The collection of a local Frome artist and collector will be offered for sale at the Dore & Rees Spring Interiors Auction next month.
The auction of Lucy Miranda Sipe’s possessions will take place at the firm’s Frome saleroom on Wednesday 15th April, and includes mid-century furniture, tribal jewellery, spiritual objects and a little bit of witchcraft!
“Lucy Miranda Sipe (1957-2025) was a local artist, botanist and collector,” said Guy Tayler, Head of Interiors at Dore & Rees. “She was creative in almost every field – an illustrator, knitter, jewellery maker, needlewoman, writer and gardener.
“The first thing you saw on entering her home was an eight-foot-high tree made from rope and wood hung with vintage glass decorations. On closer inspection and on reading her accompanying annotated notebook it transpired that she had hand-painted each decoration and detailed every design choice along with the prices and provenance of each figure, and its significance in Eastern European folklore. It’s a completely extraordinary work of art.
“During her lifetime, Miranda spent time living in Botswana and the USA. Her collection includes fabulous silver jewellery from the American Southwest and all over the world. Her furniture is either brightly painted pine or serious Scandinavian design with pieces by Hans Wegner and Finn Juhl. She loved buying nice things and collected widely.
“Miranda was a pagan and we counted 13 witch’s balls in the house (perhaps an intentional number?) Garlands of hagstones, which must have taken years to collect, hung over beds and doorways.
“Her Grade II-listed 18th century cottage in the historic area of Keyford, Frome is so original and unspoilt it’s reminiscent of Denis Severs’ house in Spitalfields, with wide burred elm floorboards and a washing line strung across the tub in the bathroom.
“The collection at Dore & Rees includes mid-century furniture, tribal jewellery, spiritual objects and a little bit of witchcraft. It’s a glorious celebration of a life well lived.”
![Town-wide programme brings month of social activities in May
A month-long programme of activities and events is set to take place across the town in May as part of an initiative encouraging residents to connect with themselves, each other and local places.
The scheme, Frome Connects, will run throughout the month and includes a mix of social activities, creative events and informal meet-ups in community spaces.
Highlights include the return of Dress Up Fridays, which began during lockdown and invites people to wear formal clothing or fancy dress and turn the town into their catwalk each Friday.
Set-piece moments include a Kate Bush-themed flashmob (Running Up That [Catherine] Hill) on 30th May, followed by a bell peal at St John’s Church where the bells will play Running Up That Hill.
There will also be a whole-town drone photo on Friday 30th May, with everyone encouraged to ‘look up’ at around 12.30pm.
Read more on our website, the link is in our bio.
Pictured: l-r Jenny Hartnoll and Ginny Adams](https://scontent-lhr6-1.cdninstagram.com/v/t51.82787-15/684201964_18069463433653265_2722712448142239347_n.jpg?stp=dst-jpg_e35_tt6&_nc_cat=109&ccb=7-5&_nc_sid=18de74&efg=eyJlZmdfdGFnIjoiRkVFRC5iZXN0X2ltYWdlX3VybGdlbi5DMyJ9&_nc_ohc=lpPD1lkIpzUQ7kNvwGc5hdb&_nc_oc=Adpzr2hnI58mBzDyMxcnkdK_pr7-84FAARfoTk3dgtKJKwIbvYouQytEkAdXpaUAvxU&_nc_zt=23&_nc_ht=scontent-lhr6-1.cdninstagram.com&edm=ANo9K5cEAAAA&_nc_gid=QKz5uslOl1wFJGffej9rcQ&_nc_tpa=Q5bMBQEhS3JmIIRGVtdvc7NeDg-szHPgOZvSeqR7PYflJsqm1cp0XCNujCDPTyODWI0mmJV4mujraOr9&oh=00_Af2_0pgXuakjMTfphq9JSx7v6C2RU__qPFT1d7jQmFh5EA&oe=69F7C6AA "Town-wide programme brings month of social activities in May
A month-long programme of activities and events is set to take place across the town in May as part of an initiative encouraging residents to connect with themselves, each other and local places.
The scheme, Frome Connects, will run throughout the month and includes a mix of social activities, creative events and informal meet-ups in community spaces.
Highlights include the return of Dress Up Fridays, which began during lockdown and invites people to wear formal clothing or fancy dress and turn the town into their catwalk each Friday.
Set-piece moments include a Kate Bush-themed flashmob (Running Up That [Catherine] Hill) on 30th May, followed by a bell peal at St John’s Church where the bells will play Running Up That Hill.
There will also be a whole-town drone photo on Friday 30th May, with everyone encouraged to ‘look up’ at around 12.30pm.
Read more on our website, the link is in our bio.
Pictured: l-r Jenny Hartnoll and Ginny Adams")
