The Isle of Sheppey isn't renowned as a holiday destination but, in these challenging times, taking a break closer to home has certainly increased in popularity. Situated just off the north Kent coast and linked to the mainland by two bridges, the island is just over an hour by rail from St Pancras. This is hard to believe as you gaze across the marshes from the garden of Kingshill Farmhouse, tucked away at the end of a two-mile track that leads to the Elmley Nature Reserve. The nature reserve borders the Swale, a channel of the Thames estuary, which separates Sheppey from the mainland,' explains Georgina Fulton, who manages the property with her husband Gareth. It is internationally significant as a breeding ground for nesting birds such as lapwings, redshanks and avocets, and an important winter migratory destination for tens of thousands of wildfowl and wading birds.
The Fultons took over running the 3,300-acre reserve in 2013 after Gareth retired from the army. After we were married in 2011, we began to think seriously about the future - ours and Elmley's - and how we could combine the two,' says Gareth. At the time, the RSPB, which had leased Elmley from Georgina's father Philip Merricks a farmer and conservationist - for the previous 30 years, was about to vacate the neighbouring farmhouse. No maintenance had been done on the house, or the adjacent farm buildings, for decades and they were falling apart - some more than others.
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة October 2022 من Homes & Antiques.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك ? تسجيل الدخول
هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة October 2022 من Homes & Antiques.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.
بالفعل مشترك? تسجيل الدخول
THE ANTIQUES THAT SHAPED ME - Tess Newall
The decorative artist and homeware designer shares her love of patina and a treasured childhood flower press
A Victorian Vision
There's a magical, story-book feel to this 19th-century manor in the Lincolnshire Wolds, where much-loved antique and vintage collections and a sensitive restoration have brought it back to life
Farm FRESH
Filled with painstakingly sourced primitive antiques and Welsh decorative pieces, Dorian Bowen's atmospheric farmstead is an authentic homage to bygone times
THE WOMEN OF MODERNISM
In the Modernist era, when clean lines, geometric forms, and functional design reshaped the world, a group of often-overlooked visionary women defied convention, pioneering innovations that laid the foundations of modern design, says
Global Treasures
Amber Clery has created a cosy, bohemian home filled with unusual finds gathered from her travels across the world
A blazing SUCCESS
This Georgian home in Northern Ireland, once ravaged by fire and time, has been reimagined for the modern age with vibrant colour, joyful patterns and a perfect balance of old and new
HEIRLOOMS OF THE FUTURE SHANNON CLEGG
The botanical sculptor talks to Dominique Corlett about finding her niche and how her creative practice connects with the landscape of her childhood
48 hours in FROME
A cloth town of great importance from the 15th to the late-18th century, Frome in Somerset is now on the map for its vintage fashion and sustainable clothing, as well as its buzzing antiques scene, discovers Rosanna Morris
Island HOPPING
The traditional fitted kitchen island now faces competition from more flexible, modern alternatives
ON THE COFFEE TABLE Art through the ages
Explore 700 years of art history through the paintings of The National Gallery, with people at the heart of every page
