As soon as I walk through the door of Mount Pleasant Farm, I know it’s our kind of place - a Somerset cool kind of place! For a start, owner Daisy (& her very cool cat ‘Stevie Nicks’) greet me with a huge smile… and three different choices of the most gorgeous homemade cake :) - amazing tiffin, fluffy almond sponge and custard tarts to die for! I know straight away that if I’m staying in a Somerset B&B, I want Daisy looking after me! She’s warm, welcoming and full of excitement for the newly-opened gem she’s created in the little village of Chapel Allerton (just south of Cheddar).
“There’s always a homemade ‘something’ in the bedroom for guests”, Daisy says with a grin. “I love to see people enjoying food and breakfast is a joy to make”.
Before we jump to breakfast though, let’s talk beds (4 double ensuite ones to be exact) and the beautiful farmhouse you’ll find them in!
As Daisy tells me,
“I used to drive past the farmhouse on the way to school when I was a little girl. It always stood out to me back then and of course, I never dreamed I’d live here one day”...
...but when Daisy was looking to move back home to Somerset, after studying and working in Leeds, it just so happened that the house she’d noticed all those years ago was up for sale. After falling in love with it all over again, and her dad suggesting it’d be great as a Bed & Breakfast, the rest is history!
We’ll let you in to a little secret though… the Farmhouse wasn’t always this beautifully presented:
Daisy, her mum and dad and a team of builders spent 6 months renovating Mount Pleasant...
... knocking down ceilings, remodeling rooms and floors, recycling and dipping doors, and designing everything from beautiful staircase banisters and landing spaces, to cool and quirky radiators!
“Our plumber looked at me and laughed when I asked him to design the copper radiator,” Daisy tells me, “but he got used to me in the end I think and really loved the challenge”.
A challenge it certainly was, but Daisy and her family have all poured their heart, soul, creativity and eye for unique detail in to every single breath of the farmhouse. To say it’s been totally transformed is an understatement.
“When we first viewed the house, it was hard seeing past the building as it was, but Mum and I just dreamed big! I thought about the things I really love, we’ve brought them to life here and we just hope other people will love them too”.
And what’s not to love? We could happily sleep in any of the bedrooms night after night! ;) They’re now bright and light, with beautiful high-beamed ceilings and each one has its own unique personality. There’s something to wow you in every single one of the four.
Bedroom One, ‘Copper Pear,’ is more than a little bit special!
At the heart of it is this stunning four poster bed…
... and to make it one of a kind, Daisy and her mum spotted the oars that lay across the top of it when they were at Wells Reclamation . They thought they’d be perfect to give the bed a bit of original sparkle - and they were absolutely spot on!
We love the fact that Daisy and her mum have spent tons of time at various Somerset shops and reclamation places - picking out cool interior gems to set this B&B apart. Daisy tells me it’s one of the memories that stands out the most for her…
“Me and mum, going around different auction houses and shops, laughing and having so much fun. We’ve definitely egged each other on when it came to the spending!”
And we say "thank Mount Pleasant for that" – especially when it comes to this beautiful copper bathtub in bedroom one…
I could lay back and relax in it for hours on end I reckon!
The other awesome thing about this particular room is the gorgeous view it has over the garden and out to Ashton Windmill in the distance. We’re crackers about this beautiful Somerset landmark, so to be able to see the sun set over it from your farmhouse window is definitely the big juicy cherry on Daisy’s homemade cake!
Talking of crackers, we’re also a little bit crazy about bedroom 2 – 'The Curlew and the Hare'.
The theme wasn’t something that was planned, Daisy tells me. It just grew as the mum and daughter team went to work on the space... but there’s now an awesome wire sculpture of a curlew (by Devon based artist Jane Clift) placed to catch your eye, an array of gorgeous hare references and a magical feel about the whole room!
Come to think of it, every bedroom has pieces of childlike fantasy, hidden for you to discover. There’s the ‘Fox in Socks’ picture in Copper Pear (by Bristol based artist Rosie Webb) and in here, there’s the Princess and the Pea (my face lit up when I spotted that), a cabinet of curiosities packed with an assortment of weird and wonderful keepsakes and the beautifully carved ornate mirror, to complete the fantastical feel.
Combine this with cool wallpaper, a striking light and a wetroom that rocks and you’re in for a total treat if you stay in this one!
There’s a touch of magic in bedroom three ('The Daisy Room') too…
Oh... it's just a little mouse having a snooze in a bed of his own... and the family creativity continues with a clothes hanger made out of spoons and fish knives by Daisy’s dad! Just brilliant :).
If you’re looking for a cracking sunset, bedroom 3 has a beautiful one over Brent Knoll... just so you know! :)
'The Swallows’ (Bedroom 4) is a different style again, with bold navy and gold as the stars of the show.
There are beautiful bird prints, some painted swallows that were gifted to Daisy by her Grandma (and take pride of place above the mirror) and another fine little cabinet of curious collectables in this room.
When I was tiny, I did actually collect the same little bears you can see on the top of it!
We also love the letter press letters you see here and in various little nooks and crannies around the farmhouse. It's another cool little touch that makes Daisy’s place stand out from the crowd! We have to break it to you though. For all the originality, there’s one thing that’s exactly the same in every single room… a pack of playing cards, because as Daisy says “it doesn't feel like a holiday until you play gin rummy” :) LOVE her!!
Anyway, downstairs is just as lovely as upstairs and a real home from home. There’s a HUGE room with a cosy seating area to chill out in at one end - perfect for relaxing in front of the fire after a day’s exploring.
And, there’s a spacious area for breakfast…
… with lots of fantastic features and little details that make Mount Pleasant no ordinary B&B.
We particularly love the top hat and a collection of pottery made by Daisy’s mum. You can buy her creations to take home with you if you fancy it! Daisy’s plan is to get other local artists to exhibit (and sell) their artwork at Mount Pleasant, so it becomes “ Somerset Art Weeks every week!”. Now that sounds like a good plan to us. In fact, there’s so much potential for different events and occasions here that Daisy’s already got some other cool plans up her sleeve:
“I’d eventually love to have the barn oustide as an open studio” she tells me, “plus there’s potential for a holiday cottage and I love the idea of a pop up restaurant too. We did one for 24 people a few weeks ago and it went really well, so there’ll definitely be more of that to come”.
If you stay at the B&B on an evening when there isn’t a pop up bistro on the cards, never fear! The Wheatsheaf, a local pub a couple of minutes away, comes heartily recommended by Daisy. Wedmore’s close by too – another gorgeous Somerset village with a couple of fantastic places to eat and one day soon, Daisy hopes to have bikes to rent so you can hop on a cycle there and back on a summer’s evening.
. Anyway, as I chatted the day away with Daisy it became obvious that her main hope is for everyone who stays at the farmhouse to have the very, very best time possible – and we’re sure they will. It's a gorgeous place full of quirky details & personal touches which make it not just Mount Pleasant... but Mount flipping Awesome! ;)
Our review in three words – A wonderful original
To book a stay at Mount Pleasant Farm you can call Daisy on 01934 710285 or email mountpleasantfarmsomerset@gmail.com.
Their new website is coming very soon and you can also follow their adventures on Instagram @mountpleasantfarmbnb or on Twitter.
P.S. The B&B is a getaway for adults only.
P.P.S. The farmhouse has a secret that we just can' t keep to ourselves. Nope! It's not a hidden basement or a haunted cellar... it's a painted airing cupboard! Yep... you heard us correctly. Daisy tells us she couldn't find her mum one day and when she heard a noise that seemed to be coming from the water tank, she opened the door to find her happily painting on the walls and ceiling!
Now that's the most creative airing cupboard we've ever seen! ;) Top hats off to Daisy and her brilliant mum. We love the lot!
Thanks to Matt Heritage - @mattjheritage - for the beautiful images in this blog - a fantastic interiors and lifestyle photographer.
(excuse images 2, 3, 8, 10, 14, 16, 17, 18, 20, 24, 28, 29, 32, 33, 34 & 35 - we're responsible for those ;)).
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