For the very first time this spring, daytime temperatures have reached 20 degrees Celsius this week. (That's 68 Fahrenheit) It's been absolutely lovely. I spent a couple of hours in the garden last night after dinner, enjoying the warmth (although I still wore a light jacket), and the lingering light. I picked the first four ripe strawberries and shared them with Tim. If the warmth continues, there will be more deliciousness to pick.
Several months ago I mentioned that we took out a very tall cedar hedge. Since then, the plants growing in front of it have flourished like never before. The Siberian Irises are much taller, and white alliums bloomed for the first time in several years. I think the spate of blooms is due to more light and relief from the intense acidity of the hedge.
My latest reading. Arctic Solitaire is the first person tale of a photographer in search of the perfect polar bear photos. He spent three summers in the northern reaches of Hudson Bay on a small boat. Bad weather, misunderstandings with local residents, and encounters with polar bears made for exciting times.
In 1977, when we married, Tim's parents gave us a rocker-recliner chair for a wedding present. We chose blue upholstery and loved the chair for its comfort. It stayed at my parents' home during our years overseas, and was used very little then. The chair traveled from my parents' house to ours, then to our children's homes to nurse babies, and comfort ailing people. Finally, it came home to us once again, and we debated what to do with it. We've not been able to find anything as comfortable, and so we had it re-upholstered. The padding and cushioning is new, as is the grey/cream linen-blend fabric. It arrived yesterday and I love it. I hope it lasts many more years.
When we moved to this house 20 years ago, there was one rose bush, an unnamed, but prolific bloomer. It's always the first to show colour, and did so in the last 10 days. Mixed with a few late hellebore blooms, Lamb's Ears, and stalks of Blue Camas Lily, it makes a pretty bouquet.
A Long Shadow is an Ian Rutledge mystery and this one, like the others, is a satisfying story.
The Diamond Eye drew me in immediately with the character of Lyudmila, a female sniper in the Russian army during World War II. The novel is based on a real-life character, and much of the story is historically accurate. I could barely put it down. It was made even more interesting by my own comparisons to the current war in Ukraine.
Here is Gertrude Jekyll, a David Austin rose, covered with tightly formed buds. If the warm weather continues I expect there will be a feast of beautiful pink blooms in the next week. Rain is also in the forecast, so things might be dicey on if the blooms open well. Gardening is always interesting, isn't it?
I hope to get out into the garden this weekend, although there are several social events to attend, including a family party for a three-year-old and a 10-year-old celebrating birthdays.
How very comfortable your chair looks. We have a riser recliner and it is nice to be able to put feet up.
ReplyDeleteLovely that your Gertrude is budding so well. She is such a beautiful rose.
I hope you have fun at the parties!
ReplyDeleteThat chair looks amazing. It is a perfect picture.
We've had some summer heat in May. Cooler now. And so danged buggy!
cheers
That looks like the perfect chair to curl up and read in. Like you we have furniture from our marriage 40 plus years ago that we recover rather than replace. Probably better made than anything modern. Lovely blooms from your garden. B x
ReplyDeleteThose books sound interesting. I love the story of your chair and how it has travel through the family giving comfort. The new fabric is perfect!
ReplyDeleteWe've had some steady rain here and if it stops I'll need to spend some more time weeding the planters. Glad your plants are enjoying their space better since the hedge was taken out. That chair looks very comfortable. Enjoy your weekend parties!
ReplyDeleteOh yes, it's just lovely to be in the garden now...my roses are blooming too. Splendid.
ReplyDeleteHappy weekend to you and have fun at the family celebrations.
Viola
The books sound interesting. I will order them locally.
ReplyDeleteThe rocker is looking new. I hope you get many more years out of it.
Enjoy those family birthdays!
Another delightful post...
ReplyDeleteLove all the photos and words, and the saga of the recliner. :-)
🌼🌼🌼🌼🌼🌼
A classic, comfortable chair is a wonderful thing. The new upholstery looks perfect. Our temps sound similar, though my roses have no buds.
ReplyDeleteFurniture back in the day was made to last, as were appliances. Not any more!
ReplyDeleteWould you recommend "Arctic Solitaire"? It sounds like a book I might enjoy.
ReplyDeleteTaking out that tall cedar hedge was a good idea I think, as you can see your flowers are thriving now. Sometimes we have to get rid of things so that others can bloom. Yes, I agree, gardening is aways intresting and no year is like another. I love it.
Oh, Lorrie - gardening is interesting to say the least. But I love it and I do think I would be heartbroken with a garden. I took out our Gertrude Jekyll. It did not like our humidity in the least. We had 2 pretty springs with her and then she shed her leaves and did not bloom for the remainder of the year. I replaced her with Peaches and Cream Honeysuckle. And she thrives on the humidity.
ReplyDeleteLorrie your chair looks beautiful. It is so wonderful that you have a good upholster in your area. The older chairs were made so well.
I am currently reading "The Diamond Eye." It is hard to put it down.
Have a great week and be well.
A chair with such a family history is as heart warming as it is beautiful. The afghan throw's rich colors are gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteI read ( and enjoyed) A Long Shadow. The Diamond Eye sounded so interesting that I went to our library site to request it only to find that the Large Print version ( which we prefer) had 67 holds on 11 copies while the regular book had 225 holds on 43 copies. I think I'll wait a while before requesting it.
ReplyDeleteI've been enjoying the lovely weather too and spend as much time outdoors as I can. I leave my computer off until late in the day and almost begrudge the time spent in front of it. Rain is in the forecast though.
It sounds like you made a wise gardening choice by removing the hedge. So lovely that things are flourishing!
ReplyDeleteYour "new" chair looks wonderful and I love your choice of fabric! We had a sofa reupholstered last year and we're having a chair upholstered this summer. If the furniture is well made, it is the best way to go, in my opinion.
Enjoy the birthday celebrations!
I love the Iris and colombines.
ReplyDeleteI was really disappointed by Giverny yesterday I miss the British gardener now the garden is very poor it is really sad for those who come from all over the world, they can’t make any photos.
Your arm chair is like new again and it was very well made. Yesterday we had 30 C thunderstorm and we’ve lost 10 C in a few minutes!
How coincidental - we too have just had a much-loved chair recovered (almost identical too). I like the idea of it having a new life, and choosing the perfect fabric too. Much nicer than buying new. Our chair is full of memories - of the boys when small and years in our cottage.
ReplyDeleteThe chair is as good as new, and beautiful. Truly, it's better than new, since as you said, you couldn't find a new one as comfortable. I love that upholstery fabric.
ReplyDeleteAfter our week of warm weather that made me want to be in the garden constantly, we had clouds and rain, and that was good, because I was really bushed! The weather made it easy to be content indoors again. Spring comes every year and every year we get to share our joy with understanding folks, on our blogs :-)
It looks like you found an excellent reupholstered! The chair is so handsome. It must have been well made originally to have withstood all its use. We have several old, beloved, comfortable chairs that really need reupholstering. It is just hard to go out and find a talented person and then pay the price! But so often our old stuff is better made than new pieces. I’ll look for your reading matter!
ReplyDeleteI love the irises and roses and the new look of the chair. I was also interested to hear that you liked the Ian Rutledge mystery. The author has another series with a WWI nurse that I like very much and I was wondering whether I should try the inspector ones as well. And - I'm glad that the weather is lovely. We are already on our way to leaving lovely behind in favor of very hot.
ReplyDeleteAmalia
xo
What an excellent chair your recliner is, looking absolutely brand new in its smart linen cover. We often think our older items were stronger and better made than their modern equivalents. Your unnamed rose is stunning, and mixes well in the bouquet. A good rose bush always repays with great blooms - we have a pink one which is very generous to us. Love David Austin roses, these will be so pretty.
ReplyDeleteHello, Lorrie. I commented on this post earlier, but I do not see it. Your flowers are so pretty. I decided to say goodbye to my Gertrude Jekyll rose. It had 1 or 2 pretty seasons and that was it. It was not happy with our humidity.
ReplyDeleteLove your chair and the stories that are attached to it. The fabric you chose is perfect. I am currently reading "The Diamond Eye" and it is very good.
Have a great week, Lorrie
I love the reupholstered chair and garden flowers.
ReplyDeleteHope your family party was extra special.
I would never have guessed that the rocker-recliner chair was 40+ years old!
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to seeing your garden flowers bloom!
That chair looks so comfy!
ReplyDeleteI agree with David - furniture and appliances back then lasted forever!
Hugs and blessings!
Lovely flowers.
ReplyDeleteYour chair looks wonderful!