Long before we sanitised our hands at mind-boggling intervals, all in the name of shopping, life itself was in danger of becoming somewhat over sanitised.

Dominated by Outlook schedules, alarms, smartphones determining our next move, smartwatches to monitor our activity levels and sleep patterns, and the cloud backing up our daily lives, we’ve somewhat lost the meaning of being human.

Denied our rituals and routines we’ve been forced to reflect on which ones actually matter, and the answer for many of us has been in deriving pleasure from the simplest of activities. It’s rather worrying that we required a global pandemic to give ourselves permission to live a life we secretly hankered after, to reconnect with our human side, with nature and life in the slow lane.

Letting our hearts guide us

I can think of way too many occasions when “the head” would have saved a lot of hassle, time, and expense. That gorgeous ‘must have’ antique French bath that required a full re-enamel, not to mention the non-standard fittings that meant a countrywide search for a washer, all in the name of patina, and the romance entwined with the joy of salvage and the thrill of the chase.

Sometimes convenience, ease of use, and even ‘luxury’ feel just plain dull. Compare if you will the price of a 10+-year-old Range Rover of the most luxurious type and the classic Land Rover Defender and I guarantee you will be in for a shock. The utilitarian original Defender (no longer in production and succeeded by a new luxury version) is in strong demand. 

Why would you choose to grapple with its enormous steering wheel, tolerate its lack of elbow room and vague handling, when you could be enjoying every conceivable refinement in leather-lined luxury? Well, perhaps it’s because we love the old Defender’s honest utility and the sense of ‘real driving’ – just like it used to be. Owning an old Defender gives you permission to transport the weird, wonderful, and downright dirty, and the fact that you can change a headlamp bulb without plugging it into a computer at your local dealership means there is a lot to love.

Pastures new

If your moment has truly arrived to make that move to literally ‘pastures’ new, you will find stiff competition for a slice of dereliction, because when it comes to homes, the heart will always be several steps ahead of the head. Faded grandeur and crumbling stone can be utterly beguiling and testimony to the fact that the patina of lives lived and land worked appeals to our human side.

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Meadow chic

If you have looked longingly at Instagram posts of cow parsley bouquets, giant seed heads, and wild grasses held together with twine, you may be one of the huge fan base of a new breed of florists who are using blooms that look more at home in a meadow or field margin than a florist.

Lunaria located in the most-searched-for town of Bruton, dubbed ‘the Notting Hill of Somerset’ creates art from the sorts of grasses you might pluck from the hedgerow. From a tiny table setting to the vast threshing barn at the nearby Newt Deborah Bain creates dramatic creations that will see you reappraising the humble verge, abandoning your lawnmower and allowing some of your own garden to go back to nature. 

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Earth tones

Enforced time in our homes has meant you’ve probably looked critically at your surroundings and felt inspired to create a haven.

When contemplating redecoration If you have an addiction to colour cards and need to sample a minimum of 5 tones of ochre before you commit, you would be well-advised to select from a smaller palette, one that has been carefully curated by a new breed of independent makers.

Atelier Ellis paints are deeply pigmented and deeply rooted in the natural world that founder Cassandra Ellis draws upon to create 74 gentle tones.

Nature, far from being muted, offers an incredible breadth and vibrancy and if you can’t quite put your finger on why Atelier Ellis’s version of Ink seems to be both dramatic and at one in an urban or country environment it’s because the deep sky is a real colour wherever you live.

Names like Pollen and Faded Blossom will have you reaching for your brush, and if you have been tempted to move over to the dark side, but black has always seemed well, too black Natura is the colour you have been waiting for.

Need some earth-toned inspiration? Take a look at our Earthy Mood Board.

Homegrown 

If the absence of a daily commute has handed you back that rarest of commodities, time, you may also have experienced an epiphany and asked yourself: ‘why am I buying what I can grow?’

Reaching into a supermarket refrigerator compartment for some obscene cost-to-seed ratio micro herbs that would germinate happily on your window sill in a matter of days is suddenly a no-brainer. What you will have discovered is that it’s not just the edible result you are getting, it’s the joy of germination and nurturing, and the thrill of watching what nature does naturally.

In season

If you have embraced the art of growing, you will have a new understanding of seasons, what to grow when, and how to extend your harvest into the leaner months.

The art of gardening might have taken you on a steep learning curve, but I defy anyone who has eaten a strawberry they have grown themselves not to tell you that it tastes infinitely better than one you have paid for.

Daily bread

If you’ve joined the millions who have a sourdough starter in their fridge and are not turning back, then you have found your patient side, and a willingness to embrace the unpredictable, the non-homogenous, and the pure joy of making something. Flour has been elevated to an essential ingredient, and panic sets in when your supplies are running low, and cottagecore ceramics are the epitome of chic.

You will have gained a new respect for bacteria which is the essential ingredient at a time when it ought to be the enemy, proof positive that nature is a powerful and addictive force that makes us feel alive.

Shop Country Kitchen

Holiday back to nature

When you have witnessed nature take its course in the most dramatic and unpredictable way imaginable, it’s officially ok to rethink life, health, and wellbeing.

With time spent outside the new number one requirement, and if possible as far away from other people as possible, it is space and a natural environment that is king. Having endured the prolonged confinement, the idea of sleeping under canvas, cooking over charcoal, and being separated from the web is redefining our idea of a holiday.

Need some travel inspiration? Check out these Picture Perfect UK Villages.

Disconnect to reconnect

If you have had the sense that we have disconnected with the earth, that we are too clinical and tech-reliant and we need to re-engage with the world, we now have permission to do so.

The unpredictable nature of world events has definitely had its challenges and many negatives, but it has taught us that nothing is certain, and that life in the slow lane is actually a good place to be. 

If your instincts have been telling you for longer than you are prepared to admit ‘to step away from your phone or laptop’ and give something your full attention, then the chances are you are ready to re-engage with the natural world.

With a steer from Atelier Ellis and Lunaria, your newly gained baking and gardening skills along for company, you are well within reach of life in the slow lane.

By Alison Hill