The red house is the manor where the lords of the Podere once resided. This historic villa is decorated with early 20th-century frescoes, original furnishings, including doors and windows, and floors that reflect the artistry of the era. Galileo Chini, a renowned figure of Italian Art Nouveau, contributed to its paintings.
Bonum prandium et accipite pandit. As I read a book in this room and write a few notes, I breathe in tradition. I am in Tuscany, in Mugello to be precise, and the coats of arms on the ceiling, as well as the band decorated by master Galileo Chini's students in the early 20th century, remind me of this. Even the floor of beautiful original grit tiles, surrounded by oak wood, and the cypress window frames speak to me of a history of men who wanted a well-kept dwelling in the middle of the healthy countryside. This was the dining room where one could refresh oneself at the end of the day after hunting or visiting the farm that stretched all around. Meals were offered to guests here. We are welcomed into this room with a double view of the garden, the flowers and the valley.
He used to sleep here. The squire who had this manor house built certainly slept here. The ceiling decorated at the beginning of the last century in soft colors vaults the bed. A double window facing west offers sunsets each evening, while another window to the south lets in natural daylight. The other details we added new, with the desire to enhance the room of its original owner who had chosen it for himself. Oak flooring to feel in touch with nature and, separated from the original cypress wood door, here is the bright new bathroom with its hand-colored tiles and the window to the old barn.
Waking up in the Roverella room after a refreshing nap on a hot summer afternoon and feeling caressed by the breeze coming in from the back. A somewhat romantic room with a wrought-iron headboard and a wardrobe corner made by us from materials from the forest. The bathroom welcomes me in pure white with its terracotta floor and large window.
And to think that this was the kitchen where large animals brought here at the end of the hunt were prepared with passion by strong, skilled hands. The large fireplace (now at rest) reminds me of this and makes me dream of those days, those scents, those warm voices.
When I wake up, the soft light greets me and I fill my eyes with the view of the garden with the Mugello landscape in the background. Offering me its silent, playful company is the large kaki tree, with its soft, rounded forms. The fire-coloured leaves in autumn, the fruit like slices of sunshine decorating the bare branches in winter (like natural Christmas balls), the heart-shaped leaves of intense green in summer. The dark oak parquet flooring for walking barefoot makes walking through this large room in which even three of us could fit, softer. Wooden details and colors in the bathroom with shower.
