A Gentry Estate in Wales

It's really hard to grasp that one month ago we were in Wales. A lot has happened since then and our trip seems a little distant already. There are many sites I've not yet shared here, and it's a great memory-jogger when I do. 

So let's visit Llanerchaeron - my cousin told me that the pronunciation of the "Ll" is like saying an "L" with the tongue towards the front palate and letting air pass on both sides of the mouth. Try it - I think it's a little bit like a "CL" sound. Correct me if I'm wrong.

While going through my photos, I realized that I did not take a photo of the outside of this Georgian villa, designed by John Nash in 1795. Nash later went on to design Buckingham Palace, Regent Street, and Brighton Pavilion. So I took the above photo from the Llanerchaeron site.  

Nash was all about symmetry. The dining room is to the left of the front door in the top photo. The sideboard at the back of this photo is the front of the house. You'll notice there's no window on that wall in the dining room. But there is one outside. It's fake, just there for symmetry. 

Llanerchaeron is a small estate, as estates go. Ten generations of the Lewis/Lewes family. It's been well preserved and displays the self-sufficiency of an estate more than any other site we've seen. 

The wash-basin stand in the photo above looks as though it was created especially for the curve of the wall.

In the enormous kitchen, this dresser of china caught my eye with the blue and white. Teresa, my cousin, told me that this is Burleigh Ware, made in England from Devon and Cornwall clay. I went onto the Burleigh site after arriving home and am now thinking that Burleigh Ware may be in my future. 

There's a great article on the site that tells how to achieve the "Dresser Look". 

A focal point of any kitchen is the stove - this one is massive. I can't imagine the heat it would generate on a hot day like the one when we visited. 

The house where the family lived is not particularly large and the supports needed for such an estate are much more expansive. We saw the stables, the coach house, the cow barn and pig sties, complete with animals. 

After touring the living quarters and kitchen, we visited the cellar where beer was stored for the staff, and wine for the family. There were laundry rooms, servants sleeping quarters, a cheese room, salting room, scullery, baking kitchen and more. It really gave a picture into the "upstairs-downstairs" aspect of life for decades before the First World War. Such an estate provided work and sustenance for a large community of people.  

The walled garden was especially interesting. Within the micro-climate created by the high stone walls, food and flowers were grown to last the year. Several years ago we watched the BBC production The Victorian Garden that documented each month of the garden. It was so interesting to see such a garden, once neglected, now being brought back to life. 

Isn't the door pretty - all those coats of paint add so much character. 

Signs asked visitors to be careful about closing the doors to the garden as the farmyard animals were not welcome there.

The glass house held geraniums and other tender plants, including tomatoes. 

Roses adorn various outbuildings and small offices. 

Roses and brick or stone walls make a wonderful pair. 

Llanerchaeron gave such a complete picture of life on a small estate. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. 

Linking to Mosaic Monday, hosted by Maggie of Normandy Life.