UPPARK HOUSE At Plain English, we are always looking. In a very broad way – for inspiration, for details and for ideas. Visiting historic houses and properties is more than a pastime, especially those houses where we can absorb and admire the below stairs world; where the simple, plain joinery of the kitchens is still intact. These rooms, understated and timeless, continue to inspire us in what we create and how we live today. In May, Katie Fontana, Creative Director and Co-Founder and Merlin Wright, Design Director, of Plain English visited the National Trust’s Uppark House & Gardens in Sussex, England. They brought a picnic and arrived with the plan to explore. They came away with a greater knowledge of the house, its history (the landscape and the building) and especially, the downstairs kitchens, its details and very interesting quirks.