AN ARTIST'S ABODE
Every square inch of this house is bedecked with owners Clare and Charlie Brownlow's beautiful artwork
“
It isn’t simply about where they would like to live, it’s about how they work too
The last time I met with Clare Brownlow she was living in what she hoped was her ‘forever home’ and it was pretty idyllic. However, fast forward four years and the Brownlows are in a new home and it’s even better. There are similarities, the family which consists of Clare, her husband Charlie, and their two boys – nine-year-old Alfie and eleven-year-old Harry – are still in the Borders but instead of outside Kelso they are now quite literally on the edge of a village near Jedburgh, and it is this location that has been a real game changer.
While the mantra location, location, location is oft trodden out, for Clare and Charlie, the right location is a necessity; it isn’t simply about where they would like to live, it’s about how they work too. Clare is an established artist (Clare Brownlow Pheasant Feather Art) and paints original paintings solely using a pheasant’s tail feather as her ‘paintbrush’. Charlie runs Finhunter UK, a company which recycles old waders into upcycled wader products and Charles Brownlow Ltd, which specialises in bespoke stalking, shooting and fishing holidays.
‘Charlie runs The Game Train which charters The Royal
Scotsman train to provide a once in a lifetime holiday for clients to tour the country, getting off the train to participate in shoots, stalking and fishing expeditions. As you can imagine, during Covid that has not been ideal,’ Clare explains. ‘I’ve also had to rethink how to exhibit my work as all my shows and exhibitions were cancelled. I’ve been exploring 3D interactive scans to showcase my work. My first exhibition was a huge success and I’ve got several more 3D exhibitions planned this year.’
And while Charlie has been holed up in the dining room using that as his office and initially sharing with the boys to help them with schoolwork, Clare has been repurposed the studio in the garden.
‘It used to be the old tack room and when we moved in it was full of all sorts
of junk and more like a rat hotel. We cleaned it out and put a carpet down, brought my desk in which is a palette in itself, and fitted the wood burner. Now it’s my little haven. It has a beautiful view over the paddock and the woods.’
It is certainly an inspiring place to work. It is close to all the amenities that the couple need, such as a wellstocked village shop and post office, which is ideal for sending out Clare’s commissions, a village green for the boys to meet their friends and a good pub – which Clare assures me is ‘perfect for sending guests to for a pint while I finish dinner’. It is hard to believe that when you look out of Clare’s studio window that all these things are only a few minutes walk away, because as soon as you turn into the drive you are completely immersed in beautiful Borders countryside.
‘My priority for a home is that I have space to paint and that I can see wildlife, but I love that here I don’t have to get in the car to post my orders. There are the most beautiful walks from the bottom of the garden and as for the wildlife, it’s wonderful.’
And as if just to prove a point, at this stage in the interview, a pheasant wanders past the studio window.
The local wildlife has also been joined by the Brownlow’s own menagerie of Minnow, a longhaired Jack Russell puppy, Wiggy the Champagne-coloured Cocker Spaniel, Muddler the black Labrador, rabbits Mixi and Flopsy, chicken Henny Penny and Duck Duck – I will leave you, the reader, to work that last one out.
Although the studio was obviously first on the list to get up and running when the couple moved in, Clare and Charlie have gradually been working through the house making their mark. ‘We’ve ripped up carpets and stained the floors and redecorated every room. We haven’t tackled the bathrooms or kitchen yet, but we’ve made it a home.’
Again, like their last property, this is a house which oozes character. On the ground floor there is a kitchen, boot room, WC, snug, dining room and drawing room. Upstairs, the split staircase takes you to two double bedrooms, a bathroom at the front and a twin room, bathroom, WC and two bedrooms at the rear.
‘It’s a very eclectic house with an eclectic mix of décor,’ Clare explains. Lamps from TK Maxx are juxtaposed with mirrors that Clare has accumulated, a homemade chandelier of tree branches changes its look with the seasons and then there is the artwork – lots and lots of artwork.
‘Charlie’s art is very old school; he likes game bird sporting scenes and very traditional works and then mine consists of things like a painting of a neon panda in an Indian headdress, African carved face masks and a red squirrel climbing the walls made out of old tin cans. Art is my passion and what I collect is not necessarily what I do as a job, but I love finding unusual pieces and in different mediums too.
‘Charlie and I both love the lifestyle this house affords us. As previously we are renting so we’re still looking for a property that ticks all the boxes. Rural but not cut off. This a great location, we love it here and it has everything we need right now. We honestly can’t see ourselves moving from here.’
We honestly can’t see ourselves moving from here