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

Shake it to make it

Hello lovely people

Firstly, let me apologise for being a slack blogger.  Actually, I never like reading the apologies from blogland, as I tend to be impatient to read real content, being a..."get to the good stuff why don't you?" .. type of gal.  However, I know I have been more quiet than I would like to be so I do apologise for long silences.

This time of year is particularly tiring as we come to the end of a long string of events. Goodwood Revival  last weekend was the last outdoor show and for that I am glad, as it is getting just a bit nippy for camping.  I am however, proficient at wriggling into two sleeping bags.  Ha ha!  It is like Houdini in reverse.

pic from here

But that is not all that is taking up valuable energy as Mr Wolf's family and one of my manufacturers is based in Christchuch, New Zealand, where they have been shaking it all about for a bit too long now.  I do have to say, NZ'ers are kind of used to earthquakes, a bit like Londoners are used to slow tubes, and Australians are used to...um...living with scarey spiders/crocodiles/jellyfish/snakes that could KILL you. Never-the-less, it has been earthquakes on a big, frightening scale, and a lot more than something to chit chat about over your morning cuppa

Thankfully, as far as I am aware, no one has been killed by the large earthquakes they have had and that is due to the exceptionally clever NZ Building code. Well done building code!

I thought you might be interested in the fact that the NZ Building code is very good because it was developed after the Napier earthquake of 1931. Napier was a gorgeous, sunny coastal resort in the North Island, and in 1931 it was pretty much flattened by a massive quake.

image source here.

images sourced here

256 people did loose their lives and families were homeless. From the wreckage, architects and engineers could work out why some buildings (or parts of buildings) remained, and why some fell instantly. Hence our strict building code. Our dwellings are now designed to wiggle and twist, and, if they need to fail, they will do so in a way not to crush the inhabitants.

Chubby wiggling and twisting, source here

Just like London after the blitz, the little town re-built itself in the fashion of the time, and Napier is now Art deco central.

Spirit of Napier fountain, source: here

Masonic Hotel, source here

Rothmans Building, source here

Ellison and Duncan building, source here.

Delightful eh?

If you ever fancy a visit, Napier now has two Art Deco weekends a year, run by the Art Deco Trust.

Napier had a happy ending after a ghastly 10 days of shakes.  Poor Christchurch is now going through something akin to working the hula hoop after knocking back a bottle of bubbles while on a boat, without the hoop or the boat or the fizz. Not too much fun.  Just keep going guys. All fingers crossed it will be over soon.

Shona x