Curtains!

Anything we do just take some time. Putting up some curtains in our veranda has been a two years old project (and there is still one little detail that needs to be fixed).
I have realized that nothing standardized could be fixed, so we had to involve a blacksmith and a seamstress.

At the forge

Based on some picture I did find on the net, I went to the blacksmith (http://ferrumkonstsmide.se/) and asked to prepare some for me. The prototype he made was very beautiful, but slightly too long. So he cut it and that became the final design of the hook. This got fixed in March 2015.

Simple, but beautiful

I then got some idea of how the curtains should look like. Since we have a reproduction of 1700 century furniture there, it'd be nice to match it with similar curtains. It is hard to identify what kind of curtains were in the house from the old pictures we have...

Based on few models I saw on the internet, I discussed with the seamstress (http://www.cherubino.se/) some ideas and she proposed a first version, which then got transformed into something else..

The first curtain is up, but it looks too modern!

The final version then got decorated by a nice stripe of lace and went up about one year ago.

This fits much better! 

The curtains come up

While the curtains were being made, we (or better Mattias) had to adjust the rods that I bought as curtains rods. In our little world that required a lot of planning: where to put the hooks, how the curtains should look like, how to make the rods fit in the corner...

Eventually we managed to put all the pieces of the puzzle together and last year (March 2016) the curtains were all up and we were happy to not being roasted by the sun during spring time.

There was still a task left to accomplish: the rods were not painted and, although that wouldn't have been the worse thing ever, I thought that having them white would fit better.

This winter I therefore took everything down. The curtains got washed and got to work on the rods.

Preparation for painting

Base paint with linseed paint

I got some professional help for the painting

This is the end result after several weeks of painting/waiting/finding the time to finish up

Finally it is time to put them up

Details, the hook, the rod, the ceiling

Setting the curtains up

A room with a view

Now, the only thing is to adjust one of the rod because there is no space for one of the knobs.

Easter time

It has been since we have moved in this house that I have embraced the more Swedish tradition to prepare the house for Easter. Not that I am hardcore with it - we bought this stuff four years ago and haven't changed much around it (Mrs Wallergårds' blog, sadly the pictures are not visible because the site where they were hosted is long gone).

So, I just want to show again (but on this blog ;-) ) some furnishing detail, although it is not about renovation or history of Bellevue.
It is just that it is nice every year to put this decoration out  just when Lent starts and everyone is alert to spot nature spring awakening.

Narcissus are typical Easter's flowers

 After all the greyness, it is indeed nice to have some color's touch.

An Easter "tree", next to the autumn lady, on a nice jugend sideboard

 The house is too big, I guess to have a turn over (I fail also during Christmas time) and I don't think that exaggerating would do any good.

Each door handle on the bottom floor has some Easter's decoration hanging

Two big hen are guarding the veranda

 It is also very hard to find typical Jugend items, so I just have a mixture of whatever I bought which doesn't make any sense in relation to the house or its age.

Small chicks are spread a bit everywhere

More on the library. Possibly hard to see

This is also part of the life at Bellevue, within the bigger works which includes buying proper furniture (still!), restoring and trying to survive the general maintenance of house and garden.

Spring cleaning

It is the first day of spring, but the weather doesn't look yet super promising, although it is getting better.

As every year though, I started my yearly spring cleaning which usually last until summer and never gets completed. Let's see how it will go this year...

Nevertheless, the only room that is *almost* completed is the TV room (almost because I'd like to paint the ceiling were we have some humidity stains and hope they won't appear again), which though went through a small make over.

Before

After

After (2)

Basically, the main concept is to be able to sit and "listen" to whoever is playing the piano at least looking at the piano. Seems a bit better than before...