Unfortunately, once again I am feeling too ill to concentrate on reading my ebook or writing blog posts. So, I am taking a break for a while, until I feel able. The stress of moving house, plus the hot weather, are having a strongly negative effect on my health.
Best wishes to you all,
Anne
Welcome to my Scarf of the Moment post for my most recent Hermès purchase: Bord a Bord. Unfortunately, I am struggling with illness and disability and so this post may not be up to my usual standard. I really try to make these posts interesting, informative and useful for the extremely large community of Hermès scarf addicts and anyone who may just find themselves on my blog.
When I was at university (not quite back in the Stone Age), Ancient History and Archaeology students took a six week study tour as part of their degree. My group travelled around Italy, Greece and the Greek islands. I have many lasting memories from this trip and it has had a huge impact on my life. The dissertation that I wrote on my return is so enjoyable to read even now as it transports me back to those sights, smells, sounds and feelings of being young in such amazing and evocative places.
When I saw this scarf design on The Purse Forum, I just knew that I wanted to own it. We saw many boats like these on the trip and even sailed between the islands on very similar craft. So this scarf evokes some very important and life-shaping memories for me.
I love the striped hem and the many-coloured boats…
The design is a tangle of fishing or tourist boats, tied up in a harbour. They have colourful painted sides and sails with awnings to shade their crew and possible passengers. Some have nets and others have strings of lights or flags. There are buoys and gangplanks and cheeky seagulls. The designer has included humorous hints to the Hermès brand with boat names such as “Captain Orange” and “Hermes Paris”. The whole design fills up the outer sections of the scarf and the centre is left empty. There is also a striped hem. This lovely design gives us a feeling of the gentle rocking movement of the waves and an anticipation of enjoyment to come. Where are we going to sail, when we board one of the boats?
These are the four colourways for these special Spring/Summer 2025 cotton 80cm scarves. These have a white, pink, blue or yellow background. I have added in the codes and colourways to help those of you who may wish to purchase a scarf.
This has been taken from the Hermès website:
Here are some closeups of my scarf, together with images of the other colourways, in a slideshow format:
This is such an unusual scarf and I really like the design already, but I have been seriously struggling with both my health and the house move, so have not yet been able to wear it out of the house. As I have the version with the white background, it will look great with my blue t-shirts and tops.
Here are some quick photos that I have been able to take since I bought the scarf . As soon as I am well enough, I will add more “modelling” photos here and also attempt to make some collages.
I have tried on this scarf in a variety of ways. As the scarf fabric is 100% cotton, I am not sure whether the ties I usually use for my 90cm silks will work. The section above shows my first attempts and I will try to add some photos here when I am able. Anyway, you can get the general idea of how it looks when worn. I will have to watch the Purse Forum members to see why they do!
This is not the kind of scarf with lots of useful background details, but I have found the following. If I come across any more information, I will add it here…
I have found a few links to information about the artist, Elias Kafouros. He has designed scarves for Hermès since 2017, such as Eleftheria and Funny Ice Cream.
Dio Horia Gallery
Elias Kafouros
Biography plus images of some of his work with links to exhibitions.
The Greek Foundation
Elias Kafouros
A small piece about the artist. The link to his website appears to be broken.
impactalk
Elias Kafouros: A painter – phenomenon of compositions
Article with photos.
Scarf Sage
Elias Kafouros
Page with images of some of his scarf designs.
I hope readers have found this exploration of Bord a Bord both interesting and useful. Once again, if you find any errors or have any additional information that I could add, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
Love and best wishes,
Anne
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Unfortunately, all the stress of moving house has become very difficult to manage and I am rather unwell. I am finding it just about impossible to concentrate on reading my book, so there is no proper post today.
I will try to write something for Friday’s post if I feel any better.
Love and best wishes,
Anne
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Well, it’s been quite a while since I last updated the blog about our house moving situation. We now own our new bungalow and will be moving from here in about six weeks!
Unfortunately, my health really suffered during the past few weeks with two injuries on top of my usual issues. Some of you may remember that I injured my neck and arm first by trying to carry a very heavy rubbish bag out to the bin. Then, I compounded this by falling over a chair in the dark and badly bruising my chest and arm. Fortunately, I have now recovered quite a lot, but am still dogged by extreme fatigue. This has had a real impact on my ability to prepare for the move. We had to ask Younger Son to come over to help because we had hired a large skip to dispose of our accumulated stuff from living in this house for so many years.
Anyway, the skip has now been removed and our decks are much clearer, which is great. We took ownership of our new bungalow at the beginning of May and I then began the next stage. During the weeks and months since we found the bungalow, I had been working on several wishlists for furniture and equipment. So, now that we have the keys to the bungalow, I have been ordering quite a lot of new furniture and travelling over to our new home to receive it and get it placed in the correct room.
I must admit that I have really enjoyed choosing new items that suit the style and decor of our new house. Of course, some things can wait until we move in, but it has been fun at times! Our new bedroom is decorated in shades of purple, so I bought this gorgeous duvet set…
Our new lounge has a feature wall with turquoise/teal wallpaper, so I have chosen lovely cushions in shades of teal and brown which mirror those tones and tie in the neutral beige and browns of the carpet and other walls…
We have been really fortunate with our choice of new home. As I go through all of the paperwork that the previous owners left for us, I have realised just how many renovations they undertook in the short time that they lived there. A new central heating boiler, new kitchen and bathroom, a refurbished bedroom and utility room, amongst many other projects. All of these will give us a great new start, which we really need, especially as we are ageing and don’t have great health. I am also thinking about the effect on our two sons and their future lives. Elder Son will have a lovely room in the bungalow as long as he wishes to live with us and Younger Son will be able to stay in a comfortable and stylish guest room when he visits. Perhaps that will encourage him to visit more often? (I can only hope 😊).
OK, I think that’s probably enough for this week. I do hope that you have a lovely weekend.
Love and best wishes,
Anne
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Welcome to this week’s post. As I wrote last week, I decided to reread The Bloodsworn Saga by John Gwynne because the final book in the trilogy has been published fairly recently. I finished the first volume, The Fury of the Gods, in time for last week’s post and started on the second, The Hunger of the Gods. Life has got in the way of reading, however! We have had a flurry of tasks to do with our house move that have needed my full attention and so I have found it very difficult to concentrate on my book.
In addition, Elder Son has been suffering with a virus. He is all grown up and in his thirties, but can whinge for England! He is constantly wandering in and out of my bedroom, coughing and spluttering. So, I won’t be at all surprised if I go down with this bug quite soon. With my own rather more severe health issues, this virus will probably hit me very hard. So, please keep your fingers crossed for me!
I will update the blog on Friday with the progress we have made in our house moving saga!
Well, it feels like one!
Happy Reading everyone!
Love and best wishes,
Anne
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So, Friday has come around again and it’s time for a post! I have been very busy today, sorting out yet more things for our new home, and I apologise for this short piece. If I feel able, I will try to write something more substantial next week. Perhaps an update on our progress? Well, we will see.
On The Purse Forum the thread for Hermès’ Autumn/Winter 2025 scarf and shawl season has begun and the new designs are starting to appear. So far, I can’t see anything that really thrills me. There is quite a nice floral scarf, but I can’t work out how well it would work when tied. There is also a re-issue of an old favourite by Alice Shirley, Tyger, Tyger, as a 70cm. I bought this as a 90cm back in 2015, so am not sure whether I want a smaller version. Anyway, I definitely won’t buy anything that I don’t really love at these steep prices!
Anyway, here are a few of the designs. Some are reissues, others are new, but none have really grabbed my imagination so far. I am pretty sure that more images will become available soon and I will add some of them here and edit this post accordingly. Especially if I really fall for something!
That’s all for this week…
Happy Weekend to you all!
Love and best wishes,
Anne
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Welcome to this week’s Reading Roundup post. Once again, I am rereading a couple of books before I download the final book in a series. I decided to purchase the last book in The Bloodsworn Saga by John Gwynne, The Fury of the Gods, because I thought it might be a good idea to have a change from Guy Gavriel Kay. As I struggle with my memory, it also seemed like a great idea to reread the first two books. So, this week, I have been enjoying The Shadow of the Gods, Volume One in The Bloodsworn Saga…
Here is the blurb…
“This is the age of storm and murder.
After the old gods warred and drove themselves to extinction, the cataclysm of their fall shattered the land of Vigrio.
Now, power-hungry jarls carve out petty kingdoms, and monsters stalk the shadow-haunted woods and mountains. A world where the bones of the dead gods still hold great power, promising fame and fortune for those brave – or desperate – enough to seek them out.
As whispers of war echo over the plains and across the fjords, fate follows the footsteps of three people: a huntress searching for her missing son, a jarl’s daughter who has rejected privilege in pursuit of battle fame, and a thrall who has cast off his chains and now fights alongside the famed mercenaries known as the Bloodsworn.
All three will shape the fate of the world, as it once more teeters on the edge of chaos.”
And this is my response on Goodreads that I wrote after my first reading in 2021…
The Shadow of the Gods by John GwynneOn my second reading, the repetition of the phrase “thought cage” instead of brain or mind becomes quite annoying too! Oh well, it’s still a great escapist book!
I am already well into the second book in the series, The Hunger of the Gods, so will be able to write about it in next week’s post, all being well.
Until then, enjoy your reading!
Love and best wishes,
Anne
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Well, it is lovely to be able to write a Friday Post once again. Yes, we are still very busy organising our house move, and I will try to update the blog about that next week, if I feel able. However, amongst all of the stress and angst of the last few weeks, I fell down a slightly less slippery slope than usual. I think you will see what I mean…
Here we go…
Here we have an image of the entire scarf taken from the Hermès website. It is Bord a Bord, designed by Elias Kafouros, an 80cm cotton scarf. The website states:
”In this joyous circle, boats and trawlers swirl endlessly around the plain, magnetic center of this cotton scarf. The nautical-inspired piece can be worn all summer!”
When I was at university (not quite back in the Stone Age), Ancient History and Archaeology students took a six week study tour as part of their degree. My group travelled around Italy, Greece and the Greek islands. We saw many boats like these and even sailed between the islands on very similar craft. So this scarf evokes some very important and life-shaping memories for me.
I love the striped hem and the many-coloured boats…
When I can find the time, I will write a Scarf of the Moment post about this design. I have been informed that there are several colourways, although I haven’t seen any apart from the one above on the UK Hermès website at the date of writing. The others have a pink, blue or yellow background.
Anyway, here are a few quick modelling photos. Please excuse my awful hair. I have been too ill to visit my hairdresser for months!
As you can see, the scarf ties quite nicely, although I do have some qualms about getting a cotton scarf as I hate ironing! It will be nice to wear on sunny days.
Well, that’s all for now. I will continue to try to gather more information about this scarf so that I can compile my usual Scarf of the Moment post. So, if you know where I can find photos of the other colourways, blue, pink and yellow, please leave me a message in the comments for this post.
Happy Weekend!
Love and best wishes,
Anne
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Hello everyone and welcome to my first Reading Roundup post for ages! Regular visitors will be aware that I have been struggling with my health whilst also trying to move house. In fact, my list of horrible illnesses was added to by a very frightening fall. I cracked a rib and ended up covered in bruises. After all of that, I was unable to concentrate enough to read books or post on here.
Thankfully, I am beginning to emerge from that nightmare. We now own our new home and are planning the move, which is waiting on some alterations. The bruising has now faded and I am feeling quite a bit better, although I am still much weaker than I was before all of this happened. I also feel extremely tired and cannot do very much. The great thing is that I have been able to concentrate enough to read for a few weeks and also do most of the organising of the move.
So, what have I been reading? I turned to comfort reading in my pain. You may remember that my most favourite author is Guy Gabriel Kay. His latest three books are all set in the same world and are part of a sequence which is, apparently, continued in his new book, due to be published later this month. For that reason, and because my stroke back in 2019 affects my memory, I decided to re read all three to prepare for the new work. In fact it was such a pleasure to revisit these books. Reading them again was wonderful and opened up his clever use of characters which span the whole arc of the series. Anyway, here they are with the blurbs and my original comments from Goodreads…
So let’s begin with Children of Earth and Sky. This is the blurb…
“Guy Gavriel Kay, bestselling author of the groundbreaking novels Under Heaven and River of Stars , once again visits a world that evokes one that existed in our own past, this time the tumultuous period of Renaissance Europe – a world on the verge of war, where ordinary lives play out in the grand scheme of kingdoms colliding.
From the small coastal town of Senjan, notorious for its pirates , a young woman sets out to find vengeance for her lost family. That same spring, from the wealthy city-state of Seressa, famous for its canals and lagoon, come two very different a young artist traveling to the dangerous east to paint the Grand Khalif at his request – and possibly to do more – and a fiercely intelligent, angry woman, posing as a doctor’s wife in her role of a spy.
The trading ship that carries them is commanded by the clever younger son of a merchant family – with ambivalence about the life he’s been born to live. And farther east a boy trains to become a soldier in the elite infantry of the khalif – to win glory in the war everyone knows is coming.
As these lives entwine, their fates-and those of many others – will hang in the balance, when the khalif sends out his massive army to take the great fortress that is the gateway to the western world . . .”
And this was my response on Goodreads…
Children of Earth and Sky by Guy Gavriel KayI expect that my “reviews” of these three books will be rather similar. Probably because I am in awe of GGK’s writing skills!
OK, let’s move on to the next book in the sequence, A Brightness Long Ago. The events in this actually take place before those in the first book, if you see what I mean! Here is the blurb…
“Internationally bestselling author Guy Gavriel Kay’s latest work is set in a world evoking early Renaissance Italy, with an extraordinary cast of characters. In a chamber overlooking the nighttime waterways of a maritime city, a man looks back on his youth and the people who shaped his life. Danio Cerra’s intelligence won him entry to a renowned school, though he was only the son of a tailor. He took service at the court of a ruling count – and soon learned why that man was known as The Beast. Danio’s fate changed the moment he recognized Adria Ripoli as she entered the count’s chambers one night – intending to kill. Born to power, Adria had chosen a life of danger – and freedom – instead. Other vivid figures share the a healer determined to defy her expected lot; a charming, frivolous son of immense wealth; a religious leader more decadent than devout; and, affecting these lives and many more, two mercenary commanders, whose rivalry puts a world in the balance.”
This is my review on Goodreads…
A Brightness Long Ago: A profound and unforgettable historical fantasy novel by Guy Gavriel KayWe have now reached the final book: All the Seas of the World. First the blurb…
“Returning to the near-Renaissance world of A Brightness Long Ago and Children of Earth and Sky, international bestselling author Guy Gavriel Kay tells a story of vengeance, power, and love.On a dark night along a lonely stretch of coast, a small ship, the Silver Wake, sends two people ashore to a stony strand. Their purpose is assassination. They have been hired to do this by two of the most dangerous men alive. The consequences will affect so many lives both great and small, and possibly alter the balance of power in the world. One of those arriving on that night strand is a woman abducted by corsairs from her home as a child, escaping that fate, that destiny, years after, now trying to chart her own course – and bent upon revenge. Another figure, on the boat, bringing it to meet the secretive landing party at the city where they are going, is a merchant who still remembers being exiled as a child with his family from their home, for their faith. Returning triumphantly to the brilliantly evoked near-Renaissance world of his most recent novels, international bestseller Guy Gavriel Kay deploys his signature ‘quarter turn to the fantastic’ to offer readers a wide-ranging, vividly memorable set of characters in a story of vengeance, power, and love, built around profoundly contemporary themes of exile, loss, and memory. In a narrative of page-turning drama, All the Seas of the World also offers moving reflections on choices, fate, and the random events that can shape our lives.”
And my response…
All the Seas of the World by Guy Gavriel KayPhew! Well, that’s been a race through these three books. While I have been waiting for the new one, I decided to take a break from GGK and try the latest book by another favourite author. Which book and author? Well, you will find out next week, all being well.
Happy Reading everyone!
Love and best wishes,
Anne
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Sorry friends and visitors but I am very ill at the moment and cannot post, so will be taking a break until I am better.
Love and best wishes,
Anne
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scarf therapy and spring - two joyful things to hopefully lift your spirits Anne. Looking lovely on your beautiful scarves…
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Dear Christina, thank you for your lovely comment. Yes, it’s so hard when we lose loved ones. I don’t think…
The Librain
The Librain......retired 
Dear Lauren, thank you so much for this kind and lovely comment! Love & best wishes, Anne XXX