Nancy Lancaster (1897–1994) was an American-born interior decorator and garden designer whose career became closely associated with the development of the twentieth-century English Country House Style. Having created and remodelled interiors and gardens in a succession of her own houses, including Mirador in Virginia, Kelmarsh Hall, Ditchley Park and Haseley Court, she brought practical experience of country-house living to her professional work. In 1948 she acquired the decorating business of Sibyl Colefax and entered into a long professional partnership with John Fowler. Their complementary approach combined historical reference with comfort, informality and the reuse and adaptation of existing furniture and textiles