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Nine of Britain's most beautiful and awe-inspiring painted ceilings from the Country Life archive
Our round-up of some of the Britain's prettiest painted ceilings is a good reminder to always look up.
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The Glovebox: The fastest coffee shop on four wheels
Bentley joins forces with Joe & The Juice, Rolls-Royce makes a Spectre for a dog, an Austin Mini with royal connections comes up for auctions, and Norman Foster clambers into a Bulldog.
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‘One remembers not to give the Queen a thump of joyful friendliness’: Remembering Norman Parkinson — revolutionary fashion photographer and Cecil Beaton’s only homegrown rival
Cecil Beaton might be the toast of London right now, with a new exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery, but contemporary Norman Parkinson was always hot on his heels.
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Tim Knox, director of the Royal Collection, charts a century of regal taste
Edward VII swept away the cobwebs of mid-Victorian style, Queen Mary had passion for all things small and the Queen Mother bought rather avant-garde art.
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‘One of the most amazing spaces in London’: Two Hogarth murals, inside an 18th century London hospital, are to go on public display for the first time
St Bartholomew's Hospital’s north wing is to open as a visitor attraction and events space — while the rest of the hospital will continue to operate as normal.
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Sophia Money-Coutts: A snob's guide to wellies
Wellington boots are a signifier, says Sophia Money-Coutts, of whether you are 'proper country' or not.
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Fall the right way: Country Life's shopping guide to the very best this autumn
From tweed to tartan, scented candles to sandwiches, here's how to spend your money this autumn.
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What to expect when you start collecting
Starting a new collection can be daunting. Art advisor Patrick Monahan shares his top tips on what and how to buy and what to avoid.
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'Each of my active ancestors had the good sense and taste to purchase or commission the outstanding work of their time': Meet the collecting dynasties
Whether it is adding contemporary paintings to a gallery of Old Masters or branching out into territories as diverse as Modernist chairs, Iranian tiles or Churchill memorabilia, the passion for collecting seems to run in some families.
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If I could turn back time: Is your vintage timepiece the real deal? Yes — if you buy it directly from this watch brand
IWC's new Curated collection takes the hassle out of vintage watch buying.
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These boots were made for walking (up Mount Everest, 101 years ago): How identical twin brothers plan to test George Mallory's shoes against modern-day mountaineering kit
Shoemaker Crockett & Jones has crafted a replica pair of George Mallory's boots for one half of The Turner Twins to wear in the high-altitude Himalayas.
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Diversity in style and diversity in location: London's best art is all around us
London's hotels, pubs and restaurants show the great depth of the capital's artistic tastes.
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Wedgwood's craftspeople produce objects that dignify our lives daily in countless ways — here's hoping that better times lie ahead
Country Life's cultural commentator Athena analyses the concerning developments at Wedgwood.
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The origins of the Oxford shoe and why it will never go out of style
‘Oxfords, not brogues’ are words to live by, but what do they actually mean?
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'There were no fireworks. The art world remained unshaken. Then, this April, a letter arrived... to see it hanging in Tate will be very special': Art dealer John Martin on the piece he'd never part with
A chance encounter with a huge, shimmering panel led art dealer John Martin to discover Nigerian sculptor Asiru Olatunde, a man who also owed his artistic career to an accidental find, as Carla Passino learns.
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'It’s always been more about the things than the money': The family crafting silk for Strictly, Highgrove, the House of Commons and Westminster Abbey
For half a century, Beckford Silk has been supplying remarkable textiles since 1975. Ben Lerwill discovers what makes its wares materially different
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Manolo Blahnik on Margot Robbie, Marie Antoinette, fashion and footwear
The shoe might feel inconsequential as an item of fashion, but as Marie Antoinette, Andy Warhol, Margot Robbie and Manolo Blahnik demonstrate, it's anything but....
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'I’m here to say: We’re driving. We’re buying. And we’re not going anywhere': Meet the new gatekeepers of the motoring world
From the racetrack to the boardroom to the private garage, women are taking the inside line into automotive spaces that were once off-limits
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Out of this world: The watches made from million-year-old space rock
The meteorite fragments used in luxury watches are likely from one of two rare space rocks.
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‘A stone pounding artist — who exclaims in his sleep, “Think of me standing upon a pinnacle of the Andes — or sketching a Fuegian Glacier!!!”’
When fate handed artist Conrad Martens the chance to join HMS Beagle, he captured the Patagonian flatlands, the shores of Tierra del Fuego and the peaks of the Andes with aplomb.
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Three kilos of gold, 6,462 diamonds and the size of a plate: Is this the world’s most valuable coin?
With an estimate of £2-3 million, The coin was created for Elizabeth II’s Platinum Jubilee, goes up for auction this month and can be bought using cryptocurrency.
