Sir Walter Scott’s Study At Abbotsford

Books and libraries appeal to me on so many levels. I have always wanted a library with a balcony. The study that Sir Walter Scott built at his home in Scotland has to be one of my favourites. When I saw a photo of it, I had try to recreate it.

Research led to an on-line course on Sir Walter Scott and a contact with Kristy Thompson who is also a curator at Abbotsford. She was so helpful with measurements and photographs! The curved staircase was a nightmare to make and it still doesn’t do the real one justice. Nevertheless, I was so pleased that Kristy loved the final photographs of the miniature.

I researched the items in the study and information from letters and descriptions written by those who had visited Scott. They mentioned the piles of papers and books that overflowed the desk and piled on the floor. and the items he collected that had belonged to famous Scottish figures. I wanted the room to look as if he had just stepped out. He was a great lover of dogs and there are two of his favourites sleeping beside his desk as they so often did. Waiting patiently for him to take them for a ramble.

The miniature was on display in Perfections in Miniature at Kensington and then off we went to Abbotsford to see the actual study. The rest of the house is just as wonderful!

The room box is now on loan to the Abbotsford Trust and was on display on Scott’s desk on the anniversary of his birthday. (Click on this link for the video)

Beatrix Potter’s Hilltop Kitchen

The room box of the kitchen at Beatrix Potter’s house, Hilltop, was entered in the Perfection in Miniatures display at the Kensington Dollshouse Festival in London

I was so thrilled that it received a placing in the People’s Choice.

Then I had the opportunity to take it to the real Hilltop and photograph it sitting on the kitchen table. It was a bit strange to walk into a room that I had spent so many hours ‘in’ ; rather like being shrunk to miniature.

Hilltop is in the Lake District and now owned and managed by the National Trust. It is an wonderful place to visit.