Period homes and Gardens

Hello my lovelies!

Long time no chat eh? I have been back from my travels for just over a week now and I must say, despite the freezing temperatures here in the UK, I am glad to be staying put now for a bit. In fact the snow and cold are not bothering me right now because what I most want to do is hibernate. Perfect!

sleepy bear (not the least bit grizzly, honest) found here

I have had the most terrible bout of Jet Lag (yes it deserves capitals) ever.  Apparently, when you fly around the world anti-clockwise it is much easier to get back on your feet than if you go clockwise. Well I believe it might be true given my recent state of wide-awake-ness at 2am and inability to concentrate on anything (except, maybe, fabric shopping on ebay...) Since I booked my flights quite last minute, I had to fly back from New Zealand via the States instead of through Asia, so I travelled the wrong way around the world.

Anyhoo, while I am still getting my act together for Christmas I thought I might do a couple of posts about NZ and the things I love most there (besides family and friends of course). I LOVE the houses. Especially weatherboard ones. As soon as I arrive I soak up the sight of weatherboard houses that make up the majority of our homes.

Whenever I drive out to my brother's place in Otaki this one calls out to me. I love the sweeping drive, wide lawn and the huge verandah. Although the eras don't match, I  imagine Scarlet O'Hara might come here on her days off. Maybe that lawn just begs for a big poofy skirt and a parasol.

Otaki is a small coastal township and is full of these lovely Californian Bungalows, with huge gardens and verandahs to sip your G&T's on (sigh). I want a verandah! The warm weather and the available land in New Zealand inspired the adoption of this house style when the colonials were planning their towns.

Another feature of a Californian bungalow is the low, sloping roof line, and in NZ you see lots of colourful roofs, probably because so much of it is on display.

This one has the most striking roof line, only visible for a second as you drive down the street.  I suspect the part of the house with the chimney is a newer addition. 

Having left Otaki (it was time for lunch and Mum was hungry) we are now in Karori, Wellington. Suburbs closer to the city centres tend to have less gardens and more compact detailing (obviously!). The verandahs are have much more of a "enough-to-take-your-gumboots-off", than "great-Gatsby-picnic-after-croquet" feel about them.

 This one probably had stained glass windows in the small, upper windows originally. I love the rows of white rose bushes though.

This house has so many distinctive features! The curved corrugated iron roof is typical of early homes and the subtle use of tones of paint colour brings out the detailing. Even the fence line has been carefully considered.  The decorative flair of the arts and crafts type in the woodwork would have been quite expensive to have in those days. And it would have had stained glass windows too, so this little house was quite the little "show off" but in the best possible way.

And there ends our whistle stop tour of NZ homes. I hope you agree they are rather enchanting and can see why I love them so. Now that I am back in the UK for winter though I am very glad for Georgian brickwork and gas central heating! I hope you are all warm and cosy too - wherever you are!

Shona x