In planning our trip to explore England at Christmas, we knew we’d have to be pretty selective. There is so much to see, it’s easy to get carried away, overbook and end up exhausted by hurtling from one place to the next. So we decided to divide the trip into three main chunks. The first leg was around Oxford, which included Windsor, Waddesdon’s Christmas Market and Waddesdon Manor. We finished up in London to see the lights and do some shopping. In between, we headed up to Derbyshire to see Chatsworth, which is beautifully decorated for Christmas and is renowned for its Christmas market (to say nothing of the farm shop – yum!). Chatsworth also has a lot of self-catering options and we knew we’d be comfortable there.
We enjoyed our stay at the Hunting Tower a couple of years ago, but we wanted to try something different for this trip, Park Cottage in Baslow is just a few miles from Chatsworth and the farm shop and within walking distance of several pubs. It was charming.
It had an extremely cosy sitting room with a working log stove, which we enjoyed most evenings.
There was a really well-equipped kitchen, of which I forgot to take a picture, so I’ve scooped this one from their website. The door to the washroom is just to the left of the Grandfather clock.
Glenn was a bit taken aback by the bed. I loved it; he was less enthused. Possibly because he’d been doing the driving and was a bit tired, or maybe the thought of wrestling suitcases up the stairs didn’t appeal. but he was inclined to settle in the smaller bedroom on the main floor. Nope. Up the narrow, twisting stairs we went.
Who could resist sleeping in a tree?
We could just envision Dundee climbing the branches and launching himself onto unwary, sleeping victims below. Happily, he was safely home in Canada and we could count on an unmolested experience.
Love the beamed ceiling and the painted wardrobe.
Tiny windows set low to the ground looked out over the roof of the sitting room.
In case you’ve never seen a thatched roof up close, here’s what they look like. The decorative ridge is usually covered with mesh, and sometimes the whole roof is. The pale green moss adds a lovely patina to the soft grey thatch.
All of the Chatsworth “outbuildings” sport the same Victorian Blue paint on the doors and fences.
After unpacking, we took ourselves off to the Chatsworth Farmshop to procure some wine to supplement the lovely welcome basket that greeted us which included ground coffee, bacon, sausages, sliced ham, tomatoes, fruit, eggs, butter, bread, milk, jam, scones, a pork pie, cheddar cheese, crisps, a lemon cake and chocolate biscuits, It was more than enough for four days of breakfasts and snacky dinners. They’d also left us tickets to view the house as often as we wanted during our stay. We had booked a separate evening tour to see it at night, which they offer on Thursdays and Fridays during the Christmas season.
The following morning we set out to see the Christmas Market and tour the house. The cheese stall got our mouths watering right away.
Especially when we spotted the Lancashire Bombs, a marvellous creamy cheddar we first tasted while staying at Bovey Castle in Dartmoor a few years ago. Covered in a thick black rind and shaped like a vintage bomb, the cheeses are quite distinctive. We bought several as gifts (and for our own consumption, naturally), having determined that Canada Customs allowed us to bring 20 kg of cheese back (I kid you not). To get them home, I ended up putting them in our camera backpack, snuggled between the dividers normally used for lenses. It worked!
I was intrigued by the bird-seed wreaths. What a splendid idea!
Net bags of various bird seeds and peanuts adorned moss-covered wreaths.
The hedgehog version was adorable, too.
They also had more conventional wreaths – boxwood with bright berries in reds, oranges and blues.
And sturdy pinecone wreaths, made colourful with pomegranates and berries.
The hellebores were blooming away in the chilly atmosphere. The English climate is fabulous for gardens.
I was very tempted by this hedgehog pillow but tried to be mindful of packing space. I’d already acquired Christmas dresses for granddaughters at John Lewis in Oxford, and London was still to come.
Where else but Chatsworth would offer a champagne bar? It’s never the wrong time for champagne, in my books.
Coming right up, madam! The copper vats held hot cider and mulled wine. Well! We’ll be back for some of that.
Then we spotted some rather more, er, unusual drinking vessels.
Really?
Really… I knew my zany daughter Lauren would love one, but I resisted temptation. I could just imagine what Customs would have to say. “You’ve brought back bomb-cheese and Viking drinking horns. What was the purpose of your journey, and where did you say you’d been?”
Let’s look at some of the other booths, instead.
Sheepskin mittens for babies. How cute are those?
At this point the heavens opened, so we took refuge in the Stables gift shop. Here I tossed caution to the wind and acquired some wonderful sticker books for the older granddaughters and a melamine tea set for our youngest granddaughter, Riley. The older cousins got china ones for Easter one year, but she had not yet made her appearance.
Isn’t the cottage container adorable? It’s by Emma Bridgewater, so the cups, plates, etc. sport her characteristic polka dots. Yes, Glenn did give me the eyebrow, as if to say “and you’re getting that home, how, exactly?” That problem didn’t have to be solved today.
Some intriguing decorations gave us a clue about what to expect in the house decorations. The theme was Fairy Tales, and Mr Frog was waiting to turn into a prince.
Carrots and cabbages. Where might we find those, I wondered?
There were abundant naturally-themed decorations, too, including nuts and oranges. When we go into the house you’ll see where they featured!
That’s where we’re going next!
I’m sharing this post with Between Naps on the Porch.
Wow, love this post Helen. A nice trip to view this morning with my coffee. I loved seeing Park Cottage, so cozy any and cute. And the market, I am reminded how amazing this world is. Just love all the wreaths. Thank you for sharing this, it reminds me I should get out more, and to the UK! LOL. Enjoy the rest of your trip. Gary x
Hi Gary,
I think I enjoy writing blogs as much as travelling because I get to experience the trip all over again! So glad you enjoyed this. We saw this article once we got back from England and realized how much more there was to see!
Hope you enjoy the rest of the weekend, Gary!
Loved it all. What can I say. Not sure about that bed though. You must take an extra suitcase for all that stash as it must be hard to say no to all those goodies especially the cheese bombs. What fun you must have had. Yes, I could see Glenn rolling his eyes with all your purchases. What we women do is buy and then figure out how to pack it. We’re out of here next Tuesday then home to start thinking about Christmas.
We had a blast. I’d do England near Christmas again in a heartbeat! We took two practically empty carry-on bags, Maura, which facilitated the purchases nicely. Thank goodness. I put the tea set upright in one of the bags and surrounded it with squishy stuff to hold it firmly in place.
Safe travels on Tuesday.
Oh my goodness. What a wonderful shopping experience. There’s not enough money in the world for me to go there. I’d have to have EVERYTHING. And that tree bed is to die for. A cat would be in heaven with that bed.
Waddesdon and Chatsworth both had excellent markets, and I understand there are many more to see! Next time we’ll try to fit in some different ones (because I strongly suspect there will be next time!). Have a great weekend, Sandy. I hope all is going well with your Christmas preparations.
Dear Helen, Wish I could have a bomb! I’m sure that is delicious…one of the things I miss most about Europe is the wonderful cheese. And I’d have taken that pillow home (after all, you’re allowed to bring it on board as a personal item). We had hedgehogs in our French garden; in fact I had to rescue one that fell down our below-grade basement window shaft. I wrapped her in a towel and set her loose on the lawn. Last year during (de)construction in the Alps, someone parked a wooden pallet on the ground next to the forsythia for a few weeks. When I went to move it away, I found a big hedger curled up underneath. I carefully placed it back…leaving him sleeping. Aren’t Christmas markets fascinating? Hope to get to some next year. Thanks for the interim solution!
Beatrice, why weren’t you with me at the market? I never thought of the pillow as my personal item. I’ll definitely keep that in mind for next time.
Like you, I love hedgehogs. You were so kind to rescue them. I’ve done similar things here with chipmunks. They just can’t get out of the window wells. I’ve just bought a duvet cover and set of sheets for my youngest granddaughter from Zara Home and they feature hedgehogs among other woodland animals. So appealing.
We’re lucky here in Canada to get all kinds of European cheeses, including the unpasteurized ones. I really notice the difference in selection when we get to the States – much blander there. And American Cheese – what is that? Yuck.
I hope your Christmas preparations are going well.
Dear Helen, We can also get raw-milk cheeses, but I think they suffer from the transportation. When I had the choice of buying French cheese in France or just over the border in Germany, I found that the products were not identical.
Hedgehogs…I was pleased to see Mrs. Tiggy-winkle in your other post, as I still have all the Potter books from my childhood. Maybe reading them so young and looking at the detailed and sensitive illustrations had something to do with the rescues.
As to carry-ons, the airline I love is Swiss…they allow all manner of outlandish items! If we have a snowy Christmas next year, I will test the limits of their indulgence. Ha!
Helen, Wishing you and your family a Wonderful Christmas season! Thank you so much for the Chatsworth posts! Beautiful photos and so enjoyable to visit via computer! My daughter and I went to Chatsworth several years ago, in the summertime, and loved it and the area.
Thank you again for your excellent recipes also!
And the same to your family, Kay! I hope you have a joy filled Christmas.
You are most welcome for the Chatsworth pictures. I love taking them while we tour, as it “sharpens my eyes”, so I notice a lot more. Plus it’s fun reliving the whole trip with processing the photos and posting the blog. Chatsworth is gorgeous any time of year, isn’t it?