I stencilled one of the fabulous shepherd's huts at Hesleyside Hall in Northumberland.
The hut was called Bracken. My brief had been to soften the edges of the decoration inside the hut with stencilled 'greenery' to match the wallpaper. The interior was designed by Anna Charlton and it was already cosy and welcoming before I got there. I just added forest themed twiddly bits. Hesleyside Hall has been home to the Charlton family for over 750 years. These luxurious huts and cabins nestle within the gardens of Hesleyside Hall, landscaped by Capability Brown in the 1700's as so many of the grand country houses were. The interior of Bracken includes a wood-burning stove, king-size bed, kitchen area and en-suite shower. Outside there is a porch with rocking chairs and a large bath tub that you heat by lighting a log fire under it. There's a fire pit for each hut and marshmallows are provided for toasting in the flames. Not that I had time for any of that. I was here to work.
Firstly we needed to make the stencils. I know you will ask where the paper came from; it's Sybilla by Living Quarters and here's a link to it. The stencils are custom made for this one project and are not for sale. We do have some lovely tree stencils amongst our own designs and you will find them at our web site. A good starting point would be this collection as it has trees and flowers similar to the one's stencilled in the Bracken Hut.
I started by decorating the window shutter beside the bed.
I wanted it to look pretty from the outside as well as in. When the shutter is open one sees a delicate stencilled flower; and when it is closed one sees a tree design and then the flower is visible only when you pass by the cabin window.
I stencilled with artist quality acrylic paints by Golden and by Liquitex. Some of the Farrow & Ball paint that had been used on the kitchen area was included in the stencilled flowers and berries.
After the little door on the window was finished I tackled the bigger doors under the bed then embellished the pocket door to the shower and lavvy. All were stencilled with motifs from the wallpaper and wherever possible I made the painted decoration an extension of the paper design. None of the stencils had to be particularly robust; they just needed to do this one job so we were able to offer the delicacy of the original without worry about the longevity of the product.
Greenery was stencilled over the bed and under it. I had to test that the stencilling looks good from the pillows on both sides of the bed.
For a similar ivy stencil see our DR1 Designer Ivy stencil.
I had a lovely day working in the most charming surroundings. I took photos and videos of the stencilling process and no doubt they will appear on the @thestencillibrary Instagram and Facebook accounts. Anna and William Charlton fed me frequently and popped in to check on my wellbeing even though they were busy with a television crew filming in another cabin. Holiday makers staying in a neighbouring hut came visiting with offers of wine and food, they took this picture of me as I was clearing up to leave for the evening.
I could have done with a long, log lit, bath on the porch, enjoying a book from the mini library while sipping the wine that the neighbours offered but I needed to head home and pack stencils for our mail order customers. Hesleyside is in the dark skies area of Northumberland almost on the border of England and Scotland, not far from the Kielder Observatory. To learn more about Hesleyside Huts and to make a booking go to their site. The Charlton family have created a magical experience for their visitors ...just read the reviews and take a look at the tree house!
Good night Bracken, you were a delight to spend time with and when I get a chance I will return to see you with all your soft furnishings back in place.
Helen Morris. Author