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| Of course, May has my favourite flower on her doorstep |
Sydney, especially its north shore, was my stomping ground in the mid-1980s and early '90s. It was an incredible time of glamour and excess. I still have my diary from that time, and 30 nights of every month were pretty much filled with some fabulous event (yes, even February). Days were for work. Things were a wee spot busy.
Perhaps that's why I failed to visit May Gibbs' beautiful house in Neutral Bay--Nutcote. Sometimes we have bliss on our doorstep and we simply miss it, you know? I don't know why we do that to ourselves. Why do we do that?
I made up for things today.
Hubster and I drove to Nutcote early this morning, where I had three hours of happy. The gorgeous Stephanie greeted me and showed me around. The grounds are superb and of course the house--the house. I stood in wonder.
I touched May's drawing desk. And her writing desk. It was momentous. There may have been tears.
And I imagined her busy by the sweet little studio light dangling from the ceiling, as she often created at night. I saw hand-knitted socks made just for her. I swooped my hand in the sink with its wooden bench and imagined her washing dishes. I pictured her tending the hydrangeas outside the front door, and sitting on the balcony overlooking the Harbour Bridge, the city skyline, the bobbing boats ... and the ferries swooshing by.
The house is magnificent, and testament to May's progressive nature. The architecture is a blending of Georgian, Arts and Crafts and Mediterranean architecture (thank you, Edwina) and hosts many features that were unusual for the time (the house was designed and built in 1924/25 with architect BJ Waterhouse; read more about it here), such as built-in bookshelves and wardrobes, and a large main room that cleverly provided several living spaces.
