[1] She became famous following the posthumous publication of her Nature Notes for 1906, in facsimile form, as the book The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady in 1977, which was an enormous publishing success.

[1] Edith Blackwell Holden (1871–1920) was a British artist and part-time art teacher, known in her time as an illustrator of children's books.

Holden was made famous by the posthumous publication, in 1977, of her Nature Notes for 1906 under the title The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady.

The collection of seasonal observations, poetry, and pictures of birds, plants, and insects—which was never even considered for publication when it was composed—had the nostalgic charm of a vanished world seven decades later.

Edith's mother was Emma Wearing, a Spiritualist and Unitarian, and former governess who wrote two religious books, Ursula's Childhood and Beatrice of St Mawse, published by the Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.

The Holdens held regular Spiritualist seances at home in Olton, with the intention of communicating with the spirit of their deceased wife and mother.

At the Countess's studio in St James Palace the Smiths associated with leading artists such as Sir George Frampton, sculptor of the statue of Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens, and royal visitors such as King Faisal of Arabia.