At Home With Country: Review & Giveaway
September 8, 2010
Recently, I was sent a lovely text called At Home With Country, written by Christina Strutt, owner of Cabbages and Roses, a company specializing in printed linens for home and clothing.
The very first thing to catch my eye was the cover image, depicting the bathroom from Christina’s own ‘Brook Cottage’. I love the the intricate detail and thickness of the white mirror over the sink, and the rustic hooks holding cozy bathrobes. The space proves that even floral plates can actually look lovely in a bathroom !
The book was a delightful read cover to cover, filled with design ideas for adding warmth and character to your home, even if you don’t consider your personal style to be ‘country’.
I often associate ‘country’ with ‘farmhouse’ but after I read the book, I found that ‘country’ style is not nearly as narrow a definition as I imagined, at least according to this author. Rather, ‘country’ is the medley of colors and textures, soft florals and cottons, and rustic objects paired with simple elements that are collected over time. ‘Country’ is the practice of creating a home that is beautiful, but most importantly, comfortable and lived in.
The book offers glimpses into Christina’s own home, plus others houses scattered throughout England, apartments in New York, and cottages dotting the east coast of the United States.
You’ll see a lot of classic English country design that stems from the author’s own love of relaxed and comfortable rooms filled with painted furniture and feminine florals.
If you’re passionate about older homes with character, quirky antiques, or if you have your own collection of well loved objects, then you’ll gain a lot of inspiration from the pages of At Home With Country as I did.
Photography by Edina van der Wyck. All copyrighted images taken from At Home with Country by Christina Strutt and used with permission. CICO Books, $29.95; www.cicobooks.com.
If you want to read a great conversation with the designer and author Christina Strutt, take a peek at this interview over at HGTV.
And because we all love pretty pictures . . .
And you know you want another design book for your coffee table or for your bookshelf . . .
You can to be entered to win a copy of At Home With Country, simply by answering this question in a comment:
What does the word ‘Country’ mean to you?
I welcome random answers about music, homeland, or décor. Close your eyes, say ‘country’ then type what first comes to mind, no matter what it is. Can’t wait to hear it !
One winner will be sent your own copy direct from the publisher. Winner chosen at random. Giveaway ends Saturday September 11th at 8 p.m.
Good luck!
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Tags: at home with country, book review
to me country means good food – apple pie, beef stew… all those good yummy homecooked meals!
When I say the word country, I am immediately brought back to my childhood and spending time on my grandparent’s farm. They let us pick sweet corn, play tag in the hay barn, and scamper off down to the creek to do whatever the heck we wanted to do. I will never forget those days.
[...] through all of your definitions of ‘country’ to me reads like a feature article in Country Living magazine ~ there are some very humorous [...]
No matter how ‘country’ is defined, the photos are absolutely a style I love. They remind me of my maternal grandmother, and especially of my great-grandmother (her mother). Her home was always quite neat and filled with beautiful handmade linens, jelly glasses, etc.
I actually grew up in a pretty rural area so country for me means wide open fields, fresh farm grown produce, big porches you can sit on in the summertime to drink fresh lemonade. It also brings to mind great food, spending time with family (all the time), and being in a place without all of the modern gadgets and technology… nothing more than a tv and a phone.
When I say country I think of items that are simply beautiful, natural, and yummy
“country” to me refers to a way of living that is carefree, relaxed. It’s being surrounded by nature whether it is outside, with a expansive countryside view, or inside with wooden furniture, cotton and linen drapes, flowers in a vase, sisal rugs. “Country” is also handmade with simple hand sewn pillow covers or quilts, original yet simple artworks and fun diy projects. It is a simple, or at least simpler!, way of living…even for those living in the city like me!