Saturday 27 June 2015

My favourite corners #5: Arlo's chest of drawers


Tucked away in a corner of Arlo's little bedroom, just behind the door, is this ramshackle chest of drawers. It's special. It was in my mum's room when she was a little girl, then I used it as my bedside table for many years when I lived at home, and it now sits in Arlo's bedroom, housing all his clothes and lots of little keepsakes. The shelves were built by my grandad - my mum's dad - who sadly I never got a chance to meet, but it feels so so nice to have something he made in the house, being put to very good use for his great grandson.

As it's been handed down from generation to generation, it's had a few knocks and scrapes along the way, and is a bit on the rickety side, but that's all part of the charm for me. Alex and I made a start of freshening it up for Arlo's room a while back, mixing up the perfect shade of turquoise and painting the shelves white. To be honest, we fully intended to paint the rest of the bottom white as well (I suppose it's the 'chest' part of a chest of drawers?) but we've never got round to it and now I kind of like it this way. Let's just say we've got used to it because who knows when we may actually get round to painting the rest of it? (Clue: quite likely never).

The shelves contain all kinds of bits and pieces that I want to keep. Most of these I know I'll want to keep forever actually - like the sample that Alex's mum stitched for Arlo when he was born, knitted gifts made by loved ones just for him, Mrs Ted, my favourite teddy when I was little, handprints that already look smaller than I can ever imagine Arlo being, favourite birthday cards he loves to look at over and over, the little box that has Arlo's dried out little belly button stump in it (interesting/ gross-out fact: My friend gave it a sniff and said it smells like Ribena)... all kinds of special things. A rotating list of interesting things that I expect will change from year to year as this little boy grows up and a different toy or book becomes flavour of the month. But while the contents of these shelves may well change, I have a feeling the shelves themselves will remain a constant. I plan on having these for a very long time and hope hope hope that someone else will carry on looking after them beyond that too.



Ps. You can see some of the other favourite corners from the series here and here, if you fancy a little look-see x

Home Etc

12 comments:

  1. That is really cute and it having a history within your family must make it so special for you and for Arlo. I love hierlooms. How nice that your grandad made the shelves. It gives an immediate connection between him and his great-grandson. I'm sure Arlo will grow up with a great sense of family history as a result.
    #HomeEtc
    Fionnuala from www.threesonslater.blogspot.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much - I really hope so. I plan on telling Arlo all about the shelves when he's older so he knows how much they mean to me :) x

      Delete
  2. Aaah I LOVE this!!! And I love the fact you've not painted the chest bit of the drawers either!! ;) I would definitely keep it just like that :) The boys have got a shelf and some pegs in their room, with things that rotate, depending in the season. I like it because there's always something different and interesting to look at.

    I love the fact that the shelves were made by your grandad too — that's so special. The fact that it's been passed down through the generations is lovely :) Thanks so much for linking up with #HomeEtc — hope to see you again next week! x

    Caro | www.thetwinklediaries.co.uk

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hehe - I'm glad you said that about leaving the chest unpainted, it's a bit of a happy accident but I'm really happy with how it turned out and glad I don't have to come back and paint the rest! xx

      Delete
  3. What a lovely set, and really sweet place for all his precious things. It looks so loved and homely. Just love it. Love pieces like this. Many thanks for sharing, much appreciated :)

    Jess x #HomeEtc

    ReplyDelete
  4. I love it - so sweet and special. The collection of treasured finds is gorgeous. #HomeEtc

    ReplyDelete
  5. What a beautiful little corner. I love the colours. We have the Beatrix Potter set too :)

    Cat x
    #homeetc

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you! The Beatrix Potter set used to be mine, they're such classics, aren't they? Can't wait until he's old enough to read them! x

      Delete
  6. What a lovely corner for your little one. Looks great. Popping over from HIbs100 #homecorner

    ReplyDelete