The English Home

The English Home brings you seasonal British design and lifestyle throughout the year. Every issue includes quintessentially British kitchens, bedrooms, bathrooms and living rooms, with useful advice from leading interior designers and architects on how to achieve classic, elegant style.

A letter from home

The English Home

NOTEBOOK • Our monthly edit of news, shopping inspiration and inside information

DESIGN DISCOVERIES • Engaging prints and heritage techniques from across the globe have inspired new designs that contribute to eclectic and effortless schemes with a fresh energy

PLEASING POTTING • Tactile essentials and decorative touches make it desirable to spend time in the potting shed

NATURAL HARMONY • Stay in tune with nature using materials such as wood, cork, leather and stone for organic beauty

THE EDIT • Celebrating brands with anniversaries and specialist seasonal offerings this month

CULTURAL EXCHANGE • With one foot in Hong Kong, the other in Wiltshire, Amanda and Stephen Clark have successfully married the two with an exuberant display of chinoiserie in their Georgian former hunting lodge

A GARDENER’S WORLD • American-born Allison Ilsley has swapped a career on stage in New York for life in a quiet riverside Essex village, creating a traditional English country home and garden to match

FULL BLOOM • A French-style house in Essex has been sympathetically restored by owner Victoria Single, who has added rococo flair and connected the interior to the garden and views beyond

GLOBAL SPIRIT • Uniquely mismatched furniture and accessories sit beautifully alongside international collections of textiles and art to create a wonderfully eclectic, stylish home in the city

IN GOOD COMPANY • Bring the beauty of the garden to interiors with botanical designs, glean designer advice on using checks, decide on wood or stone flooring with our expert guide...and more

Nature’s palette • Introduce native flowers and trees into interiors through patterns and palettes inspired by English country gardens

CHECKS Creative Combinations • Continuing our series celebrating the evolution of colour and pattern, we explore how trends and historical influences have shaped British interiors, this time examining the enduring appeal of checks

CHECK IT OUT • Often thought of as a cosy winter print, these check patterns have a lighter aesthetic that brings a softer and genteel mood to interiors

AGE-OLD DEBATE • When should an antique be repaired, restored or updated? Industry experts outline the case for and against making changes to well-loved pieces

Homage at home • Seek fresh planting inspiration from some of England’s most revered gardens

NATURAL SELECTION • Whether to choose stone or wood flooring can be a conundrum. Here we look at the advantages of each and considerations to take into account before buying

FRAGRANT ELDERFLOWER CAKE • A stylish teatime treat that makes the most of these sweet-scented, delicate flowers, ready to pick from late May

What to do in MAY • Make May the month for styling with flowers, for updating a table with pretty patterns, harvesting the first of the salad crop and freshening laundry in the warm spring breeze

Potted WISDOM • Gardening expert Sarah Raven shares her tips on how to master the art of growing beautiful flowers in pots for year-round colour and interest

My English Garden • Lucy Vail, award-winning florist and youngest-ever designer of the Royal Entrance at RHS Chelsea Flower Show, lives with husband, Archie, and their baby, Alfie, in London