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Monday 30 November 2009

Beatrix Potter

I've been MIA yet again, busy stitching away on Santa's but not this weekend. This weekend i was 'Living the Dream as Seen on Screen' For those who do not know, this is a UK TV programme dedicated to showing us how the other half live in houses that have been used in film or TV.
The house we stayed in now belongs to the National Trust but was once owned by Beatrix Potter and was the very house that was used in the Miss Potter film!!
If you re familiar with the film you will recognise this porch. Can you see just on the floor they have still left the slate Hill Top name plaque?

Hill Top house in the Lake District was the first house that Beatrix Potter bought with earnings from her books and she did live there. When it came to making the film Hill Top was totally impractical for filming and a search was made to find somewhere suitable. Yew Tree Farm was chosen for the job and it was here that we stayed this weekend.
Yew Tree Farm in Coniston was owned by Beatrix Potter, she bought it when the National Trust could not afford too as she did with many, many properties in the lake District, she eventually sold them back to the National Trust when they could afford to buy. She helped set up tea rooms at Yew Tree Farm and she picked out the furnishing and bought them with her own money.

Isn't it the most idyllic looking place you could imagine?

On Saturday morning when we got up there was snow on the hills, making it even more picturesque, if that's possible!
This is the view from the dining room, taken on Sunday morning when it was teaming down with rain and impossible to take more photos outside.
A view of the dining room through the mirror. This is where the furnishing that she chose now live. It's very cosy, there are just 3 tables as there are just 3 room to let here, the log fire was lit for us in the morning. Can you see the lovely dresser with the plates and the corner cabinet? So lovely!
There was a gorgeous sitting room, again the log fire was lit for us and a bottle of port sitting on the window to help yourselves to (yes i did partake in a glass!!)
Lovely panelled wall and leather Chesterfield
Cosy corner with local magazines to browse and a collection of old books, there was gentle music playing in the background too, not a TV in sight...bliss!
Warm fire, just what you need on a chilly night

another view of the sitting room, how cute is that little window!
The next few photos are not the best but i had trouble with the light.
Now i now where the saying 'Up The Wooden Hills' comes from, the house had lovely wooden stairs and panelled walls leading up to the bedrooms.

Our bedroom was call the Tarn Hows room and was just lovely, there were 2 windows like this, one on each side of the room.
And a fabulous four poster bed
The door way you can see on the other side of the room leads to the bathroom, the doorway was very low and there was a sign above saying 'please mind your head' but guess who banged his head at least 3 times? yes DH has a sore head to go back to work with!!
I have just too many photos to show in one post so I'll show more next time of Hill Top and our boat trip on Windermere. If you want to click here to visit Yew Tree Farm website and have a browse, there is a bit on there about the filming of Miss Potter and how Yew Tree Farm came to be chosen to portray Hill Top.
In the meantime, i have one more day holiday from work tomorrow so will be having a lie-in tomorrow and plan on some sitting and stitching..Until next time x

20 comments:

Mylene said...

A beautiful place to stay! Thanks for sharing all the pictures.
Enjoy your free day tomorrow!

Nancy said...

It must have been like a dream to stay in this beautiful house! Thank you for sharing your photos.

Kathy A. said...

Wow, how cool is that! Beatrix Potter's house. Lucky you!

Kim B said...

Amazing pictures and such wonderful history! Thanks for the taking the time to post all these and give us the background!

Rowyn said...

How awesome - lucky you!

Siobhán said...

WOW!! What a wonderful time you must have had. The pics are awesome!

Loraine said...

What a fantastic place! So glad you got to spend some time at this beautiful house. I really enjoyed reading about it. Thanks so much for sharing. I would love to visit your beautiful country someday.
Take Care!

Anonymous said...

What a lovely post, Maggie. Where exactly is the Lake District? Is it the same Lake District mentioned in Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice? Sorry for the ignorance, I am in the US>

Lois said...

What a lovely place to stay! Sounds like you'd a wonderful time. Hope your DH's head is feeling better!

Carolien said...

What a lovely visit, so special! Thanks for sharing & I look forward to the rest.

Bye & greetings, Carolien

Heidi said...

Hi Maggie! I know this place as well as the real Hill Top farm. You took some amazing photos!!! I am glad to glimpse it all through your eyes now. Isn't that book great? I so want to make a reproduction of the quilt on her bed.

Hugs ~
Heidi

Marsha said...

This is why I love blog land. You get to see things around the world that you have no idea about. Beautiful places. Thanks so much for sharing this little piece of heaven here on earth.

Ruth said...

Wow, I'm insanely jealous. Congrats on a great adventure.

doris said...

Fabulous pics of a fabulous place. Sounds like the perfect weekend.

Carol said...

How wonderful to see inside one of BP's homes. Thank you for sharing the photographs.We had a wonderful visit to the Lake District a few years ago.

Anonymous said...

Carol shared your pics with us on her blog and I want to thank you for sharing them here. It really is like a dream come true, isn't it? I can't imagine how exciting this must have been. I love Beatrix Potter and I love Ms Potter!
thank you,
babs in alabama

Karan said...

Oooo I am so green with envy! The times we've passed that beautiful place has always left me wondering what it looked like inside. At least I know now! LOL Lucky you! :0)

glamlawlib said...

Just discovered your blog, I stayed here earlier in the year :) Lovely photos!

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MysteryKnitter said...

What a great trip!!!!!!!! I'm sure you have enjoyed every second!