Château de Miromesnil

I was commissioned to photograph a beautiful garden in Normandy, France back in 2018. After the shoot, I had some time left before catching the ferry back to England so I stopped at the Château de Miromesnil where I had a lovely walk around the gardens.

Birthplace of Maupassant, many visitors come here because of him. I didn’t know much about the place before I got there and I was so happy to discover the beautiful potager around the château. It is not your usual manicured French garden but it’s full of lovely fruit trees, colourful dahlias and zinnias, cabbages and very photogenic rows of dill. Absolutely heavenly. I would highly recommend to visit and join the guided tour as well (if you’re a French speaker) which is very informative and gives lots interesting details about the past of the château.

October in Scotland

We were very much in need of leaving the house. I did get to travel (and photograph wonderful gardens with the most wonderful people and I can’t wait to be able to tell you more about this) but S. has been working from home (which is great too, of course) but well, we just needed to be away a bit. And so we went to Scotland to catch the beautiful, golden October there. I was craving for the wilderness, cool and rainy days, muted colours and that quiet and calm I very often find there.

We stayed in a self catering accomodation only twenty minutes from Edinburgh but really out in the middle of nowhere. This suited us and the current situation perfectly. We went for quiet walks, up the Lammermuir hills but also to the sea a couple of times. It felt so good being somewhere this tranquil.

We stayed on a farm in a wee bothy. Backing our garden there, there was a walled garden and an old abandoned building that captured me the first time I saw it. It looked derelict and I sooo wanted to see what was behind the walls of the garden. One morning I took a photo of the house, shared it on Instagram and tadaam, not long after that, the owner of that house messaged me. But what are the chances??! Someone who follows me must have recognized the house and let her know? No idea. But long story short, she let me go over and have a look around. I was so excited to (officially) trespass and see the house and the grounds from close! It’s been lying empty for years and the new owners have now started the works and I cannot wait to see the changes next time we’re up.

So above is the house as I first saw it from behind the fence and then from a bit closer. I took many more images of it but I also want to respect its privacy. Oh and the garden is full of beautiful holly bushes and mostly lived in by sheep and that’s about it at the moment but I’m sure it will see some wonderful changes.

So yes, I was looking for peace and quiet. Crisp and grey. Muted colours and wilderness. I needed headspace and to be able to think without sitting in front of a screen. What is a bit unknown of a Winter and a new year just round the corner, these few days away were so important to me, to see clear and to make plans. All this - and more - happened in Scotland. I had two shoots that I’ll tell you about soon. Until then, enjoy October wherever you are. This is by far my favourite month, for all the reasons I mentioned above, so I’m just happy being here.

Cove Harbour - Scotland

The moment Storm Dennis arrived in Scotland, I stopped at the wee parking in Cove and went for a walk after a long drive up from England.

Crovie

On our trip to Scotland during Easter, we travelled through the Cairngorms up to the seaside villages of Moray. My favourite of them all was the picturesque and tiny village of Crovie, which is lying on a narrow ledge between the cliffs and the sea. Due to its location, you have to leave your car up on the cliff and take some steep steps down (and back!) to the village. Which is absolutely beautiful and so very peaceful. You definitely hear no cars only the waves and the occasional seagulls. If you’re ever in the area, do not miss this tiny, tranquil place.