled into a successful recipe: a cream

AGA, white curtains in front of the cupboards

and Carrara marble counters with white tiles and

a simple shelf above. Throw in a huge, vividly

painted dresser, and season with a generous

pinch of clutter.”

English Houses will be available to

WT readers for the special price of £25

including postage & packaging (rrp£30 by

telephoning Macmillan Direct on 01256

302 699 and quoting the reference HU8)

wealdentimes.co.uk

10

English Houses

Hardback, £30,

Author: Ben Pentreath;

Publisher: Ryland,

Peters & Small;

Photographer:

Jan Baldwin

Style

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tilematesgroup.com Registered in England Company No. 05446904

BurlanesWT176.indd 1 12/09/2016 12:54

traditional handmade furniture

Kitchens

Bedrooms

Studies

Showroom: 78 London Road, Southborough

Tunbridge Wells, Kent. TN4 0PP

Tel: 01892 533273

Web: Woodworkkitchens.co.uk

wealdentimes.co.uk

12

WoodworkWT175.indd 1 16/08/2016 09:46


Colourful character

We asked kitchen designers for their expert

advice on how to bring colour back into the

heart of the home


“Kitchens are becoming bolder with mixed

styles and colours - a Shaker-painted cabinet

with zinc worktops, or painted cabinets with

polished copper fittings. When incorporating

separate furniture pieces, it’s important to

link them to the rest of the kitchen - through

the cabinetry, worktops or walls - to keep a

polished finish.”

Gemma Collins

Collins Bespoke

Old Surrenden Manor, Bethersden, Kent 01233 822595

collinsbespoke.com

Credit: Richard Gadsby

“A lot of people now want a freestanding look,

with a separate dresser and a separate larder,

rather than runs and runs of units. Clients are

also veering away from wall units. If they’ve

got the space they’d rather have it more open.

When it comes to colour, blue seems to be the

new colour coming up. Several clients have

wanted islands in a rich blue to contrast with

grey units. It’s also popular to have details of

wood in the island, to add interest without

having too much upkeep.We would always say

to clients, if you are thinking of mixing colour

and texture, look at what floor you’re having –

don’t overload it.”

Chris Lee

Traditional Bespoke Furniture

Unit 2, The Coppice, Petteridge Lane, Matfield,

Kent TN12 7LP 01892 723083

traditionalbespokefurniture.co.uk



“We’ve just changed our

showroom painting an island

aquamarine. It’s islands where

clients want to use colour,

becsause it’s not the whole

kitchen. Our kitchens are all

hand painted, so it’s not a big

deal to have it repainted if

they want. At Tunbridge Wells

they also have the Siematics

kitchens (left), which come in

bright colours. Strong yellows

and orange are very popular

and as kitchens are more living

areas now, they can be picked

up through the scheme in soft

furnishings.”

Sarah Cooper

Rencraft

Unit 9, Chart Farm, Seal Chart, Sevenoaks,

Kent TN15 0ES 01732 762682

rencraft.co.uk

“Using two tones is a very popular way of adding interest in a kitchen.

Darker shades are most often used in islands and base cabinets, with a

lighter shade on the wall cabinetry to soften the overall effect. A bold

injection of a suitable colour from a centre stage appliance such as a range

cooker, can really bring the look together.”

Amy Biddle

JM Interiors

Park Farm, Frittenden

Road, Biddenden, Kent

TN27 8LJ

01580 291221

jminteriorsuk.uk

wealdentimes.co.uk

14

E

HAND

CRAFTED IN

TBF

ENGLAND

●TRADITIONAL

EST 2003

●

RB E S P O K E F U RN IT U

Beautiful, bespoke kitchens and cabinetry.

Designed for the discerning.

KITCHENS

BEDROOMS

& BATHROOMS

01892 723083

www.traditionalbespokefurniture.co.uk

UNIT 2, THE COPPICE, PETTERIDGE LANE, MATFIELD, KENT TN12 7LP

www.collinsbespoke.com

For a free design consultation with Marion John Kitchen Design Award

finalists, visit, call or email: Old Surrenden Manor, Bethersden, Kent

01233 822595

info@collinsbespoke.com

Showroom very nearly ready but visitors are always welcome, of course!

TraditionalBespokeFurnitureWT158.indd 1 20/03/2015 CollinsBespokeWT176.indd 12:15

1 13/09/2016 10:04

MOUNTS HILL

BESPOKE KITCHENS, FURNITURE AND JOINERY

www.mountshill.com | 01580 715911 | enquiries@mountshill.com


MountsHillWT172.indd 1 24/05/2016 16:18


“People are starting to ask for something a

little different from the white and grey, handleless

kitchens that have dominated for so long.

With so many exciting materials, different

wood grains, as well as gloss, matt and other

distinctive finishes available, we are encouraging

our clients to think outside the box.”

Emily Rowland

Park House Kitchens

3 Ockley Court, Coles Lane, Ockley, Surrey RH5 5LS

01403 790812 phk.co.uk

“Bold people are starting to ask for bold

colour but white is still popular, although

increasingly with accents of colour and

involving different textures and new

materials. Using glass is our speciality. It’s

super strong, heat resistant and very hygienic,

and comes in great colours.”

Simon Wood

Cobham Furniture

43-47 Cobham High St, Cobham, Surrey KT11 3DP

01932 865814 cobhamfurniture.co.uk

“Clients are moving away from the greys and are starting to feel adventurous

about inserting some colour into their kitchen design.We say – be brave and

bold. Even a hint of colour can give your kitchen an instant face lift. It can

make it feel wider and draw attention to a feature worth highlighting. A

client came back to us wanting a splash of colour and we added a dresser in

blue. Dressers are the most popular freestanding pieces.”

Lindsey Durrant

Burlanes

41 Dartford Road,

Sevenoaks, Kent

TN13 3TE

01732 605001

burlanes.com

wealdentimes.co.uk

16

UK

www.STONEWRIGHTUK.com

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Opening Hours 8.00am - 5.00pm Monday - Friday

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Tel: 01233 650944 E: info@stonewrightuk.com

Caraco

Marble Granite Quartz

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www.caraco.co.uk

Sunset Farm, Heathfield Road, Cross in Hand TN21 0UJ

StonewrightUKWT172.indd 1 12/05/2016 HammertonsWT172.indd 10:54

1 13/05/2016 11:20

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• CircoTherm Cooking System

AFTER TRADE-IN £499.99

BEFORE TRADE-IN £549.99

£50

Trade-In

£30

Trade-In

GREAT Savings ON SELECTED NEFF APPLIANCES.

Built In 13 Place Settings Dishwasher

S51M53X3GB

• AquaStop Anti-Flood Device with Guarantee

• VarioFlex Basket System: Maximum Flexibility

When Loading

• Red LED Display

• Time Remaining Indicator

• Full Stainless Steel Interior

£70

Trade-In

AFTER TRADE-IN £479.99

BEFORE TRADE-IN £549.99

WRIGHTS WAREHOUSE

11 WATERLOO STREET, MAIDSTONE. ME15 7UG

Tel: 01622 690246

www.wrightswarehouse.co.uk

*T&C’s apply. Sold as an agent for Euronics Limited. Promotional dates 01.09.16 - 12.10.16. All rights reserved. All offers are subject to availability while stocks last. Delivery & Installation charges may apply. Exclusions and

Radius Apply. Prices correct at time of print but can be subject to change. See in store for full details. Images for illustration purposes only. Copyright Euronics 2016. September E&EO 2016. Trade-In T&C’s Apply.

Neff Autumn - L (70) Folder.indd 1 01/09/2016 13:19


WrightsWarehouseWT176.indd 1 21/09/2016 10:35


Muuto E27 bulb

£59, Rume

rume.co.uk

Moorish inspired

ceramic bowls, £3.99 each

Lavender Goose

www.lavendergoose.co.uk

Vintage Oxo tin

£8, Raspberry Mash

raspberrymash.co.uk

Bright sparks

Colour your kitchen beautiful with these bold annd beautiful accessories

The nutmeg grater

£0.99, Jeremy’s

Home Store

jeremyshomestore.co.uk

Plus multi salt or

pepper mill, £55

Rume rume.co.uk

Melamine cups,

£2.50, Berry Red

berryred.co.uk

Apple green

bowl, £21

Cloudberry Living

cloudberryliving.co.uk

Smeg pastel blue

kettle, £99.95

Beric Appliances

Cranbrook

01580 712656

Colourworks silicone

strainer, £11.99

Kitchen Craft

kitchencraft.co.uk

Regent four-slot toaster

£190.20, Rowlett Rutland

rowlettrutland.co.uk

Nest utensils, £30

Joseph Joseph

johnlewis.com

Credit: Mike Evans

Rockpool 28cm bowl

£65, Jo Downs

jodowns.com

wealdentimes.co.uk

18

Kitchen cupboard door

handles, £3.50 each

These Please

theseplease.co.uk

Designer and maker of handmade bespoke kitchens and furniture Established. 1980

Unit 3 Chart Farm

Seal Chart

Sevenoaks

Kent

TN15 0ES

Tel: 01732 763610 / 07809504251

Email: info@grantsofsevenoaks.co.uk

www.grantsofsevenoaks.co.uk

Autumn is coming

And this is exactly how we want it to look.

Our Wardley chair: £285, the Sheldrake Extendable table: £1,620,

Hoxton wine glasses: £40 and herb pots: from £10.

Create your own designs at neptune.com

Neptune Tonbridge, 1-2 Tannery Road, TN9 1RF, 01732 351866, info@neptunetonbridge.com


From greenhouse

to our house

Bathroom plants are back back back… Jo Arnell advises what varieties to

choose for this hotly revived trend – and how to keep them alive

After years out there in the interior design

wilderness, houseplants are trendy once more,

and looking especially cool in bathrooms.

Whether you want a jungle, or a more restrained or

contemporary look, there will be a plant to help create

the mood. Let’s do the Cheese plant again…

Design

Using one big plant (it doesn’t have to be a Monstera) in

your smallest room will make a statement and provide a

striking focal point. Contemporary spaces are enhanced

with architectural plants like Yuccas, but if your bathroom

feels a bit stark and clinical, a frothy line of Maidenhair

ferns along a shelf or a tasteful update on a cascading

Spider plant will soften the edges. Try a single pale orchid

for restrained opulence, or the frills and fronds of a

Boston fern or Kentia palm to cheer up a dull corner.

Health and beauty

Indoor plants not only make a room look fresher, the

plants themselves bring added health benefits. Studies

have shown that we feel calmer, safer and more creative

in the presence of plants. Many help lower humidity

levels by absorbing moisture through their leaves and

some can even purify the air and absorb polluting toxins.

So that’s clean, green and serene. Let’s get planting!

Growing conditions and cultivation

Houseplants are able to cope with varying degrees of low

light. As a general rule cacti and succulents need good light

and will be fine in direct sunlight. Those with dark green,

tough looking leaves will manage in shade and big floppy

leaves tend to need more watering. Most bathrooms are

humid environments, but if, like me, you have a cold and

draughty house, some plants will curl up their leaves



in horror. Choose carefully. A potted plant is completely

dependant on you, so be a kindly jailor and remember to

feed and water your captives according to their needs.

11 of the best bathroom plants

Some like it steamy

These plants have come from areas of naturally high

humidity and often have either large lush looking

leaves, or tiny delicate ones. Misting is also a good way

of introducing moisture (for you and the plant).

Swiss cheese plant (Monstera deliciosa) - huge split

leaves (not remotely like Swiss cheese except for holes).

This monster is a climber and will need support.

Peace lily (Spathiphyllum wallisii) - absorbs pollution

and moisture from the air. Peace lilies are toxic,

however, so avoid if you have small children.

Boston fern - likes a moisture retentive soil and

indirect light. Trim out any browning leaves.

Maidenhair fern (Adantium) - small, delicate fronds on a

compact plant, but needs a bit of tlc to stop it withering (I

only have to glance at one). Keep out of direct sunlight.

Architectural wonders

Succulents, spiky cacti and palms make striking focal

points in contemporary settings. Do not overwater.

Aloe vera - the sap in this spiky plant can be used medicinally.

String-of-beads (Senecio rowleyanus) - trailing green bobbles

best grown in a hanging container in gritty compost.

Air plants (Bromeliads) - these don’t need

any soil at all and can be attached to pieces of

wood or stone and misted once a week.

The indestructibles

Choose these if you’re not a nurturer, as they will put up with

some neglect. For best results, be kind but don’t pamper.

Cast iron plant (Aspidistra) - the name says

it all. You just can’t kill this one…

Bamboo (Dracaena braunii) - this is the small ‘lucky’

type of bamboo that won’t take over the bathroom.

Snake plant (Sansevieria) also known as ‘mother-in-law’s

tongue’. It’s another succulent, so don’t overwater.

Kentia palm (Howea forsteriana) - tall,

elegant dark green fronds.

wealdentimes.co.uk

22

01227 767576 www.stellisonselectrical.co.uk

Kitchens & Appliances

STUNNING NEW KITCHEN SHOWROOM - OPEN NOW

Warranty available on WKB120 and WMB120 models.

Located in the former Barretts

Digital World building

Wincheap Industrial Estate, 17 Maynard Road, Canterbury, Kent CT1 3RH | Monday - Saturday 9:00am-6:00pm Sunday 10:00am-4:00pm

CATCHPOLE & RYE

KENT ENGLAND

NEW TUNBRIDGE WELLS SHOWROOM NOW OPEN

EXCLUSIVE LUXURY BATHROOMS

LONDON • TUNBRIDGE WELLS • ASHFORD

LONDON • TUNBRIDGE WELLS • ASHFORD

T. 020 7351 0940 www.catchpoleandrye.com

T. 01892 526 996 www.catchpoleandrye.com


Kreoo Nabhi Bowl 09 Sodalite blue, £12,000,

West One Bathrooms, westonebathrooms.com

Dornbracht MEM 3 hole mixer taps

in Cyprum, £2329.56 inc. vat, Walton

Bathrooms, waltonbathrooms.co.uk

Washstand

and deliver

Refresh your bathroom, starting with the basin. Surface bowls now come

in all shapes and colours, while set under basins are paired with washstands

and vanities, with handy storage. Fittings are fab in copper and brass, with

polished steel great to pair when the basin is the statement

Warehouse Parisienne Double Washstand

in Portoro marble with copper bowls (without

taps) £4,998 inc. vat, Catchpole & Rye,

catchpoleandrye.com

La Loire Three Hole Taphead in Antiqued

Brass, from £450 plus vat, Catchpole & Rye

catchpoleandrye.com

Heritage Caversham graphite grey wall hung vanity

unit 1 drawer, £995 inc. vat, Cranleigh Bathroom

Studios, cranleigh-bathroomstudios.co.uk

Serpentine Bronze on Conical Bell, £11,509

West One Bathrooms, westonebathrooms.com

LONDON

a u t u M N p r o M o t I o N

S a v e

u p t o 5 0 % o f f

S e l e c t e d p r o d u c t S

Tunbridge Wells I 79 Calverley Road, Kent TN1 2UY 01892 548 111

Oxshott I 1 High Street, Surrey, KT22 0JN 01372 841 730

Colour

wash

For years it’s been ‘any colour as long as it’s

white...’ but why not make a statement with

a bath that is bold and beautiful? (And you

never know, one day soon avocado suites

might start to look appealing again...)

Calabar bath

£3,145, Ripples

ripplesbathrooms.com

Ocean blue

mother-of-pearl

Blenheim bath £6,200

Chadder & Co.

chadder.com

The

Jennings bath

£8,626.80, The

Watermonopoly

thewatermonopoly.

com

DIVA

bath from

£6500, Ripples

ripplesbathrooms.

com


Natural Stone Specialists

Unit 1 Croft Works

Diplocks Industrial Estate

Hailsham East Sussex BN27 3JF

Email: sales@sussexstone-ceramic.co.uk

www.sussexstone-ceramic.co.uk

Open Mon-Fri 9am-4.30pm Sat 9am-3pm

Bespoke worktops in

Granite, quartz and marble

Architectural and monumental masonry

Large selection of natural tiles and mosaics

Waterjet cutting service on various materials

Glass tops and splash backs

WE NOW HAVE A NEW STATE OF THE ART FACTORY AT FRAMFIELD

SussexStoneWT175.indd 1 22/08/2016 12:44

It’s more than our

outstanding knowledge

and product range

that makes us so

attractive.

Unit 4 Orchard Business Centre

Sanderson Way, Tonbridge

Kent TN9 1QG

01732 350 911

showroom@townsbathrooms.co.uk

www.townsmerchant.co.uk

wealdentimes.co.uk

28

TownsBathroomsWT171.indd 1 19/04/2016 12:33

Glass cage candle holder

and terrariums, from

£19.50, Dassie Artisan

dassieartisan.com


Golden crystal and

metal dispenser

£22.99, Zara Home

zarahome.com

Octagon copper

mirror, £36.95

MiaFleur miafleur.com

Bathing

beauties

Add warmth

and sheen

finishing

touches in

warm metal

finishes

Toulouse sequin basket


dassieartisan.com

Prosecco bath salts, £4.99

The Oak Room

oakroomshop.co.uk

Body brush, £8

Green People

greenpeople.co.uk

Rhita hanging mirror


dassieartisan.com

Copper pipe toilet roll

stand, £65, Lime Lace

limelace.co.uk

Copper hammered

storage pot, £9

Marquis & Dawe

marquisanddawe.co.uk


KITCHENS BEDROOMS STUDIES APPLIANCES

creative

interior designs

For further information or a brochure please call:

0208 663 3393

71 High Street

Beckenham

Kent BR3 1AW

www.creative-iduk.co.uk

info@creative-iduk.co.uk

SPECIALIST BATHROOM SHOWROOMS

CreativeInteriorsWT176.indd 1 27/09/2016 09:39

SALE NOW ON

01622 791791

Unit 2, 2M Trade Park, Beddow Way, Aylesford, ME20 7BT

Plumbers Merchant

Opening Hours:Mon-Fri 7.30am-5pm & Sat 8.30am-4pm

wealdentimes.co.uk

30

AskPlumbingWT176.indd 1 06/09/2016 12:17

Ormeaux Mix as

patchwork, £4.65 per tile

available in 12 designs,

Tile Library tilelibrary.co.uk

Alhambra, £224.89

per m², Tile Mates

tilematesgroup.com


Colour supplement

Original Style Ottoman

£249.83 per m², Tile

Mates tilematesgroup.com

Tiles are a brilliant - and practical – way to bring colour and

pattern into bathrooms and kitchens

Original Style Odyssey in

Tapestry Blue, £2.95 per

tile, Tile Library

tilelibrary.co.uk

Original Style York

in Black and Dover

White, £97 per m2

Ceramic Tile Warehouse

ceramictilewarehouse.co.uk

Original Style Bolero Blue

£90.88 per m², Tile Mates

tilematesgroup.com

Original Style Glassworks

Colorado, £4.62 per tile

Ceramic Tile Warehouse

ceramictilewarehouse.co.uk

Nikea patchwork tiles

£38.40 per m², Tenterden

Tiling tenterdentiling.co.uk


Kitchen&

Bathroom

A Wealden Times Supplement

appliances

Stellisons

Canterbury 01227 767576

stellisonselectrical.co.uk

Wright’s Warehouse

Maidstone 01622 690246

wrightswarehouse.co.uk

BAthrooms

The Bathroom Shop

Tenterden 01580 763207

the-bathroomshop.co.uk

West One Bathrooms

Tunbridge Wells

01892 548111

westonebathrooms.com

BATHROOMS &

Kitchens

Burlanes

Sevenoaks 01732 605001

burlanes.com

Directory

Catchpole & Rye

Chelsea Walk 0207 351 0940 /

Pluckley 01233 840840

catchpoleandrye.com

Hammertons

Cross in Hand 01435 868611

hammertons.co.uk

HKS

Eastbourne / Haywards

Heath / Heathfield / St

Leonards 01435 866166

hks-uk.com

Neptune

Tonbridge 01732 531866

neptune.com/tonbridge

Potts Ltd.

Maidstone 01732 848444 potts.

ltd.uk

Stonewright UK Ltd

Ashford 01233 650944

stonewrightuk.com

Sussex Stone, Marble

& Granite Ltd

Hailsham 01323 848100

sussexstone.co.uk

Traditional Bespoke Furniture

Matfield 01892 723083

traditionalbespokefurniture.co.uk

Woodwork Traditional

Handmade Furniture

Tunbridge Wells

01892 533273

woodworkkitchens.co.uk

building supplies

Parker Building Supplies

Crowborough / East Grinstead

/ Heathfield / Maidstone /

Tonbridge

0844 257 7000

parkerpaving.co.uk

KITCHENS

Collins Bespoke

Ashford 01233 822595

collinsbespoke.com

JM Interiors

Biddenden 01580 291221

jminteriorsuk.uk

The Kitchen Doctor

01689 850000

thekitchendoctor.com

Mountshill Woodcraft &

Design Ltd

Cranbrook 01580 715911

mountshill.com

knobs & handles

These Please

01435 817153

theseplease.co.uk

plumbing

Ask Plumbing

Aylesford 01622 791791

askplumbing.co.uk

TILES & TILING

Freelands Tiles

Sevenoaks 01732 459765

freelands-tiles.co.uk

Tenterden Tiling

Tenterden 01580 761191

tenterdentiling.co.uk

Tile Library Co.

Goudhurst 01580 212700

tilelibrarycompany.co.uk

Tile Mates

Tunbridge Wells

01892 514004

tilematesgroup.com

Learn a trade or improve your skills

with the CITB CSkills Award for wall

Suppliers and installers and of Quality floor tiling Wood training Burning courses and with

Multi Fuel Stoves from our traditional qualified professional to contemporary. tutors.

Fire Baskets, Fire Whether Screens, you want Companion introduction Sets to the basics,

to develop your existing skills or a full intensive

and Accessories.

course giving you the skills and confidence to

tackle any tiling project, we offer one, two and four

week courses, PLUS the opportunity to become

a registered Devi under tile heating installer.

Contact us for more details:

Tel./Fax:

01580 761191

www.tenterdentiling.co.uk

Showroom at:

Leigh Green Industrial Estate

Appledore Road,

Tenterden TN30 7DE

TenterdenTilingWT149.indd 1 16/06/2014 15:29

Suppliers and installers of Quality Wood Burning and

Multi Fuel Stoves from traditional to contemporary. Fire

VISIT OUR LARGE SHOWROOM

Baskets, Fire Unit Screens, G6 Companion The Powerhub

Sets and Accessories.

& TRADE COUNTER

Marlpit Maidstone Farm, Natural Business Fires, Unit 10 Centre Wierton Road,

LEARN A TRADE OR IMPROVE YOUR St Boughton Peters Monchelsea, Street, Maidstone, Kent, ME16 ME17 4JW 0ST

SKILLS AT OUR C.I.T.B. APPROVED

TILING TRAINING SCHOOL 01622


691676

Multi Fuel Stoves from traditional to contemporary.

www.tenterdentiling.co.uk

www.naturalfires.net

Leigh Green Industrial Fire Estate, Baskets, Appledore Fire Rd, Screens, Tenterden Companion TN30 7DE Sets

and Accessories.

Suppliers wealdentimes.co.uk and installers of Quality Wood Burning and 32

TenterdenTilingWT166.indd 1 10/11/2015 NaturalFiresWT172.indd 14:23

1 25/05/2016 15:13




Where ends meet

Photos: David Merewether Styling: Helen Barton Model: Chris Martin Location: Pett Level Beach

wealdentimes.co.uk

128

Prepare for the coming colder months with hardy boots, fleecy layers and handcrafted accessories

John Smedley sweater, £185, Meyer trousers, £99, County Clothes Menswear, Canterbury, Tenterden, Reigate

countyclothesmenswear.co.uk; Barbour waxed jacket, £239, RM Williams Stockyard boots, £180, The Golden

Boot, Maidstone 01622 752349 thegoldenboot.co.uk; Jack Murphy hat, £29.99, Charity Farm Countrystore,

01580 713189 charityfarmcountrystore.co.uk


Linda Pope

F.B.D.O

44

Is proud to present “Powder’s” exciting range of adult socks,

gloves, scarves and hats plus delightful socks and mittens for

little ones. All with Powder’s beautiful gift boxes or bags. Lovely

Autumn separates at sensible prices have also just arrived.

Opening Hours: Tuesday—Friday 10.30am—5pm

Saturday 10.30am—3.30pm

44 High Street, Charing, Kent TN27 0HX 01233 714689

facebook.com/LindaPopeOpticians

Rye Road • Hawkhurst

Telephone. 01580 753744

Elizabeth44WT176.indd 1 12/09/2016 LindapopeQRTWT176.indd 10:49

1 08/09/2016 11:51

QUALITY CLOTHING AND A PERSONAL SERVICE

With the autumn/winter season

drawing closer, we are pleased

to be able to offer our new

ranges of BARBOUR classic,

country and contemporary

ranges of clothing. With

probably the widest selection

in the southeast, please visit our

Canterbury and Reigate stores.

As well as a smaller collection

of contemporary BARBOUR, our

Tenterden store is now pleased

to be stocking ranges of R M

WILLIAMS footwear and clothing.

Established in 1932, the name is

synonymous with quality crafted

boots and accessories.

19 St. Margarets St,

Canterbury,

Kent CT1 2TH

Tel: 01227 765294

2 East Cross,

Tenterden,

Kent TN30 6AD

Tel: 01580 765159

6 High St,

Reigate,

Surrey RH2 9AY

Tel: 01737 249224

Follow us

CountyClothes

wealdentimes.co.uk

130

CountyClothesWT163.indd 1 13/08/2015 17:26

Braided leather belt, £49.99, The Golden Boot, Maidstone 01622 752349 thegoldenboot.co.uk


Barbour shirt, £59.95, tartan dog lead, £42.95, Schoffel fleece gilet, £129.95, RM Williams Stockyard boots, £180, The Golden

Boot, Maidstone 01622 752349 thegoldenboot.co.uk; Meyer trousers, £99, County Clothes Menswear, Canterbury, Tenterden,

Reigate countyclothesmenswear.co.uk

wealdentimes.co.uk

132

BillyRuffian.

MENS’ SHOES

& ACCESSORIES

Free striped socks

with every pair

billyruffianshoes.co.uk +44 (0)1234 816820

The Clever Dresser

Boutique stocks

some of the most

sought-after brands

of the moment

alice + olivia

Helmut Lang

DVF Diane Von

Furstenberg

MILLY New York

McQ McQueen

Tom Ford

AG Jeans

Rebecca Taylor

By Malene Birger

360 cashmere

Velvet by Graham

& Spencer

Duffy

CleverDresser

6 Bank St. Sevenoaks,

Kent TN13 1UW

01732 453 002

www.thecleverdresser.com

THE CLEVER DRESSER

BOUTIQUE

BillyRuffianWT176.indd 1 05/09/2016 CleverDresserBoutiqueWT175.indd 12:16

1 19/08/2016 14:54

Concept

Hair

salon

Now

Searching

For Our New

Apprentice

50 High Street, Tenterden 01580 762 564

Book online at www.williamcharleshair.co.uk

or through our facebook page


CordeliaJamesWT176.indd 1 13/09/2016 WilliamCharlesWT176.indd 10:00

3 12/09/2016 16:27

Brakeburn flannel shirt, £39.95, Charity Farm Countrystore, 01580 713189 charityfarmcountrystore.co.uk;

Braintree trousers, £59, The Golden Fleece, Rye 01797 224271 thegoldenfleece.co.uk; brown suede belt,

£29.99, Goorin Bros flat cap, £35, Red Wing shoes, £239, The Golden Boot, Maidstone 01622 752349

thegoldenboot.co.uk


Trousers and shoes, as before; Fynch-Hatton shirt, £65, sheepskin lined parka jacket, £470, County Clothes Menswear, Canterbury,

Tenterden, Reigate countyclothesmenswear.co.uk

wealdentimes.co.uk

136

STYLISH SHOES FOR STYLISH FEET

cashmere and silk knitwear

New for A/W 2016,

exclusively at Cashara

Lauren Vidal

Not Shy

Ca’Vagan

Passioni

Kirei

Ladies Shopping Event

Wednesday 19 th October 5.00–9.00pm

Come and browse

Come

the

and

new

browse

Autumn/Winter

our new

collections whilst

enjoying a glass of champagne and benefit from a 10%

discount on the

Spring/Summer

evening and a free

Collections

gift with every purchase

23 High Street, Tenterden TN30 6BJ

Telephone 01580 761222 Email sales@cashara.co.uk

Shop online at www.cashara.co.uk

ManukaShoesWT176.indd 1 19/09/2016 CasharaWT176.indd 10:57

1 15/09/2016 17:31

NEW FIORELLI BAGS

Tel: 01797 224271

16 Lion Street, Rye, E.Sussex TN31 7LB

e: shop@thegoldenfleece.co.uk

w: www.thegoldenfleece.co.uk

@goldenfleecerye

5 Stone Street, Cranbrook,

Kent TN17 3HF

Tel: 01580 714156

www.spicecranbrook.co.uk


GoldenFleeceWT176.indd 1 06/09/2016 SpiceWT176.indd 16:20 3 06/09/2016 12:45

dressing undeniable beauty

www.odyl.co.uk

01580 714907

S t a r C o l l e c t i o n J u s t A r r i v e d

OdylWT176.indd 1 19/09/2016 12:23

20%

Autumn

Discount

through October

For Wealden Times

readers

EVES OF WEST MALLING

84a High Street, West Malling, Kent ME19 6NE 01732 845303

www.evesofwestmalling.co.uk

H U G E C L E A R A N C E S A L E N O W O N

0 1 2 4 4 9 6 0 1 1 3

W W W . F E A T H E R S O F I T A L Y . C O . U K

wealdentimes.co.uk

138

EvesWT176.indd 1 22/09/2016 FeathersOfItalyWT176.indd 13:50

1 26/09/2016 11:54

Barker shoes, £220, County Clothes Menswear, Canterbury, Tenterden, Reigate countyclothesmenswear.co.uk; Gianni

Conti bag, £435, The Golden Boot, Maidstone 01622 752349 thegoldenboot.co.uk

NEW AUTUMN WINTER

COLLECTION NOW IN

Offering exquisite designer

clothing at up to 80% off

22 High Street, Cranbrook

Open from 10am 6 days a week


NEW IN

Swattenden Lane | Cranbrook | TN17 3PS

01580 713189

www.charityfarmcountrystore.co.uk

130x90 Running Hub WealdenTimes ad 03.15_130x90 Running Hub WealdenT

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EmmaPoveyWT176.indd 1 06/09/2016 CharityFarmWT176.indd 17:00

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5K, 10K, HALF OR

THE MARATHON

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wealdentimes.co.uk

140

CornellWT176.indd 1 21/09/2016 RunningHubWT176.indd 16:46

1 23/09/2016 09:37

Trousers and shoes, as before; Barbour quilt gilet, £129, grey jumper, £119, The Golden Fleece, Rye 01797 224271 thegoldenfleece.co.uk


Advert for belinda 03.pdf 1 21/9/16 5:36 PM

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Also Hailsham Chiropractic Clinic

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Our Private Care Service carers can come

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help can form part of a tailored package

of care that could help you stay in your

own home for longer, rather than going

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We can assist those who need help due

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Domestic

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wealdentimes.co.uk

142

UckfieldChiropractorWT169.indd 1 11/02/2016 TownCountryHomecareWT133.indd 15:12

6 04/02/2013 16:20

Beauty

Balmy

High

Keep your skin radiant - despite the radiators -

with Josephine Fairley’s moisturising musts

In my office, for years, I’ve had a really useful little

humidity meter. It was sent to me by Volvic, years

ago, and it tells me how damp or dry the air is. Over

summer, the needle was occasionally pointing at the ‘Damp’

zone – but mostly ‘Normal’. But I know the minute I switch

on the Dyson heater in my non-centrally-heated office, and

turn up the thermostat on the timer downstairs, that needle

will head ‘Dry’-wards – and it’ll be bad news for my skin.

Central heating is one of skin’s least-recognised ‘enemies’.

It strips the moisture from the air – and sucks it out of our

complexions. That’s why, come autumn, your lips feel dry,

your elbows go flaky, and your body may even start to itch.

There are, however, ways to combat the problem. Some

of them are ‘lifestyle’ fixes, others come in cream, oil or

buttery form. But you won’t just be helping skin’s ‘comfort’

factor when you set out to counteract the effects of a dry

indoor environment: you’ll also be helping skin to defend

itself against ageing. When skin’s all moist and dewy, cells

‘communicate’ perfectly. They get the message to produce

lots of lovely collagen and elastin, which gives skin its

‘bounce-back’ factor, and to turn over at a healthy pace. Not

enough water? Cells may take up to 40 days to renew, which

is going to leave your complexion looking

flat and dull.

This month, it’s all about moisture.

But the very last thing you want to do is

spritz on water or toner (contrary to what

many a beauty ‘expert’ will tell you),

to try to combat dryness. Those are

fine in summer, when the air’s damp.

In winter, the water will evaporate

– and take some of your skin’s precious moisture with it.

By contrast, what you want to do is use the right product

to optimise skin’s ‘barrier function’. I’m not a big one for

blinding readers with science, so here’s the simplification:

when your skin’s barrier is impaired, it acts a bit like a sieve

- liquid escapes. When it’s robust – almost ‘sealed’ – natural

moisture is kept in, that cell communication happens

efficiently, and skin looks ‘plumped-up’ and radiant.

One of the best-known ‘barrier products’ is of course

Vaseline. Now, I’m absolutely not suggesting that you

slather your skin in Vaseline – even if Joan Collins does

swear by it; it’s way too greasy for applying make-up and

there is probably even less of a pleasure factor in using it

as part of your night-time regime than in applying it to a

small person’s derrière. Like, less than zero. But at least in

part, one very good reason that the ultra-rich, somewhat

pricy Crème de la Mer earned its impressive anti-ageing

reputation is that it, in common with Vaseline, is brilliant at

maintaining skin’s ‘barrier’. (La Mer The Moisturizing Cream

is priced from £60 for 15ml. Not only do I have friends

who swear by it, but it did very well in some of our Beauty

Bible trials.)

The good news is that great moisturisers are now available

at every price-point. A couple which have most impressed

me lately happen to be real ‘steals’, actually. The Sanctuary

Illuminating Whipped Moisture Creme SPF15, £15.50,

leaves skin looking incredibly healthy, thanks to some

light-reflecting particles in the light-as-air, bliss-to-use

formulation. (There’s an SPF15, too:

enough for this time of year, but you’d

want to up that come next summer.)

Soap & Glory Speed Plump Overnight

Moisture Mousse, £14 for 40ml, is equally

joyous to use: as the name suggests. It

harnesses, I’m told, something called

‘Bubble-BoostTM Technology’: each

time you open the jar, the ‘self-bubbling’

mousse regenerates, refilling with air.


We don’t compromise

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compromise on living.

As part of HCA Healthcare UK, Sevenoaks Medical Centre

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For more information, visit

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Experience private healthcare,

without compromise.

Beauty

(No, I don’t know how it works, either – and care less: the

whipped texture presses all my skincare pleasure buttons.)

At the mid-price range, you have Clarins HydraQuench,

£36 for 50ml: feather-weight, but packing a serious

moisturising punch, it features botanicals including

antioxidant pomegranate, Alpine willow herb (which is

soothing) and an essential oil from a Madagascan plant

called ‘katafray’, which has a skin-fortifying action. I also

completely love, love, love Fresh Rose Deep Hydration Face

Cream, £34 for 50ml (and hallelujah, Fresh finally and

belatedly now have a UK website at fresh.com/UK): it

smells like armfuls of roses, which encourages generous and

diligent use. (A key factor, with any product.)

Chanel Hydra Beauty Crème, £50 for 50g, offers an active

ingredient from camellia flower: after four hours, Chanel’s

tests showed that skin hydration was still boosted by 40%.

There’s also a Chanel Hydra Beauty Gel-Crème, also £50

for 50ml – and what I would say is that these ‘gel-creams’

are just brilliant for combination or oilier complexions. It’s

a complete myth that oily skin doesn’t need moisture. It

doesn’t need oil, that’s for sure – but every complexion on

the planet needs moisture, for that healthy ‘communication’.

There are some absolutely brilliant gel-creams out there: you

might also check out Garnier SkinActive Moisture Bomb –

there’s a day and a night option, £7.99 for 50ml each, and

I also really like The Body Shop Vitamin C Glow Boosting

Moisturiser, £16 for 50ml (designed, as they put it, for

‘Dull, tired, grumpy skin’!)

Back at the pricier end of the spectrum, I know all sorts

of dry-skinned women who just love the Guerlain Super

Aqua collection, which spans everything from serum

through to the beauty ‘classic’ Guerlain Super Aqua-Crème

Day Cream, £79.50 for 50ml. But whatever you’re using,

now the central heating’s on, keep the word ‘more’ in mind:

more product, applied more generously, and more often. As

a last tip, I counsel you to apply a drop or two of facial oil

over your chosen moisturiser, at night: again, it’s all part of

maintaining that ‘barrier’, and I think it acts as a ‘sealant’

over the moisture in the cream.

Check out Jo’s beauty and fragrance websites at

beautybible.com and perfumesociety.org.

Stalwart Wellness provides a unique setting nestled in the

grounds of a private residence in Tenterden offering:

n Clinical pilates classes

n Private lessons

n Yoga classes

n Cancer rehab specialist

n Vinyasa flow yoga

n Back pain specialist

For more information and details on the classes

please go to www.stalwartwellness.co.uk or contact

info@stalwartwellness.co.uk or 07779 670502

Stalwart Wellness Tenterden Kent

Aveda Lifestyle Hair Salon & Spa

The premiere location to experience

luxury Aveda spa treatments in

beautiful surroundings

01797 222211

stalwartj

StalwartWellnessWT172.indd 1 11/05/2016 10:01

info@theryeretreat.co.uk www.theryeretreat.co.uk

36-38 Cinque Ports Street, Rye, East Sussex, TN31 7AN


RyeRetreatWT176.indd 1 06/09/2016 15:06

Jasmine Homecare Services

Caring for people in their homes

Our private care offers the option to be looked after in the comfort of your

own home. Our carers are handpicked for the suitability of the job and are

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Jasmine carers can visit you in your home at times to suit

your daily routine.

It can be anything from 30 minutes to 1 hour or more

to help with everyday tasks.

We will talk to you about just what you want

and respect your wishes throughout.

Jasmine Homecare provide 24 hour on call services to ensure

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146

PureniqueWT176.indd 1 14/09/2016 WellsMedicalCentreWT165.indd 14:27

1 19/10/2015 14:17

October’s outlook

Wealden Times talks to Susannah Hewett...

Health & Beauty

Do you have a beauty

regime? I have a beauty regime

as much as my life affords.

Between running our business

and having two children at

primary school, I’m not left

with much time! I got into the

routine of cleanse, tone and

moisturise as a teenager and

have managed to stick to that.

I make sure my diet includes a

good variety of fresh fruit and

vegetables and I drink lots of

water to keep myself and my

skin hydrated. Having lived

in the Middle East for six

years I have also got into the

good habit of using a SPF30

moisturiser on my face every

day, come rain or shine. I vary

the products I use but try to

stick to products made in the

UK and that champion clean

and natural ingredients.

Is there a particular product

you couldn’t live without? I

cannot live without lip balm.

My trusty mini Vaseline with

aloe vera comes with me

everywhere. I have a spare in

my car, handbag, on my bedside

table, and it also doubles up as

a ‘heal all’ cream when the little

ones injure themselves. Upping the

ante a little, Eve Lom cleanser is

always on my Christmas wish list.

What’s your ultimate pampering

treat? My ultimate pampering

treat is not one I fulfil very often,

as I suspect is the case with

lots of busy women. It would

definitely involve a full spa day

with a vigorous massage to

loosen my muscles, followed by

a soothing facial and of course, a

long siesta in a relaxation room.

Once a month would be ideal..

Do you have a style icon? I

admire any woman who looks

confident and understands who

she is and what works for her.

My icon would actually be my

mum. Since hanging up her

farm shop apron eight years ago

she has taken time for herself to

explore her interests and what

she loves. Everyone comments

on how stylish she is and how

she looks and seems younger.

She is a great role model for me,

thinking a few years ahead!

Susannah and her husband Craig

run Eggs to Apples, a beautiful

award-winning farm shop in

Etchingham. They’re the third

generation of Barnes to run a farm

shop, and have taken an inspired

and modern approach to the

business. Pop in for a coffee and

pick up a copy of Wealden Times.

Find out more at eggstoapples.co.uk

Nuts about nuts...

If you’re on the wrong side

of the M25, you may often

wonder what those bundles

of frilly fruits are outside

village grocers. From August

to October, cobnuts are in

abundance around Kent,

and unlike other nuts,

they’re sold fresh and have a

crunchy, milky and delicately

succulent flavour. Bowls full

of them adorn dinner tables

at Christmas time, and they

work well with both savoury

and sweet dishes, adding

texture and a nutritional

kick. They’re low in sodium,

making them the perfect mid

afternoon nibble, and they’re

packed with protein, fat and

fibre, meaning they’ll give the

nibbler a satisfied ‘full’ feeling,

keeping sugary cravings at bay.

The copper and magnesium

content reduces blood pressure

and inflammation, lowering

the risk of cardiovascular

disease and benefiting healthy

circulation and brain function.

If you’re coming to the

Midwinter Fair this year, then

you can get your cobnut fix

from the Potash Farm stand

in the foodie marquee.

A little fairy dust...

Helen was treated to the

delights of English Mineral

Makeup this month, and

sampled their foundation,

tone corrector, bronze and

blush. These little pots of

magic are 100% natural,

mineral, cruelty free, vegan

and organic. Plus, natural

minerals are antibacterial

and anti-inflammatory,

meaning skin is kept

calm and clean…Wow!

The top grade mineral

ingredients apply like a

dream, smoothing over

blemishes and dark circles

with the mini kabuki

brush they arrive with. The

coverage is both flawless

and weightless, and with

a little added application

a great contouring effect

can be created by bringing

out facial highlights with

the ‘Warmth & Bronze’

and ‘Blush’ palettes. These

vary from bold tones, to

more subtle, day-time

hues and come in shades

for all skin types. The

Mineral Foundation is

£37, Warmth & Bronze,

£25, Tone Corrector, £19

and Blush comes in at

£25. Find your shade at

englishmineralmakeup.co.uk

147

Take control with

weight loss surgery

Rapid access to expert

treatment and care for

private patients

Call to

book your

consultation

NOW

We all know that being a sensible weight improves our

health and wellbeing. So if you’ve tried every diet going,

are worried about being severely overweight and have a

BMI of 35*-50, the next step could be weight loss surgery.

For most patients, the results are significant. The lost

pounds can lower your risk of developing Type 2 diabetes

and many other serious conditions, including coronary

heart disease, stroke, breast or bowel cancer, obstructive

apnoea, high blood pressure and osteoarthritis. You can

also enjoy a more active way of life.

But to achieve a healthy weight and sustain it in the future,

takes more than a single operation. That’s why we offer a

full package of support from our specially-trained and

compassionate staff, including sessions with our

counselling team and dieticians.

Why Benenden Hospital? Our consultants are all specialists

with many years’ experience. Our safety record is second

to none. Our facilities are modern and comfortable.

Our staff are friendly and welcoming. And, however

you choose to travel, we’re easy to find.

As we’re not for profit, we can offer highly competitive

rates too. You can access weight loss surgery at Benenden

Hospital as a self-paying patient or as a discounted

self-paying Benenden member.

Private patients

All-inclusive price

Benenden member**

Discounted price

Gastric bands £5,000

Sleeve gastrectomy £9,000

Gastric bands £4,500

Sleeve gastrectomy £8,000

*Patients can access the service with a BMI of 30 if they are an adult

with type 2 diabetes. **Weight loss surgery is not available as part of

Benenden membership, members do however receive an exclusive

discount off the full private patient price. This offer is only available for

treatment undertaken at Benenden Hospital Trust, Kent. The Benenden

Hospital Trust is a company limited by guarantee. Registered in

England, number 3454120. Registered charity number 1065995.

Registered office, The Benenden Hospital Trust, Goddard’s Green

Road, Benenden, Cranbrook, Kent TN17 4AX

Find out more today

01580 242 521 quote WT

www.benendenhospital.org.uk/WeightLossSurgery

A month to remember

Health

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. An average of 55,000 men and

women are diagnosed every year, so to keep you all in the know, we asked some

experts to talk through the process, from consultation to recovery.

Genevieve runs Stalwart

Wellness in ‘Tenterden...

What are the side effects of breast cancer treatment

and surgery? Breast cancer treatment is often followed

by a decline in upper body function. Up to 50% of our

patients suffer from symptoms after surgery, radiotherapy

and chemotherapy. These can include bodily problems

like impaired shoulder mobility, muscle weakness,

severe arm pain, lymphedema and cording, which is the

development of fibrous scar tissue after lymph nodes

have been removed. Other side effects can range from

fatigue and nausea to lowered self esteem and anxiety.

What happens in one of your workshops? The pain

and dysfunction associated with breast cancer therapies

is a consequence of restrictions in connective tissue. As

a result, our approach is to focus on mobilising these

restrictions by using gentle, non-invasive techniques that

often produce dramatic, life-changing results. Breast

cancer recovery is a very sensitive time. A time to be

respected for the hard-won healing that is taking place,

as well as the physical and emotional complexities that

are encountered. People recovering from breast cancer

face many challenges, not only in getting strength and

energy back, but in many cases, regaining self-confidence

and learning to trust the body once more. Specialist

Pilates rehabilitation equipment can be used to improve

movement in joints, work the abdominal muscles, improve

balance and stability and build strength and endurance.

With the use of Thera-Bands, weights, yoga postures and

breathing techniques, a high quality of life can be restored.

What are the benefits and results that your clients have

had? Clients will often regain function in their upper

bodies, sometimes after months or even years of impaired

movement. Recent studies show a direct link between

moderate physical exercise and an improved quality of life

for breast cancer survivors. Along with direct strength and

mobility improvements in the shoulders and arms, the

core muscles in the abdomen and back can be retrained

and stabilised. Self-confidence and a positive body

image come naturally once posture and biomechanics

are restored. Increased energy levels and decreased stress

and tension mean clients develop the confidence to

practise at home and take part in everyday activities.

Genevieve is fully qualified and experienced in Cancer

Rehabilitation. Working closely with Macmillan

Cancer means she can help clients before, during

and after treatments. Being fluent in English,

German and French gives her the ability to work

with a huge range of clients. To get in contact visit

stalwartwellness.co.uk or call 07779 670502.

Spire in Tunbridge Wells give us an

insight into the options...

What do you offer as part of a One Stop consultation? The

One Stop Breast Clinic is consultant led. Whether you need a

breast check or diagnosis of any symptoms, results are discussed

by consultants, radiologists, pathologists, breast care nurses

and oncologists. Within the clinic, patients have access to the

diagnostics they need including consultation, mammogram,

ultrasound and a biopsy if required, and all of our patients

have access to the latest advances in digital mammography. 3D

digital breast tomosynthesis has proven to increase detection

of breast cancer by 25% and has the capabilities of identifying

smaller cancers which can be easily missed. Running the One

Stop Breast Clinic means that patients can walk away feeling

informed of their health from just one appointment.

What are the surgical options? The most common benign

breast lump is called a fibroadenoma, which can be removed

radiologically under local anaesthetic. If this is larger or

cancerous, then surgery will be required. If the cancerous

tumour is particularly large, then chemotherapy or hormone

blocking tablets can aid in reducing the size, making surgery

possible. If a patient has significantly large breasts, there is

an option for therapeutic mammoplasty. This involves the

removal of the tumour alongside breast reshaping, often giving

a desirable cosmetic result. Axilla, or armpit surgery is also

necessary to evaluate the guardian node, or sentinel node, to

ensure the disease hasn’t spread into the lymph nodes. This is

done through a micro-bubble test which detects any spreading.

Some patients may require a mastectomy, in which case they’re

given the option of immediate or delayed breast reconstruction.

This can be carried out with either an implant and mesh, or

the patient’s own tissue.

Can you talk us through a mammogram consultation?

The surgeon would begin by explaining the rationale for a

mammogram, along with the potential risks involved. Typically,

two different views are taken of both breasts, but with the

addition of tomosynthesis one can obtain three dimensional

pictures, thus improving its sensitivity and the diagnostic

accuracy. During the tomosynthesis exam, breasts are placed

under compression while the x-ray arm of the mammography

machine makes an arc over the breast, taking a series of images

at a number of angles. This will only take a few seconds and

all of the images are viewed by the mammographer to ensure

adequate images have been captured for review by a specialist

radiologist.

Spire Tunbridge Wells Hospital offers a comprehensive range of

services and facilities in a comfortable and relaxed environment

to patients in Kent and surrounding areas. for further

information on the treatments provided visit spirehealthcare.

com/tunbridgewells or call 01892 740047.


Tours and Tastings

at Hush Heath Estate

Enjoy a fantastic day at Hush Heath Estate & Winery,

the home of award-winning Balfour Brut Rosé. Now

open 7 days a week, including Bank Holidays, from

11am-5pm for visitors and wine-lovers to experience

FREE Self-Guided tours and tastings. No need to book.

New for 2016 – Free Guided Tours on selected dates

(see below) Enjoy a free guided tour by one of our winery

experts, 2½ hours including: A full Estate tour and winery

tour followed by a tutored tasting of our award winning

wines and ciders.

(All 11am) Sun 16 TH October

Call 01622 832794 to book your place.

hush heath estate, five oak lane, staplehurst, kent tn12 0ht

01622 832794 www.hushheath.com

HushHeathWineryWT176.indd 1 05/09/2016 15:46

– LOWER ROAD – WEST FARLEIGH – KENT – ME15 0PE – – CRANBROOK ROAD – GOUDHURST – KENT – TN17 1DX –

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Board Games Competition

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Bad Xmas Present Swapping

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wealdentimes.co.uk

150

GoudhurstInnWT176.indd 1 22/09/2016 15:30

Food

The Staff

Above: The master at work Above right: Flour

is dusted over proving loaves before baking

Below: Emmanuel periodically checks on the

loaves in the oven

of life

Photographs: David Merewether Styling & Words: Helen Barton

Meet internationally acclaimed baker, author of three titles and

inspirational teacher extraordinaire, Emmanuel Hadjiandreou.

Wealden Times visited The Crown in Hastings where the floury

magic happens on a daily basis, picked up a few age-old skills and

came away with a couple of recipes

Sat on a rooftop terrace drinking flat whites, we talk bread. Think beyond

the eternally identical white-sliced blocks in plastic packaging. This

is bread in all its glory. Hand-crafted, kneaded to perfection, proved,

slashed, baked and savoured. These careful hand-crafting hands belong to

Emmanuel Hadjiandreou, or Emmanuel The Baker as I now like to call him.

151

K E N T ’ S L E A D I N G C O U N TRY H O U S E H O T E L & S PA

EVENTS AT EASTWELL MANOR

Tel: 01233 213020 | Email: enquiries@eastwellmanor.co.uk | www.eastwellmanor.co.uk

E a s t w e l l Pa r k , B o u g h t o n L e e s , A s h fo rd , Ke n t T N 2 5 4 H R

EastwellManorWT176.indd 1 26/09/2016 14:03

WEST MALLING

Stone baked sourdough

pizzas, juicy grilled burgers,

steaks & pasta dishes,

all accompanied by a

selection of wines,

beers & cocktails

DINNER

WEDNESDAY TO SATURDAYS

BREAKFAST & LUNCH

7 DAYS A WEEK

65 HIGH STREET, WEST MALLING

thehungryguest.com t:01732 870 766

wealdentimes.co.uk

152

HungryGuestWT176.indd 1 21/09/2016 10:01

Above far right: Beetroot bread proves in baskets on an

old shoe rack Above right: Emmanuel mills his own flour

from wheat grown in Surrey Below: The malt varies in

roasting time, producing numerous beautiful shades

Above: Proving baskets and baking tins line the walls

Below: Emmanuel uses a special tool to slash the dough before

baking, creating the crusty ‘ears’ that appear once finished

Judges Bakery brought him to Hastings, and an organic

offering sealed the deal. His project was to transform a

conventional bakery, and introduce a wider variety of gluten

filled, and gluten free products. What better person for the

job than Emmanuel?

Having learnt his impeccable levels of precision from

working at The Savoy and Gordon Ramsay, he went on to

teach, and still does. The love of teaching comes from the joy

on students’ faces when they take their first loaf out of the

oven, he tells me, and the look of relief that theirs has turned

out like everyone else’s.

The timer Emmanuel seemingly carries everywhere,

bleeps, so as he rushes off to check on the beetroot bread

the conversation changes to menus. Tess and Andrew are

the owners of The Crown pub on All Saints’ Street and were

drawn to Hastings by the ever growing creative hub here.

Having started out with well-loved pub classics, the menu

evolved into a simple, honest and expertly executed collection

of dishes. The bar is graced with an extensive selection of

locally brewed beers that can be perfectly matched with one

of The Crown’s bar snacks. Taste buds tingling yet?

Like so many other grand ideas, Emmanuel’s contribution

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up kitchen leftovers and dregs of kegs. ‘You can put anything

in bread,’ Emmanuel explains. Potato, hummus, beer,

onion and dill with smoked salmon, seaweed and mackerel,

beetroot, pumpkin, liquorice, charcoal, the list is neverending.

You name it, he’s tried it.

‘Baking is all inclusive, anyone can do it’- Emmanuel

attempts to convince me as I try my hand at kneading for the

first time. His passion, however, is contagious. I’ve since gone

home with a copy of his most recent book ‘How to make

Sourdough’, and have

spent considerable time

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denominator. Do it as

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above all, it’s fun.

How to

Make Sourdough

Hardback, £19.99,

Publisher: Ryland

Peters & Small


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154

RosemaryShragerWT176.indd 1 22/09/2016 14:40

Food

Beetroot Sourdough

Ingredients:

• 340g strong white flour

• 8g salt

• 200g coarsely grated fresh

beetroot

• +/- 200ml cold tap water

Equipment:

• 2 large mixing bowls (+/-

2l capacity)

• 2 small mixing bowls (+/-

1l capacity)

• 1 grater with a course

setting

• 1 pastry brush

• 200g white sourdough

• +/- 60ml olive oil

• extra strong white flour

for dusting

• 1 loaf tin (500g capacity)

• 1 proving basket (500g

capacity)

• 1 roasting tray

• 1 small peel (for loading

the loaf into the oven)

1. In a smaller mixing bowl, combine the white flour

and salt together to create a dry mix. Set aside.

2. Grate the beetroot on the course setting

and place in a small bowl.

3. In a big mixing bowl, dissolve or break up the

sourdough into small pieces in the water.

4. Mix the flour (dry) mixture into the wet mixture

and combine by hand until it comes together, then

add the grated beetroot and thoroughly mix in.

5. Put half of the olive oil in the other big mixing bowl.

6. Place the sticky dough into the olive oil, allow

to rest for 15 minutes, making sure it is covered

with the small bowl that had the flour in it.

7. After 15 minutes fold the dough lightly

twice and cover with the small bowl.

8. Repeat the process another three times with 15 minutes

rest in between, adding some olive oil, so that the

mixture does not stick to the bottom of the bowl.

Remember to cover the mixture between folds.

9. Allow to rest for 1 hour.

10. Remove from the bowl, using a light sprinkling of white

flour so the dough does not stick. Shape into a ball.

11. Shape the loaves into proving baskets that

have been floured, or a greased tin.

12. Allow to prove for around 3-6 hours or

until the dough is double in size.

Above left: Tess slices some freshly baked loaves for us to

nibble on Above: Chunky doorstop slices are served with

butter and handmade fruit jams

13. Pre heat the oven to 250C / 500F / Gas 9 on a

fan setting with a deep tray at the bottom.

14. Once the bread is ready for baking, turn it out of

the proving basket onto a floured peel and slash

the loaf with a very sharp serrated knife.

15. Place the loaf in the oven.

16. Add a cup of tap water on the hot bottom tray to

form steam, lower the oven to 220C / 425F / Gas 7.

17. If the loaf is in a bread tin, follow steps 15 and 16,

remembering to slash the top of the loaf with a

sharp serrated knife before placing in the oven.

18. Bake for around 30-40 minutes until golden brown.

19. The loaf will be baked when a hollow sound be

can heard when it’s tapped on the bottom.

20. Turn out of its shape and allow the

loaf to cool on a wire rack.


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SecretGardenWT158.indd 1 25/03/2015 11:46

Food

Malted Beer Soda Bread

Ingredients:

• 170g strong white flour

• 170g wholemeal flour

• 30g dark malt powder

• 6g salt

• 4g bicarbonate of soda

• 170g whole milk

• 170g dark beer

• vegetable oil for greasing the tin

1. For this recipe you require 2 mixing bowls: 1 big

and 1 small. The small bowl when placed upside

down on the big bowl can act as a lid.

2. Pre heat the oven to 250˚C / 500F / Gas

9 with a tray at the bottom.

3. Mix the strong white flour, wholemeal flour, dark malt powder,

salt and bicarbonate of soda (remember to sift if lumpy) in

a small mixing bowl and set aside. This is the dry mixture.

Make sure all the ingredients are thoroughly combined.

4. Weigh out the milk and the beer together in the large mixing bowl.

5. Mix the dry ingredients together with the wet mixture

until it comes together and there are no dry lumps.

6. Transfer the mixture into a greased 500g baking tin.

7. Place the loaf in the oven and pour a cup of water

on to the hot tray to form steam, then lower the

oven to 200˚C (fan) / 400F / Gas 6.

8. Bake through for 30 to 35 minutes.

9. Remove the loaf from the tin and allow it to cool on a wire rack.

10. If you can’t hear the hollow sound when it’s tapped on the

bottom, pop it back in the oven for another 5 minutes.

Above: freshly baked loaves sit ready and

waiting for pub service


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Garden

Squash up!

Some of us get really excited about giant pumpkins

at this time of the year, and I’ve tried over the years

to join in and to use the beautiful orange flesh from

Halloween carving sessions to cook up into soups and pies.

This has been to no avail, alas, but not because pumpkins

themselves are intrinsically inedible, nor because I’m

that much of a bad cook (we’ll gloss over that). No,

it’s because the giant Jack-o-lantern pumpkins are too

fibrous, disappointingly watery and so sadly only fit for

Halloween hollowing (and then the compost heap).

Luckily, however, there are lots of delicious pumpkin

varieties available - both to buy and to grow,

and the ever reliable, if harder to carve, winter

squash is in season for much of the year now.

Pumpkins and squash are in the same

botanical family (Cucurbitaceae) and it can

be hard to tell them apart. I’m not sure

it matters unless you’re a botanist, except

that it’s useful to know the difference between soft-skinned

summer squash (including courgettes), and the winter types,

which ripen later and have a much tougher outer skin.

Pumpkins and squash come in all shapes and sizes,

and many are beautiful enough to just sit about as

ornaments or still life subjects - for months on end if

you so choose, because they store so beautifully (but

think of the dust). They are also really easy to grow.

Jo Arnell gets misty about her pumpkin patch

“Pumpkins and

squash are beautiful

enough to sit about

as ornaments”

How to grow pumpkins and squash

The seeds of cucurbits are reassuringly large and easy to

handle, but because of their size, each one will need its own

9cm pot to grow in. If you can bear to be cruel, sow two seeds

per pot and then pull out and discard the weaker seedling.

Seeds can be sown directly into the ground, but are

not hardy and may rot off or be eaten by pests before

they can germinate. They are more reliably sown under

cover in mid April and then planted out into their

final positions once the danger of frost is passed.

That final position might ideally be a dedicated pumpkin

patch, or at least somewhere that gives

them enough space to grow (when I say

grow, I mean rampage untrammelled over

everything). Mini pumpkins and some of

the smaller squashes will climb up sturdy

obelisks or arches, but larger varieties

need space to ramble along the ground, as

their fruits are too heavy for the stem alone to support.

You may see pumpkins and squash being grown on

large compost heaps (the garden at Great Dixter has a

magnificent pumpkin heap). This suits them very well,

as they need rich deep soil - and the warmth of

the heap will also help with growth and ripening.

You can also make a mound of compost on

the ground and then plant into that for a


Garden

similar ‘heap’ effect. The distance between each plant

should be at least 60cm, to allow for all the rampaging.

Three in a bed

If you are short of room, or want to maximise vertical

as well as horizontal space, there is a way to grow three

tender crops – squash, beans and sweetcorn in one space.

This ancient American Indian technique called the

‘Three Sisters’ relies on the tall growing corn to act as a

support for the climbing beans, the beans then help to

feed them (with the special nitrogen fixing nodes in their

roots) and the pumpkin or squash plants create shade

and suppress weeds with their large spreading leaves.

It’s not the tidiest way to grow them (think three straggly

sisters entwined together on a bad hair day), but it has been

tried and tested as a companion planting technique for

thousands of years and, if nothing else, definitely saves space.

Feeding and watering

Most vegetables that produce fruit - tomatoes,

aubergines, sweetcorn - and all the cucurbits need

plenty of food and water in order to successfully

flower, set seed and swell into juicy edibleness.

Try to keep the monstrous plant from The Little Shop of

Horrors in your mind (‘FEED ME!’) as you mulch the ground

around squash and pumpkin plants with compost or wellrotted

organic manure, water well in dry spells and, if needed,

feed with potassium rich fertiliser once the plant is flowering.

The fruits are produced all along the rambling stems

and will go on appearing as long as the plant keeps

growing. I tend to pinch out the growing tip once I can

see about five fruits appearing on each stem. This is not

compulsory, but it diverts the plant into producing a

few good sized fruits rather than lots of smaller ones.

Harvest time

Make sure that the developing fruits are cushioned as

they get to maturity - either with mulch, or a light bed of

straw. This will stop the side or base of the fruit coming

into contact with damp ground and rotting. It will also

help air to circulate and aid the ripening process.

Pumpkins and squash should be ripe by the time the

foliage starts to die back in early autumn. Leave them

out in the sun for as long as possible, as this will ‘cure’

the skin and enable the fruit to last longer in storage.

Bring inside before the frosts arrive, cutting each fruit off

from the main stem, but leaving a long stalk if you can, as

this will also help prolong their shelf life. As mentioned,

they’ll keep for ages, providing they’re stored in a dry place.

For the tastiest results

As mentioned, huge monsters are best saved for

lanterns, as it seems to be the smaller pumpkins

that are the tastiest. The sweet nuttiness of

pumpkins and squash is enhanced by roasting.

Bake them whole in their skins, and then scoop

out the flesh, mash and mix with seasoned butter.

Or chop thinner skinned varieties and butternut

squash into smaller pieces, roast in herby oil (scatter

sage or oregano onto the roasting tray).

I tend to stuff the little ones and bake them whole, use

firm fleshed butternuts for risottos and pasta dishes and the

larger pumpkins for soups and for purees to put into baking.

Best culinary varieties

Uchiki Kuri - also called Red Kuri/Red Onion

Squash, is medium sized and an attractive

deep red colour. A good all-rounder.

Marina di Chioggia - suspiciously weird and blue

on the outside, but with tasty orange flesh.

Crown Prince and Queensland Blue - more blue/

green skin with orange flesh. Great roasted.

Sweet Dumpling - smallish with cream and green

striped outer skin, with firm orange flesh, excellent for

baking. Delicata is also good for baking and stuffing.

Butternut squash - widely available and actually

these are my favourite and (mercifully if you

end up with a glut) home grown ones taste even

better once they’ve been stored for a while.

For gardening ideas, courses and makeovers contact Jo

Arnell 01233 861149 hornbrookmanor.co.uk

Credit: FreeImages.com/ Rob Fallows, Krzysztof Szkurlatowski, Julia Freeman-Woolpert

wealdentimes.co.uk

160

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HawkhurstFishFarmWT174.indd 1 20/07/2016 17:28

From a tiny acorn...

Sue Whigham celebrates the mighty English oak tree

On the first day of college we were instructed that

the only book we would need at this stage was

The Hillier Manual of Trees and Shrubs. We were

pretty horrified to see that it didn’t have any pictures. But

can you imagine how huge a tome it would have to be with

the section on the Quercus (oak) genus alone describing

just a small proportion of the 500 species of oak?

However, we’ve only two native species in the UK:

Quercus robur, the English Oak, which is surely the most

easily recognised native tree we have, a national emblem

if you like, and the sessile oak, Quercus petraea.

They’re easy to tell apart in that the acorns of Q. robur are

held on a long stalk whilst those of the sessile grow straight

from the stem. The other way to identify them is that the

leaves of the English oak are far smaller

than those of the sessile – about four inches

compared to the sessile leaf which is a good

six or seven inches or so. And sessile oaks,

which do well in damp conditions, are

mainly found in the wetter west of the UK.

However, wandering down the lane

by my house recently, I found sessile oak

leaves in the hedge and near a pond, but the plant itself

definitely hadn’t reached the dizzy heights of a mature tree.

The oak is a massive feat of engineering in itself. Given

some space and a lot of it, it can grow up to forty metres

tall and live for hundreds of years. When young it has a

growth spurt which slows down when it reaches 120 years

old. This the tree does in order to extend its own lifespan.

Above: Quercia rouge, one of the 500 species of oak trees

“Oaks create a

haven for numerous

species of insects,

animals and birdlife”

Wandering through the woods, you’re likely to see a lot of

pretty lanky ‘young’ oaks looking a bit sorry for themselves

and without the fissured bark of a mature tree. This is because

they’ve been fighting for light and resources all their lives

and it shows, but somewhere in that same wood will be

their ‘free range’ parent, so recognisable by its thick squat

trunk and its lower branches growing sideways and its upper

branches growing in a very distinct matrix of sturdy limbs.

A large tree will compete more successfully for said resources

if it rearranges itself over the years. It has to be able to cope

with prevailing environmental conditions, usually high

winds, and to do this it spreads its weight equally around

its ‘body’ which tends to become as wide as it is high.

This of course is in an ideal world and it’s rare to see an

oak in a perfect ‘cloud’ shape, but the ones

which have had optimum conditions and the

time to create their own core strength create

a very distinctive silhouette – as beloved by

designers of corporate logos - in the winter

months after their leaves have fallen.

Oak woods create an incredible haven for

numerous species of insects, animals and

birdlife. The flowers, produced in early spring at the same

time as the leaves, provide food for caterpillars of various

butterflies including the little native purple hairstreak.

The purple hairstreak’s larvae burrow into young

oak flower buds and can be found in crevices of

oak branches. They’re seldom seen as they tend to

live high up in a tree’s canopy unless feeding off

honeydew provided by aphids nearer the ground.

Oak leaves are soft and break down into a hugely rich

leaf mould which is home for both invertebrates and fungi.

Bats roost in any loose bark they might find as well as in old

woodpecker holes; all manner of creatures eat the acorns.

It is an interesting fact that the acorns of Q. robur are not

produced until the tree is at least forty years old with peak

acorn production at twice that age. Acorns, even produced

in huge numbers, are such a good food source – eaten by

squirrels, mice, pigeons, woodpeckers, ponies and pigs when

they get the chance - that many hundreds of thousands fail

to germinate each season. They are too busy being useful.

I know that there are wild boar in the local woods and

maybe they are helping germination by trampling some of the

acorns into the ground as they forage. It has been found that

in European woods oaks tend to have a higher germination

Credit: FreeImages.com/ weatherbox, Ben Wright, Emma McCreary

wealdentimes.co.uk

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164

MillbrookWT176.indd 1 07/09/2016 15:56

Garden

Above: The distinctive bark of the Quercus robar

rate than here due to the number of wild boar being sustained

there. And in the days when a commoner had the right

(pannage) to graze his pigs in local woodland, doubtless

there would have been a higher acorn germination rate.

Either way, acorns are pretty miraculous if you

think about their individual size in relation to that of

their parent. However, I’m sure that squirrels and the

odd jay that stores a supply here and there before the

winter must forget some of their stashes enabling some

to sprout in the shelter of a hedge bottom or bank.

Bluebell Nursery and Arboretum have a particularly

wonderful selection of different oaks in their catalogue.

One of the trees they sell is an absolute winner – if

you have the space. Not native to here but one of the

North American oaks, the Northern Pin Oak or Q.

ellipsoidalis ‘Hemelrijk’ is really to be recommended.

It tends to come into leaf later than our natives but

the new, deeply lobed leaves start off with a pink tinge,

turning bright green until the autumn when they have

brilliant red tones finally ending up a cinnamon brown

and remaining on the tree for ages. The other nice things

about it are the drooping branches and fast growth.

This is definitely one oak you’ll be able to see reach

a decent size in your lifetime with a bit of luck. I love

Quercus palustris, too, to which the Northern Pin Oak

is related. This is another good elegant tree with a very

distinctive habit. The leaves are very distinctly lobed and

a shiny, shiny green. This one is good for autumn colour

too, turning a rich red as the weather cools down.

bluebellnursery.com 01530 413700

The Arboretum and Nursery is now a RHS

partner garden and well worth a visit.

The National Collection of Quercus is one of twelve

national collections held at the Sir Harold Hillier Gardens

and Arboretum, Jermyns Lane, Ampfield, near Romsey,

Hampshire, SO51 0QA 01794 368787 hillier.hants.gov.uk

Sue Whigham can be contacted on 07810 457948 for

gardening advice and help in the sourcing and supply

of interesting garden plants.


PetalsForPlantsWT176.indd 1 13/09/2016 09:58

The

Green

Goddess

Penny Kemp

on upcycling

I

met the work before I met the man. I was at

the Green Gathering in Chepstow, a festival

dedicated to teaching people to live lightly on

the planet and have fun, when I turned into the craft

field and a giant merman greeted me - otherwise

known as The Metamorphosis of Glaucus.

Standing a full twenty feet tall, magnificently carved

from one piece of wood, with flowing locks and a perfect

aquiline nose, he represented the talent and expertise that

awaited visitors to the craft field.

Canterbury-based Daniel Hilton is a young man on a

mission. He believes his childhood on a farm, being close

to nature, gave him the skills that he uses today to create

large stunning works of art from native trees. Daniel

trained under master sculptor Graham Jones and spent

eight years learning his craft.

The sculpture most people associate with Daniel is his

carving of a baby in a tree situated in Victoria Recreation

Ground in Canterbury. Carved in March, 2013, Dan tells

the story: ‘ There was a dead tree in Canterbury due to

be cut down by the Council and I wanted to save the tree

and showcase my work. The thought of pregnancy and

rebirth led to Tree Baby.’

The work has led to rave reviews for Dan. The Lilford

Art Gallery called it a landmark piece of work and it

confirmed this young man as an original sculptor, even

though he describes his own work as a kind of ‘upcycling

firewood’.

His recent work is stunning and he now has a body of

work that he rents to festivals and private individuals for

functions, and a growing portfolio of public works in the

South East of England. He is open for commissions and

if twenty foot mermen are not your cup of tea, his chairs,

benches and charming loveseats may suit.

A particular favourite of mine is a ten foot chair with

a spectacular back that curves and twists following the

shape of the original branches, making it look like a

tangled mass of curls or intertwining snakes reminiscent

of Medusa.

Find Daniel on iswoodgood.co.uk

We’ve got designs !

on your garden!

Tradi&onal or contemporary, large or small, the designers at Gardenproud

can help you create a garden you’ll be proud of. Our project managers will

take you through design, approvals, hard landscaping and plan&ng.

Gardenproud was established in 2007 and is based near Tunbridge Wells.

We look aDer over 100 proper&es throughout Kent and East Sussex.

If you are planning a new garden

for 2017, then contact Tim Sykes on

07725 173820, or just Google

Gardenproud!

GardenproudWT175.indd 1 22/08/2016 11:50

Kate Ball

Garden Design & Planting Plans

Garden design Planting plans

Advice and consultation

07870 627145

www.kateballgardendesign.co.uk

wealdentimes.co.uk

166

KateBallWT170.indd 1 21/03/2016 17:36

OpenviewLandscapeDesignWT176.indd 1 15/09/2016 17:20

• Manufacturing quality timber

buildings for over 20 years

• Start to finish turnkey projects

- NO SUBCONTRACTORS

• All landscaping, driveway, drainage

and ground works undertaken

• FREE SITE VISIT AND NO

OBLIGATION QUOTE

sales@sussextimber.co.uk | www.sussextimber.co.uk | Tel 01892 654480 | Fax 01892 665332

Unit One, Pentagon House, Wealden Industrial Estate, Farningham Road, Crowborough, East Sussex TN6 2JR


SussexTimberWT174.indd 1 20/07/2016 10:45

Saint Ronan’s School

Hawkhurst, Kent • Founded 1883 • www.saintronans.co.uk

Boys & Girls from 3-13 • Day & Boarding • Forest School

Headlines

‘Excellent’ ISI

inspection report

70 scholarships won

in three years

Tatler Good Schools

Guide 2017

Photo © Sarah Clark Photography

Discover the magic! Email emmatv@saintronans.co.uk

or call 01580 752271 to book an appointment.

Lateral

thinking

WT’s education columnist Susan Elkin looks at the different options available in both the state and private sectors to

parents seeking alternative forms of education for their children

Children are not socks. One-size-fits-all doesn’t

work in education. Every child is different, has his

or her own way of learning and comes complete

with unique needs. That’s why Bedales in Hampshire

and Frensham Heights in Surrey emphasise the arts

and personal development and why Slindon College in

Sussex works with boys “who don’t thrive in a mainstream

environment” and provides high levels of learning support.

A mainstream school isn’t always the answer for every

child. They tend to be large and children have to fit into

the system rather than the system adapting to the child.

Even independent schools can be pretty samey with the

pretty girl playing the violin on page 5 of the prospectus,

the wholesome boy in his cricket whites on page 7 and

everyone in science goggles looking very alert on page 9.

So what about the alternatives? Schools which swim

against the tide and try to offer something quite different,

usually with a strong focus on individuality, may seem

like a gamble but they can work well for some children.

The alternatives come in two main forms. First there are

independent schools trying to break away from the norm

and for these, obviously, fees are charged unless the child

wins a scholarship or is assigned some sort of bursary.

Then there is the new breed of ‘free school’. Such schools

are part of the state education system and therefore free at the

point of use as well as being free from local authority control

and many of the regulations which govern their maintained

sector counterparts. That allows scope for a different way of

working if that’s what the people concerned want. There are

now 300 free schools across England, including for example,

eight in Kent and Medway and more in Sussex and Surrey.

Let’s look at the independent options first. The

most famous example, and certainly the most

extreme, is AS Neill’s Summerhill in Suffolk which

was founded by the eponymous Neill in 1921 and is

now run by his daughter Zoe Neill Readhead.

It hasn’t always been plain sailing. The school was

severely criticised by Ofsted in the late 1990s and came

close to closure in 2000. And a 1993 Channel 4 TV

documentary, which showed students killing and cooking

a wild rabbit, did it no favours in the public eye.

The idea has always been to run a school on democratic

lines. In practice that means daily councils at which

pupils make management decisions, optional lessons

and a strong focus on learning outside the classroom.

Summerhill’s published examination results suggest

that most students attend most lessons most of the

time and that they are well taught. In 2015, for


“The best independently

minded schools focus on

rigour and firmly reject

the word ‘alternative’

instance 72.5% of Summerhill students passed five

GCSES at A*-C including English and Maths.

The relevance of Summerhill today is probably that its

ideas, shared worldwide via Neill’s books have, for nearly a

century, influenced other free-thinking educators and schools.

It’s a case of buyer beware, with all these schools and it’s all

too easy to let your liberal principles get the better of you so

that your child is sold short. The best independently minded

schools focus on rigour and firmly reject the word ‘alternative’.

Take Hampton Court House School for example. “We

don’t reject the tenets of traditional education, not at all,”

says headmaster Guy Holloway, who talks to staff applicants

by Skype before inviting them in for interview because he

wants to be sure that they are committed readers and have a

range of intellectual interests and passions for sharing them.

Holloway himself teaches a history of music course, teaching

is bi-lingual (English and French) in Years 1-4, Mandarin is

taught to all as part of the curriculum and many pupils can

chat in it. Holloway teaches a Cultural Studies course which

allows for plays and novels outside examination specifications.

He believes strongly that children must be helped to learn

how to make the very best possible use of their time.

The school achieves all this without the trappings

of uniform and it’s Christian name terms throughout.

“Our staff are not friends with the children but we are

friendly,” says Holloway. It works. 42% of all HCHS

GCSE grades were graded A or A* this year.

Another example of a different way of working began with

Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925). He was an Austrian philosopher

who applied his ideas about how human beings function

and develop to a number of fields as well as education.

The first Steiner School was opened in Stuttgart in 1919

(interestingly, two years before AS Neill’s Summerhill).

Today there are 26 such schools in England (including one

in Brighton, one in Canterbury, one at Forest Row and four

in London. In Britain these are fee charging schools. In most

European countries they are part of the maintained sector.

The emphasis in a Steiner school is on the needs

of the whole child and the unforced development

of a love of learning with an emphasis on artistic

activity and the development of the imagination.

The idyllically rural Canterbury Steiner School, for

instance, has a well-equipped theatre space for musical

and theatrical learning and performance which is fairly

unusual in a primary or prep school. Controversially,

technology is not usually used at primary level so there

are no computers and tablets in Steiner classrooms.

Or take the Round Square Schools Association which was

founded 50 years ago on the principles of Kurt Hahn

170

Dulwich Preparatory School

Cranbrook

Independent day and flexible boarding school for boys and girls aged 3 to 13

‘A huge breadth of

opportunity to succeed’

Good Schools Guide

registrar@dcpskent.org • 01580 712179 • dcpskent.org

A Great Education Since 1866

Wellesley House

Independent Co-educational Prep School Boarding & Day 7-13 years

150 1866-2016

#150thWellesley

‘They do it so darned well.’

Tatler 2016

OPEN MORNING

Saturday 8th October 2016

10am – 12noon

Please contact hmsec@wellesleyhouse.net

for further information.

Bus transfers to and from London,

plus high speed rail link from St Pancras.

Wellesley House School | Broadstairs | Kent CT10 2DG

t: 01843 862991 | e: hmsec@wellesleyhouse.net

www.wellesleyhouse.org #SeasideWellesley

EXTRAORDINARY LIVES

BEGIN AT HOLMEWOOD...

WellesleyHouseWT176.indd 1 15/09/2016 15:16

In the last three years pupils have been

awarded 70 scholarships including:

• 34 academic

• 17 sport

• 19 music, drama and art

Destination schools include:

Benenden, Brighton, Eastbourne,

King’s Canterbury, Sevenoaks, Tonbridge

OPEN DAY

13TH

OCTOBER

IN 2017

We open our new

£4.5million Learning Hub

which includes classrooms,

library, IT suite and learning

support centre.

HOLMEWOOD HOUSE SCHOOL

A day and boarding school for girls and boys aged 3-13

in Tunbridge Wells, Kent

welcome@holmewoodhouse.co.uk • www.holmewoodhouse.co.uk

wealdentimes.co.uk

172

HolmewoodHouseSchoolWT175.indd 1 04/08/2016 14:30

(1886 – 1974). Hahn was a German educator who fled

Germany in 1933 having spoken out against Hitler. He then

founded Gordonstoun in Scotland where Prince Philip was

one of the first pupils in 1934. The school was modelled

on the school Hahn had founded and run in Germany.

Later Hahn founded Outward Bound and the Duke of

Edinburgh Award among other things. Prince Charles, who

has always insisted that he loathed it and was very unhappy

there, was at Gordonstoun in the 1960s. A generation later,

Princess Anne’s children both seemed to flourish at the school.

The Round Square / Kurt Hahn philosophy is based on

six holistic learning ideals. Schools which become part of

the group are committed to internationalism, democracy,

environmentalism, adventure, leadership and service. The

association currently has 160 members worldwide (Australia,

India, USA, South Africa, mainland Europe and elsewhere).

The ten English members include Box Hill School

in Surrey and Cobham Hall in Kent where Radio 4’s

Today programme presenter Mishal Hussain, was a pupil.

In all these schools there is slightly more emphasis on

learning by doing than on being formally instructed

by teachers, but we’re a long way from Summerhill and

much of the approach is relatively conventional.

And so to those free schools. Usually launched by

determined parents and teachers, they are funded directly by

central government. They often have a specific focus such

as being more academically rigorous, being more childcentred

or meeting special educational needs. Some have

been founded to meet local needs such as opening a village

school where there is no longer local authority provision.

Focus on a specific faith is quite common. So is the inclusion

of a subject not usually taught such as Mandarin or Latin.

Free schools are sometimes satellites of established schools

or trusts and there have been cases of small independent feecharging

schools, including several Steiner schools, applying

for free school status. In theory – and often in practice – free

schools are adding diversity and giving parents more choices.

The Tiger Primary School in Maidstone, for example,

opened in September 2012 and was one of the first free

schools. Operated by Future Schools Trust it is on the

site of an existing secondary school operated by the Trust

which also runs another secondary school elsewhere in

the town. Mandarin is taught alongside English and

there is a commitment to improve numeracy. Every

child is encouraged to play a musical instrument.

Last year the school took possession of its new building

in which learning takes place in large ‘plazas’ which

accommodate the whole year group with access to plenty of

technology – the space can be subdivided for smaller sessions.

Unlike many mainstream schools Tiger is open from

7.30am to 6pm and there’s a healthy breakfast, lunch and

tea on offer to all pupils. For working parents this seems

to have some of the advantages of boarding without the

disadvantage. The school admits 60 children per year

into Reception and is usually oversubscribed. Since this

was the first new primary school to open in Maidstone

for 25 years it is clearly meeting needs locally.

Education in Britain is a mixed economy. In 1992,

when David Blunkett was Education Secretary, he issued

a White Paper called Choice and Diversity. Twenty four

years later, parents really do have as much choice as they’re

ever likely to given cash and locality constraints. But a

really good school is not about gimmicks, slogans and

whacky theories. Let Guy Holloway have the last word.

“I think the key is respect for the child, commitment

to continual self-improvement (for both pupils AND

staff) and a strong sense that the world needs good

men and women in it, who have acquired the skills

to influence and lead. If these things are in place then

you have a happy and transformative school.”

summerhillschool.co.uk

steinerwaldorf.org

hamptoncourthouse.co.uk

gordonstoun.org.uk

roundsquare.org

futureschoolstrust.com/Tiger-Primary-School

newschoolsnetwork.org


Open

Days

Friday 30th September 9.30am – 12pm

Saturday 1st October 9.30am – 12pm

Come and discover our exciting

Pirate Adventure

for under 5s on Saturday 1st October

To register your attendance, or to arrange a separate

visit, please contact Karen Cooper on 01580 883090

or at admissions@vinehallschool.com

www.vinehallschool.com

VinehallSchoolWT176.indd 1 19/09/2016 16:41

For boys and girls aged 2 to 13

Call us on 01825 830 234 or visit

www.skippershill.com to book

Five Ashes, Mayfield, East Sussex, TN20 6HR

OPEN MORNING

Tuesday 4 October

9.30 - 11.30am

wealdentimes.co.uk

174

SkippersHillWT176.indd 1 14/09/2016 09:49

Grammar lessons

Education columnist Susan Elkin considers all the issues when choosing a school

I’ll come clean. I’m a grammar school girl and proud

of it. Today only 158 grammar schools remain across

the country although Theresa May has indicated –

controversially but rightly in my view – that there could soon

be more. Meanwhile Kent has 33 selective schools and there

are a further six in the Medway Local Education Authority

area which lies within the county.

Last month thousands of children took the Kent

Test to assess whether or not they have the ability and

potential to benefit from a grammar school education.

Results will be announced on 13 October.

When I was in what we now call Year 6 every one

of us sat the 11 plus examination. Today it’s optional.

Many families are perfectly happy with the local

alternatives to grammar school so their children are

not tested for selective education suitability.

In principle a grammar school education is a fine thing but

not all grammar schools are as good as they should be and

many non-selective schools are excellent. Moreover, if a child

isn’t ready for grammar school at 11, they may be different

at 14 or 16 and there’s plenty of flexibility within the system.

You do, however, have to make the best possible choice for

your child from the options available – now. That means

attending every open day/evening this term. Don’t rely on

reputation which is always fickle and usually out of date.

If there’s a chance to see the schools in session then grab

it. Open days can be strained and contrived. If you’re there

when real lessons are happening look for a well-managed

working buzz. Too much silence is not necessarily good.

Visit the students’ toilets if you can too. If they’re

clean and pleasant it’s a sign that this is a school which

takes care of its pupils and respects them. Above all

talk to the current students who show you round.

Listen to your child’s opinion. Sometimes they will spot or

sense something you’ve missed. Ultimately though remember

that they are only 10 or 11, very inexperienced and may be

more worried about where friends are going than anything

else. It is your responsibility as parent to make this decision

on his or her behalf and the wise parent makes that very clear.

Grammar schools are a great idea (excuse my bias) but

they are never going to be right for everyone. We should

look for and support high quality alternatives (Mrs May and

colleagues, please note) and stop this destructive, emotive

talk of ‘failure’ and ‘writing them off for life at 11’.

Christmas Panto

and Craft Event

14th December 2016 - 10am -11.30am

Sutton Valence Preparatory School invites you and your

toddler to our Christmas Panto and Craft morning.

Prepared specially for a young audience Theatre Bugs will be

performing The Toytown Christmas. The festive fun will continue

as the children make a classic Christmas craft with our expert staff.

Sutton Valence Preparatory School,

Chart Sutton, Maidstone, Kent ME17 3RF

Spaces are limited so book your place

online at www.svs.org.uk


SuttonValenceWT176.indd 1 16/09/2016 16:33

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DancingBoutiqueWT176.indd 1 16/09/2016 DoverCollegeWT176.indd 15:36

1 23/09/2016 12:21

SENIOR SCHOOL & SIXTH FORM

Sixth Form Information Evening

Thursday 6th October - 6pm

OPEN MORNING

Saturday 15th October 9.30am - 1pm

Sixth Form Scholarship Assessments

7th, 8th & 9th November

For further information: www.claremontschool.co.uk/senior

T: 01580 830396 | E: enquiries@claremontschool.co.uk

Bodiam, Robertsbridge, East Sussex | DAILY TRANSPORT FROM ETCHINGHAM STATION

wealdentimes.co.uk

176

FriendsOfClaremontSchoolWT176.indd 1 22/09/2016 12:58

What’s On In October

Art

Throughout Oct

De La Warr Pavilion, Marina,

Bexhill-on-Sea TN40 1DP

PETER BLAKE: ALPHABETS,

LETTERS & NUMBERS

Using silk screen printing Blake

has created several fascinating

series of works based around the

alphabet related to his enduring

interest in childhood innocence

and nostalgia, and Victorian and

Edwardian graphic illustration.

Entry: Free

Info: dlwp.com

Sat 17 Sept – Sat 1 Oct

RYE ARTS FESTIVAL

Rye Arts Festival is one of the

top ten small festivals in Britain,

providing a diverse mixture of

musical, literary and theatrical

events with an emphasis on quality,

intellectual weight, style and fun.

Info and Booking: 01797

224442 / ryeartsfestival.co.uk

Sat 1- Tues 11 Oct 12-5pm

The Observer Building,

53 Cambridge Road,

Hastings TN34 1DT

OBSCURED BY CLOUDS

EXHIBITION

Bringing together two painters

who have steadily worked

through the coming of the

Personal Computer age,

‘Obscured by Clouds’ explores

the irresolvable clash between

the analogue and digital realms.

Entry: Free

Info: info@

observerbuildinghastings.co.uk

Sat 15 - 29 Oct

WING Gallery, High Street,

Wadhurst TN5 6AA

5 MILLION COLOURS:

MELANIE BERMAN

Using entangled graffiti

marks and rhythmic patterns

Melanie’s paintings

explore man-made traces

within the natural world.

Fragmented irregular coloured

shapes float, dance & move

before the viewer’s gaze.

Info: wingartgallery.com

Fri 21 Oct - Sun 20

Nov 10am-4.30pm

The Stables Gallery, Hall

Place, Bourne Road,

Bexley, Kent DA5 1PQ

Textile studio

exhibition

Enjoy a collection of new work

by member of The Textile

Studio. Work includes hand and

machine stitching, felt making,

fabric printing, dyeing and other

techniques, that reflect the makers

unique approach to their art.

Info: 01322 526574

Sat 22 Oct – Sun 30 Oct

The Powder Mills Hotel,

Battle TN33 0SP

PURE ARTS FAIR

A selected and curated art

fair showcasing the brightest

upcoming and more established

talent, it features the work of

artists working across all fine

art media including painting,

drawing, printmaking,

photography, sculpture,

ceramics and glass.

Info: pureartsgroup.co.uk

Sat 22 - Sun 23 Oct 10am-5pm

De La Warr Pavilion,

Marina, Bexhill-on-Sea,

East Sussex TN40 1DP

The Sussex Guild

Contemporary

Craft Show

For the first time designer

makers of the Sussex Guild

exhibit their fine crafts in the

ground floor auditorium.

Entry: Adults £3,

accompanied children free

Info: 01273 479565 /

thesussexguild.co.uk

Sat 29 & Sun 30 Oct 10am-4pm

Hamstreet Primary

Academy TN26 2EA

Art Exhibition and Sale

A unique opportunity to enjoy

the work of a much-loved

and talented Kent artist.

Exhibition of paintings loaned

by private owners. Also

over 150 works for sale.

Entry: Free

Info: 01233 732684

Family & Friends

Sat 1 - Sun 30 Oct 10.30am-6pm

Hever Castle, Hever Road,

Nr Edenbridge TN8 7NG

Autumn Colour Trail

Pick up a trail on arrival and

discover the top autumn walks

and colour hotspots. Besides

suggesting picturesque routes

through the gardens, it’s packed

with interesting information about

plants and trees to look out for at

the height of their autumn glory.

Info: 01732 865224 /

hevercastle.co.uk

Fri 7, Sat 22 & Sat 29

Oct 6.30pm-11pm

The Observatory Science

Centre, Herstmonceux,

Hailsham BN27 1RN

STAR GAZING OPEN

EVENINGS

Are you interested in the night

sky? Have you ever wondered

what it would be like to look

at the stars, planets and the

moon through some of the

country’s largest telescopes? Well

here is your opportunity.

Entry: Adults £8, Children £6.15

Info: 01323 832731 / theobservatory.org/open-evenings

Sat 8 Oct 7.30pm

Ashdown Primary School,

Crowborough TN6 2NT

Charity quiz Night

The Royal British Legion,

Crowborough Branch, presents

a Charity Quiz Night with cash

prize, raffle and licensed bar.

Entry: £6.50, including supper

Booking: Guest’s Shoe Services,

5 High Street, Crowborough

Info: 07884 484100 /

crowboroughrbl@outlook.com

Sat 15 - Sun 23 Oct 10.30am

Penshurst Place, Penshurst,

Tonbridge TN11 8DG

Spooky half term

Discover the life of some of

Britain’s more spooky inhabitants

like bats and spiders for our

Spooky Half Term pumpkin

trail, before creating some creepy

crafts to take home ready to

decorate for Hallowe’en!

Info: 01892 870307 /

penshurstplace.com

Sat 22 - Fri 28 Oct

Leeds Castle, Maidstone

ME17 1PL

HAlloween activities

Join Leeds Castle for Halloween

fun this October half term with

a fancy dress competition at 2pm

each day with prizes to be won.

Included with price of admission.

Info: 01622 765400 /

leeds-castle.com

Mon 24 – Fri 28 Oct 1pm-4pm

Godinton House &

Gardens, Godinton Lane,

Ashford TN23 3BP

AUTUMN WEEK

A week of activities for families

to enjoy. Including a traditional

treasure hunt, garden games

and children’s arts and crafts.

Info: godintonhouse.co.uk

Thurs 27 – Mon 31

Oct 7pm-9pm

The Canterbury Tales,

St Margaret’s Street,

Canterbury CT1 2TG

CONTAGIOUS!

The Canterbury Tales’ Halloween

event Contagious! returns for

its second year, transforming

the much-loved attraction into

something much more sinister on

the streets of Medieval Canterbury.

Entry: £10

Info: canterburytales.org.uk

Fri 28 & Sat 29 Oct

6.30pm and 8.30pm

Bodiam Castle, Bodiam

TN32 5UA

GHOST WALKS AROUND

THE CASTLE

This Hallowe’en visitors to the

castle will be warmed through

with a hearty meal in our Terrace

Room before taking a trip to the

castle to meet some of Bodiam’s

lesser known residents.

Info and Booking: 01580 831324

Festivals and Fairs

Fri 30 Sept – Sat 1 Oct

Cranbrook

CRANROOK LITERATURE

FESTIVAL

The town of Cranbrook has always

embraced tradition and culture

with its popular annual art show,


Detling Antiques,

Vintage &

Collectors Fair

Up to 300 stalls in two buildings, shopping

arcades, marquees & outside offering a wide

range of items from ceramics, glass, vintage

clothing, furniture, books, metalware, kitchenalia,

postcards, pictures & much more.

Sat 29th - Sun 30th

October

Sat: Early Entry 8.30am - £6

Sat: General Entry 10am - 4.30pm - £5

Sun: 10am - 3.30pm - £4

Kent County Showground, Detling, ME14 3JF

Tel: 01636 676531

www.b2bevents.info

#nationaltrust

Play and Display exhibition

22 October to 20 November, 11am - 3.30pm

daily

Relive childhood memories with our charming new

exhibition of paper and card toys. The collection

highlights how popular, versatile and enchanting

paper and card toys have been over the centuries

with puppets, paper dolls, model theatres and

panoramas. You can get hands on and have some fun

playing with modern ones too.

Call 01580 710700 for details

nationaltrust.org.uk/sissinghurst-castle-garden

When you visit, donate, volunteer or join the National Trust, your support helps

us to look after special places such as Sissinghurst Castle Garden for ever, for

© National Trust 2016. The National Trust is an independent registered charity, number 205846. Photography © National Trust Images\Emma Warren.

From Country Chic To Fabulous Boutique

B2BEventsLtdWT176.indd 1 06/09/2016 SissinghurstCastleWT176.indd 10:05

1 22/09/2016 15:20

Fashion / Gifts Galore / Homeware / Artisan Makers / Food & Drink

LUXURY CHRISTMAS GIFT FAIRS

11-12 Nov Tun Wells / 24-25 Nov Uckfield

“A fabulous collection of Boutique Owners

& Artisan Makers selling a huge array of beautiful

& unique Christmas gifts & decorations”

Each Fair is open 10am-4pm / £4 Entry / Free Parking

11-12 Nov - Salomons Estate, Tunbridge Wells, TN3 0TG

24-25 Nov - East Sussex National, Uckfield, TN22 5ES

Sign up for giveaways & updates at www.countrylifestylefairs.co.uk

wealdentimes.co.uk

178

CountryLifestyleFairsWT176.indd 1 19/09/2016 10:46


The Contemporary

Craft &

Design Fair

KentPaintersGrouPWT176.indd 1 03/08/2016 14:14

Purchase

direct from

the very best

makers in

the UK

Sevenoaks School

SEVENOAKS

21 - 23 October

12 noon to 5pm Fri

10am to 5pm Sat & Sun

Admission £4 • High Street TN13 1HU

www.craftinfocus.com T: 01622 747325

CIF_130x90_Sevenoaks_16.indd CraftinFocusWT176.indd 1 1 09/09/2016 12:32 12:52

apple fayre and music festival.

Now it’s time to celebrate the

written word with the first ever

Cranbrook Literature Festival.

Entry: Some events free,

others start from £8

Info: cranbrookliteraturefestival.com

Sat 1 Oct 9.30am-12pm

Penshurst Place, Penshurst,

Tonbridge TN11 8DG

October Farmer’s

market

With over 40 stalls offering the

best local food and drink, the

market is a must for anyone

looking to learn more about

the produce of Kent, and

the people who supply it.

Info: 01892 870307 /

penshurstplace.com

Sat 1 - Sun 2 Oct 10am-6pm

Kent Life, Lock Lane, Sandling,

Maidstone ME14 3AU

APPLE AND CIDER FAYRE

As well as the traditional

process of cider pressing,

enjoy live music, local produce

stalls and morris dancing.

Entry: Adults £9.50, Children £7.50

Info: 01622 763936

/ kentlife.org.uk

Sat 15 Oct from 12pm

The Stade Open Space,

Old Town, Hastings

950TH ANNIVERSARY OF

THE BATTLE OF HASTINGS

CELEBRATIONS

Celebrate the 950th anniversary

of one of history’s most

famous battles with a torch

light procession, fireworks,

drumming and much more.

Entry: Free

Info: hbbs.info

Sun 16 Oct

Bateman’s Lane, Burwash,

East Sussex TN19 7DS

BATEMAN’S APPLE DAY

As well as exploring the orchards,

you can even have a go at making

apple juice with our homemade

apple mill and press and meet our

beekeeper to learn how the bees

and the orchard work together to

produce this rich autumn harvest.

Entry: Adults £10, Children £5

Info: nationaltrust.org.uk/batemans

ARE YOU SINGLE?

Yours truly is affordable,

exclusive, traditional and

successful

*Confi dential Interviews*

*Personal Matching*

CHANGE YOUR LIFE AND CALL

Louisa Sheridan

01892 667750

www.yourstrulyintroductions.co.uk

Sat 22 Oct – Sun 30 Oct

Rye

WILD BOAR WEEK

The 6th Wild Boar Week in Rye,

East Sussex offers the perfect

opportunity to indulge in culinary

delights from the countryside.

Wild Boar Week events also

include walks, tours, live music

and quiz nights in various locations

around the historic town of Rye.

Info: wildboar.org.uk

YoursTrulyWT133.indd 1 19/02/2013 17:54

Sat 29 Oct 9am-3pm

Highbury Hall, Highbury

Lane, Tenterden TN30 6LE

TENTERDEN BOOK FAIR

15 book dealers attending with

1000s of pre-loved books for

sale on all subjects, for both

the reader & the collector.

Refreshments available all day.

Entry: Free

Info: 01580 764395

Music

Thurs 6 Oct 7.30pm

Hazlitt Theatre, Earl Street,

Maidstone ME14 1PL

The Unique Komedy

Ukelele Orchestra

After a string of hugely successful

European Tours, the musicians

from TUKUO directed by Peter

Moss will once more be combining

their totally unique vocal harmony

blend with their own brand

of typically British humour,

brilliantly daring and inventive

arrangements and the unbelievable

sound of their miniature

instrument of choice, the famous

and hugely underrated Ukulele

that originated from Hawaii.


Ibbett Mosely

AuctIoneers & VAluers

Limited Liability Partnership

The Auctioneer's Next Sale Will Be On

Wednesday 19th October 2016

Commencing at 12.30pm | Viewing 10.00am - 12.30pm

At Ibbett Mosely Auction Rooms, Argyle Rd, Sevenoaks, Kent TN13 1HJ

Valuation Day - Wednesday 26th October 2016 11am to 4pm

Crown Inn, School Road, Chislehurst, Kent BR7 5PQ

Tel: 01732 456731 Web: www.ibbettmosely.co.uk

125 High St, Sevenoaks, Kent TN13 1UT

Registered in England No. 0C341637 Regulated by RICS Registered at the Sevenoaks office as Ibbett Mosely Surveyors LLP

FESTIVE GIFT FAIR

Everybody

Welcome

join us and

choose

your festive

gifts

Winchelsea New Hall

Saturday 12 NOVEMBER 2016

10AM – 3PM

RIBBONS

PAPER & TAGS

GIFT BOXES

PROCEEDS

TO THE

RefUrbishment

of Winchelsea

New Hall

IbbettMoselyWT176.indd 1 05/09/2016 11:17

HORNBROOK MANOR FARM

SWEETS

JAMS

CHUTNEYS

BISCUITS

TEA & COFFEE

TOMBOLA

RAFFLE

Wine Tasting

Garden ideas, design and planting

For Borders, Planting plans or full Garden Makeovers

Contact Jo on 01233 861149 www.hornbrookmanor.co.uk

Chocolate

Cakes

Children’s

Clothes

Cards

WOOL PRODUCTS

WALKING STICKS

WINTER BULBS

WRAPPING PAPER

JEWELLERY

LIGHTS

PAINTINGS

GLASS

POTTERY

LOCAL

PRODUce

REG Charity no 235174

A4giftfairposterART.indd 1 12/09/2016 22:12

FIRST CLASS ENTERTAINMENT IN KENT

HornbrookManorWT175.indd 1 08/08/2016 WinchelseaVilageHallWT176.indd 15:09

1 13/09/2016 10:44

BOOK ONLINE: ORCHARDTHEATRE.CO.UK

TICKET OFFICE: 01322 220000

wealdentimes.co.uk

180

OrchardTheatreWT176.indd 1 13/09/2016 16:43


Entry: Adults £22, Children

/ Concessions £20

Info: 01622 758611 /

parkwoodtheatres.co.uk/

Hazlitt-Theatre

Fri 7 Oct 8pm

Tunbridge Wells Jazz Club, The

Masonic Centre, St John’s Road,

Tunbridge Wells TN4 9UY

The Pedigree Jazz Band

Enjoy this live jazz event with

a raffle and licensed bar. The

bar is also open for sandwiches

and soft drinks/coffee.

Entry: Members £1.50, Students £2

Info: 01892 890442 /

twjazzclub.co.uk

Fri 21 Oct 7.30pm

Groves Hall, Sutton

Valence School

SUTTON VALENCE

MUSIC SOCIETY

Classical guitarist Sean Shibe

studied at the Royal Conservatoire

of Scotland. He is the only

solo guitarist to have been

awarded a Borletti-Buitoni

Trust Fellowship and is the

first guitarist to be admitted

to the prestigious BBC New

Generation Artist Award Scheme.

Entry: £12

Info & Booking: 01622 863002

Tours

Every Sat in Oct 9.45am-11am

Biddenden Vineyards,

Gribble Bridge Lane,

Biddenden TN27 8DF

BIDDENDEN

VINEYARD TOURS

Learn more about the history of

the vineyard and how we make

our award-winning wines, ciders

and juices. The tour is followed

by tastings of our wines, ciders

and juices in our vineyard shop.

Entry: Free

Info: 01580 291726 /

biddendenvineyards.com

Mon 17 Oct 12.30pm-3.30pm

Great Dixter, Northiam,

East Sussex TN31 6PH

BEHIND THE SCENES

AT GREAT DIXTER

Great Dixter gardener Rachael

Dodd will take you on an

afternoon’s exploration of the

borders to examine the plants in

bloom and give you an insight

into the work that makes the

renowned garden so beautiful.

Entry: £45 per person

Info and Booking: 01797

254048 / greatdixter.co.uk

Sat 22 – Mon 31 Oct 11.30am

Tunbridge Wells Tourist

Information Centre, The Old

Fish Market, The Pantiles, Royal

Tunbridge Wells TN2 5TN

GUIDED WALKS OF ROYAL

TUNBRIDGE WELLS

Learn all about the historic spa

town of Royal Tunbridge Wells

on a guided stroll through the

Pantiles and the historic heart

of the town. Discover its 400

year old history and hear about

the many famous visitors.

Entry: Free

Info: 01892 515675

/ visitkent.co.uk

Sat 22 Oct from 9.30am

Mote Park, Maidstone,

Kent ME15 8NQ

TREE WALK AT MOTE PARK

A guided walk around Mote Park

with the Chairman of the Mote

Park Fellowship who will introduce

you to some of the history of the

park as well as the importance

it plays in protecting some of

the oldest trees in the country.

Entry: Adults £2.50

Info: 01622 730453 /

moteparkfellowship.org.uk

Listings are correct at time of going

to press but may be subject to change.

Readers are advised to check with venues

before making arrangements. We can list

your event in the next issue of Wealden

Times for only £15! Please supply up to

50 words that should include date, time,

venue, and any entry price to whatson@

wealdentimes.co.uk or send with payment

(cheques payable to JPS Media) to What’s

On, Wealden Times, Kettle Chambers, 21

Stone Street, Cranbrook, Kent TN17 3HF.

Wealden Times reserves the right to edit

text to fit space allocated. If you would like

your event listing to be accompanied by a

full colour reproduction (42.5 x 62.5mm)

of a poster or other pictorial image, the

total charge will be £95. Deadline for the

November issue is 14 October 2016.

VOICE TRIALS

for boys aged 7 & 8

5 th November 2016

Substantial scholarships are

awarded and choristers benefit

from an all-round excellent

education at St Edmund’s

School Canterbury.

The Master of Choristers,

David Flood, is always

pleased to meet and advise

parents and their sons.

For further details

please telephone

01227 865242

davidf@canterbury-cathedral.org

@No1Cathedral

CanterburyCathedralChoirED03.indd 1 28/04/2016 12:51

Weekdays October-3rd-21st.

Autumn Tints—enjoy a trip

through the beautiful Sussex

countryside. Sit back and relax as

you meander along the line between Sheffield Park and

East Grinstead. ‘Souper Steam’- enjoy a bowl of warming

Autumn vegetable soup as you travel or choose to travel

in the Railway’s unique Observation Car-limited seating

so booking advisable and essential for the ‘Souper Steam’

The next BIG thing 28th-30th October

‘Giants of Steam’

Train services throughout the day-two visiting engines

will compliment the Railway’s fleet of larger engines.

70013 ‘Oliver Cromwell’ (with thanks to NRM and

Great Central Railway) and LNER B12 from Midland

and Great Northern Society based at North Norfolk

Railway (both subject to availability)

For more information or to book

please contact us. 01825 720800

www.bluebell-railway.com

Sheffield Park Station

TN22 3QL


BluebellRailwayWT176.indd 1 20/09/2016 15:07

Home & Interiors

Garden & Building

Wealden Wealden Times Times - Bazaar - Classified

Clare Langdon

INTERIORS

Made to measure

curtains & blinds

Tracks & poles

Measuring & fitting service

Home consultation

Fabrics & design advice


clarelangdoninteriors.co.uk

Aquarius Soft Furnishings & Wool Shop

ClareLangdonWT171.indd 1 11/04/2016 10:49

Knitting wool & Haberdashery Ribbons, buttons, elastic, sewing aids

Curtain making & Upholstery Fabrics, Linings, tapes, hooks & much more

ALL STYLES OF CURTAINS,

HAND MADE IN OUR WORKSHOP

We can supply Fabrics or make up your own

CURTAIN TRACKS & POLES SUPPLIED

Including electric curtain tracks

BLINDS Roller, Roman, Vertical, Venetian, Pleated

Books & Old

Postcards

Bought and Sold

Goudhurst Bookshop

01580 388027

UPHOLSTERY & LOOSE COVERS Terms also are Cushion strictly replacements

20 days from date of invoice. For All a FREE artwork, site colour survey

matches and scans are done as a free of charge service, s

GoudhurstBookshopWT172.indd 1 06/05/2016 11:03

errors, mistakes, or poor colour reproduction 2 The Oast, Clockhouse Farm, Coxheath ME17 4PB Established 1976 and where advice we have please typeset calladvertisements. Clients should supply their own digita

acceptable. If ICC is used to collect a debt, 10% + costs + VAT will be added. No advertisement

advertising designed

from as by Magnet

little

Media Lim

07799 351299

Telephone: 01622 744265 or 746454 Email: may be aquarius.1@btconnect.com

used in either promotional literature or other publications without prior permission. A minimum of £50 will be levied as £40 a month. Call us if

www.aquariussoftfurnishings.co.uk

Health & Wellbeing

Life Coaching

Positive Help for

Life’s Challenges

Exam Success, Career Coaching,

Creative Retirement.

New Directions For All Ages.

Call Sally on 07545 397606

Gifts

LTJ SURFACING

Family Run Business for over 27 years

Specialists in Tarmac ‧ Block Paving

‧ Concrete ‧ Bonded Tar & Gravel

‧ Resin Bounded ‧ Brickwork

‧ All Other Groundwork Undertaken

Private & Commercial ‧ Driveways

‧ Patios ‧ Footways ‧ Alterations &

Repairs ‧ Car parks & Roads

‧ Pressure Washing ‧ We Offer

Machine & Hand Lay Tarmac Teams

or 01622 436933

Visit us at www.ltjsurfacing.co.uk

AquariusSoftFurnishingsWT176.indd 1 23/09/2016 12:35

LTJSurfacingWT167.indd 1 14/12/2015 17:48

Battle Mowers Ltd

THE ESSENCE OF FINE

BRITISH LAWNS

For further information please phone 01424 773096

or e-mail: battlemowers@btconnect.com www.battlemowers.co.uk

visit our showroom at The Granary, Station Rd, Battle. TN33 0DE

Local Book Store

BattleMowersWT160.indd 1 11/05/2015 12:05

Full colour

01580 714705

CLINICAL HYPNOTHERAPIST,

EFT & NLP Practitioner

Help with: Weight Loss, Stop Smoking,

Panic Attacks, Phobias & many

other anxiety based disorders

Debbie Winstanley BSc(Hons)Psych,MBSCH

Tel: 01424 460096

www.debbiewinstanley.co.uk

debbiewins@hotmail.com

SallyMuskerWT175.indd 1 22/08/2016 14:36

A pet portrait makes a wonderful gift

Professional Oil Paintings & Drawings

Book for Christmas Now

Visit www.dianewilks.weebly.com or

Email for examples: wdiane93@aol.com

Diane 01580 212327

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to book an appointment in

10% off first

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consultation

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wealdentimes.co.uk

182

KellyMillingtonWT176.indd 1 21/09/2016 HawkenburyNurserySchoolWT176.indd 10:03

1 26/09/2016 16:54

WIN A two piece knife gift

set & wooden display box

Over recent years, Flint and Flame have been

gaining significant recognition in Europe for

their outstanding range of knives, crafted

and designed with the chef in mind.

They’re beautifully contoured, with an ergonomically

designed handle incorporating ‘Centre Point Balance’

technology and a unique ‘Zero Pressure Point’ design.

This eliminates the risk of callouses forming after

prolonged use, making these knives a real musthave

for the home and professional chef alike.

We are thrilled to offer readers an online discount

code of 25% off retail prices. Just enter WD25 at

the checkout. For further offers and information

be sure to visit stand number 16 at the Midwinter

Fair or take a look at flintandflame.co.uk

With Flint and Flame’s engraving service you’re

guaranteed to find a unique gift for someone special.

HOW TO ENTER: For your chance to win this fantastic prize of a two piece knife gift set presented in a wooden display box,

just answer the following question: What is Flint and Flame’s Midwinter Fair stand number? Enter your answer with your contact

details* in the online form at wealdentimes.co.uk/competition or post to: Flint and Flame competition, Wealden Times, 21 Stone Street,

Cranbrook, Kent TN17 3HF by 31 October 2016. There is no cash alternative and the prize must be taken by October 2017. *All

entrants’ details will be passed on to Flint and Flame and Wealden Times Events. Please let us know if you do not wish your details to

be passed on.

Congratulations to Lauren Jordan who wins our July competition for a Night Stay For Two At Frasers, Egerton.

It’s our

950 th

ANNIVERSARY

visit1066country.com/950

Try something different...

come curling & love it!

Staff Outings

Entertaining Clients

Birthday Parties

Christmas Parties

Stag & Hen Parties

Social Events

FUN

on ice!

1066 themed events for all to

enjoy from 8 to 16 October

LOVE CURLING IN KENT!

Dundale Farm, Dundale Road, Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN3 9AQ

01892 826004 • info@curlinginkent.co.uk • www.curlinginkent.co.uk

find us on facebook & twitter


HastingsBoroughCouncilWT175.indd 1 16/08/2016 FentonsRinkWT176.indd 16:59

1 21/09/2016 11:57

Jane Howard’s

Fables from the Farm

It’s already Christmas in the supermarkets and getting towards the end of the

year on the calendar – but in farming it’s all just kicking off

October already. Aaaagh. While

it may seem like the year is

drawing to a close, in the world

of agriculture it is quite the opposite and

Michaelmas, which falls on September

29th, is very much seen as the start of

the farming calendar.

Michaelmas is named after St Michael

the Archangel, the greatest of all the

Archangels honoured for defeating Satan

in the War of Heaven. He is seen as a

protector against the dark of night, and

the administrator of cosmic intelligence!

So quite an interesting

chap then, but on a more

mundane level Michaelmas,

coming around the equinox

(when night time hours

are the same as day time

hours) is also one of the

Quarter Days – the others

being Christmas Day, Lady Day and

Midsummer Day.

Traditionally farmers expected to have

completed the harvest by Michaelmas

and it’s the day when rents were due,

leases began and servants hired.

Although we won’t be hiring any

servants this year at Coopers, there is still

very much a feeling that another year

has drawn gently to a close. 2016 has

been an exceptionally good year for grass

and our barns are crammed with hay

and straw in preparation for the cattle

“Rather like dress

sizes, cows get

scored according

to their level

of rotundity”

coming in when the weather changes

again in November.

The pigs are fat as butter (having

stuffed themselves with acorns) and

ditto the cattle. In terms of assessing

the condition of the cows, rather like

dress sizes they get scored according to

their level of rotundity with one being

exceptionally thin and five being far too

much of a Bessie Bunter.

Sussex cows are known for their ability

to ‘do well’ on the roughest grazing and

having enjoyed the summer grass mine

are edging dangerously up

the scale, but this is to be

expected. And when they

come inside at the end of

the year, the calves will be

weaned off them and they

will go on a four month

‘hay diet’ i.e. just hay so

they slim down to calve in the spring at a

respectable 3.5 or 4.0.

The ewes, however, end the summer

looking much plainer (thinner in

farming parlance) having raised a couple

of lambs that end up being almost the

same size as their mothers. The lambs

were weaned in August and the ewes are

now on a ‘rising plane of nutrition’ to

end up in tip top condition ready for the

rams in early November.

Unlike cows and pigs that are fertile

all year, female sheep only come into

oestrus when the night time hours exceed

the day time hours (so, starting around

Michaelmas) and traditionally the rams

are put to the ewes on Bonfire Night

with lambs appearing after April Fools’

Day, a clever way of ensuring the lambs

only come when the weather warms up

and the grass starts growing.

So the ewes are now grazing the better

pasture and soon they will go on to the

best the farm has to offer – those fields

which were cut for hay and have sweet

and succulent regrowth - to be flushed.

Grazing such nutritious grass encourages

them to produce more eggs so when

they do get together with the rams the

result will be more twins and triplets as

opposed to singles.

The other thing I love about this time

of year is blackberrying and producing

pots of bramble jelly. But that too

must come to an end. Going back to

our cosmic administrator St Michael,

apparently when Satan was hurled out of

heaven he fell to the ground and landed

in a patch of brambles.

Not being best pleased he poured fire

and brimstone on the innocent bushes

and apparently renews the curse every

Michaelmas, so unsuspecting foragers

like you and I should never pick them

after September 29th. But that doesn’t

matter too much as soon it will be time

for the sloes and strangely the gin always

seems more popular than the jam.

Follow Jane Howard – and the farm

– on Instagram @coopersfarm

wealdentimes.co.uk

184

CO-EDUCATIONAL | DAY & BOARDING | 3-13 YEARS | IAPS

76/78 High Street, Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent TN1 1YB

Tel. 01892 534018 | Fax. 01892 510536

Email. info@gcollinsandsons.com | www.gcollinsandsons.com

Nursery Pre-Prep Prep

To register interest or for

more information please contact:

registrar@junior-kings.co.uk

+44 (0)1227 714000

www.junior-kings.co.uk

Open Mornings

Saturday 8th October 2016

Saturday 6th May 2017

3 seater Brenchley sofa

from £1695

Bayham chair

from £1395

• A large range of fabrics & leathers to choose from

• Available in customers own fabrics

• Old school, quality upholstery with coil sprung seats

• Dimensions can be altered to suit personal preference

Handmade in England & also

available in bespoke sizes!

Free delivery and up to

3 years 0% APR free credit

Wells Bedding and Interiors

44 High Street, Tunbridge Wells, TN1 1XF

For more information call 01892 272353

www.wellsinteriors.co.uk

Wealden Times | WT176 | October 2016 | Kitchen & Bathroom supplement inside

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