On cushions and sights

My mother once told me she couldn’t get why I was so fascinated with cushions. I was living in a much smaller place then with a fraction of the cushions I now have and I couldn’t get what on earth she was talking about.

Then again she was a lady with such perceptive insight there was little that escaped her attention. With her amazing foresight I guess she saw it coming. Yet she would be shocked to witness the present state of affairs in my home.

Nevertheless, she is to blame, at least partly. Thanks to her I am completely smitten with handcrafted items. It’s becoming exceedingly hard for me to walk away from a needlework cushion with a floral or ornamental pattern if I notice one at a flea market or thrift shop, I’m afraid.

Two weeks to go and we’ll be handing over the keys of this house to the new owners. We are busier than ever. In hindsight, you should never get a place with excessive storage and never stay put for too long. Keeping those two simple rules in mind will save you a lot of headache in the end.

Bye for now and until next time from Turku. I am planning to revive my Handmade treasures series as soon as we are settled down in the new apartment. Meanwhile, have a happy International Women’s Day and enjoy the spring season! Ours is very much ahead, not only in our minds but out-of-doors, too.

PS. Two of the elaborate cross stitch cushions are by my ex-mother-in-law.

HT 7: Framed cross stitch fish

It looks like we might be lucky enough to skip a couple of months this winter: the little snow we had is now almost gone. It has been wet and dark so I am finally continuing my Handmade treasures series with a very fitting item.

When I saw this cross stitch ‘aquarium’ in a thrift shop a few years ago I instantly knew it would be ideal on the wall under the roof window of our upstairs hall. You see, although my photos do not reveal it the sofa against the pitched ceiling is purple underneath the bedspread. I’m keeping a spread there because of our Jack as well as my daughter’s cats who visit us every now and then. The colour of the sofa is rather close to the darkest hue of violet in the cross stitch piece.

A couple of years ago when we had the roof replaced (more about that here) we also had the roof window replaced. I find the little framed fish very charming against the present off-white trim he was clever enough to build out of plywood around the new window. Quite an accomplishment in an old house like ours where no two corners are identical.

The sofa nook is one of the places for his afternoon nap. It is also the spot for my late-night or rather early morning knitting by the digital TV recorder. I have neglected both my handicrafts and recordings this season. I should put on a spurt with both as the device’s huge capacity will soon be pushed to its limits. Well, there is always the option of deleting some of the recorded files...

Now that I have finally revived the series I am hoping to show more of my handmade treasures soon.

Ultimate B&B

I’ve started sifting the bottom cabinets of our bookshelves, more precisely those concealing piles of interior design magazines. I haven’t had the heart to throw away my beloved Art & Décoration and other French copies, some of which are more than 10 years old. After all, Mediterranean style is rather timeless.

The French interiors took my mind to some of the places where we have stayed on our travels. Even though we generally stay in private apartments it sometimes happens we (meaning I) can’t find a suitable one, in which case we prefer a bed-and-breakfast or a small privately owned hotel. The B&B we’ve adored the most is the gorgeous little Le Stanze del Casale in Portoferraio on the island of Elba. It was an absolute joy to stay there.

The place is located a few kilometres outside the town, not exactly by the beach but in a quiet and picturesque rather rural setting at the bottom of a hill not far from the sea. We were delighted about everything there, especially the owners and the fact that there is nothing fake about the place. All the items looking traditional or old are authentic hand-crafted, antique or vintage pieces.

The decor is most charming and welcoming with lots of delicious well thought out details both indoors and outdoors. You could stay at a place like this for weeks discovering something new of the interior and surroundings every day. We enjoyed our stay so much we didn’t mind a bit the lack of a TV in the room. Who would come to Elba to spend time indoors anyway?

The lovely owners have renovated their place from an old farmhouse. They live in the same building but in completely separate quarters with an entrance of their own. So they are always available but will not disturb you if you prefer privacy. Moreover, they are such animal lovers that visitors with pets are also welcome to their place. The B&B is open from April until the end of September. I bet it is fully booked most of the season.

Our room.

Our terrace facing the hills.

We travelled to Elba a few years ago in April when the weather was mostly sunny but we also saw some cloudy and rainy moments. We would like to return one fine day towards the end of the season when the crowds have cleared out. Should we be lucky we might be able to revisit Le Stanze del Casale, too. To me, it is the ultimate benchmark for a B&B. That’s how I’d envision by own fantasy establishment to be like, an inviting and tasteful home-like little place full of character.

More on our visit to Elba here.

Portoferraio across the bay.

Rest with roses

We’ve had several beautiful sunny days giving some promise of a true spring but the nights have been so freezing that progress has been minimal. The snow bed is hard and almost knee high everywhere around our place, which isn’t that bad for outdoor activities.

However, I’ve had to stay indoors because of some problems with my leg. I’ll tell more about that later, although sitting too many hours by the computer without taking proper pauses certainly didn’t help. Such carefree behaviour will defeat you eventually. So I’ve spent the last few days moving around from room to room and from sofa to sofa carrying with me the bunch of roses I bought on Saturday. If you have to lay low you’ve got to take whatever pleasure there is for you to take.