18 Folgate Street : the life of a house in Spitalfields

Growing up in California, Dennis Severs fell in love with the England he saw in old black and white movies. At seventeen he came to London, looking for a home with a heart. In 1979 he found one, a run-down silk-weaver's house in Spitalfields, and over the next twenty years he transformed it into an enchanted time-capsule, transporting us back to the eighteenth century. From cellar to roof, he filled 18 Folgate Street with original objects and furniture, found in the local markets, lit by candles and chandeliers. More than that, he invented a family to live here, the Jervis family, Huguenot weavers who fled persecution in France in 1688, and bought the house in 1724. Sounds and scents bring their world to life, always just out of sight - floorboards creak, fires crackle, a kettle hisses on the hob. Visitors step through the frame of time, like entering an old master painting. As we move from room to room on a tour you will never forget, we follow the Jervis story from the days of the Georges and the Regency to harsher Victorian times - and even to the attic room of Scrooge himself. Introduction by Peter Ackroyd.

An enchanted time capsule transports us back to the 18th century and brings an old house to life.

Growing up in California, Dennis Severs fell in love with the England he saw in old black and white movies. In 1979 he bought a run-down house in Spitalfields and over the next twenty years he filled it with objects and furniture found in local markets. He wanted his visitors to feel they were stepping through time, into an old master painting. He invented a family to live in it, the Jervis family, Huguenot silk-weavers who arrived from Nantes in 1725. Before Dennis died in 1999 he put the stories of the house, the Jervis family and his own life into this book. It is illustrated throughout by photographs taken by his niece, Stacey Shaffer, using the natural light that Dennis loved.

The Dennis Severs House is run by the Spitalfields Trust and is open to visitors.

From the Hardcover edition.

At 17, Dennis Severs went to England looking for a home with a heart. In 1979 he found a run-down silk-weaver's house in Spitalfields and transformed it into a magical time capsule, transporting its visitors back to the 18th century. This text tells the story of the house and its inhabitants. "18 Folgate Street: The Tale of a House in Spitalfields ... An enchanted time-capsule, transporting us back to the eighteen century-in mind, body and spirit ... illustrated with many black & white and color photos ... (from book, courtesy of amazon seller Fridamod)"--Publisher description