House & Garden Magazine

As the seasons shift and everything begins to bloom anew, our June issue celebrates the joy of gardens at their most expressive. Among the many inspiring spaces featured, we step outside for our new cover to the characterful Wiltshire garden of landscape designer Catherine FitzGerald (@catofglin ) and her husband, actor Dominic West. Set around a former Victorian brewery in a Cotswold village, the garden has been reimagined as a place of spontaneity and quiet beauty. Designed to feel as though it has always belonged, Catherine’s garden is a masterclass in letting go. Catherine wanted it to look as if it had always been there: whimsical Arts and Crafts topiary, roses and clematis on hazel structures, giant cardoons and unexpected treasures tucked into every corner. ‘I wanted it to be relaxed – a place of experimentation and change, where random plant associations and self-seeding could happen without it mattering,’ she says. The result is an atmospheric, ever-evolving landscape - where informality reigns, plants lead the way and each view feels both grounded in its setting and gently untamed. A glimpse, perhaps, of the Cotswold gardens to come. Discover the June issue and our cover story at the link in bio now. Photo by @montgomeryphoto Words by @pacets

From city courtyards to sweeping country landscapes, our annual edit by garden editor Clare Foster celebrates the talent redefining how we design, plant and live outdoors. This year, we spotlight the top 15 garden and landscape designers in the UK right now - alongside a handful of rising names to watch. Discover the full list below or at the link in bio now. @tommasseyuk @jinny.blom @harryholdingstudio @robertmyersassociates @elkssmith @stefano.marinaz @harrisbuggstudio Pip Morrison @chrisbeardshawofficial @sheilajacklandscapes @coyotewillow @arnemaynardgardendesign @andysturgeondesign @isabelbannerman @acreswildgardendesign @darrenhawkeslandscapes @urquhart_hunt @awbassociates @todd_longstaffe_gowan @tomhoblyn @ann_mariepowell @sarahpricelandscapes @lucianogiubbileigardens @tomstuartsmith @jothompson.studio

'The clients were unsure about whether to stay in London,' says interior and furniture designer Pandora Taylor, 'so this house had to be a compromise.' And so the designer focused on bringing in the village-in-the-city feel of Herne Hill. With its charming high street and tree-lined roads, the area is an almost miraculously rural spot, sandwiched between bustling Brixton and Camberwell, so Pandora set about to create a scheme which could play upon this feeling. 'It really takes you out and transports you to the country,' details Pandora. Follow the link in our profile to tour the adaptable Herne Hill house with a country cottage feel. Photo by @astridtemplier Words by Evie Delaney Design by @pandorataylor

As spaces to dream (in both senses), you can do some truly wonderful and imaginative things in small bedrooms. Be it colour drenching, layered pattern or clever four-poster beds that create the illusion of space, there’s plenty of scope to think creatively. But beyond aesthetics, the real challenge lies in making them as practical as they are pretty. With a little clever thinking, even the smallest bedroom can become both. We’ve rounded up our favourite examples to provide the ultimate masterclass in small-space design. Head to the link in bio for all the inspiration you could dream of. Photo by @mark_anthony_fox Design by @orlaghmccloskey01

Having moved into his house in Clapham in south-west London in 1985, Christopher Masson has constantly altered the configuration and planting of his garden over the nearly 40 years he has been there, to suit his current tastes and needs, and to act as an experimentation ground for his work as a garden designer. ‘The garden’s been in constant flux ever since I arrived,’ he says. ‘My thoughts are always evolving and the garden reflects that.’ A typical long, narrow London plot, it is almost entirely filled with plants, a lush oasis in which exotic evergreens rub shoulders with Bengal roses to create a dreamy and immersive space. Follow the link in our profile to tour the London garden where every inch is filled with lush planting. Photo by @alistergthorpe Words by @clarefostergardens

‘It was almost like a mini estate within an estate,’ says interior designer Lucy Cunningham of this restored farmhouse in West Sussex. Originally part of a historic English estate, the listed house was discovered by clients looking to downsize without losing space for family life. ‘Their main stipulation was that it absolutely had to feel like their children’s forever house,’ Lucy explains. Working alongside architect Ian Adam-Smith, Lucy helped reconfigure the house and its outbuildings, adding a kitchen extension with Crittall doors and bringing more natural light into the interiors. The brief was to create ‘that nice balance of history and authenticity, married with new things that make modern life comfortable.’ Existing furniture, inherited artwork and vintage textiles formed the foundation for layered interiors filled with warmth and character. The result is a house traditional in spirit, but designed for modern family life. Tour the house in full at the link in bio now. Photo by @horwoodphoto Words by @aabowes Design by @lucycunninghaminteriors

This week, our Garden Editor Clare took a look around Architectural Plants, tucked away in the Sussex countryside near Pulborough. Known for its specialist forms and grand specimens, the nursery has built a reputation for the bold and unexpected - qualities that will be on full display next week as they take centre stage in Chelsea Flower Show’s Grand Pavilion with a jungle-like display of extraordinary plants. As the buzz around Chelsea (@the_rhs ) builds, our anticipation is certainly growing for what’s to come. Video by @gessicahage

A tricky - and often times practically challenging space to get right - bathroom renovations come with endless practical and fanciful considerations. Do you have space for a separate shower? But how do you avoid making a big mistake if you don’t know that it is one at the time? We have asked interior designers to reveal their biggest bathroom design no-nos so that you know exactly what not to do. Head to the link in bio for more. Photo by @alexanderjamesphoto Design by @haminteriors

‘It had me at the full glass front. But the fact that it sits on a huge piece of granite that hangs out over the water? You can slip into nature without disturbing it,’ says Carolyn Evans, who together with her husband Ray, are this storied house’s current stewards. On the lip of a granite rock in Maine’s storied Down East peninsula, Maura McEvoy, Basha Burrell and Kathleen Hackett celebrate a beautifully preserved mid-century house by the architect Emily Muir, in an exclusive extract from The Maine House II – tour it at the link in our profile. Photos by @mauramcevoy Words by @basha_oog Design by @kathleenhackett

When Louisa Preskett Mobbs, co-founder of Maison Margaux, and her husband Jeremy moved into their Grade II-listed 19th-century townhouse overlooking one of west London’s prettiest garden squares, they lived with it for five years before embarking on a redesign. In the midst of lockdown, they turned their attention to the handsome coach house tucked quietly at the bottom of the garden, enlisting friends Angelica and Richard Squire of Studio Squire to reimagine the space. Grand in scale yet discreetly hidden behind the main house, the building feels closer to a countryside bolthole than a London outbuilding - an unexpected retreat set within one of the capital’s most bucolic addresses. Tour the London townhouse and its remarkable coach house at the link in bio now. Photo by @mark_anthony_fox Words by @charlottemccaughan Design by @studio_squire

Sofa shopping is not for the faint-hearted. Between balancing comfort, practicality and aesthetics, finding one that works - and lasts - can feel like an endless pursuit. But before you resign yourself to replacing a tired-looking sofa, consider this: the right update can completely transform it. From clever reupholstery ideas to smaller styling tweaks that breathe new life into a well-loved piece, we explore how to revive the hardest-working seat in the house. Discover more at the link in bio now. Photo by @mark_anthony_fox Design by @violetburns @colefaxandfowler

‘It’s like real escapism.’ If you look for it, inspiration for the home can be found almost anywhere - and sometimes the projects we learn the most from aren’t houses at all. Hidden within 300 acres of rewilded Devon landscape, Ukai is one of three cabins designed by HÁM Interiors for Cove Valley, where compact living becomes an exercise in thoughtful design. ‘As the final cabin to be completed, its design turned out to be the crazy fun one at the end,’ says Tom Cox. With a space this intimate, tranquillity lies in the careful design detailing and intricate layering, familiar hallmarks of the HÁM design approach, distilled here on a smaller, more immersive scale. Tour the woodland cabin in full at the link in bio now. Video by @fliegauf_studio Produced by @elizabethjmetcalfe Design by @haminteriors @studio.ham Location @covevalley