A RELAXED AFFAIR

THE COUNTRY RETREAT OF JIMMY CHOO CREATIVE DIRECTOR SANDRA CHOI AND HER HUSBAND TAMBURLAINE GORST HAS A GARDEN EQUIPPED TO RESTORE MIND, BODY AND SOUL

- FIONA MCCARTHY

As creative director of global shoe brand Jimmy Choo, Sandra Choi’s daily job is all about focusing on the intricate, demanding details of creating the A-list’s favourite ‘Choos’. Yet at weekends, when she escapes with her husband Tam, an artist, and daughters Phoenix and Cyan to the family’s property in the countryside, tucked away at the top of a verdant valley with the lights of Bath twinkling at night across the horizon, her garden is an altogether more relaxed affair.

Spread over 65 acres of steep, sometimes tricky, terrain, which extends all the way down to a brook running off the nearby River Avon – the terraced garden is surrounded by ancient woodlands, wildflower meadows and orchards. The previous owner, a botanical artist, created much of its structure, including sequences of terraced garden, divided by steps created from old sleepers; long tunnels wound with hazel; arches overhung with old roses; and vibrant borders filled with large balls of box, lavender, alliums, peonies and foxgloves.

Sandra and Tam arrived seven years ago – ‘we have always thought of ourselves as custodians rather than owners of the land,’ says Sandra. Dedicated to preserving the land for the many future generations of badgers, foxes, deer and birds that pass through the property on a daily basis, they recently welcomed volunteers from the local Avon Wildlife Trust who planted a ‘wildlife corridor’ – including a new orchard and mixed-species hedgerow – to provide shelter for insects and small fauna.