Blackwell and High Tea

 

Ever since the first Cotswolds picture I’ve been frustrated by the disconnect between how gorgeous everything here is and my attempts to convey it in words or photos. So if you want to see how fantastic this all is, start here.

Yesterday it was raining again in the morning.

Instead of trying another rain hike we got in the car and drove down to Windermere, to see Blackwell House a much more modern “stately home”. From Wikipedia:

When the architect MH Baillie Scott built a holiday home overlooking Windermere for his client Sir Edward Holt he created Blackwell, a perfect example of the Arts and Crafts movement.

Blackwell retains many of its original decorative features, including a rare Hessian wall-hanging in the dining room, leaf-shaped door handles, curious window catches, distinctive plasterwork, stained glass and carved wooden panelling by Simpsons of Kendal. The rooms contain furniture and objects by many of the leading Arts and Crafts designers and studios – metalwork by WAS Benson, ceramics by Pilkingtons, and Ruskin Pottery and furniture by Morris & Co., Stanley Webb Davies, Ernest Gimson and Baillie Scott himself.

It’s very cool and we want someone to turn it into a B&B so we can stay there next visit.

Afterwards we had high tea in the coffee lounge of a grand old hotel on the lake.

Three tiers of food:

Two each of thee different kinds of sandwiches.

Scones with clotted cream and jam.

“Fancies”, two each of three little desserts one of which was a chocolate eclair the size of my pinky. The room felt very 19th century British empire and I don’t think I would have been surprised if Phileas Fogg had burst into the room after his trip around the world in 80 days.

After a very leisurely tea we came back to Keswick for a rest. We were stuffed after 3 layers of food so were quite surprised later to find ourselves at a pizzeria demolishing a whole pizza. A stroll through the town and home to bed.