Life, after all, is in the detail

"A year of doing good" by Judith O'Reilly

Old glass and curios

A mirror is a strange thing. Somehow this picture is showing my living room, and somehow it is not. All the elements are there, true, but the mirror makes the end result so striking I got completely baffled after taking the picture! I am finding it very hard to believe my living room could ever look this good.

I do love the old glass I have inherited or found in antique shops and my curio collection, though. This might be just a small part of everything I have collected, but at last I have found a way of displaying them. Happy days. An added bonus is I have better space in my library now, too!

Old glass and curios ♥

Quotes can be many things

Two quotes from two of my favourite authors transformed into pillows ♥

A book purse!

I found these two down in Spain - look, it is a proper book purse!

Bliss!

"The Deep" by Helen Dunmore

A glimpse of my library wall

At last I have gotten some of my acquired art up on the wall, although I am far from done. I love how the pictures have transformed the feeling of the room already.

The reading corner in my library

Another volunteering experience!

This time with an old dream of mine...dolphins! At the west coast of Australia you can find Shark Bay and Monkey Mia. This is a great place for learning about and meeting dolphins, doing research, swimming, sunbathing, reading books, having conversations, meeting new people...and to simply watch the dolphins play and hunt along the shore. These creatures are mysterious, fun and magical - all at once.

Two of the lovely dolphins I was so lucky to meet ♥

Diaries, statistics and keeping tabs is important down here as well

Old family treasures

Firstly, I should mention that this is not my book. Not yet, at least, and hopefully not for many years still.

Secondly, I have a fondness for old recipe books, and so far I have collected a few. The effort and time the ladies put into them back in the days and over the course of years make them special. Some young women continue to write in the same recipe book for fifty years or more, making it more similar to a diary showing the passing from unmarried to married, to being a mum or to become a grandmother.

This particular one belongs to my dad's mum. She brought it out from its hiding place when I asked if we could bake prior to Christmas. The book is almost 50 years old now. It was a fun day - and I got to spend wonderful hours with my grandparents. I love being home for Christmas.

My granny's old recipe book

A bonfire and a cave

My friends asked me to join them in camping out in a glitter cave this weekend. It was snowy outside, a bit cold - and yet, sitting in the cave at night, watching and listening to the bonfire after all the rest had gone to sleep, I loved it. I had some tea left, I had my book - and for a little while there was enough light from the flames to read by before it all got too late and I had to get some sleep as well.

An inspiration

A Cobwebby poem

Cobwebs can be magical things. The glittery strands you can see an early morning often seem to be out of this world...like as if maybe faeries really do exist.

Sometimes you find old treasures hidden in old, dusty shops - this little book with nature poems for children truly is more than it looks ♥

My library contains more than books

Amongst the books residing in the shelves of my library you can find a great many other things. If I like something, it will fit in here somewhere - that is the greatness of a room full of rare, strange or funny items. My library is a testimony to my somewhat eclectic taste - a sanctuary for all the weird things I have collected over the years.

Some items, like this puzzle, are perhaps not so eccentric, although very pretty in itself. 

A puzzle with the most vibrant colours!

A surprise!

Today, the 4th of November, I could actually go outside and cut another couple of roses from my garden. This is a novelty. Normally, sitting by the kitchen window at this time of the year, the garden flowers are pretty much gone and there are only some vague reflections of the glorious summer colours left.

Oh dear...I am getting short on space in my shelves!

Another browsing on another travel led to this collection...

A sunny day

Pretty colours make any day bright...

...and my diary is always close by.

Book hotel - such a nice idea

One of my preferred hotels in the city of Stavanger, Myhregaarden, has these fantastic shelves filled with books tucked away in the halls and around corners. I love perusing unknown shelves of books, and so make sure I stop by all the ones I have found so far. Even if that equals standing there literally in the middle of the night in the otherwise quiet and sleepy hallways.

What a cake!

Cake, anyone? I think this comes quite close to the most amazing cake I have ever seen!

Source

I have been browsing again...

...this time in airports! See, when there is still a little while before my flights are due, and there are bookshops around...well, I simply cannot resist! I am terrible, I know. It is a wonder my handbag has survived this long considering the heavy loads it has carried, really. 

This time I browsed my way through two airports - Oslo and Edinburgh. I am rather excited about the resulting finds! Now, my only minor problem is choosing which one to read first... 

Oh, by the way - did you see my new bookmark?? The Spoon Man made it from an actual teaspoon! Cute, right?

My newest treasure!

I do love Arthur Rackham's pictures! Whenever I come across a new book with his illustrations in it I have to take a closer look... This one (and a couple of others) simply had to come back home with me from Edinburgh - there was no way I could leave these treasures behind ❤

My new ibook - I love love love it!

My ipad has never looked this great ♥ 

Incredible book art

Sometimes art can be so detailed and beautiful - and what better material then books to make it out of? A book that has seen better days might turn into this perfect project. I especially marvel at the pictures and drawings of this book - they are truly magnificent when displayed like this.

"Modern Painters" by Brian Dettmer