We all love castles in this household, so decided as the weather looked good, to venture abroad ;)
So, over the severn bridge we travelled, into beautiful Wales. Luckily for us, only an hours trip.
Our first stop was the magnificent ruined Caerphilly Castle.
So many stories and secrets of times gone by within its cold stone walls.
With the sun shining and a definite feel of spring in the air, we sat and ate our lunch in the same place soldiers had, hundreds of years before us.
Just a few miles down the road we continued on to our next port of call.
A very different but equally beautiful Castell Coch...
This castle was built on the site of the original Castell Coch by a hugely wealthy Victorian. Whom you can read about here.
A fairytale castle with beautiful windows...
Walls hand painted and illustrated with characters from Aesops Fables....
Starry painted ceilings adorned with birds and gold....
And woodland views...
A lovely day out! We are now looking forward to our next castle adventure......
In between times I've done these....
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Oh, I wished I lived by castles! Love the photos, they look so beautiful. And I'm really loving that white stag! :-)
ReplyDeleteWhat a lovely magical journey. Thanks for sharing it.
ReplyDeleteWonderful! And I love the head-on white stag painting!
ReplyDeleteWhen I went to Germany I was able to visit castles but nothing like the fairytale one you saw. Wow. I would love to wander around it for a few hours. Thanks for sharing:)
ReplyDelete...oh Karen I would love to go to the second castle...I love the room which is hand painted..it looks like the interior of the house used in moonacre...thanks for sharing
ReplyDeleteHow wonderful, the paintings and the ceiling look magical. We took to a nature reserve yesterday and i was lucky enough to have a robin come and take food from my hand. Very magical, one of my magic moments, i'm going to be looking for them from now on. Have a lovely week :-)
ReplyDeleteThat is utterly gorgeous - both the castle, the wall paintings AND your artworks. (I thought Moonacre as well, though I was thinking of the book, not the ghastly film that Warner have made of it)
ReplyDeleteDear Karen,
ReplyDeleteGood morning from the U.S.! I just found your message! What a delight to see your blog. I love castles and Rabbits!!! Your artwork is exquisite. I need to put you on my blog list. I see you visited my "Fit for a Queen" post. I hope you got a chance to visit my latest one on angels and my Valentine's Day dedication. Please visit again soon. Anita
Ooh what a beautiful day out! All the paintings on the walls are just gorgeous...& I always wanted my ceiling to have sky & stars on it too! hehe
ReplyDeleteThank you for posting up such beautiful photos Karen. I love castles too and many castles and stately homes were a part of my childhood. I am sure your children will never forget the places they have visited. Just seeing those beautiful painted interiors it is not hard to see what inspires your beautiful artwork.
ReplyDeleteOnce more an enjoyable visit to your blog. Thank you:)
Wow those painted ceilings and doors are so beautiful!
ReplyDeleteLooks like a lovely day out.
I can't believe you are only one hour from this magical place! Those painted walls *gasp*
ReplyDeleteI love your new work! is any of it going into your etsy? I've been sketching white deer for a story I'm working on with a friend so of course I'm smitten with yours!
My heart is thumping!! Those murals, that ceiling!! Those windows!! Magnificent. I must add this castle to my list of places to see. How inspiring for you to have it so near. And I really love your new work!
ReplyDeleteCastle Coch is an incredible place isn't it? I love the bedroom at the top with those fantastic glass bedknobs! Seeing this, I really must go to visit again soon.x
ReplyDeleteOh Karen, that was a lovely post, thank you .x
ReplyDeleteYes, angels are all around! Lovely people and helping hands are truly a sign that they exist! You have such a great blog! Anita
ReplyDeleteThanks for all of your comments x
ReplyDeleteI do count myself lucky at being quite close to alot of castles.
I agree that it is very moonacre -ish
I thought the costumes and sets in the latest film were magnificent.
Fotf.. How wonderful to have a robin eating out of your hand! Thats something I would love to experience.
Julia.....I have also wanted stars on my ceiling :)
April... As a child, I too was taken on many trips to see castles, and this has remained with me and now the love has passed to my children.
Cat... Yes the two 'Original' painted hearts will be on etsy shortly, and I hope to get the stag done as an A5 print.
Jessie- Yes the glass bed knobs are fantastic! I loved that room
Oh my god. What a beautiful place!!! i love castles so much... I think i lived in a castle in a past life :)
ReplyDeleteThe paintings are also awesome!!
Oh we love castles in our houshold too! have totravel further afield up here to make discoveries. Those painted walls & ceiling are beautiful, oh to live in a place like that, a fairytale indeed. A place i shall now long to visit. beautiful stag too x
ReplyDeleteBreathtaking places to visit (am trying not to be too terribly jealous). Lucky you.
ReplyDeleteAnd beautiful hearts. I love them all.
Hi Karen, your artwork is just gorgeous! And how lucky to be able to explore these castles as you do.
ReplyDelete~Gina :)
Thank you, thank you, thank you for showing me Castle Coch! I am absolutely in love with those murals and will be over there asap!
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