The patina of my Secret Provence, part two

Saving the best for last. It is my squirrely side, the part of me that puts this or that away for a certain time, often undefined in my mind. But when it arrives with a click, I smile inwardly broadly.

And so yesterday evening, after a fit of Ikea runs and practicality…

…we started to unwrap the Art.

Our pieces are not precious…

…the value they have is personal.

But oh, how I was thrilled to see them again even after so short an absence.

Happily, they are not worse for the wear after their short voyage.

It is delightful seeing them with new eyes, in a different environment. Wipe the slate clean and start again.

“Welcome to your new Home,” I whispered.







Have a wonderful rest of your weekend everyone…

19 comments

  1. You have captured what I love about Provence so perfectly, I am now really pining! Xx Sharon

  2. Sprays and whorls of Ceratostigma Plumbaginoides 😉 I think that's your vine! Here's to planting roots in a beautiful new spot. xox, V

  3. Glad you are settling in so happily. With art on the walls you know that you are truly home. And your gorgeous photos are art in themselves – you know I love your eye for patina, texture and the details that make Provence so beautiful.

    Yo were mentioned fondly many times this weekend – we spent it with Heidi, Angel, Penelope and Paloma and a few other friends and told stories of our wonderful tour of Arles last summer. As sunny and beautiful as our setting was, we couldn't help but wish we were back in Provence!

    Have a beautiful week, Heather! XOXO

  4. Praise for the slow unraveling. Showing the cover and a glimpse of the first page.
    Have a wonderful week.

  5. I am so eager to read more about your new home and so happy that the move has worked out for you. You are keeping my spirits up by proving that sometimes chasing daydreams can have happy endings.

  6. Sounds like home Heather. Art doesn't have to be precious. It just has to speak to the heart.

  7. Does anyone else feel like you're reading an exciting new mystery novel by your favorite author?? More will be revealed….ack! I can hardly stand it – little glimpses of the new location…teasing mentions of favorite items being unpacked…Trying to remember to just savor the little bits and pieces, which, I believe, is the point of this whole venture! LOVE the patina here – the last 2 are my favorites, but they are all wonderful! Miss you!!!

  8. I am so happy that you are happy in your new home. A plant must love its soil to be nourished by it.

  9. What a beautiful post! The layering, the revelation of the patina compared to the unwrapping and placing of your precious art work. And, then, the lovely welcome home at the end, next to the doorstep.. yours??? The second to last photo made me feel at home; it features teucrium fruticans which is what I have planted along the driveway to my house.

  10. Yes, Heather and Judith, it's always the artwork…mostly not valuable but oh, so personal. Most of ours still in boxes after two years here in France…just waiting for the right spot if we win the lottery and can renovate! 🙂

  11. Thank you for this. And it's funny, when I think about packing up this home of 20 years, the stuff I care the most about isn't the furniture or my clothes — its photos and all of our artwork, mostly made by friends.

  12. Oh, that was just what I meant to say in my last comment in " Part One" that Art and Beauty can be like a "companion". Prescious (or should we say pricey because prescious they are always to us) or not, they accompany us a lifetime and are part of the definition of our very self.

    The moment to unwrap the art pieces after a move is a magical one. Personally I need to see them around me to know where I came from and to understand where I am going to.

    Your photos are beautiful, mixing the abstract with the figurative. And thats still a good thing about the south of France: Patina! You rarely find it in Germany.

    Happy for your successful move! Gros Bisous, Silke

    By the way, how do the furry creatures of your family like it?

  13. Oh my gosh I love that wooden door. Heather your blog has been such a delight to read these past few months 🙂 I love all of these pictures you share

  14. The various patinas in your photos are charming. Provence is generous in its offerings of such surfaces, especially if one is willing to look carefully.

    It's always a treat to visit your blog Heather. Warm regards.

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