In the bleak Mid-Winter
Something I’ve always thought about that lyric, is that when Christina Rossetti wrote it, she was really, really tired of Winter. And she had seen quite enough snow for a lifetime already, thank you, and would be quite happy not to see any more ever again.
In the bleak midwinter, frosty wind made moan,
earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone;
snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow,
in the bleak midwinter, long ago.
Well, poor Christina was the daughter of an Italian father, and at least part of her childhood was spent in poverty in Victorian London when the family had financial troubles. There must have been plenty of bleakness for her to cope with – I think she knew what she was talking about. You may well be wondering where I am going with this, and what it might have to do with kitchen design – so here you are, some truly bleak Mid-Winter kitchens:
First, frosty wind, and earth hard as iron – I don’t know whether those are laminate or faux-painted cabinets, pretty cool, but they look hard and earthy to me. And the Winter tree in the freezing fog just rubs in the bleak part (via)
Joseph Dirand Architecture
Next, water like stone – don’t you just see ice shards in those triangles, icicles in the chandeliers, black ice in the flooring?- Though I’d love to know what is going on architecturally – or is it just a stage set? (via)
photo Adrian Briscoe
And of course, snow on snow outside, and snowy white inside too (via):
Italian Winter
Brrrr. Better get cooking, decorating, accessorizing – something!
Light and mirrors in Brooklyn
What my bathroom is missing
In praise of imperfection
Paul Anater
December 28th, 2009 at 9:39 pm #
Ahhh, any post that invokes the lyrics of my favorite Christmas carol has to be good. Thanks for the background –I never knew who wrote it. Amazing lyrics you quoted. “Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow.” It’s such a modern construction and a perfect scene setter for the rooms you highlighted.
Clarity
December 31st, 2009 at 3:33 pm #
I imagine you don’t have to deal with that kind of bleakness too often in your part of the world? Happy New Year to you!