Dream Reading Space
I was asked recently if I could write a post about my dream-reading space.Sounds like fun, how hard can it be?Whenever I think about the ideal reading space, it always looks a little something like this in my head:
With maybe a little stream running nearby.Or perhaps something like this:
But then I have to stop and think practically... because, you see, while both of these images have a bit of that "Secret Garden" whimsy to them, and I love the sound of running water, and being outside... neither of these places looks like it would truly be all that comfortable to curl up in with a good book. And when I'm reading, comfort is important... because I tend to get lost in books, and if I'm not sitting in a comfortable place or position, I can very quickly end up with a very bad headache or sore neck and shoulders.So... more realistically, what would my ideal reading space actually look like?It would be inside a cozy, personal library. Ideally it would look an awful lot like Henry Higgins' library in the movie "My Fair Lady." Bookshelves would line the walls, and there would be an open "second story" of library shelves that you could get to by a spiral staircase.Something a bit similar to this:
Or the one in the live-action Beauty and the Beast movie... which actually may even top the cartoon version for "best movie library ever"...
Seriously... I want that library!Kind of love these bookcases, from the Arhaus living room collection, with their Old World style. Something like that lining the shelves (especially if they came with a ladder... ladders are a library musssst have and we WANTS IT, Precious).And of course, MY bookcases that my father-in-law built for me would feature in there somewhere (I can't find any pictures of them with all my books in them or with the ladder assembled... sadness...)
It would definitely need one of those delightful leather recliner-things... possibly something like THIS ONE also from the Arhaus living room collection. it wouldn't HAVE to cost $5,000... of course, (okay, there's no way it could, unless I start selling a LOT more books... but we're dreaming here, right?) but I love that look of the sort of old-school brass-buttoned leather. Comfort would be key, though, so I'd have to sit in ALL THE CHAIRS before I could pick the one that was "just right" as Goldilocks would say.I would stick the chair in a corner, somewhere near a window... yes, my library reading space would definitely need a few more windows than are pictured above, in either library. Which is problematic, as I know sunlight can destroy books over time.Maybe I need an atrium attached to the library, something that can let in lots of light and maybe open up into a fairy-tale garden with a bridge and a little stream and definitely one of those big trees with a swing hanging off one of its branches, you know... like this one:
but also be conveniently near the shelves of all. the. books.And while I'm dreaming, I'd definitely wear that dress while reading... and my handsome Prince Derek would come out and push me on the swing whenever my eyes need a break from reading or writing. And a maid would do all the dishes and laundry.Yes. Yes, that would be just about perfect. This is a tiny glimpse as to why I should never be an interior designer...How about you, dear Reader? What does YOUR ideal reading spot or room or library look like?