Frederiksborg Castle

Just outside of Copenhagen is the magnificent Frederiksborg Castle, which houses Denmark's National History Museum.

The castle was built during the reign of Christian IV between 1588 and 1648, and was restored after a fire in 1859.

The museum was founded by brewer J.C. Jacobsen as part of the Carlsberg Foundation.

It houses important collections of portraits, history paintings and distinguished examples of decorative art.

The exterior of the castle was bedecked with many beautiful carvings...

and intriguing doors...however, once inside we were treated to some truely stunning decorative detail.

A carved scene within The Rose, also called the Knight's Room. The room is a reconstruction of how it looked at the time of Christian IV, when it was used as a dining room for the lords and ladies of the court.

A fine example of a child's gown.

The beautiful Chapel, completed in the 1680's for Christian V.

Gorgeous fine glassware.

One of the smaller reception rooms, resplendent with paintings on the ceilings.

The only way to travel between floors...if you're royalty...I'm positive that the servants would have used the stairways.

This ceiling, outside The Chapel appeared very dramatic with these strange little white carvings hanging from the dark timber panels.

More ceiling detail...

And of course, some fine chandeliers...

The paintings and works of art were beautiful...this one seemed to glow...

Whilst this one was very clever...the beast on the far right with it's head tilted, was painted in such a way that it's head would follow you around the room...so no matter where I stood it appeared to be looking straight at me...

A portrait of a much loved Queen Margarethe

And a very clever representation of our own Princess Mary.

We really enjoyed the little we saw of Denmark...unfortunately we didn't make it into Copenhagen so another trip is definitely in order.

Friday flowers

On our way to the Botanical Gardens in Kew, last week, we came across a very interesting florist...

Hubby very obligingly came to a screeching halt so that I could dash inside and take some shots...

Lots of different textures greeted me at the door..

and inside, clever arrangements in a gorgeous cupboard...

An eclectic array of flowers and bits 'n bobs proved fascinating.

Great props will always grab my interest, not to mention a bit of French newspaper..

Just intriguing and lovely.

A week later and the weather is not so good...dull, grey, rainy...so roses are in order to cheer the place up...

and a bit of faffing about with the few flowering pot plants left...

including the pretty pink snapdragons still flowering happily...not quite Petersham Nurseries or Zita Elze!

Petersham Nurseries

I have one more post to do regarding Denmark, which I will do next week as I can't wait to share some photos that I took yesterday at Petersham Nurseries...

I've wanted to visit this nursery for years...back when I lived in Australia I would see articles or products about it in magazines...and never imagined that I would ever get to visit...

From the minute I entered the gate...I was in heaven...

but be warned...I think I have 562 photos...it will be the longest post ever...

 

The trouble was, every time I turned around there was another amazing display...

There were lots of examples of crusty old furniture, a lot of it French...and as I oohed and aaaghed hubby was breaking into a cold sweat...

This is the desk at the entrance to the Michelin rated cafe..where Skye Gyngell (from Australia) is resident chef.

In fact most of the nursery is devoted to food, with the cafe,  and a tea house, taking up residence in and around old glass green houses...

plus this further little dining nook hidden away down the back...

It all appeared quite primitive in some respects with dirt floors, but combined with the old glass and vintage furniture and props, it was a unique set up...

The tea house is where we had a bite to eat..

inside we selected our lunch and then wandered into one of the many dining spaces...

Looking around there was lovely vintage settings, most of which is for sale...gives a new meaning to 'try before you buy'...in fact I could have selected the chair under a diner...imagine being asked to stand up because somebody had bought the chair literally out from under you...

It was a lovely day...and we wondered around after lunch admiring the creativity evident in all the displays...

 

Even outside the loo was beautifully decorated with blue hydrangeas...

and inside a lovely French mirror on the wall.

Back inside one of the large greenhouses, we browsed through the displayed merchandise...

Interesting china and French bistro chairs, my heart was palpitating...hubby just rolled his eyes...

I love this Wonki Ware...

I think that will probably do...I may have exaggerated slightly regarding the number of photos...but you get the idea...it's well worth a visit, especially on a glorious summer day...but beware, the parking is a nightmare...get there early before the diners descend....

and I definitely think another visit in Autumn is in order...

Gilleleje

On our recent trip to Denmark we headed north to the coastal town of Gilleleje. This is a favourite destination for summer holidays with many Danes having 'summer houses'...

There were lots of timber houses like this one, painted in often, dark colours, with contrasting white painted windows...they would look terrific in the snow, during winter.

Some were nestled in the foreshore, overlooking the ocean...

Looking out on the 'Kattegat'...

This thatched roof cottage looked very English..

The harbour was buzzing, with a jazz festival in full swing...lots of people and loads of atmosphere...

It was chockers with fishing boats, like this very cute little red one..

However, we all decided that this pleasure craft was the winner...

We stayed in a 19th century castle called 'Havreholm Slot', deep in the woods...

This was one of the out buildings...looking like something out of a fairytale..

The pool looked inviting...such a pity it wasn't warm enough for a dip..

Inside was a delight with gorgeous furnishings...

The dining room sparkled with chandeliers...

The trompe l'oeill was quite amazing...

This lovely old traditional Danish stove looked a pretty picture in the corner.

And after breakfast, a place to have a little rest...