How I Live a Country Life in the City: Tips for the Slow Life 🌿🏡

How I live a country life in the city. You all know by now that I'm a big advocate for living your aesthetically enriching, mindful, slow life, no matter your circumstance. My circumstance happens to be that I live smack bang in the city. And so does this mean that a life that reminisces the pages of a Bramley Hedge book is inaccessible to me? Of course not. And I'm going to tell you how. Although I do not have rural tranquility at my feet, I can still surround myself with nature. And so welcome to my little slice of paradise. Because yes, I am one of those lucky little souls with a garden. And so my nature is here. And I have big plans for it too. I'm hoping to build a homemade pond by extracting my grandpa's old one and potentially even adding some goldfish or making a beautiful natural terranium. I also built these two small allotments. And when the weather's good, I love nothing more than getting my hands dirty and replanting some of my favourite seasonal vegetables. The thing is, how your home looks and feels is one thing, but what's really going to give it that quaint and rural edge is what you do in it. And spending a free afternoon, no matter how sparing they may be, planting some veg with my cat really calms my soul. But for those without a garden, fear not, because nature is incredibly resilient and can live pretty much anywhere. Inside my home, we have a number of houseplants and my mum is a sucker for a bouquet of fresh flowers, or even not so fresh. You could also have a little windowsill garden where you grow some nice little tomatoes on the vine. Even something as simple as allowing space for natural light to come into your home or opening the windows can really help you feel much more outdoorsy and less claustrophobic. And even if you don't have views of forests or rivers, you can bring nature elements inside of your home decor as well. Pieces inspired by flora and fauna, artwork, books, colour schemes, it all adds to that country estate or country cottage feel. We find that paintings depicting greeny landscapes really helps our home feel more open and spacious. And let's talk about fauna a little more, because animals can really offer a connection with nature. I was someone that always fancied myself keeping chickens, quail, runner ducks. That's what I felt was the quintessential Beatrix Potter vibe. But if you turn that dial to a little more urban, then you'll get pigeons. Because yes, I keep pigeons. But it really doesn't matter the type of animal. A cat, the little wild birds that you leave seed for in your bird feeder, buzzy bees, goldfish, they can all offer you a routine that embraces an outdoor living aesthetic. Switching your routines to ones that are more grounded and mindful really can help you curate a home that feels like a healthy escape from the everyday. Which brings me on to old traditional pastimes. These are being revived for a reason. They help us waste time, but much more thoughtfully. They test our patience and offer us new skills. So be sure to grab that jigsaw the next time you're in your local charity shop. Because the Grandma Corps vibe really is where it's at. It can transport you to a place of comfort and slowness, a nostalgia that makes your home feel, well, more like a home. And if we are talking about Grandma Corps, then I think we need to talk about fashion. Because what you actually wear can also help you to feel a little bit more whimsical and embrace the charm of eras gone by. I think what we associate with country living is time. Something that grandmas tend to have more of. Time to soak up the little things and the beauty that surrounds us. But I would actually wager that many country folk would probably say that they have little to no time to harvest Mother Nature's stunning gifts because they're too busy actually harvesting, or at least maintaining and financing their land, their home, their outbuildings, etc. I believe it really doesn't matter what living circumstance we come from. Nature's gifts are there for all to see, if you take the time to spot them. And as for enjoying the little things, we just need to ensure that we foster a home where we can do just that, even if it's just every once in a while. I tell you, when I close my front door, I truly feel as though I'm a million miles away from the rest of society. And yet, I'm here, right in the heart of it. I guess I get the best of both worlds.