2019-08-01_Homes_&_Antiques 2

wallsprovidea calmbackdropforthe

couple’smanyandvariedcollections–

oldmaps,vintageadvertisingsigns,

Polishpoery,copperpansandassorted

kitchenalia,aswellasthebeautiful

quiltsthatAlisonmakesbyhand.In

theconservatory,however,Alison

chosea vibrantemeraldgreeninorder

toconnecttheroomtothegardenand

thelandscapebeyond.

Keencollectors,thecoupleare

regularvisitorstothemanyantiques

shopsinnearbyBerwick-upon-Tweed.

FavouritesincludeVintageupon

TweedandTheOldDairyinFord.

‘Theyallhaveaneclecticmixofitems

thatt wellinourcoage,’saysAlison,

whohasgottoknowtheownersover

theyears.Thisisespeciallyhelpful

whentheyarelookingforsomething

inparticular.

Stephenhaslonghadaninterest in

VictorianandEdwardianclayboles

• hisextensivecollectionincludes
  exampleshedugupasa boy.The most
  interestingitemsrelatetotheginger
  beerandsodawaterbusinesshis
  great-grandfather’sfamilyowned at the
  endofthe19thcentury,someofwhich
  nowcommandhighpricesatspecialist
  auctions.Alisonisalsointerested
  inpoery,butsheisdrawnto
  contemporarypiecesfromthefamous
  CeramikaArtystycznaworksin
  Boleslawiec,Poland.Shelovesthe
  intricate,hand-painteddesigns.

Alisonhasa realeyefor

colour,whichisevidentin

herquilts,aswellasinthe

bright,sofurnishings

thatll theirhome.

LEFT The dressing table

and the Tyrolean-style

chair are from Sam Burns’

Yard. Alison’s father

painted them, reproducing

a beautiful floral pattern.

The wallpaper is Epping

by Holden.

RIGHT Miriam’s bedroom

is papered with maps that

Alison was given after she

posted a request online.

The iron bed frame is

from Laura Ashley and

the vintage Paisley-pattern

eiderdown came from an

antiques shop in St Ives.

The white chest of drawers

is another eBay bargain.

88 Homes & Antiques August 2019