Easing into the day, gently . . .

Do you rush into your day headlong?

Setting a Morning routine to ease gently into the day

Oh my, I used to do just that, my mornings would be such a jumble & a rush

 1. Diving straight into the studio deal with my e-mails  

2. Going off on tangents, being distracted by a piece of work or research

3. Forgetting to drink my morning coffee

4.  Rushing about feeling stressed and out of sorts

5. Surfacing several hours later having not done half of the things I had meant to!

 So I decided no more, "what would I really like my morning to feel like?"

Relaxed, waking up to the day slowly,  taking time to ease into my day.

 So I set about making it happen, and now I start my day with a lovely studio morning routine

I make sure I take an hour out of my morning to

1. Put on some calming, music from my You-Tube channel

2. Light one of my homemade candles

3. Drink my coffee from one of my fave little mugs I have collected

4. Light one of my favourite incense sticks a "Nag Champa"

5. Spend just half an hour with my sketchbook doodling or writing in my journal.

What a difference! By making just a little gentle "me" time in the morning,

it allows me to settle into the day, find my feet and  relax.

My whole day takes on a different feel and I'm ready to go.

Do you have a morning routine that eases you into your day, I'd love to know what others do!

Spring and new things are sprouting . . .

"Sweet April showers do spring May flowers." ~ Thomas Tusser

 I love the sound of April rain pattering on my umbrella!

I know, it's April already, how did that happen?

 
All these different weather happenings reminded me of a wee poem from my childhood

Whether the weather be fine, Whether the weather be not,
Whether the weather be cold, Whether the weather be hot,
We'll weather the weather, Whatever the whether,
Whether we like it or not
~Author Unknown

I'm also loving my woodland walks & feeling Mother Nature really stirring now

everything is sprouting and i am endlessly fascinated by all the different greens,

they are inspiring ideas for a Spring painting too.

 We have a wonderful daffodil lane by the cottage, a row of brightest sunshine

and even on the cloudiest day, it always makes me happy.

 And of course I had been keeping my eye on the wild garlic, and soon had some picked. We used some of the young leaves to add lovely flavour to a salad & I'm going to make pesto too.  Here is a link to an easy recipe for ~ Wild Garlic Pesto

Things are sprouting and growing and Spring is most definitely here at last.

I have been sprouting things too,  exciting new ideas here in my studio!

They are not quite ready to share yet, but I can give you a hint  . . . 

I am putting together a whole series of "creative play" workshops!

Do you have any thoughts on what you would love to "play" with creatively?

A January go slow & stirrings . . .

Catching up on news & happenings, where did January go . . .

After my morning walk I came home grinning from ear to ear, for I discovered there are stirrings in the forest, the beginnings of bluebells and there are snowdrops down the lane. Spring is on its way & things are slowly starting to come out of their sleepy hibernation.

 

The darkness of January, I always find the hardest months to bear, when the light is gone & the skies are grey.  It is my "Go Slow" month, I have always fought that & it has made things so much worse.  So it was my personal challenge this year to be kind to myself & to wake to the year at my own pace. This year I have been hibernating too.

I have worked moments into my days when I take time out, go slow, curl by the crackling fire with cups of tea to sip, I have hunted for adventure in the delicious stories & books gifted to me at Christmas.

I have sat & watched sunlight flow into the stillness of my studio setting a myriad of sparkles dancing about the walls.

Then as February loomed, knowing my struggles with the darkness of the days, my Mr O whisked me of on a magical trip, away over sea, mountains & desert to an oasis of sunlight & colour & warmth.

Normally i choose to fill every minute of a holiday dashing about & exploring going home almost as tired as when we arrived. Apparently this was not on the list of to do's for this break!

By day three I was beginning to wonder how I would last a week.  Then as if by magic something clicked & I suddenly discovered its wonderful just to sit all day, every day, to watch, read, listen to music, doodle & well just relax. Well who knew! 

And loveliest of all, the creative block that has been lurking for oh so long, decided it needed a holiday too and my pencil just flew, I came home with  pages filled with ideas & doodles.

 I felt the stirrings of ideas beginning to form, plans starting to hatch.  Those sunshiney days where just the thing to give me the boost I needed and I came home with boundless energy, a full sketchbook & plenty of mosquito bites !

The images above are the workings for an upcoming exhibition, but more of that another time.

Wishing you all a peaceful Christmas . . .

It's Christmas eve and all through the house not a creature is stirring . . .

The house is ready, corners sparkling in the firelight, waiting peacefully for visitors to arrive.

 

I'm signing off to spend time with family & appreciating all the precious small things,

for those are the ones that makes my days shine.

 

I wish each & every one of you a peaceful Christmas, may your days be filled with loveliness.

x x x

Some November favourites . . .

Some of my favourite November things  ~

Our annual family get together bonfire night.  We are such a huge family now and scattered all over, but everyone who possibly can comes home for bonfire night, brothers, sisters, grandparent's, nieces & nephews, sons & daughters. I love these precious times we all spend together.

Being Mom to my three & now a Granny, still amazing & one of the best jobs I have ever had.

Making time to journal, re-learning how to play with my creativity & go with the flow every day.

Autumn colours shining through & creating spectacular displays here in our little wood.

Finding snippets of loveliness on my travels on the web, such as this video of the amazing starling murmurations over at Gretna Green, something Mr O & I had the pleasure of witnessing last year.