First comes the property. Then you need some handmade products to fill it. As Miranda Jessop explains, Kirstie Allsopp can help with it all
Fiona Murray
I may not be an estate agent secretly hoping for an offer over and above the asking price, but here I am in the hot seat, waiting for property guru Kirstie Allsopp to ring me. Thankfully though, there are no potential homebuyers sitting anxiously on either side of her; no deal on the table to be negotiated. Just profuse apologies from Kirstie for being late, explaining that time had run away with her as she nattered with a mum on the school run.
Continuing to chatter nineteen to the dozen, this is the Kirstie we all know and love: one half of the successful duo that makes up Location, Location, Location, the successful TV show now as popular for Kirstie and Phil Spencer’s on-screen banter as for their property advice. As well as her expertise in finding the right spot for people to live, however, Kirstie’s name is also synonymous with handicrafts, and this month she brings The Handmade Fair to Hampton Court for the fourth year running.
Her love of handicrafts stems from childhood. The eldest of four children, Kirstie grew up in the village of Inkpen, near Hungerford, in West Berkshire. Her mother mounted and framed pictures before becoming an interior decorator, while her father worked at Christie’s Auction House.
“I have very fond memories of my mum making colourful matching dresses for me and my Tiny Tears doll,” Kirstie tells me. “My family always lived by the ethos of reuse and recycle and it stuck with me. It is part of my DNA. I was also brought up to appreciate the organic nature of handmade crafts and to understand the skills involved, so it goes deep into my system.”
It was while she was making Kirstie’s Homemade Home for Channel 4 that the idea for The Handmade Fair first came to her.
“I had this amazing time learning skills from such talented craftspeople,” she explains. “It was so inspiring and I wanted others to be able to join in with my experience.”
A perfect day out for lovers of all things unique and bespoke, The Handmade Fair brings together Britain’s best handmade products, craft supplies and artisan foods. Not just the ultimate shopping experience, it also provides a multitude of opportunities for hands-on making.
FIona Murray
“We chose Hampton Court because it is, in itself, a fantastic example of great British craftsmanship. So many highly skilled people were employed to build, decorate and furnish the palace and it is just extraordinary.”
Last year 17,000 people descended on The Green and this year’s three-day event looks set to be bigger and better than ever, with Kirstie, her celebrity ambassadors and some of the country’s leading creative experts hosting a series of hands-on workshops. New faces include interior designer, Sophie Conran and founder of Not On The High Street, Holly Tucker, while colour expert Annie Sloan is among those back for a fourth year.
“We have tents and bunting and picnic spaces and it’s all about having a fun day out with your friends. The best bit for me is watching people walk out, laughing, having had a lovely day and clutching all the wonderful creations they have made at our workshops.”
If handicrafts form part of the fabric of her being, cooking came to Kirstie later in life: a passion stemming directly from her work on TV.
“When we were filming, I always enjoyed the experience of experts teaching me how to cook,” she recalls. “I found that it really boosted my confidence in the kitchen.”
She had already penned a number of craft books, and when her publisher asked her to write a cookery book, she jumped at the opportunity. Billed on the front cover as containing “simple recipes for modern families”, Kirstie’s Real Kitchen will be published this month.
“It’s a family recipe book for people who, like me, aren’t necessarily confident cooks, but who are keen to serve up delicious meals for their family and friends.”
Speaking of food, recent photographs of Kirstie reveal a dramatic weight loss. What was it, I wonder, that prompted her to slim down?
“Let’s be honest, if we don’t control our weight, we are putting our life in danger. A couple of people tweeted me to say that I was an example to curvy women, but it made me realise that I didn’t want to be a cheerleader for people with a risky lifestyle. Being overweight at 50 is a leading risk factor for breast cancer. As a mother, partner, daughter, sibling, friend, it would be irresponsible for me and is not the way I want to go.”
FIona Murray
It’s a pertinent issue for Kirstie, who lost her mother to breast cancer and whose younger sister chose to have a mastectomy – not something Kirstie plans for herself. It’s been just over a year since she started following nutritional therapist Amelia Freer and she has already lost more than two stone.
“Basically, you eat three meals a day which are, for the most part, vegetables and protein, you don’t eat between meals and you drink only water. I feel great; there really are no downsides to losing weight. The only thing I still struggle with is getting enough sleep. I am a terrible news addict and always stay up far too late, watching it all on TV.”
Kirstie and her partner Ben Andersen, a property developer, have two sons together (Bay, 10 and Oscar, 8) and Ben also has two sons (Orion, 17 and Hal, 14) from his previous relationship. The working week is spent in Holland Park while, at weekends, the family usually decamp to their home in Devon. Kirstie feels no pressure to marry her long-term partner.
“On Location, Location, Location we film so many couples who are saving up for their wedding and I am increasingly obsessed with what an appalling waste of money it is. The idea of spending so much on one day just fries my brain.”
How does she juggle work and family life?
“We are fortunate in that Ben’s office is just around the corner. So, if I can’t take the children to school, he always can. I also have an amazing nanny who has lived with us for 10 years. Anybody who does my job and pretends they are doing everything themselves is lying and misleading other women.”
Our conversation draws to a close. But before we finish, I am intrigued to know whether, after 17 years of Location, Location, Location, Kirstie really gets on with her sidekick, Phil, as well as she appears to on the screen.
“Yes, I really do,” she assures me. “Someone said the other day that we are very different personalities but very similar characters. I think that’s a good way of putting it. He drives me insane and I drive him insane, but we are incredibly close. I’m hoping he might pop by at Hampton Court. We’ll have to see.”
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