National Geographic Green
11 February 2010

“One misty summer morning at a willow–fringed bend in the Great Ouse in Bedfordshire, I came across a tall, fair-haired woman gathering bulrushes from a punt. In fact her name is Felicity Irons, and she was engaged in the ancient art of rush-harvesting… she is now the last practitioner of the craft in England.”

From Country, a seductive, visually stunning first book from the designer Jasper Conran with photographs by Andrew Montgomery. The real allure of the countryside, the author suggests, is not about spending money or subscribing to a certain style, it is about appreciation, getting back to the roots of what makes us tick and taking time to look at what is here and now.