29.10.13

{hand} w r i t i n g our hearts out

 

it's no secret, this girl here maintaining this blog sure  l o v e s  to write.

do not let yourselves be fooled by inferring the conclusion that she just likes to mumble

and throw her most profound, ingenious or perhaps nothing of these - thoughts 

on a piece of virtual sheet, where she can type her heart away...

No. No. This person here is in love with the  actual process of  w r i t i n g,

that is in the form of  h a n d w r i t i n g . . . 

You know, that simple thing we used to learn back to school,

these days when toddlers and children were learning

first how to form lines & curves into letters,

long before they learned anything about how to operate

smart phones, tablets, laptops, or anything technology related for that matter.



I am said to have been taught  calligraphy {what a beautiful form of art indeed! } 

from the very early days,

quite long before I entered first grade school aged 5 and a half years old.


Today, the moments I sit with a favorite journal in front of me,

warm drink by my side, as most days throughout the year living in the 

middle of Europe require, are precious.

Thoughts, plans, memories, travelling stories,

or just  w o r d s  expressing gratitude or other feelings,

are put down letter side by side, speaking of 

the preciousness of life's simple pleasures.



I've been having various favorite notebooks from time to time,

much like the one pictured above, purchased at Hema for a tiny amount,

during my few weeks stay in Amsterdam this summer.


I travel relatively often one could say averagely,

so my journals do undergo quite a few tests.

Needless to say I like to keep them in a good condition,

still however I try to take care of them,

when placed in a tote bag or a cabin sized luggage,

after just a few days, they no longer remind the item I purchased.

It bothers me. I like to keep them.

Though keeping them in a good condition is my goal.



I still do not remember exactly how I stumbled upon


yet, I'm really so very glad I did.

It was the beginning of summer in Germany,

yet rainy days were persisting.

As I was flipping through the collection,

I kept on holding this image in my mind:

winter would have settled,

painting white all my surroundings, as seen from our winter garden,

{much like  t h e n }

and I would hold the warm texture of felt in my hands,

dressing my new journal.

Snow would fall, the kettle would be making a hot ginger tea,

candlelights would be shining all around the space,

even throughout the day

and I would be taking a much needed break from 

computer work & or housework,

feeling the simple pleasure of holding a pen

writing my heart out on beautiful pages,

rich in texture, as if they have jumped out from the previous century.




I'm really pleased to be sharing these finds with you here today,

as Scott, the owner of Rustico leather,

has been so very kind into agreeing to send my choices all the way.

I chose three, sharing 2 of them with you today.

T h i s  traveler's journal in granite grey &  t h a t  large, composition cover in charcoal grey.

The third and my favorite one awaits at home in Germany,

to be shared with you soon.






All journals are hand made, to be exact hand sewn in the USA.

I'm in love with the details, the hand stitching, the leather, the rich feel of the paper,

their flexibility & the fact that they are quite light to carry around,

while ensuring that both exterior and interior will remain in a excellent condition.








I recently wore my above-the -knee-length, tweed trousers,

{ purchased from Mango about a good seven years ago }

and combined with chevron brown & beige tights

I loved how the whole outfit looked,

as I headed to a cafe,

mini purse, i - phone, a book & my journal being the only things

bringing with me.

S t y l i s h  and comfy may I say...

I'm particularly pleased when home accessories can be transformed / used as fashion accessories, too.

And you? Do you like that too?

... and what types of journals do you like to use?

do you still hand-write? do you love it as much?

or has technology taken over?

do share!


These notebooks have also taken part in another photo shoot, 

which includes the guest room make over I did while I stayed in Greece this summer

and I'm so very much looking forward to share it here with you!

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All pictures of this post are styled & photographed by Iro - Ivy Nassopoulos for 
Domestic Stories with Ivy 2013 {all rights reserved}

A huge  t h a n k  y o u  to  R u s t i c o   L e a t h e r   for the cooperation!



10 comments:

  1. Ciao Iro e bentornata! Non puoi capire come mi sono sentita in sintonia con te leggendo questo post! Anch'io adoro scrivere a mano, mi rilassa, mi è sempre piaciuto fin da bambina. Mi piace molto osservare ed ammirare la calligrafia delle persone e trovare le similitudini con la loro personalità. Adoro da sempre anche i quaderni, i diari e la carta (negli anni anche io ne ho posseduti diversi!) e questi che hai fotografato sono dei veri capolavori di design e artigianalità....bellissimi! E' meravigliosamente materica anche la trama della carta.
    Complimenti Iro per le foto...sono davvero poetiche.
    Un grande abbraccio
    Emanuela

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    Replies
    1. Ciao my dear Emmanuealla!

      I'll reply in English, however your message has been translated by Mr Google ;)
      Really so very happy to read your response about enjoying handwriting yourself & appreciating the pictures of the journals shared here, as much as the journal themselves.
      Thank you for always warm words from the heart!
      Un grande abbracio from me, too :)
      Iro xoxo

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  2. ...waking up to a beautiful foggy autumn morning I read your blog and felt absolutely happy...another person cherising that rare practise of handwriting...even in my job I do it as often as possible as I love the feeling of creating words,arranging thoughts and ideas by hand-straight from the heart... Have a lovely day...

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    Replies
    1. beautiful foggy autumn morning... sounds like Germany, Holland or England perhaps...?
      thank you for sharing your thoughts, glad to know handwriting is still alive & that you enjoyed this post :)

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  3. Iro agapi mou, thanks so much for this reminder of how sensuous and beautiful hand writing actually is. I feel that in today's fast paced world that's one of the victims on the way to a quicker, digital era. And that's a pity! I must take my time to write again - with a pen and not a keyboard!

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    Replies
    1. Igor, you had to see me giggling as I imagined you pronouncing the "agapi mou" part...
      reminded me of my dear person speaking out various Greek words to me, in that sweet & undoubtedly funny accent that most middle Europeans have when speaking Greek. Simply precious :D

      As for taking that pen, I think that other than the mind finding some peace while slowing down, away from a dozen of pieces of information { quite often just distractions } fired through the click of a button, practically these overused from typing wrists should be very thankful, too! Not?

      Enjoy writing :) & regards to you in Munich.

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  4. Questi quaderni sono meravigliosi… dei miei colori preferiti!!

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    Replies
    1. Glad you like them Alessandra! Love my Italian readers - have to brush up these few words of Italian I once learned some... ghm ghm years ago :)

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    ReplyDelete