Oh, Girlfriends! We made it! Finally, to Beatrix Potter’s Hill Top Farm, a place I’ve dreamed of visiting for years. I brought my camera, my sketch pad and my journal and now I want to take you on the tour!
We started out from the little town of Ambleside in the Lake District where we’d rented a flat ~ Hill Top Farm was in Near Sawrey, about a half-hour drive. Here’s the music that was playing in the car as we drove along the narrow winding lanes . . .
Good thing a picture is worth a thousand words, because I don’t think a thousand words could ever tell the beauty of the Lake District! This photo (above) is taken just around the corner from our flat in Ambleside, and that’s just the beginning.
Here’s a view of some of the countryside you see between villages. The town names around the Lake District are familiar to me, although we’d never been here before, the village names ring out in my mind like a fairy story: Ambleside, Grasmere, Keswick, Near Sawrey; I’ve been reading about them in 
stories about Beatrix Potter all my life. It was startling to those names on actual road signs.
We didn’t plan to go to Beatrix Potter’s house the day we did. Although we’d traveled across the ocean to do this, the way it happened turned out to be kind of a surprise. It was the Queen’s Jubilee holiday weekend all over England and just like our Fourth of July, people were off work; kids were out of school, the Lake District was crowded with families, cars, hikers, bikers, and caravans. So our plan was for us to wait to see the house until later in the week, when the crowds went back home. But, we thought, it might be smart to just drive by Hill Top to get the lay of the land. . .
As it turned out, it was the only sunny day we had the whole week we were there ~ a perfect day to go out and explore. By the time we got to Near Sawrey, 
home of Hill Top, it was after lunch . . . way too late to even hope to get into the house. Because friends had told us before leaving for England, “Forget about getting in unless you arrive first thing in the morning. You have to be there early to get tickets. Visits to Hill Top are timed; its just a little house and they only let in a few people at a time. You’ll probably have to get your tickets, drive away, and come back later. There will be a line.” That was OK with us, we didn’t care because we had a week; we’ll go, we thought, leisurely, when the minibreak people go home. We just wanted to know how to do it, so we’d be ready when the time came; where to park, how the tickets work, etc. I didn’t expect to get Hill Top all to myself, but I was definitely willing to give it my best.
Signposts point the way to Windermere, to Wray Castle (the 
first place Beatrix’s parents rented for her childhood holidays where she fell in love with the Lake District); this way to Hawkshead, now to Sawrey. Such familiar names. We must be getting close. My heart is beating. There’s a bunny!
It’s hilly and green with cottages and farm houses, and it feels like a fairy tale. Suddenly we round a bend. A big green sign says “Hill Top.” What? Already? Is this it? We’re there? It’s the car park (British for parking lot) for her house! There’s a parking attendant right there, and the very first spot, the first one, is empty. He’s waving us into it with a big smile on his face. But we are confused. Joe leans out the window to ask, “Is there ROOM inside the house?” Because we know there can’t be.
“Oh yes,” he says, with a lilt, and his rosy cheeks get plumper with his smile, “Just right!” We look at each other. OKaaaay, we say, thinking should we? It was a definite change of plans. What are we thinking? YES, of COURSE WE SHOULD!! Let’s GO!
We get out of the car. My eyes are darting everywhere. I am scanning the rooftops of Near Sawrey. I’m thinking, This doesn’t LOOK like it. I thought somehow I would recognize it, why, I do not know. Maybe we’re in the wrong place (I’m fretting a little because this is too easy). But we see a sign that says, “Tickets.” Inside the little stone house we get a guide book along with our tickets for the 1:40 house entry. It is now 1:20. Heart is doing back flips.
We’re told to walk along the lane, through the village, around a bend and “Look for a little green gate.” Now we are the ones whose footsteps scrape the pebbles along the narrow road where Beatrix once walked, past the little tea rooms with their flower boxes overflowing, beside a meadow under the bright blue sky and puffy white clouds, to the picket fence gate that says, “entrance.” We stop. Give heart a rest.
Big deep breath, and then, go. Up Beatrix Potter’s very own narrow stone steps, s l o w l y, savoring every bit of it, along a little path, past a fenced and hedged meadow with buttercups, lambs kicking up their heels (all white and one little black one).
Under a tree with a huge twisted trunk, we see . . .
. . . two bunnies grazing on buttercups (See them? The second one is just off to the left of the crook in the tree); of course there were bunnies! There had to be bunnies! A discussion ensues, like Morning Science, I ask Joe, “Do you think they’re trained to stay there?” He says, laughing,” I think they can’t get out!” pointing down at the chicken wire encircling the pen.
Up a long stone path we went, where clumps of old-fashioned perennials ran all over each other, blurring together like a green watercolor.
XOXOXO
I took this little video so you can feel it along with me! And there it was, the house itself, Hill Top. Beatrix wrote,
“As nearly perfect a little place as I ever lived in.”
Sweet as pie, exactly as I have dreamed it, her real house, real to touch, two-story, grey rock with dark green trim around all the windows and doors and along the roof line, dripping with white wisteria.
The front wall was covered in rambling roses and festooned with Union Jack bunting (like all the rest of England during the Jubilee).
Only two more minutes before we could go in, I’m checking out every detail of the outside of the house, looking for clues! I smell the roses, then peek around a gate, seeing that one of her side windows was lined with the same Beatrix Potter People I’ve had on my kitchen shelf since I was in my twenties. (I wrote about that BP awakening in my journal ~ it’s too long to put here.) It’s really her house! So excited!
A dream is a wish your heart makes . . .
In through the front door we went. (More MUSICA?) They didn’t allow photos to be taken inside the house so this is where I pulled out the piece of paper I keep in my purse for sketching emergencies. I stood still in her rooms, writing and drawing, because I know you’re going to want to see it in our journal and I wanted to “remember” as much as possible.
Here are some of the squiggles and descriptions I jotted down in the house, and here’s one of the pages I’m translating into the diary. I can faithfully report that Beatrix is alive and well and still living in the 
house. Her spirit is fully there, in her very own straw hat that hangs next to the fireplace in the kitchen, her worn clogs at the foot an old Chippendale chair, in all the little bits and pieces of her life displayed in hutches and cabinets all through the house. Views from her upstairs windows remain unchanged because the village is unchanged. Looking through the same panes of leaded glass she looked through, I was touched knowing I was seeing what she saw, rooftops and fields, green hills, wildflowers and hedges, her view of the place she loved most.
Her childhood dolls were still there; and standing by her draped 16th century carved walnut bed, seeing the embroidery she did for it herself, I felt her presence in the nicest possible way. Everything is in soft warm colors, she loved this house the way Joe and I love ours . . . she treasured old things like we do, did most of her furniture shopping at auctions. There are antique hutches with flowered teacups and teapots, one of them is shaped like a pink crown; there were layers of thick flowered carpets — and lots of wonderful art on the walls. Paintings, watercolors and oils, mostly images taken from nature. The green and white floral wallpaper in the 
kitchen went up and covered the ceiling too. Everything in the house belonged to Beatrix. Most of the things in her dollhouse, the furniture and the miniature food, were bought for her by the first love of her life and publisher of her “Little bunny books,” Norman Warne.
We stayed in the uncrowded house, soaking it in, for two glorious hours, peppering the lovely National Trust person (Jenny Akester) upstairs with our questions (both the ones we thought of ourselves and the ones you were whispering in our ears). Jenny was gracious enough to share her wealth of Beatrix Potter knowledge with two (maybe thousand, including you dear readers) pilgrims from America.
Here’s what I didn’t know. If you’ve all seen Miss Potter, which you would love, you know that Beatrix was in love with Norman Warne. Against her parents wishes, they became engaged (she was 
thirty-nine, but there were many constrictions for women in those days and she was a dutiful daughter). A month later, while Beatrix was away with her parents on holiday in the Lake District, Norman fell ill, and died. Can you imagine? Shock. Something changed in her, and that very same year, 1905, she took her first step toward independence from her parents, and bought Hill Top Farm (many think owning a bit of the Lake District was a dream for both she and Norman). But despite what I thought to be true, she never lived at Hill Top full time. I didn’t know that, I thought she moved to Hill Top and lived there the rest of her life. Instead, it became her getaway ~ she continued to live with her parents in London, but she visited her house often. She decorated Hill Top, furnished it, turned it into a working farm, raised sheep, planted the garden, painted there, embroidered things for it, loved it dearly, but she didn’t live there. In 1908, she met the man she was to spend the rest of her life with, William Heelis, tall and handsome and five years her junior, who was a local solicitor from nearby Hawkshead (where we also went and visited his offices which have been turned into an adorable little museum). William had been helping Beatrix with her real estate purchases in the Lake District (she was busily using her “Little Book” money to buy up old Lakeland farms to save them for posterity). They fell in love, the old-fashioned slow way, and she married him (against her parents’ wishes) five years later (in 1913 when Beatrix was 47) and that’s when she moved permanently to Near Sawrey and into Castle Cottage with William where they lived together for thirty happy years.
William and Mrs. Heelis, as she was known from that time on, moved into Castle Cottage (that’s it above) just across the meadow from Hill Top. Hill Top, it seems to me, represented a dream for Beatrix — she decorated it all her life, even bequeathing certain personal items to it after her death, to be left on permanent view for the public to the National Trust. Beatrix died in 1943. William died with a broken heart, eighteen months later in 1945. And that’s just part of what we learned at Hill Top Farm.
We walked out the front door, eyes blinking in the sunshine (they keep the house dark, to protect the things inside, but also, that’s how it would have been in Beatrix’s day, she never put in electricity), completely fulfilled and happy, back along the garden path, into the gift shop of course.
I bought a couple of little things for my Peter Rabbit Room at home, just a little door hanger with a drawing that says, “Peter Rabbit’s Room” on it, and a perfect little coaster for next to the bed. There was an expensive limited edition of her book Peter Rabbit in there (those little lavender things in the very back on the left, behind that girl’s head, see them?), a first-time ever reprint of the one Beatrix paid to have published herself; and only 1000 made. I couldn’t bring myself to buy it. Don’t I have enough? I thought, erroneously, still reeling, brainless, from the wonderful visit. I will have to see if I dream about it, I thought . . . I’m coming back anyway. We have a whole week here! There is no saying goodbye. Not yet anyway.
TO BE CONTINUED . . . see Part. 2
What a stupendous story! I’m going to tell the two rabbits in my yard that you visited their English cousins. They’ll be so impressed. Stay safe in your travels and I’m eagerly waiting your next installment of this glorious tale.
Dear Susan..wow !!! “a fairy story ” indeed…surely Hill top was waiting for you…and sweet Beatrix !!!…often I wondered if Cicely Mary Barker and Beatrix were friends..altho they were about 30 yrs. apart…LOVE this post and will Slowly enjoy it throught my day…..thank you dear Susan…with love
OH! OH! OH!
WE…….yes, WE……….are loving this! and loving you, too! Thank you for our lovely Beatrix Potter tour! Thanking you from the bottom of my heart……..Take care and have fun! Nanette
Oh my, just sitting here soaking in all the beautiful words and pictures of Miss Potter’s world. You made my day! I always thought Hilltop to be more secluded in the country, not in a little village. Thank you again for sharing…….sooooo appreciated by all of us!
Your Beatrix quote reminds me of a an old poem which means so much to me….and to which I cannot identify the author……….but it seems so appropriate to the little cottages you are seeing everywhere……….
I live in a cottage
and yonder it stands
and while I work with my honest hands
I’m as happy as those with houses and lands.
A lovely, simple life to be had.
What a beautiful little poem…must borrow, for that is how my husband and I feel about our little cottage. Thank you for sharing!
I’ve never read a post so slowly. 🙂
Inspiration is all over me and I love it!!
Mornings aren’t my best for drawing, but feel
I must scribble something.
Simply LOVE seeing Miss Potter’s world.
I know just how you feel!!!
I can’t thank you enough for sharing this trip with us. Thank you for all the details, colors, emotion… I love traveling with you!
OH MY WORD!!! You say that your heart was beating as you approached Hilltop? MY HEART was beating (still is!) as I read this! The music is a perfect accompaniment! I thought the very same thing when we approached…”this is it?” Somehow I thought it would be out in the countryside…but it STILL brought tears to my eyes…did you cry!? I couldn’t help it! Such a sap! Just seeing her gardenig clogs sitting by the fireplace was enough to, as you said, feel her presence! So true!! And the actual pages of her letter the spurred the Peter Rabbit story in the upstairs room was too much! Did you get to Wray Castle? The day we were there there were rainbows! We have beautiful pictures of us with the rainbows behind our backs. Being there and seeing all the sites that you’ve read about for years DOES just bring it to life!
Your journal page is thrilling to see!!! I cannot wait for the completed book. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the paintings you did of little girl Beatrix and grown-up Beatrix. How you just whip up those things is beyond me! You were able to stay in there for 2 hours! Yay! So happy for you! Thank you for this wonderful blog! Love you for it! xoxo….karen (The girls will LOVE Bibury pics!)
Hi Karen…glad it wasn’t just me…I was sobbing too….beautiful music and charming pictures of Beatrix Potter’s fairytale surroundings….Mary from Nashville, Ind.
Hi Mary! We all are kindred spirits who treasure the same things, aren’t we?! Nice to all be here together with Susan and Joe on their trip!
Worth reading and looking at again and again! CANNOT wait for the book. If there was ever a dream trip, you are on it! Even if we go, I am not sure it would be as magically described and viewed as you are doing. Thanks again! I am getting out my BP cups that were mine and my brothers’ as young children and the ones of my children. What a wonderful story…in a time capsule! I was thinking….some 50-80 years from now, people will be walking through your home with the same awe!!!
Ohhh!
Yes, yes, yes…and I would stand in line and have my paper and pencil tucked away …
oH Susan…I want to read this again and analyze every bit &
piece of it…but I must first say, “thank YOU!” It feels so
special…we are sharing in Your Dream Come True!!! I truly believe; Your Open-Heart heard Beatrix whispering in your ear…”Susan, take a picture of that pretty house over there with the little lambs”….only later to find out it was….”Castle Cottage”…her cottage ! And, oh Susan…..Happy : .} Happy
to think about the “trained” Bunnies!! 🙂 Your little Beatrix
Friends along the windowsill are gonna feel even more like
Beatrix now… : .} ! I love seeing your squiggles and notes,
the watercolors in progress (lovelove), the picture of Joe
taking a picture of You, hearing your voice, and knowing how
special this has all been for you !!! You appreciate it all and
I feel so blessed to know a friend who deserves every little
last crumb of it !!!! It was truly a beautiful post worth
waiting for and I am going to go read it again….and again….
and I’m sure again !!! ThankYou! and I am so Happy for You!!!
It has ALL been ever so Happily Beautiful ! XoXDawn
I have thought the very same thing as Rosemary….. after seeing pictures of your lovely home on MV……our daughters, granddaughters, neices, great granddaughters…..will be lining up to experience the magic of Susan Branch! I am in awe of the way you can sketch and then paint so effortlessly in such a short time, and describe each and every thing in a way to make us feel we are seeing it all with our own eyes. I have a feeling that your life along with your love story with Joe, your art, your collections, your kitties, your garden (there is no end!) will far exceed the magic of Beatrix Potter!!!! Just say’n! Thank you again for this lovely adventure……so enjoying ALL of it! xoxox
Crazy nice lady. xoxo
A dream come true indeed, this is so awesome, Thank-you, you both are so darling and dear . What a wonderflu way to see a kindred spirit of many dear things. I surely do have to visit, my dream is getting bigger and bigger as time passes, I’m going to hold on for as long as I can and when the time is right ……. we will be off on an adventure ! Blessings to you both and Cherrio ! HAHAHA OOXX Until next time !
Wonderful post! I can’t get enough Beatrix Potter.
On a side note, Susan, that color expert was absolutely right about what looks good on you. The plum sweater and mossy green headband are adorable and just perfect with your skin tone.
Oh thank you so much!
Susan, I have been thinking the same thing regarding your colours~ what you have been wearing looks so just right.
I agree- you look so great on every picture!
Thanks girls!! I try not to put up the really bad ones!
You do have such a charming and delightful look, from your head to your toes, within and without. Your inner sparkle, though, is the best of all! (That said, I’m still hoping to one day see a Susan Branch line of clothing and accessories!)
Sweet Kim, thank you!
Where would we be without dreams? I am so happy that you are able to fulfill yours and we can see your dream come true. I look forward each day to checking your blog for the latest post. I get disappointed when there isn’t one! Enjoy the rest of the trip and All your fans will enjoy reading about your adventure.
A dream come true~how wonderful. You use words so beautifully to describe a beautiful and idyllic place. Thank you for transporting us through your lens, absolutely love this journey. I hope I get there one day soon. Your drawings are amazing. What an indelible mark on the world! Thank you Susan. P.S. I think you need one of those limited edition books. If you don’t you might wish you had later 🙂 xoxo
Your visit brings back so many memories,we did exactly the same thing about 5 years ago,and makes me want to go back…my hubby said just now as I’m telling what you just posted” well let’s go back back next year”..you can come back with us if you’d like.(hope Joe doesn’t scratch your car like my husband did trying to find our way to the teapot factory some where in Stoke on Kent)
Thank you for sharing
Pat
A yummy yummy yummy cake of a post; I’ve just had a small slice. Like Mary Spring, I plan to nibble on it all throughout my day! Congratulations to Melanie and Emily; how lucky for them! I know I’d have loved an Emma too (as can’t afford to buy for self), so they are wonderfully blessed ladies.
Thank you Sue, and happy trails to you and Joe! xoxo, Priscilla
This post was worth the wait! Hilltop was better than I ever could have hoped! Thanks for making our dream come true along with yours. Susan Wittig Albert’s “Cottage Tales” give a lot of details about Beatrix’s life in the Lake District and her courtship with Will Heelis. Very sweet! Did you happen to see the special edition of Peter Rabbit with an Union Jack cover? That would make a wonderful souvenir. Yesterday we had to chase baby rabbits out of our garden and my son said he felt like Mr. Mcgregor. Congratulations to Melanie and Emily!
So glad you mentioned the “Cottage Tales”, saved me having to compose more than a “Thank you” that you did it.Truly unique books and wonderful for a Beatrix Potter lover and by another Susan, how about that.
Susan, you have the gift of being able to communicate through words and art such passion and enthusiasm. It came through this post right to my soul! I have felt the same way about your work since I bought your first book. Thanks you so much! Now I must go re-read this! Leslie
Oh, and go back for the BP book! You’ll kick yourself later if you don’t!
I second what Karen said – you’ll be sorry if you don’t get a copy for yourself!!
So did you….go back, that is?! 🙂 Perhaps a pic of the book would be good…?
Good idea, I’ll do that . . . would love to show it!
Oh my…..such a big, beautiful, heaping slice of Hilltop Heaven-
after reading this post,
I kinda’ have that same full, happy, content feeling,
one gets after completing a Thanksgiving Dinner.
And just like Thanksgiving dinner,
we know we can come back later to feast our eyes
& pick some more-
there will be leftovers tomorrow & the day after & the following days.
The memories, light-heartedness, & gratitude go on forever.
Susan, you captured the essence of Beatrix Potter,
your sketches, layouts & watercolors
are brimming with her graceful charm, steeped in her simplicity.
Putting your dreams and journal into the hands of other
is more than anyone can ask for…it’s already breathtakingly gorgeous !
No doubt, you will be able to walk back into the Hilltop gift shop
and find it gracing their shelves someday-
talk about coming “Full Circle”.
Al those long, winding, bending roads served you well,
led you back to where you belong-
now, you can just coast & relax with a full heart
until you come home.
What an “Experience”…it’s such a powerful word,
it burls within heart & soul & stays with one forever-
thanks to you and Joe, we’ve all experienced your boundless joy !
Absolutely lovely!! Thank you, Susan, for all the details you show us with words and pictures. I am such a detail person and you fulfill my need to know everything!! I love seeing your sketches. You give me such good ideas on how to be a creative person.
Lovely! Cannot wait for your book on England to come out!
Wow! I can just feel your excitement as I read what you have written! What an amazing journey – and you are taking us along! Thank you so much for such an exciting beginning to my Monday! Lovely, lovely photos! Time is passing quickly, so hurry on back very soon!
xoxo
Nellie
Big Happy Sigh of Delight. I didn’t want this post to end. I will be going back to it several times to glean all I can from it. I was surprised she didn’t live there and surprised at how many houses are around it, but Its absolutely gorgeous there. Thank you Soooooooooooo MUCH for taking us along. Also for showing us a taste of what will be in your new book I am looking so forward to. I am wondering now.. did you go back for that book after all? You always leave us wanting more with your ending tease. 🙂 Looking forward to the rest of your trip too but that was the frosting on the cake/trip.
Thank you so very much! I loved every word and that English Journal looks delicious.
What a wonderful post. I, too, felt the presence of Beatrix Potter in your pictures. Maybe it is true that people never die as long as someone remembers them. I love the pictures of Ambleside and felt the streets of the town call me. I love the path and the lambs and the bunny prisoners lol. Your travel journal entries make my day, Sue!!
Wonderful post, Susan! What a charming way to begin the day & the week! Can’t wait to see more of this area!
Your book will be remarkable – the posts are like tasty little morsels wheting our appetites for more!
Cheers & sunshine to you & Joe in your travels!
Hi Susan!!! The title of this post is simply, Enchanting!!! I am completely mesmerized. I’ll be re-reading for sure! Thank you!
What type of journal are you using for your watercolors, if you don’t mind me asking. I watercolor and it’s hard to find a good journal in size and paper weight to hold up. I like the size of yours and that it can take water. Hope you can share, I’m in need of a portable on too.
Happy begining of another lovely week!
Hugs to you. xoox, Jeanette
Oh how fun to share your first visit to Hill Top with you. Isn’t is fabulous? And it looks so pretty with the Union Jack bunting on the outside. I’m looking at my little Peter Rabbit coaster purchased in that very same gift shop as we speak — do you suppose it’s the same one LOL?
You, my daughter, a ” Beatrix Potter Pilgrim” doing what no other person on earth has ever done before in bringing to life for hundreds of viewers, in living text and graphic display, this virtual visit to such a romantic and beautiful countryside, ancient dwellings and the feelings of “being there” with you, at the Beatrix Potter, Hill Top domain! I hope you can understand how exceptional this is for you give this level of feeling and sensation over the thousands of miles of actual separation, into the hearts and lives of all your Girlfriends in Cyberland and me too. I think you are plowing a new field of entertainment here and extended vicarious and virtual living into heretofore unchartered waters. Besides all your other talents this is a wonderful blessing for hundreds of folks who might have a hard time getting to England themselves. A rare treat you have given all the world to see, feel and enjoy! And I love it. Dad
He’s making me approve this! Thank you Dad, and my favorite five words in your comment are the last ones! XOXO!
So true….amen to Jack.
I love how you take the time to give us all a true glimpse of what you are experiencing. It truly is a wonderful blessing.
Thank you for sharing your life and adventures, and for doing it just for doing it. Not for commercial purposes. That makes it even more special.
Janice
P.S. Buy yourself the book 🙂
Janice – my thoughts exactly ~ on all counts. Thank you, Susan, for this wonderful journey ~ Beatrix Potter’s house and surrounding was just…just…there are no words deep enough. Just when I think it can’t get any better… thank you ♥ And buy that book! You will never regret it! ♥
Jack, you said almost exactly what I was thinking while I read through this post! Thanks, again, Susan for “taking us along on the trip!” I’ve read a lot about BP and this was so much fun to see! We’re both enjoying your posts and look forward to seeing the book! 🙂
I so agree with your Dad! My how he has a tallent with words! XOXO
Jack
You really said it well…………..it is a wonderful gift this journey Susan and Joe have taken us on…..for those of us that will not get the chance to visit England, it is a dream come true……a gift from Susan’s heart, a true blessing.
I have read every post over and over, taking in every bit of inspiration; revealing in the history, culture, art, farms and fields, hills and dales, the cute animals….the pagentry, the pubs….the grub
( LOL)…..aka..the tea and cakes!
Hilltop is a destination highlight…..every word, every photo, Susan’s notes and sketches…..the descriptions…..I felt as though I was walking along side a friend, experiencing each emotion. A dream come true!
The heartfelt thanks we all feel, for the joy we have been given…….is boundless.
Susan you are one very special person……and I am so grateful that you took us all along on your vacation.
Jack you have to be one proud Papa ! ( Blog daddy )……Susan is “the happy gene” and she shares it with us all!
Deb
Thank you, Jack, for making Susan the wonderful person she is. This is truly a unique place to be and we are all virtual travelers.
And lets not forget us English folks who are enjoying Susans travels and seeing our green and plesent land through her eyes! What a wonderful post Susan! And I think your pictures of the inside of Hill top will be better then any photo could dipict anyway! xxxx
You are too nice Nina, thank you for your amazing wonderful country!!! The charm center of the world!
oH Mr. Jack,
Only a loving Father could put into Words what this experience has
meant to so many of us. You gave me some happy tears. And to your
Susan….well, you gave her what every little girl on this planet wants….
to be loved by her Father !
I wish all Dads knew that, we do need them so much more than they would ever imagine!
Jack, will you be my daddy, too?
Susan, what a blessing to have a father like this! And now we know where you get your way with words!!! LOVE his comments – especially this one!!
Love from Mary S. in Fresno, CA
Oh I’m so happy your dream came true Susan and you weren’t disappointed in any way shape or form by The Lakes and Beatrix. Its a delightful post and your drawings already look perfectly beautiful. I’m going to re-watch Miss Potter tonight to see again what you saw on your visit.
Oh I forgot to ask you and I have been meaning to for a while, have you heard of another wonderful watercolor artist from England named Jill Barklem ? She wrote and illustrated all the Brambly Hedge Stories that I read to my children along with the Beatrix Potter books. They are books about a community of mice who live in Brambly Hedge. She is from Epping and I think you would love her too. The famous ones are of Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter story. They are enchanting too. She has an amazing imagination too, that you would believe there is this community of mice living in Epping Forest,and she used the Lake District as inspiration too. TTFN OOXX
Oh look! Joe’s taking a picture of us! It PROVES that we’re all along with you two, doesn’t it?! 🙂
(I’m sorry about posting so many comments….I don’t mean to be annoying. I’m just so excited for you! It’s like I’m there all over again! I’ll try to control myself from here on…) xoxo
Congratulations Melanie & Emily!
Joe & Susan, I cannot express how thankful I am that you are sharing this guided tour adventure. I imagine that if I were in the Lake District I would never want to leave.
This post just brings tears to my eyes! Each morning I wake in hopes to find you and Joe here in my den, sharing these beautiful moments. How do I get my husband to go there with me???? I also LOVE your sketches (especially with BP in mind) and watch your process in the making. Thank you for sharing!
There are heavy old old doors with clanking locks, there are very cute cars from the 30’s and 40’s, there are neat crumbling castles, and fabulous beers (if you like beer), there’s soccer — does any of this interest him?
I miss windsurfing on Lake Windermere! Last time I visited Hill Top it was late Winter and the place was deserted. Wonderful, but COLD! Happy you got to visit this beautiful women’s home/studio. She was a true visionary with her estate/reserve.
If you get to Tyne-and-Wear near Durham (you are about an hour or so away) there is Washington, Tyne-and-Wear. It is where George Washington’s ancestors are from. I went to visit and the museum was closed, but the caretaker said, “You are a Yank”. He opened the museum up for me. It is quite interesting. They had a lot on Georgie-Boy.
Treese
Finally…we are at Beatrix Potter’s!!!! And I’m at work 🙁 I want to shout, “BE QUIET, I’m reading Susan Branch, we are at Beatrix Potter’s house!” We are here, we are here, but I must close and get to work, knowing that when I get home tonight I can savor every word and every picture of the blog, reading and re-reading to my hearts content. Thank you for taking us there!
At work??? LOL!
I agree. Luckily my computer system went down for a few minutes (LOL), and I was able to sneak a peak at the blog. I am so excited for you, Susan, I could almost burst. Thank you sooooooo much for giving us this tour and for your wonderful drawings.
What a wonderful visit! I can’t wait for your book! Do you have a waiting list I can add my name to? I read all the Peter Rabbit books to my kids when they were very little. How great to see it all from your eyes. Thank you.
OMG! You out did yourself! I will reread several times over…♥
ENCHANTING!
xoxo Pam
Now when I look at all my Beatrix potter things, I can picture her in her home and gardens. All so very beautiful! Thank you for taking the time from your dream trip to post videos, pictures, and write on your blog — all to share some of your happiness. I have thoroughly enjoyed your entire trip!!
Oh Susan Thank you! What a start to my day. !!!!! I have to tell you i read it through watery eyes….oh how beautiful it all is! And thank you so much for sharing the story with us…. i didn’t know alot of that either…About her never living in that house….oh my gosh!!!!! Have to share a little story with you….there has been a baby rabbit in my yard and garden and i just know that it’s a relative too of Peter Rabbit… tee hee what fun it is to watch him and know we are taking this wonderful trip with you…..Thank you so much Susan! xoxoxo and i want to say congratualtion to the lucky winner… Happy for you!!!!!
Lovely…sigh. I hope you go back for another soak. I love seeing your diary in progress! The paintings of Beatrix are perfectly Potterly. Can’t wait for the completed diary! Thanks for the sweet glimpses into a real life fairytale. You fit right in.
I need to go take care of my Mom (Bless her, 96 & a bad back! Ouch!), but just had to say my eyes are all teary what with the music, the video, you and your blog! The old saying “be still my heart” immediately came to mind when I opened the blog! “My heart runneth over” too, etc., etc.! Thank you my darling girlfriend, have a wonderful day! Congratulations Melanie & Emily, I’m so excited for you! Love & hugs, all around, & Joe too!!! xoxoxo Later, babe!
Getting a glimpse of your Beatrix Potter diary entry just proves your trip diary is going to be extra special!
Congratulations to Melanie and Emily on being the winner of the cup! Of course I’m disappointed I didn’t win, but your whole trip has been serendipitous so I’m confidant the right persons one. 🙂
I meant to say “won” and not “one”! I crawled out of my sick bed to look at your post (the only thing to entice me to) and obviously am not in my right mind!
I cannot thank you ENOUGH for the beautiful pictures and sharing your holiday with us!!!! I check here every morning to go adventuring with you!
You have to be one of the most unselfish people on earth. Sharing your trip in such a detailed, lovely way is such a joy. Your work and play inspire me to live a better life. Love from Oklahoma, Becky
This is the most precious, thrilling, inspiring post…and I am so tickled to pieces to see bits and pieces of your sketches and watercolor illustrations. My heart leaps at the sight of your work in progress..is that what makes a kindred? The heart leaping thing? And that darling green gate…I am struggling for words! I have to commend you for unrattling your brain and finding the most delicious words to describe this encounter with miss Beatrix. Can you imagine having that as your studio? Like having your own dollhouse to play in and decorate and create…I am heading now for a big cup of coffee and my watercolors!
Thank you for this gift today, dear wonderful Sue. My cup runneth over.
Always,
Christie
I got up this morning to read the next installment of your journey. As I saw there was anew post I rushed to the kitchen to grab acup of coffee settle back into bed and slowly read about your adventure at Hilltop Farm.
Thank you.
Thanks so much for sharing your day! Beatrix Potter is my favorite illustrator and I have many figurines and music boxes lined up around bookcases along with many books about her and of course, the children’s stories. I look forward to reading your English Diary. Have a wonderful rest of your trip.
So glad I checked before leaving for my day!!! (antique shopping, fabric hunting… a very good day planned!) So… congratulations to MELANIE SCHMIDT and EMILY!!! Perfect, perhaps Emily’s first heirloom!
Susan, your post is perfect! The lambs, bunnies, houses, the green, and her farm… it’s all just perfect. I’m looking forward to your book!
Dear Susan,
Everything is sooooooooooo pretty!! Love it all and loved Beatrix Potter for a long time. I have a few of the figurines but sadly have lost a few during one of our moves. I am anxiously awaiting your beautiful drawings!!! Love, Roberta
My day is just starting and reading about “our” visit to Beatrix Potter’s was a great way to begin. Thank you for being such a wonderful tour guide and I can’t wait until we return… perhaps for a book or?????
WOW and wonderful, Miz Susan. We were there with you and enjoying every minute. This was so special…thank you. And I love, love, love the music of Joshua Bell. Saw him in concert last year in Palm Springs; check that one off my bucket list!
That was a good one!!
Oh Susan and Joe–I can barely stand all this wonderfulness. I’ve loved our visit to Beatrix Potter’s house. God was smiling on us–the timing was perfect–how could it have been any better?? I’m so glad you seized the opportunity. Often the best things happen when plans go awry. If I could live where you are living on this visit I’d truly feel it was heaven on earth. How can you stand it?? Such beauty and history and delight at every turn! It’s a good thing Jack and Girl Kitty are awaiting your return. Were they not, you might just be tempted to never leave…from the suitcase via the hills of TN.
Your way with words so beautifully described my feelings and perceptions during my visit to Hilltop Farm and the surrounding area just a few years ago. The beauty of the area left me in awe! It was easy to understand how Beatrix fell under the spell of the Lake District. For me, my trip to Hilltop had also been a life long dream come true. As a child I loved her little books and their charming illustrations every bit as much as I do to this day. I have no doubt that they were instrumental in directing me toward my career path as an elementary school librarian. I do hope to return in the near future, but I wish to thank you for taking me along on your visit. I look forward to following along as you continue your English holiday!
Susan I so enjoyed the tour today, as a lifelong fan of Beatrix Potter I felt like I was their with you.. I was wondering what book the picture of the garden gate is from, I would love to know. Im looking at my ” The Tale of Beatrix Potter” and dont see it. Thank you agian Susan for including me on this Journey.
This post was so brilliantly beautiful that tears are still streaming down my face.
I cannot ever thank you and Joe enough for bringing the beauty and grace of the Beatrix Potter Books (and all of England, really) to my eyes. I have been an armchair traveler to England all my life; it is a dream of mine to do a trip like your’s. But this has more than satisfied my thirst!
Blessings to both of you for all the love you send us Girlfriends with your blog.
Thank you so much Patricia!
Thank you for sharing your dream. I broke my wrist May 15 and can’t work. But I’m able to follow your blog and dream about the day I can make this trip. I’ve watched every minute of the Jubilee Celebration on BBC America. You are helping me pass the time during my recovery, thanks so much! Love all the photos and videos.
Your words & beautiful pictures are magical this morning! Your talent abounds Susan. My very own, magical room, is my sewing room where I create quilts & dream dreams. One of my little shelves has the poem about “why should I roam,” printed on a card where I can easily read it. While most of our friends are running here & there (a promise to themselves when they retired) making cruise plans, standing in lines at airports, their minds static with thoughts of things they haven’t seen, or places they “must” get to, I’m most content in my magical room with my sewing machine, & view of our front yard garden. There’s a little bird that visits me each day. He/she comes to the bird bath & sits & surveys the yard. After a fly off for a minute or two, he/she comes back to the bird bath & again surveys the front garden & lawn. Simplicity & peace are two gifts that I gave to myself when I retired. Thanks Susan for bringing places of simplicity & peace into my life. You pick up on the things I would pick up on, such as the little lambs, with one black one, the figurines on a window shelf, small things that mean a lot. Peaceful, happy journey Susan & Joe. Sondra
Blessings to you Sondra!
And please by the lavender limited edition book before you leave! Obviously lavender is your color!
Maybe, just maybe, one day you’ll hold a very special contest and the winner will receive (sounding like a very well-known emcee of an equally well-known game show!) “a stay in the lovely and well-appointed Peter Rabbit Room at Branch Hall”!
Pat, that’s a good one! I can picture a sign plaque hanging from a lamp post out front Susan’s lovely home “Branch Hall”. Perfect!!!
Sondra,
This is one of the most beautiful things I have ever read. I’m going to copy it and put it next to my sewing machine!
And bless my own hearth with the treasures of home! So wonderful!
Dear Susan,
Beyond beautiful. It was definitely worth the wait. Thank you for sharing!!!
Warmly,
Rebecca (Riverside, Ca)
Dear Susan,
Been following your trip and telling my next door neighbor about it, she’s from England came over as an adult with her engineer husband and children and she was telling me that as a child Beatrix Potter would come to read to them in school, she’s an amazing person to live next door too. Thank you for sharing.
Oh it was Lovely, Just lovely!!! The little bunnies in the garden just topped it all off! What glorious descriptions and pictures. Time to watch “Miss Potter” again for the umpteenth time. Tea and a movie this afternoon!
Hi Susan,
That was great fun! Thank you. To really touch and be in the same places as those before us is such a warm and happy and sad feeling. But I’ll go with HAPPY.
Nancy Jo
Dear Susan
Thank you so much for today. At a time when I so needed a little magic brought back into my life, a little sunshine and a dream, you send it. How lovely it has been to be on this lovely trip with you and your dear Joe. I look forward to the rest of “our” magical adventures!
xoxoxo
What a lovely tour that was! I’ll be smiling all day. 🙂
I’ve read everything I can find about Beatrix Potter, read her stories to my children over and over again, and now I get to share them with my grandson.
But you my dear, you got to see her embroidery stitches up close! I’m bright green with envy.
Oh Susan- I have loved Beatrice Potter for decades!! But traveling along with you today to see her home and learn more about her life was amazing and wonderful!! I cannot thank-you enough for making room for us in the virtual back seat during this trip!! This trip of yours has also been a way for me to take a trip that I have always wanted to do. I especially loved your sketch book inside the home!! Beatrice Potter + Susan Branch style= AWESOME!! We’re will we be going next? My bag is ready to load up again in the back seat!!
Winnie in Florida
THANK YOU!!!!!! Truly a dream come true to read these posts. Wanting to go to London this summer…….really London’s Calling Me…..but the flights were so expensive…….with the jubilee and olympics……it makes sense. But, we will get there eventually….but now I want to blaze a whole new trail including the great places you visited and shared. I am enjoying your posts immensely!!!!!!
Thank you, Susan, for sharing your dream trip with us!! I read this quote and thought of you —
“It’s never too late to have the best day of your life”!! I hope you have many many more!
What a beautiful start to my day, coffee with Susan Branch and touring Beatrix Potters world. You make it worth waking up in the morning and I just hung on to every beautiful word in your post! How I wish I were there with you! Such beautiful country side. My nephew and his wife live in Oxford, Oxfordshire and he is a professor at oxford. I live for your next post. I am very very grateful to you for taking the time and effort to share these lovely experiences with us, your loyal bloggers. Have a most wonderful day! Judy
I am sitting here and I don’t know why, but I have tears in my eyes! I think it is because this was such a dream, and a dream that came true. That is one tear. The other is to realize that life can be so beautiful through the eyes of people who appreciate the simple things of life, like bunnies, dishtowels and tea cups. It is like I am there, walking that path going around a corner to enchantment. Oh, dear here comes another tear. It is all so wonderful Susan. Thank you for giving me something beautiful to cry about.
Oh what a beautiful treat this was. I just loved hearing the story about B. Potter and her loves. I never knew the story about her life, I have always love all of the Peter Rabbit stories . We can’t wait to see the diary of England and Congrats to the winner<3 Enjoy !
good morning susan, everyone. ooohhhhh what a wonderful place to come and see, its so beautiful and so quaint. very much like i have always imagined the English live, with some rabbits in the yard and a few sheep and lovely flowers growing wild all about and on the cottage or house. its marvelous!!!! hugs…… 🙂
Oh my! I think I sprouted the biggest goose bumps as of yet.
Someday I would like to make this pilgrimage (with your diary in tow, of course). Lovely post – will read this several more times.
Congratulations, Melanie Schmidt (and daugther)!
xoxoxoxo
So much to take in, I will be looking at this new blog many times. I was so worried that there wouldn’t be any rabbits. I could here the thrill in your voice! It is so wonderful to make a dream come true, but to also share it with someone you love. Like I was wowed by your blog, you must still be in dreamland after your first visit. Did you ever think 20 years ago that you would be standing on the ground of Hill Top and scetching just like Beatrice did? And girlfriends, Miss Potter is a must see movie. It was certainly our day, to get into the house and also have such beautiful weather as well.
Gads, Beatrix I mean. So excited I can’t even think.
Yay!!! and wheeeee!!! you made it! and made it so real, too, thanks ever so much! A wonderful visit, a beautiful day for it, perfect music – love it all! ♥
Now I must dig out Jemima Puddle-Duck, our (now 25-yr-old) daughter’s favorite babyhood story, and admire the pictures… and also my own giant book of Beatrix Potter tails… thanks again! (((big HUGS!)))
How wonderful to go on this tour with you…..and the house OH MY, and wisteria one of my very favorite things in the whole wide world…………..please take us along for more of the trip!
I had to stop in the middle, go make a cup of tea, calm my feverish brain that just couldn’t take it all in. I was reading too fast and wanted to savor it all. Luckily I can come back again and again to read. Whew.
Oh, how lovely! I can just feel your excitement come through the screen!
Thank you for taking the time out of your trip to share with us. 🙂
Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! I loved the little journey. It made my rainy Monday so much better. I love Beatrix Potter and this is one of my dreams too! Thank you!
Dear Susan, I have read your adventure and then read it again. I even read alowed to my hubby so he could understand why I love your writtings. I actually feel like I am right beside you all the way. I have most of your Beatrice Potter figurenes still packed away. I never opened them when we moved a little over a year ago. Now I need to find them immediately and set them out for all to see. I do hope you are able to purchase your picture. I can feel it in your writtings how much you love it. Wishing you and Joe lots of more wonderful memories to come for may years.
With love, Mary Andra
Love, love, love the pencil sketches! You bring it all to life, Sue! We are so lucky to be able to ‘go’ with you!!!! Enjoy your week…I know there is more to come….will be waiting patiently….(or, at least trying to!). Have a blast! ♥
Hi Susan
This was wonderful. Your pictures and words make us feel such a part of your adventure. Because of you, I have been reading several books about Beatrix Potter-she was an amazing woman.
Also have to say that was a beautiful post from your Dad-he is very proud of you and rightfully so. Thanks for everything you do for us.
Susan M
Good Evening Sweetest Sue & Joe….Oh My Goodness….I am Covered in Goosebumps….I Knew Your Blog about Beatrix~Potter’s House would Be Filled with Magic….But This Deserves a Blue Ribbon….A Gold Star… 🙂 I’ve got Your Music♥♫♪♫♪ On in The Backround “Ladies in Lavender” My Heart is Filled with Joy as I Read all Your Pure Joy…. Sweet Sue…The Bunnies Grazing on Buttercups…The Video of Beatrix~Potter’s House…2 Hours with Her Spirit in Her Hill Top Home….The Story of Her Loves & Romances….Her Magical Kingdom…Enchanting….Scrumptious…Perfection… Thank You for Sharing Your Dreams with Us Darling Sue….& what Your Dad Wrote…”A rare treat you have given all the world to see, feel, and enjoy”! “And I love it. Dad” Tears Fill Me Eyes…I Know How Beyond Special This Visit is for You & Joe Sue…Just Breathe…sending Hugzzz & Love & Always a Bit of Beatrix~Potter Pixie~Dust…xoxo Poof! ♥♫♥♪♥☼♥♫♥♪ 🙂
P.S. also a Huge Congratz to Melanie & Her Daughter Emily for Winning That Magical Mug! Yay! Lucky Girlies! xoxo Poof!♥♫♥♪♥☼♥♫♥♪ 🙂
Same back to you Angie, hugs and lots of pixie dust!
🙂 🙂 🙂 Yay! I Can Feel All Your Joy Sweet Sue I Can’t Stop Smiling! Twirling into Beatrix~Potter Dreamyland! Sweetest Dreams Tonight My Friend! xoxo Poof! ♥♥♥
Off I go now Angie, sweet dreams to you too!
Susan, I just can’t wait to read your entry every day. It’s the highlight of my day! I’m living vicariously through you. What a perfect dream come true! I hope to be able to follow in your footsteps some day. Have a wonderful day! Hugs to Beatrix.
Such beautiful country side , buildings and shops . Fantastic post and photos . I am so glad you are having a wonderful time there it is a place to aww over isnt it ?
It has been so wondeful to be with you on this trip and show so much beauty and character ! Have a wonderful day !
How refreshing to find your lovely blog this morning, (off a friend’s)! I have so enjoyed reading just this entry~and hopefully will be able to return and read more. My mother-in-law was an English war bride and we love and follow all things English ~ Beatrix Potter being one of them! Her stories and pictures where a sweet memory of my children’s young years. My youngest daughter is 21 and loves the movie, “Miss Potter”, which we watched again, just recently. With grown children now, as an artist, I’m desiring to get back to my sketching and water colors again! And your blog & this tour of Hill Tope has been very inspiring!
What can I add to the many who have expressed thanks for your sharing the tour, not just from your eyes but your heart as well?
Makes my husband and I long for a trip to England. We travel THRU London to visit our daughter, son–in-love, and grandkids who live in Nairobi, Kenya. Perhaps we’ll plan a stop over instead of a fly thru next time.
Denise of Tulsa, OK
How exciting! Thanks so much for the “tour” of Hill Top.
Tears of joy running down my face Susan! I love Hill Top!! I’m sure Beatrix Potter is proud to have you share her home with so many! I can’t wait to show this to my grandsons. They love all of Beatrix Potter’s books! Thank you so much for your generosity—I’m so excited about the English Diary-it looks divine! xoxo♥
That’s it, I’m watching Miss Potter this evening. Oh my sweet goodness, her houses are amazing and even better than I imagined.
Your dad says it all so eloquently, so I’ll just add “What he says!” — Such a fascinating narrative you’ve offered us here, as well as all those gorgeous photos (and video!). What a wonderous day, and all meant to be, by powers unseen … (Perhaps Ms. Potter/Mrs. Heelis herself?) I got misty, listening to Joshua Bell’s scrumptious music while reading/viewing your gifts today. Thank you, dear Susan, as always, for your generous spirit of inclusion and joy. xoxo
A glorious gift. Thank you, Susan. Although we are blessed to have you in our lives, you are extemely blessed with a dad who can tell you how proud he is of you. Many of us never saw or heard those words. Thank you, Jack, for nuturing your daughter’s talents that we, the girlfriends, can be on this wonderful journey with her. BRAVO to both of Susan’s parents and just a mighty hug to Joe, too.
Because I MUST go to England before I leave this earth, I would love to do so in “Susan Branch style.” Therefore, I BEG you to write a book for us travelers of where to stay and eat and how you got your transportation. True, the information will be date sensitive as things change, always, unkindly, and without our readiness. But still, couldn’t I just travel sooner rather than later and use the information? Sounds logical to me! I love the urgency of it!
First I want to say CONGRATS to Melanie/Emily…..I adore how the girls are introducing their daughters/sons to your blog and world and another generation to enjoy your work. I cannot explain how I felt as you were telling us every step up and until you walked into her home….I agree with your Dad it was just captivating and my dear friend such a rare gift you have to take your words and envelop us with them it was like make believe coming true. I am so happy that was the day you chose to go inside her home the weather cooperated it was meant to be. I don’t know if you decided to go back and purchase the lavender book that is your personal business….when you said “Don’t I have enough”? well, your memories and sketches will always keep this trip close to your heart and your diary that you will be publishing will keep your trip close to our hearts as well. If someday there is a very special person you can think of right now to leave this lavender treasure to that would enrich their heart and love for you then I secretly hope you went back…..if you can be content with having seen this book and holding the ones you already possess as enough then the decision is made isn’t it?? You deserve whatever makes you happy. Thank you for taking us along on such a lovely moment in time I know you could just feel Beatrix all around you and I feel you both share a semblance in your paths in your lives. Kismet
“Stop, give the heart a rest.” Exactly! Be still my heart. Every once in a while something happens to me that is so serendipitous that all I can do is accept it joyfully as a miraculous gift from God and feel privileged that He wants to share an intimate experience, such as you and Joe had, with me. What a special, special day!
Today I think you have given all of us the ‘Happy Gene’. Thank you!
Yay!
So incredibly wonderful…I really do feel that I’ve just been there!! Your words, drawings, photos are just exquisite and bring me back to that magical place. ♥ When I was there in 1986, I think Beatrix’s house was much easier to get in to. We just drove up, parked and walked right in from what I remember, and there was hardly anybody else there! I really must go back again someday and spend more time. We were sort of in a hurry last time (unfortunately) and I would love to just soak in all of the beauty there for hours and hours! I’m so glad you had such a wonderful visit there!!
Love, love this post. My dream is to meet you, Susan Branch, and see your beautiful home and island in person. Your books and blog light up my life.
xoxo!
Hi Sue!
O, the “Hoppiness” of delving into the mysterious mind & lifestyle of Beatrix! I read where she wrote one of her diaries in a Code? What a creative person!
Hoppy Trails to you!
Bunny
She wrote her diary in code! And you know how when you love someone you try to see the ways in which you’re alike? Well, I wrote my first diary in code too! Not smart code, and only done to keep my four brothers away, but still, code!
this is the most awersome post yet of all the awesome posts. what a thrill-my daughter and grandkids are on their way so am saving this one to savor more later. Beatrix Potter’s house and village looks so wonderfully charming but that first picture of the Lake District near where you stayed spoke to ME directly. I can’t wait for the Cotswolds which is the only place in England I’ve ever been, except for London-it has now been 14 yrs. I hope to return one day.