June 16, 2010

Tolstoy's Russian Country House

There's something magically eerie about wandering the former homes of the world's literary greats. Shakespeare's Stratford-upon-Avon, Louisa May Alcott's Orchard House, Pablo Neruda's La Sebastiana, and Pirandello's Sicilian farmhouse are all places I'd love to experience.
Thanks to the book Russian Houses, here's a glimpse inside the home Tolstoy once lived in. To think that this is the place where War and Peace and Anna Karenina were written excites the English major in me to no end! What I'm most drawn to in the space is the mix of seating options around the humble little table. I love that they've used a sofa with the chairs.

Beautiful wood floors and the curved benches evoke a sense of old world charm and elegance. The home now has me wondering even more about the real man behind the great body of work.

Which literary figure's home would you love to wander?

*discovered via Art & Lair

10 comments:

sylvie said...

what a wonderful find, miss crystal! tolstoy's home is full of charm...i watched "the last station" {a story about tolstoy and his wife, played by helen mirren!} a month ago and loved it to bits.

xo,
sylvie of silver lining

Anonymous said...

I've always wanted to wander around Hill Top, Beatrix Potter's farm home. I love that she was inspired by her little house to create characters like Tom Kitten and Jemima Puddleduck at Hill Top ... Gardens, countryside, animals, and turn-of-the-century charm -- Yes, please!

Christina said...

the vintage pictures in that first space are amazing!

Averill said...

Hmmm...Jane Austen, definitely! And Emily Dickenson...Edith Wharton. I saw Mark Twain's home in CT and it was very, very cool -- precisely the type of place I would expect him to live in!

Been to Stratford; it is, alas, pretty much just a tourist trap (but it's a charming town nonetheless).

Alaina @ Live Creating Yourself. said...

So beautiful! It looks like a place a writer would live. Walking around Bath and going into the home where Jane Austen lived is one of my favorite memories. : )

Alaina

jami @ i m a g i n e said...

Oh, these are good :) I like the first image; it reminds me of my Grandma's back in MN. xo - jami

Miles Of Style said...

gorgeous!

just stumbled upon your blog and i have to say i LOVE it. do come drop by mine too and maybe we can follow each other. =)

have a lovely day!

Persis
http://onestylemile.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

So beautiful! I love the floors in the first pic, and that glass front bookshelf. It's such a lived-in space.

I'd love to see Jane Austen's space!

Sarah Klassen said...

Thanks for sharing this! What a great place... hmm... I think I would want to see Jane Austen's home. She is my favorite of all, and I bet her home was just as lovely as her written word...

xoxo

Anonymous said...

I've always loved Tolstoy's works, thank you for sharing his home!

x M.

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