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A Visit To Kelmscott

At last I have been to Kelmscott Manor!

I admire the work and philosophy of William Morris and have had Kelmscott on my list of pilgrimages for a many years.

Steve and I went on a weeks trip taking in a  stay with good friends at Totnes,then on to Kelmscott and finishing with a night and day in Glastonbury and guess what, the sun shone for the whole week!!

The house and garden where William Morris ,his wife Janey and their two daughters Jenny and May lived for much of the year is within a walk of the higher reaches of the Thames. The village of Kelmscott is delightful,untouched and has such a peaceful feel to it.

 

Here I am in the grounds in a rustic little summer house clutching the Morris fabric bag that my daughter Caroline made , people kept asking where I got it!

We walked round the house , me as usual when I visit the homes of those I consider great in a sort of ecstatic awe, sometimes I have been known to fall over because I just gaze around and do not look where I am going.

 

This is the front door,I could see the Morris's going and coming and maybe the wicked Rossetti nipping behind a bush trying to waylay Janey Morris for a cuddle. He did not like Kelmscott even though he shared the tenancy for a period , he said it was muddy! Janey was the attraction and William turned a blind eye, poor chap.

 

I did try not to imagine any of them using this three seater privy which had a charming herb garden just in front of it!

The garden is lovely and is intimate and natural,full of old fashioned flowers,herbs . It  was easy to see why William loved it so much. He described it as "A little place in the country for the wife and kiddies"

Inside the house there is a feeling of what a homely place it must have been during the families time there and afterword when May lived there.It is hard to imagine however how cold it probably was even though there were large fireplaces in most rooms. Drapes, blankets and warm underwear would have been essential!

On the door in one of the rooms hung William's great coat and cape,it looked as though he might return for it! I wanted to give it a little stroke but sensibly the very helpful staff maintain a no touching policy throughout the house.

This is the back of the Manor.

 

You can see the fourposter bed with hangings woven and embroidered by the women of the house. William slept in this bed,Janey had an adjoining bedroom.

This was a very striking border,I love walled gardens!

Perhaps it gives a sense of safety and seclusion from the other doings of the world.

 

 

The gorgeous portrait of Janey in a blue silk dress by Rossetti is hanging in the house, it is stunning and she was of course a "Stunner"

The house has many Morris Fabrics and wall papers which are timeless in their appeal.

 

The willows around Kelmscott and on the Willow Walk which we followed up to Buscot Weir and Lock influenced this design which I particularly like for it simplicity.

Here is an unfinished design .

 

William and Edward Burne - Jones were best friends and Edward brought his family including his stalwart little wife Georgie who was a special friend to William to stay at Kelmscott. When Rossetti was romancing Janey Edward was chasing Marie Zambaco and various other muses so William and Georgie consoled each other .

 Janey retained her mournful beauty into old age,seen here at Kelmscott.

 

I like this photo of William.

I visited the church and churchyard were the family are buried,it is a simple tomb with both their names and dates inscribed . The girls are at the side of the main tomb. The whole thing is very dignified and a bay tree stands sentinel at the side.

William was carried to the churchyard on a decourated farm cart,it must have been a poignant sight  to see his family and friends following the flower decked rustic cortage.

 

We stayed at the old thatched inn at Kelmscott "The Plough" and had a view of a paddock and the other venerable stone houses of the village,all in all another wonderful memory to store away for those rainy days.I will especially recall walking by the Thames under willows,through fields of yellow buttercups and seeing swans and signets near the bank.The upper reaches of the Thames are magic . 

 

Now I have to research another pilgrimage because as Monty Don says in his book on French gardens Quote I have always tried to visit the homes of writers and artists who have influenced me,believing that seeing where a man ate his breakfast or the wicker chair beneath the tree that remains is  a key of sorts to their work."

 

 

 

 

 



Why I have not been blogging!

I wish I could say that I have not been blogging because I have been carried off to the desert by this lovely young Omar Sharif but that is not the reason!

The winter has just groaned on too long and I have felt a bit brain dead however the sun has come out here at last,I have been  planting seeds,potting up geraniums and even had a lovely glass of Merlot on the patio while listening to a blackbird singing its heart out. One day I wonder what its all about,grey skys and drizzle then a bit of sun and compost under the fingernails and I am smiling  and wondering at the sheer joy of living. I can never seem to find that middle ground!

Cornwall is such a place of light and shadow!

I love this  Newlyn School  painting  because it seems to portray this so well.

Steve and I have made plans for a little jaunt together,this is going to be great. First we go to stay with our very good friends Rich and Bren in Totnes Devon ,they were  witnesses at our wedding .

We married in Totnes Register Office with just them as witnesses.It was a really lovely day .

Then on to Kelmscott,the home of one of my heroes William Morris.

We have booked into the local pub for three nights ,as well as visiting Kelmscott manor we shall find the source of the Thames .The river is special to me as my childhood was spent very near to its banks and it has always been a magic place for me.

This is another pilgrimage.

After that we are going on to Glastonbury for a few days.

Actually all that is just a lie, I have been found out ,someone caught me creeping back from my assignation with Omar,damn those mobile phone pics!

The truth is out.

 

Hooray!

This is my little Mum,she is 89 and has been staying with me in Cornwall because she fell and broke her arm on Boxing Day.

I have not had time to do much posting during the last three months but now !

 

 

I am pleased to say she has made a full recovery and has astonished the doctors here in Truro with her amazing bone regrowth and mobility.

When we took her in to casualty they asked her age and what medications she took and we said nothing but the odd painkiller.

They tested everything and said she was very healthy. Hope I have inherited the bones!

She writes poetry and works in a charity shop and I think  she is an inspiration!

Next week we go back to London  on the train what an adventure it has been and we have had fun even if it was hard at first with pain and making adjustments. I have had such a lot of help,good wishes  and love fom her friends and mine. Oh! it does cheer you up when human beings show how great we can all be!

She will celbrate her 90th on the 24th of April



That last bit before Spring.

Well here we are in limbo,still cold and grey but about to welcome March.

Already the snowdrops and dafodils are blooming in the garden and the Lungwort

with its lovely pink and lilac flowers.

.

Thought I would remind myself that as Shelley said

" if Winter comes can Spring be far behind"

Here is Cornwall in Spring!

Monet painting his Spring garden.

 

The daffodil ,the golden trumpet of Spring heralds the warmer days.

I feel we shall soon be turning the corner into new growth.

Hope these images bring a breath of warmer air to you all.

 

 

Snow!

Snow has fallen all over the country but here in the west of Cornwall we have had very little.Something wonderful happens when snow covers the land and all seems quiet and peaceful.Looking at snow under the moon has a special kind of magic.

I have always liked the winter world of Caspar David Friedrich,the cold romantic landscape.

Mucha's beautiful evocation of winter is personified  by a cold ,mysterious lady in white.





Here Monet captures winter around Giverny.

Sitting in our warm homes with good food and company it is easy to forget those who are outside suffering without home and comfort. Winter is beautiful but also unforgiving.

As a child I was frightened by the story of the Snow Queen and her stealing away Kai from Gerda.

 

 

I need to feel safe in winter

I love log piles and warm quilts.

I have not posted for a while because I have had no time to get away and be able to indulge myself.

My 89 yearold Mum came to stay at christmas,slipped on the stairs and will be with me until her broken arm mends. Although it has been painful for her it has also been very good for our relationship,we have talked and been close. She is doing well and has put on weight eating slow cooked winter casseroles and spicey stewed fruit ,lots of  hot milky drinks at night and has become addicted to porridge with brown sugar!

Bed now beckons so goodnight and under the quilt!!!



Peaceful and Merry!

Well here it is,Christmas,Yule etc. and it crept up on me this year! I have all the prep done for the dinner tomorrow and the presents are around the tree.. It is late or should I say early,midnight has passed and officially it is Christmas day.Floods have ruined so many peoples Christmas this year and my thoughts are with those whose homes have been flooded.

 

We need the warmth and colour of the winter festival to set us up for the last deep, dark days.

I like the drawing in  and  some time for some contemplation.

 

The magic of snow casting its white blanket on the cold earth stirs the deep imagination.

I find myself day dreaming about fantasy worlds ,Hobbits and their comfy kitchens , dark mysterious forests and finding homely houses in the wilderness of ice and snow.Animals who suddenly speak to me deep in the snowy woods and I am almost a child again .

Images of deep mystery invade my dreams during these dark days.

Journeys through the snow to  a warm cosy house with fires burning and the aroma of hot food.

The colour red for warmth,berries as red as blood amongst the evergreen pine and holly.

The time is right to sit and dream and forget all the getting and spending.

I breathe in the clean smell of  pine trees and hot mulled wine.

Secret and exquisite beauty is in every snow flake!

Merry Christmas  one and all!