Under the weather

Being under the weather will mean different things to those living in the tundra that is currently the United Kingdom, as clearly demonstrated by this satellite photograph. Many other parts of the world are as badly affected with unusually harsh weather, including our northern neighbour China. My own "under the weather" scenario is the usual common cold, which happily is nearing its end.

It has meant retreating to my monastic cell, to loll around on the daybed, and to catch up on some reading. Thankfully, as I mentioned in yesterday's post, I have completed the magum opus that required a fork lift truck to hold and read.

The retreat of a spartanly-decorated room is a soothing mixture of moody blues, (and greys) in silk, from Jim Thompson, interspersed with a black and white squiggle of a daybed, (fabric also from Jim Thompson), and black and gold Thai silk cushions from Shinawatra Silks.

On either side of the bed, above the blue and white porcelain lamps, are pair of antique blue and white bowls and lids, resting on a pair of gilded wall brackets, which I had made here, as copies from an original. Antique, because I wont hazard a guess on the actual age, but they were left to me by an old banking colleague. If they turn out to be more important than I truly believe, then that will be an added bonus, if that pension plan needs to kick-in one day. The white granite floor tiles are partially covered in an assortment of Oriental rugs. 

In the bookshelves opposite the bed an African carved zebra sits and takes duty as a book monitor. The picture behind the daybed is 1920s, of a forest scene, from an estate sale in Paris, and which I wrote about here.