My living room windows face north, one wall of three floor to ceiling windows.
Early morning light is flat without a fire burning on the hearth, whereas
in the evenings when we settle in for a few hours of television, some very
interesting, some just mindless escapism in these pandemic months/years,
a blazing hearth brings warmth and light and we can lower the heating system.
The wood pile is getting low but we will have enough to see us through
another month. Some evenings this week have been too warm to light
the fire, but over the weekend it will be cool again.
The dust from burning wood in an open fire - I won't even go there - but
Spring cleaning is on the to do list!
Note the really nice square Asian cachepot from AT HOME - in shades
of blue and grey. It came home with me and will soon be holding a new
plant of some description.
Between those odds and ends I'm supposedly addressing at home this week,
I popped out to meet a dear friend for lunch and a news catch up. On the
way home I decided to stop by AT HOME to replenish some candles I'm
really enjoying. I like the larger 3-wick version and as there were only three
left on the shelf in River Birch & Fern, I bought them all. This fragrance
is very subtle, and is a favorite. The green smoked glass and wooden
lids make them appear quite posh, however they are a bargain
at just $12.99 each.
I've found that three wicks burn much better when it comes to even melting
of a candle, less wax 'tunneling' and perhaps lasting longer overall.
I always trim the wicks before lighting again, important for a
clean-burning candle.
Yesterday I cut my first daffodils of this year for the kitchen window.
They started appearing in the back garden this week and filled
my heart with hope and joy.
Hoping everyone reading this in the UK remained safe during the huge
storm Eunice. Apparently it did some serious damage in some areas.
Now on it's way across the north to The Netherlands, Belgium,
Germany etc. so I hope my friends there are not endangered.
Stay safe and warm. Enjoy your weekend .
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The heating system is more effective and probably more efficient, but my sense of romance would prefer an open fire.
ReplyDeleteI can just imagine the beautiful light that comes into this room. What a cozy room.
ReplyDeleteLove the new cachepot and candles. Now I can't wait to see what you put in the cachepot.
Love your new planter. Those candles do look posh!
ReplyDeleteThose first daffodils are a real joy aren't they?
ReplyDeleteI saw that awful storm on radar and shuddered. It blew off south of me and I was grateful. Now I'm thinking of your friends and family and hoping with you that everyone stays safe.
ReplyDeleteWe installed gas fireplaces a few years ago and while they are all we use now for heating our home, and they are cozy, they lack some of the ambiance of a wood fire. This afternoon I'm cozy on the couch while grey clouds sail by as a fierce wind tosses trees to and fro.
ReplyDeleteYour cache pot is a beauty.
We have a fireplace in our living room but rarely use it. And when we do, we just use those quick-burn "fake" logs that last six hours. They don't produce any dust, per se, but they do leave the inside of the fireplace messy.
ReplyDeleteI bought a three wick candle at Home Goods just last week. I'm very sensitive to scents, especially artificial ones, so when I get any candles, I have to make sure they're a very mild scent, and natural. I lucked out with finding one that's a coconut and beeswax blend and infused with essential oils. The scent is "honey tea" and is lightly scented and doesn't bother my allergies or give me a headache.
I can't wait until we have daffodils here!
Dearest Mary,
ReplyDeleteOh, we gave up burning wood already for several decades and would not ever want to go back to 'Dust–Kingdom!
You are very brave for wanting to do the deep cleaning because of it.
Both of us have been enjoying now for two weeks since we're home, our early blooming daffodils and especially the highly fragrant Ehrlicheer. They are a joy, however running the heating still inside our homes due to up and down temperatures, makes them dry out quickly.
They are so paper thin!
Don't know if I can tackle this chore again:
https://mariettesbacktobasics.blogspot.com/2012/08/cleaning-windows.html
Hugs,
Mariette
Great Aunt Eunice turned out to be a bit less formidable than we'd feared, at least around here. We certainly had strong winds but the damage they did was no more than the winds we get most winters, though the wind speeds were nudging hurricane-force. Just down the road from me a large tree was brought down across the road, landing on a man walking his dog. Incredibly, although they were trapped beneath the branches they only received minor injuries. There can't be many people who get away with having a tree fall on them.
ReplyDeleteWe are still at the snowdrops and aconite stage here, it will be a few more weeks before he first daffies will be out.
ReplyDeleteThat storm hit northern Germany quite badly, but fortunately I live down south and was not immediately affected.
Dear Mary,
ReplyDeleteNothing like a good fire to enjoy on a cold Sunday afternoon. It's all worth it. For the coming week the weatherman tells us that temperatures will be below freezing, even during the day. Poor little snowdrops.
My daffodils are just starting to come up. Just the leafs pushing through the ground now.Yours are beautiful
ReplyDeleteI noticed today that our ‘Tête-à-tête daffs are now fully open - Spring is moving forward.
ReplyDeleteWe were apprehensive to discover that we were sitting beneath a red alert for Storm Eunice, but in the end nothing out of the ordinary happened here, breezy with some gusts now and then but that was it.
A cheery fire in your lovely brick fireplace must look a treat during the dark evenings - a bit of dust does no harm and with our modern appliances today it is not too much of a chore considering the pleasure a real fire givesX
That's a lovely first daffodil, Mary. Speaking of the telly, this is the perfect time to thank you for recommending "The Terror", it was fantastic!
ReplyDelete