Last weekend we visited Mottisfont, a National Trust property in Hampshire, for a day in the sunshine, a picnic with friends and a look at the Quentin Blake and Friends exhibition.
The Princess is a fan of Roald Dahl and David Walliams books so is familiar with the magical illustrations by Quentin Blake. She also enjoys exploring old houses, so this was a hit with her. There was a lot of recent art we didn't recognise (although you could immediately tell it was Quentin Blake's wonderful work) but the more familiar ones, such as The BFG were towards the end of the exhibition, along with illustrations from the likes of Oliver Jeffers and Michael Foreman. In the final room was a rail of dressing up clothes for the children to become characters of their choice - a brilliant addition to the exhibition, making it more fun for little ones.
Running alongside the exhibition, Mottisfont had a fun story trail around the grounds, where you could look out for the illustrated signs and complete a trail book. We also enjoyed the wild play area, where supervised risk taking is encouraged, with climbing frames made from logs and a fantastic water play section too.
We walked through the meadows, ran through the avenue of trees, followed the river around from the font - a beautiful clear spring, played pooh sticks on the bridge (something which brought back memories of The Princess meeting the lady who inspired the character of Piglet at Mottisfont last year) and admired the flowers, butterflies and bees within the walled garden.
The Quentin Blake and Friends exhibition is on until 14th September so there's still time to go and we'd definitely recommend Mottisfont for a great family day out! We were provided with a family ticket for the purpose of this review. All opinions are my own.
