A Home

Today was gloomy, inside and out. Rain persisted throughout; skies and our rooms were most dingy.

Even at midday one could barely see the pale pink winter flowering cherry juxtaposed against the dripping crab apples.

The temperature was, however, warm enough for the nasturtiums and the solanum to keep their shape without becoming their usual flaccid selves at this time of the year.

And dingy inside? That was because we experienced an, albeit anticipated, extended power cut to facilitate the supply being installed in a new house in Hordle Lane.

That did, however, provide us with a perfect excuse to brunch at The Walkford Diner. My All Day Brunch was one of the smallest grilled ensembles on offer. Jackie’s mountainous cheese and onion baked potato was accompanied by a plentiful fresh salad.

From there, we back-tracked to New Milton, where Robert Alan Jewellers fitted two new watch batteries while we waited. We have always been impressed by the service here. Among other previous experiences we bought our wedding rings at this excellent local establishment.

Once our electricity was back in operation, scanning pictures was the order of the afternoon. Elizabeth is seeking inspiration for the decorations to her Swedish wooden house from the splendid designs of Carl and Karin Larsson. She already possessed a copy of Floris Books’, 2006, Carl Larsson’s ‘A Home’ (ISBN 0 – 86315 – 549 -9). This morning I read it myself. Each of the illustrations is accompanied on the facing page by a clear and concise explanatory text.

Here are scans of the front jacket and a few of the wonderful paintings featuring interiors.

Elizabeth is staying with Mum for three nights, so this evening Jackie and I dined on pizza and salad with which she drank Hoegaarden and I finished the Médoc.

0 comments

  1. OH! Those paintings/illustrations are divine! The details so inviting, light, warm, and home-y! 🙂 Such comfort! 🙂
    I wonder if the little boy is sitting on the chair because he is in “time out”? I imagine they had “time out” in those days, but didn’t call it that. 🙂
    Even with the rainy-gloom, and no electricity, it sounds like you and Jackie made it into a good day! 🙂
    I hope Elizabeth will enjoy decorating her new house!
    And continued thoughts and prayers for your Mum.
    HUGS!!! 🙂

    1. Very many thanks, Carolyn. You are quite right about the little boy. I haven’t reproduced any of the text in order to respect copyright.
      I am afraid Mum is really not doing too well, which is why my sisters are taking it in turns to stay with her.

  2. The pictures from the book made me instantly hear the melody to “It feels like home to me.” They make my homesick for a place I’ve never been.

  3. Love Larson’s ‘A Home’ pics. 🙂
    My Solanum are still flowering but the Nasturtiums are past their prime – they can’t handle the Warmer weather here.

  4. What a way to dispel the dripping and misty day! Those paintings beckon my imagination to the tranquility of bygone eras. With Artificial Intelligence being employed to write and paint, human talent appears headed to obsolescence.

    1. Quite so. We had no TV until I was 15; and no phone until I had left home. Mum still has a charcoal drawing I made of Elizabeth watching television when she was about 4. Thanks very much, Diane.

  5. The illustrations are lovely. While my grandparents were Swedish, their home wasn’t quite so fancy, but it exuded the same sense of serenity. One item of my grandmother’s I do still have is a blue and white ceramic board — perhaps for cheese — which she brought with her on the ship from Sweden. Looking at these images, I’m reminded of that piece, with the traditional designs.

  6. An excellent way to spend an afternoon Derrick.. Its been miserable these last few days, and so dark… Hope the wind has not done any damage… Its been pretty rough hereabouts..
    Loved the artwork, and the English breakfast.. 😀
    Love to you both. <3
    Sue

  7. I hope today is less gloomy for you! WP has thrown me out of this post several times, which is a bit frustrating – maybe the gloom has been getting too much for it!

  8. Love the illustrations! I’ve been having the same seriously irritating problem liking and commenting, (hence my apparent neglect) but seem to have discovered a fix which may work for you too if you are using Safari. Click on Safari, then Preferences, then Privacy. If ‘Prevent cross-site tracking’ is ticked (next to Websites), untick it.

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