Magic carpets

Going bespoke can be the key to a stylish space

Tailored for success

Benson & Clegg has been making bespoke suits for decades in Mayfair, where it is as much about the experience as the end product

Just give me a sign

Even if no one agrees what a red fingerpost denotes, rural communities still cherish their historic signage

Things that go bump in the castle

A century ago, with a pall of loss and decay hanging over once splendid houses, a haunted history was one way for struggling estate owners to stay connected to a more illustrious past

There's a mouse in the House

As Larry celebrates 10 years as Chief Mouser to the Cabinet Office, Claire Jackson looks back at the cats of Downing Street–and the prime ministers who have served them

Under Milk Wood

Britain's greatest masterpieces

The Definition Of Slow Food

In the garden

Escape to the country

Mulholland House, Hampstead, London NW3, proves you can create abundance and plenty in the heart of the city, says Tiffany Daneff

Keeper of the architectural flame

The eminent country-house historian celebrates his 90th birthday

Ploughing on

Bleak are the brown hues and pincers of October, the medieval month for sowing seeds, says Amy Jeffs

The comfort of colour

When decorating kitchens, colour is now definitely on the menu, says Arabella Youens

New looks for autumn

The latest paint colours, selected by Amelia Thorpe

Lord of the dance

Poussin’s more riotous works still exhibit a balletic frozen elegance, says Matthew Dennison

Northern revivals

Three substantial homes in the North of England reflect the wealth and taste of their former owners

STRICTLY BALLROOM

90 years after it first opened, the ballroom at Claridge’s hotel has been restored to its former Art Deco glory. Jo Rodgers takes to the dance floor

The Land Rover

Britain's greatest Masterpieces

You can leave your hat on...

A glorious thatch topping makes a house all the prettier

The play's the thing

The long-awaited tale of Thomas Cromwell’s downfall is narrative theatre at its best, but the new Hamlet underwhelms

Vive la France

The Fine Arts Paris fair should help re-establish the French capital as the international centre of the art world

The Charleston effect

The joyful exuberance of the Bloomsbury Group’s spiritual home is having a notable bearing on the work of designers and craftspeople living nearby

Hunting for solutions

The MFHA chairman on a lifetime with hounds, avoiding ‘own goals’ and the future

The thrill of la chasse

At the revamped Musée de la Chasse et de la Nature in Paris, it is still accepted that hunting and Nature can be mutually beneficial

Sweet like chocolate

Never judge a book by its cover–or a labrador by its chocolate coat, especially now they are no longer reviled in the shooting field

From rasher with love

Sizzling, crispy and irresistibly pork-scented bacon all starts with a well-reared traditional breed of pig and a slow, careful curing process.

A many-splendoured thing

Our correspondent savours the challenge of casting a few flies on the fabled Naver for the first time and ponders the endless paths a life of fishing roves

Best Autumn And Winter Escapes Across The World

Whether you’d rather take to the slopes or relax by the pool, Holly Kirkwood has the pick of autumn and winter escapes across the world

Into the blue

As one of the rarest gemstones, Paraíba tourmalines are getting rarer and even more desirable, reveals Joanna Hardy

Give us a clue

Can you explain what hair ice, cramp balls and pillow mounds are? If not, don’t worry–naturalist John Wright has all the answers to our most unusual countryside mysteries

Wild for magic mushrooms

No, not the fungi that inspire hallucinations, cautions Tom Parker Bowles, but do take the time to seek out divine-tasting ceps and chanterelles on the forest floor

The man who turned the tide

The first and last member of Enterprise Neptune on mapping the British coast