Hello friends and welcome back! If this is your first time, my name is Kirsty and I love to share ideas and tips inspired by the classics - literature, poetry, music, art and more! Homemaking is one of my favourite topics, and in times past it was considered an important role, thus exists in many forms of classic works. I know there are also many women (and men) who still consider it an important role and they all do well to encourage and lift up other like-minded people to do their best to make home a happy and welcoming place.
The world we live in has the ability to create anxiety, stress and even illness if we let it. Having a home that is a sanctuary, a place of retreat from the outside world, is a wonderful way to safeguard hearts, minds and souls. It can look differently for everyone. In my opinion, homemaking includes (but is not limited to): cooking; cleaning; being prepared; creating an atmosphere of welcome, peace and sanctuary; and seasonal living.
I have shared homemaking inspiration before in other articles, usually supported by quotes or passages from classic novels. Today, inspired by an Instagram post I saw recently, I want to take a more visual approach and share with you some of the illustrated homemaking images from children's books that I have read to my own children that have inspired me.
Being Prepared and Keeping a Well-Stocked Pantry
Without a doubt my favourite homemaking inspiration images come from Jill Barklem's Brambly Hedge. These images come from The Four Seasons of Brambly Hedge. You can see the well-stocked pantry, the plates, bowls and serving dishes all put away where they belong. The scene looks quite chaotic at first, but on closer inspection there is order and indeed joy in this classic, traditional kitchen dresser.
Here, there are herbs, fruit and vegetables hanging from the ceiling to dry naturally and out of the way. Every space of the wall is utilised by that impressive ladder (top shelves accessible by a lovely ladder!), jars are organised and clearly labelled and I wold love to know what is kept in those little drawers on the bottom of the dresser! The scrubbed pine table is put to use as a work bench and there's a little chair near the door for cups of tea and a rest.
Rooms for rest and relaxation
A quiet, well-maintained room is perfect for rest, relaxation and sleep. I love the great room from Margaret Wise Brown's Good Night, Moon (illustrated by Clement Hurd). There is so much to see in this oversized playroom/nursery/bedroom yet it doesn't appear crowded or fussy. Mother can knit in her rocking chair, kittens at her feet, while the child gently falls asleep. Surfaces hold only the necessary things, and there is room for socks and mitten to dry on a little line, a reading nook, and plenty of natural light.
Teaching everyone to help around the house
There are a couple of Golden Books that touch on this theme (We Help Mommy and We Help Daddy), but this scene from Du Bose Heyward's The Country Bunny and the Little Gold Shoes (illustrated by Marjorie Hack) has always been special to me. The Country Bunny of the story is a single mother with twenty-one cottontail babies. As they grow she teaches them how to help around the house. She introduces this by saying, "Now we are going to have some fun." What a great way to approach the necessary housework tasks and to pass that sense of fun onto her children. Our attitude is so open when we are homemakers and the Country Bunny inspires me no end.
Mickey Mouses's Picnic, a Little Golden Book, has one of my favourite picnic scenes. I love the simple, homemade food that Mickey and Minnie prepare for their picnic - and which later Donald Duck pinches! Sandwiches, eggs, salad, raw vegetables and a big cake for dessert. So easy and simple, yet such a lovely way to spend a day with friends.
Enjoying the fruits of the garden
Yet another Golden Book, Two Little Gardeners, by Margaret Wise Brown and Edith Thacher Hurd (illustrated by Gertrude Elliott) shares the joy of keeping a garden. In this book, the two little gardens work hard to prepare their soil, plant their seeds, tend to the garden through the long hot months of summer, then enjoy it all at harvest time. What is left over is preserved and put away for the colder months. My kids loved this book growing up and we spent so many times in our own gardens creating "raba-moles" and scarecrows, eating fresh tomatoes, harvesting potatoes and drying herbs.
I love the perfectly straight lines of plants!
I think that reading these books with our children and grandchildren is an excellent way to help reinforce the idea of housework and indeed, "home" as a pleasure and something that we can enjoy and take great pleasure and reward from.
Do you have a favourite children's illustrated story that inspires you? Perhaps it isn't housework or "home goals", but something else? Please share if you do, we'd love to hear your favourites in the comments below.
Thank you for stopping by!
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