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Finding our way back …

by | Mar 31, 2022 | Ideas

We have finally reached the time to find our way back to being together. 

Yesterday I had a lovely conversation/coffee with my friend Lori, and we got talking about the need to practice our social skills, to get back to being able to socialize like it’s a normal thing. Turns out, it’s going to take some work!

We talked about how our ability to converse is a wee bit rusty … we don’t seem to “do” enough to have something to talk about. I joked that we need to elevate the mundane to a level of interesting … reach in to our storytelling abilities, and have some serious fun with it.

There was a good laugh between us when I made my adventure in disassembling my vacuum cleaner to clean it, an actual story of an accomplishment of the day. As it turns out, you don’t really have to embellish things … the simplest things can take on a whole new dimension if we just encourage them a bit. There is great depth in the mundane! There is also great learning. 

I was also struck by the unexpected stories that we might share, as we emerge into the world of being with others. Discoveries we’ve made along the way. Things that we no longer do or want, simply because we haven’t had it, or as it turns out, missed it in the past two years. There is the musing about what things won’t come back into our lives.

I am now back to seeing things in my immediate environment as being very important, and worthy of talking about. My encounters with the wildlife in our new neighbourhood, the land we live on, and it is quite possible that I will become a bird person. For the first time in my life, I purchased a Hummingbird feeder … wowza …. that’s a blast of colour you want to see every day! And Stellar’s Jays, who’s electric iridescent blue makes takes my breath away … oh yes, and their impressive size too!

Here we are blessed with a plethora of bird species, who all seem so much more interesting when you see them up close, and in quantity. I want to learn and remember their names, and watching their daily habits. These are some of the things in my new daily world that might be interesting conversation starters.

Although I am trying to take pictures of birds, I am not that successful. I feel quite lucky to have captured this Stellar’s Jay grabbing a snack.  I am enjoying the rhythm of the birds, they seem to come at certain times of the day, and that feels very comforting. 

all things not digital

I stumbled across this amazing “bookazine” in the bookstore a little over a month ago, and I am still enjoying it tremendously.

Handværk decoration comes from Denmark, and this one is the English edtion. Each article is about somone doing work by hand. in this issue I have, there are articles on hand made lampshades; textile design; jewelery, mosaics, traditional wallpaper making; a cabinetmaker; costume work; fabric repair, a tattoo artist, and a delightful collection of other things. It is very inspiring!

I am loving it because it reflects my own desire and practice to work with my hands, do things with intention and not rush. It is about getting in touch with all the senses and aspects of your chosen work.

To get a visit inside really old factories making traditional wallpaper is fascinating. I love their intentional decision making about each aspect, from the inks to the paper surface, Ulricehamn’s Wallpaper Factory, (Ulricehmns Tapetfabrik) wants to improve the quality of their work, they look toward collaboration with others, and are dedicated to sustainability in both materials, deposal and in the new people they bring onboard.

In a world where so much is mass manufactured, and faster is seen as better, this bookazine is reminding me that those concepts couldn’t be further from the truth!

haandwaerkbookazine.com

And here, for your desktop pleasure, I offer you some calendar wisdom. You can click on it to upload and then use it as your desktop!

Also … my calendar tells me that April is a very big month of great things to celebrate … it all starts off with being National Poetry Month!

On the 2nd you can celebrate International Pillow Fight Day (please use soft pillows).

Don’t miss International Moment of Laughter Day on the 14th and Erasure Day on the 15th.

We end the month with two of my favourites, on the 28th, World Pay-It-Forward Day, and on the 30th, World Indie Bookstore Day!

What a wonderful month to celebrate!

Me and Squeak

photo by Wendy Morisseau

This week finds me back in full swing in my new studio … four pieces on the go, on the painting side of things … and more ideas for non-paint projects. 

I was reminded this past week how important it is that we are aware of our own energy. I knew mine was low and a bit disconnected for a wee bit too long, but when it came back, suddenly my work started to sell again. I became “visible” in the world, just as if I had walked through a doorway and into another room.

Having experienced this before, it didn’t surprise me, but rather it reminded me how much I need to be connected to a larger picture.

Here’s wishing you a joyous and connected week ahead, filled with pithy conversations about what’s happening in your life!

~sarah

Observation

by | Mar 25, 2022 | Ideas

Noticing small things seems to make the big things make more sense. 

I have a real fascination with isolating images in the larger world. This one is a snippet of a trellis that is outside our kitchen window. It is the end of what grew there last year, and for some reason, this morning, it got my attention. 

In this new environment, I am seeing small things, focussing in on the minute aspects of the natural world. It is nothing short of incredible. 

The fresh moss, with its tiny shoots … the Witches hair moss hanging from the trees. These are things I didn’t observe in our old house/location. But here, they call me to go outside and see them in their full glory. 

There has also been the excitement of seeing our belongings with a fresh new mind. We have now unpacked everything and are at the stage of deciding where the art might go on the walls. Since this space is very different from our last home, everything we have looks new, and needs to be considered differently. It is very exciting. 

all things not digital

As I settle in to a new space and routine here, I wrote myself a note, which is now posted in the studio. This is helping me to move gently through this stage of things. Every day feels like I am starting fresh, which has its advantages and disadvantages.

I try to approach it with a sense of wonder.

In order to stir things up in my head, I have participated in a few online workshops on a variety of art methods that I do not currently utilize. From surface pattern design to creating in a sketchbook with watercolours, my idea is to gain a new perspective and different ideas by looking in different places. My strolls in the garden also help me to see things in a new way … pattern, texture, relationships, time of the year … how each thing connects to the other. 

Looking for ideas in a variety of odd places is a wonderful way to wake up your senses, and offer you a new approach to your work. Never underestimate the power of pen on paper!

Me and Squeak

photo by Wendy Morisseau

As I write this, my furry friend Squeak, seen in my arms, has yet to return home. He disappeared two days after we moved. We miss him so much!

Everyday I hold space and hope that he will find his way back to us, so that I can share this new and amazing world with him.

May this week offer small wonders that make a big impression!

~sarah

“I’ve weathered some storms”

by | Mar 14, 2022 | Ideas

“I’ve weathered some storms” … a mandala tribute to life.

There are only a handful of boxes left to unpack in my new studio … today I unpacked ones with mandalas in them. This one, which started the day under a different name, became the focus of my attention. Suddenly, this piece which has been in my space for quite awhile, wanted more. More attention, more embellishment, more meaning. After I finished the additional work on it, I let it sit beside me, waiting to have its new name emerge. 

Every time I glanced down, I saw the colours of the garden at the end of winter. I thought about how many storms nature must survive. I thought about all that we weather in our lives, and how incredibly resilient we really are most times. 

So, in a time when I feel very much in flux about a lot of things, I look to nature to help me weather what is happening in my world, and in the world in general. I am reminded it does not worry itself with the future, it very much lives in the now. In every moment, nature keeps growing and changing, adapting and adjusting. I am afraid we humans are not really very well-versed in that. But that doesn’t mean we can’t learn!

For the first time in a long time, I am able to enjoy a view of the garden from my new studio, and I feel especailly blessed that I get to watch it emerge into spring. It feels as though every moment I look out, something is new. The nature outside my window is a testament to hopeful. It is inspiring me to take small actions and know that all of those actions combined will create change. 

Some of the silliest things make me happy … 

This big move of ours has produced a good deal of packing materials, and after we moved in, we realized there were a few things we needed to buy … which came with more packaging. I am not sure many people get as excited as I do about good, efficient, simple packaging … but I tell you, things like these crazy, simple, reinforced corner pieces made my day. These are not the sort of thing you throw out … they are keepers in my world, for sure! Anything that is so sturdy should certainly be used more than once!

And while I was unpacking, I came across a shoe box that we didn’t seem to need anymore. As I went to break it down, I noticed how brilliantly it was designed. No glue, no tape, no staples, just folds and tabs. It was so well thought out, I put it back together and decided to keep it. 

I really appreciate good design and pieces that lend themselves easily to be used again and again. I even envisioned a whole store of used packing materials where people could come and package up their parcels with just the right materials, and save them from having to be recycled. What a great savings this would be for small business!

Remember the 3 R’s … Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. 

all things not digital

The new studio continues to morph into a comfortable working environment. 

A sure sign that it’s a good space is that the little grey muse finds this her favourite space in the whole house. Yes, it is grey cat approved. 

In this space I have started the creation of an altar to all things not digital. I was going to do this at our old house, so to be able to do it here is a lovely feeling. There is more to add, but this is where it has started. 

Me and Squeak

photo by Wendy Morisseau

My mantra for this week has been this:

KEEP WRITING + EXPLORING

STAY OPEN + CURIOUS

MAINTAIN JOY + WONDER

I wish this for you also!

~sarah

A whole new chapter is beginning

by | Mar 7, 2022 | Ideas

Last month was about next easy steps … now it’s all about grounding.

As the whirl of the world roars into our daily lives, it stirs so much in us. It upends everything. Very little seems stable or reliable, and yet, in many ways, nothing has changed.

I know that sounds very odd, with an invasion happening on another part of the planet from me, and the whole world reacting in a variety of ways, which it must. Here I sit, in my new home, located on a quiet 5 acre parcel of land, and I wonder what I can do. 

My life has felt as though it’s been in a holding pattern for the past three months, and now that the move has happened, and we are settling into this new environment, I know the only thing I need to do is ground myself. I need to find my connection back in the larger world, to share my support, love and compassion in whatever way I am able. 

On my 2022 calendar, the March message is: “I practice self care. Caring for myself is the ultimate act of generosity for everyone.” I really do believe this is true. In fact, I believe we need it now more than ever, after two years of a pandemic, an invasion of a sovereign country and all of the personal ups and downs in our individual lives. 

There are people who will only compare their situation to the larger global happenings and say, “well, I  don’t have to escape from my country”, or “no one has died in my family”. While I believe it is important to keep a perspective on things, it is also important to acknowledge that what is happening in our own lives might be big and scary, overwhelming and crushing. 

Recently a friend posted a Wellness Check-In on Facebook, where you could indicate how you were doing, and whether you could use some support. I thought it was great, a way for us all to open the conversation on what’s really happening in us. The power of sharing where you are at is so very important, and has a way of lessening the pressure in our bodies. I think that everyone benefits from knowing they are not alone, and someone truly cares. 

So, while I cannot fix some of the more serious goings-on in the world, I can ground myself and offer my best energy to the global energies of peace and connection. And although that doesn’t sound like much, it is the energy shift we need to see and feel in the world. 

The mandala shown is called “One Day” … named because it is the only painted mandala I have ever started and finished in one day. It also represents the idea that we only have to do this life one day at a time!

 

The beginnings of a new studio …

This is definitely a work-in-progress, and this is my first day of actually “working” in this new space. It’s huge. Probably three times the size of my previous studio!

It has French doors leading on to a deck, overlooking a garden, so lots of light streaming in.

There is a sense of endless possibility, and also of “what-the-heck to I do now”, to it. I certainly feel as though I need to “grow into” this new space.

I am very pleased to have my furry muse on hand, she seems to approve of the space, as long as I am not hoisting boxes around the room. She definitely prefers a quiet and peaceful work environment, and seems particularly pleased that this studio comes with appropriate sunbeams to lie in.

I have some logistical issues to solve, once everything is unpacked, but so far, the set up is pleasing me. A definite work-in-progress sort of situation … so stay tuned!

A bit late in the month, but this is the first chance I have had to create the desktop image for March.

It definitely is going to be a much-needed reminder for me for the next few weeks!

I hope you enjoy it.

Just right click and you should be able to download it and then set it as your desktop image.

Cheers, ~sarah

Me and Squeak

photo by Wendy Morisseau

It feels good to be back to creating in a calm space … it seems like so long ago that I felt this. Ahhhhh …. this is the energy I want to send into the world!

May you feel your deep connection to all that is, and add your heartfelt gratitude for what is right in this moment.

~sarah

PS. I am still working my way through the book pile from last post … and now that things have calmed down, I look forward to more time to read! I will write more about those books when I have worked my way though them.

I surrender to what is

by | Feb 15, 2022 | Ideas

what a wild time we are all in …

I knew this time in the world was going to be something else. In some ways I am prepared for it. In many others, I am not. There is just too much shifting and shaking at one time. It’s like being in a hurricane and an earthquake at the same time!

Moving house and studio is a BIG thing. I have felt the need to shut the studio down much earlier than I expected, because the flurry of things around me has seriously messed up my ability to focus. This is worrying from a financial point of view, yet it is exactly what has to happen in order to get through things. Being left in a sort of nowhere-ville … I am discovering new ways to be okay with all of this.  

It turns out that small things are helping me. The same as the “next easy step” mantra that I repeat constantly, I have also been reminded that just doing ONE THING every single day toward a goal, will eventually, get you there. This is what I have been doing … a series of ONE THINGS. It’s keeping me grounded, focussed and calming me. 

I am also playing with new dreams and directions … because more than my home base is changing. There are lots of changes in and around me, that will ultimately change things for me. Lots of constant adjustment needed. It’s why I loved when “I surrender to what is” came up in the card pick today. Yup … surrendering with trust and faith in the miracles that have yet to occur!

I must trust that my unique way of moving through the world will work best for me.

 

what’s next to my reading chair these days …

I am currently blessed with a plethora of excellent reading buddies, and I am feeling grateful to all of the people who created these books, that are now making my world a much more interesting place!

I am also very, very grateful to my friend Simone for introducing me to The Art of the Fold, by Hedi Kyle and Ulla Warchol … a gift from her that has taught me that, with the right instruction, I can fold things! This has blown apart a myth I have been telling myself for far too long!

This sent me on a search for more book making/folding ideas, when I came across Bound, by Rachel Hazell. Yes, it was the cover that got me, BIG TIME! That is one compelling cover, to be sure. It’s also a very inspiring book. 

HÅNDVÆRK was a surprise purchase, because I received a book store gift card! It is expensive for a magazine, which is the section it was in, but then the subtitle of it is: bookazine. It comes from Denmark and is such an inspiring publication about people who work with their hands. It is one to savour and go back to!

Another gift, from my partner Mary Ann, was Atlas of the Heart, by Bréne Brown, someone I have become quite fond of. And this book is all about my current personal exploration ~ our emotions. I love the discovery of what is under a layer of emotion. It’s fascinating!

And finally, the latest Daniel Pink book, The Power of Regret, How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward.  I remember how much I loved his book A Whole New Mind, and knew that I would love this one too. So far, I am not disappointed!

Me and Squeak

photo by Wendy Morisseau

Thanks for reading, it’s been a pleasure to reach out and share a bit of my world with you today. It’s ONE THING I really needed to do.

That’s the thing about connections, we need to nurture them always. And that realization is inspiring  me to write some letters today!

May your pen be at the ready when you have something to share!

~sarah

Take the next easy step!

by | Feb 1, 2022 | Ideas

Never has the phrase, “Take the next easy step …” been needed more in my life!

Somehow I must have known this when I designed my 2022 calendar, that February was going to need an everyday reminder to just take the next easy step.

Life is full … and in January it was even fuller of life and death events, tugs to old worlds and the ominous reality of finding a new home.

Any one of those things really would have been enough. Really. But, oh no … apparently we had to do them in tandem. YIKES!

In all of it, I just kept reminding myself that nothing lasts forever, that each day I was closer to the trauma and drama being over. It was all about staying in the present moment, while acknowledging that it will change.

And, of course it did. A little over a week ago, we secured a new home. To say that it is beyond anything we had been dreaming up, would be a severe understatement. It is amazing in ways that go deep into my bones.

I will tell you more about that as time goes by … and introduce you to this new adventure, once we get settled.

For now, and the rest of the month of February, I am going to heed the advice of my friend and mentor, Liz Garratt …

“TAKE THE NEXT EASY STEP.

If it isn’t easy, it isn’t the next step!”

 

The new desktop wallpaper for February

This follows in the footsteps of my printed calendar … just something nice to share. (if you would like a calendar for your wall, I still have a few and they are on sale in my shop!)

This should be a simple right click to make it your desktop image … if you have problems, please contact me and I will email you the file.

I hope you enjoy it!

Things continue to be completed in the studio … although I am not sure how.

I have dedicated myself to finishing things in the studio, and not moving anything undone to the new house. 

Each day, I move things along in a quiet and peaceful way. There is no rush, just a desire to complete things and move them to their next home. 

These are two of the pieces that I have been working on for the past several weeks. The panel has been in my studio, waiting patiently, for about 2 years. 

The table, named Charlotte, was a gift from two lovely people who bought one of my tables, and then gave me their old one to rework and sell. Now that’s the kind of support you don’t see everyday!

I encourage you to purge your stuff …

One of the biggest lessons in this move is, we all hang on to way too much stuff. We don’t go through things and toss them, or give them away, nearly as often as would be good for us. 

And why is that? Because it’s hard. And why is it hard? Because we allow it to pile up. 

The other thing is, we have attachment to things. Or we think we might need it some day. 

My most embrassing moment of this packing up, was finding a container stored in the basement, filled with coloured glass that belonged to my father. I had forgotten all about it. All of that beautfiul glass has been sitting in a dark container in the basement for almost 17 years!! That is shameful in a way, and certainly does not honour the makers of those lovely pieces. 

There are many other things that will not move to the next house, and what makes me feel good about moving these things along is where they are going. 

The books are off to Well Read Books, which uses the proceeds of sales to fund all of their literacy programs. 

All of the other stuff is going to friends or to Haven Society Thrift Shop, whose mission is: “to promote the integrity and safety of women, children, youth and families and the development of a respectful and healthy community.”

It feels lovely to clean and carefully wrap things up to give away. To send them off with intention that just the right person will find what they need, at a price they can afford, and the item goes on to be useful once more.  

Me and Squeak

photo by Wendy Morisseau

And here we are, at another New Year … the Chinese Year of the Tiger. There will be lots of energy with this one, that’s for sure!

I am off to purge another cupboard or two, and do a bookstore and record store run … so we can have some floor space back, and stop freaking the cats out!

Cheers to February! Stay well and happy.

~sarah