The Jane Austen House.

Today I was in Chawton for the Jane Austen Society Annual General Meeting. (More on that in the next post). The highlight of the visit was touring the Jane Austen House Museum, also known as Chawton Cottage. This is Chawton Cottage from the back. from the road it looks like a large square building but I had always wondered what the back was like. Here you can see it is more ‘L’ shaped. The upstairs window on the far left is Jane’s room.

I can’t tell you how it feels to take a curve in the road and suddenly be looking at a place that I have longed to see for years. Chawton Cottage is where Jane wrote or revised all of her novels.

The quilt on display was made by Jane, Cassandra, and their mother, from clothing pieces. This was Jane’s bedroom up until the last few weeks of her life when they stayed in Winchester to seek better medical help for her.

This is the view from Jane Austen’s bedroom window out the back of the house toward the bakehouse.

That precious little table is where she sat composing some of the greatest writings in the English language.

The stairs she walked up, the doorframes she passed through, the window sill she leaned against, all touched me with her spirit.

The surrounding countryside is beautiful. The land here is more heavily wooded than I supposed, with meadows and farmland. The area around her home is a lovely low walled garden, serene and beautiful. It is not hard to imagine what it would have looked like then.

200 years ago Jane would have been composing the ending chapters of Mansfield Park, my favorite of her six novels. Was she already feeling weary from the illness that would claim her? As tragic as her destiny was, I can see that she must have found peace in the lovely garden and the ever changing verdure of the countryside she loved.

In some respects this was a pilgrimage for me. After reading her novels, juvenalia, letters, and several biographies, the people in them begin to seem like friends and neighbors. I know they say everyone who loves Jane Austen thinks they know Jane Austen. I feel I know her more closely now after visiting this place that was so important to her.

It was a lovely day.

-Lynnae

P.S. I must say something about my dear husband today. As some of you know he is deployed oversees. Today was his birthday and he didn’t have the best day. And here I am having the time of my life traveling etc. I just want him to know I was thinking of him often…….. Jon, I love you with all my heart and I can’t wait until we are together again. So many times I wish you would have been with me to smile, make me laugh, give me a little hug, or just share in the moment.

Love always, Lynnae

For Henry Tilney Fangirls

The Jane Austen Society AGM opened with a fun, lively panel discussion by ‘Team Tilney’ and the special guest was Henry Tilney himself, played by Joe Homes. He started with a Henry Tilney style parody of the Old Spice commercial. By the time I frantically grabbed my camera I could only catch the ending, but here is the text written by Heather Lawrence:

Hello ladies. Look at your Mister Darcy. Now back to me. Now look at Captain Wentworth. Now back to me. Sadly, those gentlemen are not me. But if they knew enough about muslin to buy their own cravats and were more nice than wise, they could be like me.

Look down. Back up. Where are you? You’re in the Lower Rooms with the gentleman your gentleman could be like. I’m asking you to dance. Unlike some gentlemen who refuse to dance, I love to dance, and you are handsome enough to tempt me.

What’s in your hand? Back at me. I have it. I’m reading that novel you love. I’m reading it to my sister.

Anything is possible when your gentleman is Henry Tilney.

I have a puppy. (Arf!)

[whistle Old Spice theme]

 

All the details on the creation of this delightful event can be found on this post on Austenblog. Maggie Sullivan conceived of the event, and she and her fellow ‘Team Tilney’ fangirls did an excellent job!

Here are a few more selections……..

I hope you enjoy these. Please read the link on Austenblog where you can learn all about the talented creators of this fun event.

-Lynnae

Painting The Town

Or at least my living room……………………..

But first a brief note to Mr. Tilney fans from the Jane Austen Society AGM.

I happened to capture some of ‘Mr. Tilney’s’ dialog on video during the Team Tilney presentation. I am hoping to get the video pieced together and uploaded for your enjoyment some time tomorrow, so please check back.

And now for my living room makeover.

Before

I love my living room. It has been a work in progress and still needs some essential furniture pieces to be complete, but for a while now I have had the dream of painting it turquoise, and finally I am making it happen. During…….

As I write this I am in complete and utter exhaustion from bending, reaching, and climbing ladders dozens of times over the last two days.

The final coat is drying now. Tonight I will peel the tape, and tomorrow I will post the ‘AFTER’ shot.

-Lynnae

Day One, Jane Austen Society of America Annual General Meeting

Sneak Peek at my ball gown

This morning, after staying up late to put the final touches on my dress, I picked up my Mom at the airport and off we were on our road trip to Portland.

We were able to check in to out room at the Hilton early. We went to registration tables, saw some cute T-shirts, picked up our packets and headed up to out lovely room, where we dumped out our “Jane Austen- The Abbey” tote bags to admire the contents.

 With post cards, a book light, and chocolate. You can’t go wrong!

 Mom and I in our room.

Mom and I decorate our nametags And take a quick snapshot before unpacking or dresses.

 I unpacked a portrait of Dear Jane for our room.

After this we went down to our dance workshop. We practiced four English country dances in an hour and a half. Sometimes it was exasperating, but when the dance came together it was exhilarating!  I danced across from my mom, but after the first dance they encouraged us to change partners. A nice looking and friendly woman agreed to be my partner. I saw my mom introduce herself to her new partner, and thought I should do the same, but then upon seeing her nametag I got VERY excited and almost lost it. I was dancing with Laurie Viera Rigler, the author of ‘Confessions of a Jane Austen Addict’ and ‘Rude Awakenings of a Jane Austen Addict’! Oh! (I may need a moment)…..Do you know how AWESOME that was???

OK, composure regained.

After dancing and a great dinner, we went to look at ‘Milsom Street’, the emporium full of booths, books, and other items for sale. Here is a sampling of the ‘shops’

 Rebecca Morrison Peck of ‘The Thatched Cottage’.

 Kay Demlow, Designer, Dressmaker, and Fashion Historian for Lavender’s Green Historic Clothing

There were also some lovely historic dresses on display that I photographed for your enjoyment. But first, here are links to a few more of the vendors:

Vintage Passementerie

Jean Judy- Jane Austen Charm Jewelry

Charlene Ahern- Henry Was a Railroad Man Card Company

After a brief rest in our room we attended Angela Barlow’s “Jane Austen, An Actor’s View”, with observations, readings, and delightful observations about the characters Jane Austen created. That leads us to where we are now, enjoying the view from my window, exhausted.

And now for more DRESSES………….

See you tomorrow,

-Lynnae

Four Days of Pure Jane Austen

Mom and I just registered for the Jane Austen society of North America’s annual general meeting in Portland this October.

 Dancing at the JASNA AGM Ball in Vancouver, 2007

  Four days of pure Austen… classes, lectures, a banquet and ball, actors performances, we even signed up for an English Country Dance workshop. I’m so excited. I’ve gone once before, and this time I get to share it all with Mom, so it will be even more fun.

 Authentic Jane Austen Era gowns on display in one of the breakout sessions in 2007 (click to enlarge)

I will give you details of my preparations along the way, and a few posts and lots of pictures from the AGM.

Stay tuned!

My Studio

Please come on into my studio. I’ve been up late trying to get it just right for the Where Bloggers Create blog party. Join in and visit MANY wonderful studios and art corners created by fellow bloggers. If this is your first time visiting me at The Little White Attic, then WELCOME.  This room used to be my daughter’s bedroom before she went to college. For almost a year now it has been my creative space and a room for goofing off, trial and error, and a lot of messes. Luckily I can just close the door!

This room also still serves as our guest room, but I have to clear out some of my things. Now for grand tour of my room……..

On the easel is one of the paintings I did last fall that was inspired by Jane Austen’s Persuasion. Now that my children are getting older I am trying to devote more time to painting, but it is very easy to let other things take priority. I wanted this room to inspire me, and also to be a place where I could experiment artistically. I think to come up with good ideas you have to be free to play around. You may have some silly ideas, and some that are just no good at all, but from all that creative time comes a few good ideas now and then. Everything doesn’t have to be a masterpiece.

 

This mural in progress is based on a painting of London’s Vauxhall Gardens circa 1815.

 

Some people say that items that appeal to you will go together in your house. This room puts that to the ultimate test. I am still pretty new at having a studio, and things are not organized AT ALL. I have boxes slid under the bed and a little space in the closet, but as I’ve gathered art supplies from around my house for each project, I would rather play than organize. but one of these days it will have to be done.

 

Here you can see a corner of my dollhouse. Here’s a closer look.

  This is the dollhouse I have sat at to play from the time I was six years old. After being passed from younger sisters to nieces it found it’s way back to me. My original decorating that I did with my mom was long gone, so I’ve been stripping it down and reworking it.

 

 

Another shot of the mural I’m painting, and my fancy bell collection.

  My scarves have migrated from the bedroom closet onto the back of the door in my art studio.

 

My dress form is all dolled up for the occasion…..

And above the closet door, my chorus line of beloved

Raggedy-Anns

 

And here’s the shelf that holds almost all of my Jane Austen books

 

More Jane Austen books…….including my trusty compilation which is falling apart. I’m currently re-reading Sense and Sensibility and I can hardly hold it with the cover dangling. Time for a new book.

Here’s the view from my window in the daytime. It may be to cloudy to see the lovely mountains today, but you can see all out Washington state greenery, including a Christmas Tree lot behind our house.

And a few more random photos of the room………….

I love color! 

Necklace from Beth Quinn Designs I won in a blog giveaway. Yay!

This room used to be my college daughter’s bedroom. You can see her creative space at Paisley Muffin, if you haven’t been there yet. If you are going alphabetically then you’ve already seen it.

Now that the blog party is completed, my next task is to sew my regency dress for the Jane Austen Annual General Meeting in October. I need a new dress for the banquet and ball. I can’t wait to learn more dances. My mom and I are going to Portland for the AGM together and then….THREE days of nothing but all-Jane-all-the-time. I can’t wait! So follow along, especially if you love Jane like I do.

After that it will be the holidays, and then time to think about my third annual Jane Austen Tea Party in February for some of my friends and family here in the Seattle area.

Thanks for visiting The Little White Attic!

-Lynnae

I would love your comments!