All Fingers and Thumbs

In the company of three wise and wonderful friends I made a happy little deck of words this weekend. It surprised me by being an almost unbelievably satisfying and joy inducing project. I'd hardly given it a scrap of thought in advance which I'm convinced is where part of the magic lies. I am rarely spontaneous in my creating; hopefully this will encourage me to be a little more so. I knew I'd have some great tools on hand as Kelly shares her toys very nicely indeed and I had a beautiful pack of coloured card that clearly made me buy it knowing what it wanted to be one day. When we settled in to play I'd got the idea refined as much as knowing I wanted to create something like flash cards - flash cards of inspiring, thought provoking words. I have strong memories of sitting happily in our dining room as a child with my deck of cards, learning words, getting tested on spelling. I love to spell. I wish we'd had spelling bees instead of sports days at school. I kn...

The Christmas decoration are still up. Taking it slow this year. I'm glad to be easing back in to routines and stretching in to the New Year but still craving the sparkling cosiness that the holidays bring so much of. As ever I am so not ready for the kind of brisk spartan jumping to attention that gets pushed so hard in this month of resolving to be something other than who you find yourself to be. I'm really rather liking where I find myself to be at the moment. Moving at a pace that feels right, changing it as the day demands. Finding ways to let expectations drift away. Making fresh starts in gentler, more regular adjustments. Taking small steps rather than just thinking about big leaps. Warm and soft in the glow of fairy lights and beeswax candles. I made the one above a couple of months ago and made another batch last weekend. Mostly poured containers which are fast to do and so satisfying. I love knowing that they are a healthy addition to my environment as well a...

First day back at the ranch and boy oh boy have we perfected the pace of what kind of chocolate shall we eat next. Appropriately layered up we just peeped out for a turn around the park and a breath of cold, fresh air but with piles of new pressies to enjoy and accommodate somewhere our attentions have been definitely homesteady.  Miss Nina has been making sure that we spend the requisite amount of time forming a seat for her. It's fair to say these furries missed us, though I have my suspicions that has more to do with the warmth of our laps and the extra turns we give the central heating. These quiet days both here with our Siamese twinset and about with family are my favourite of the festive season. Time to just sit and be, to watch a movie, to chat about nothing very much at all. Days without name or order in the week somehow. Is it Wednesday today? I think I asked that yesterday.

Today I began what I like to think of as a five day cosying in intensive. On holiday now until January 5th it's time to slow down and sink in to the festive season in my own home. I've been out and about a lot, delightful as all that has been I'm ready to pull back in to a quieter place. One Christmas shopping mission to complete tomorrow and beyond that I shall only be tempted from my nest if the weather demands a walk. The kind of walk that will put roses in my cheeks and let me return home in absolute need of a hot chocolate. That is all that could drag me out of here, the Christmas CDs are on, the frankincense incense sticks are smouldering, I am breathing deeper, feeling so grateful for this funny little corner of the world that is my sanctuary. I am branding the mess charming so there is a just a little housework to be done. Laundry mountain and a few fierce cobwebs need conquering so that when I head down to Cornwall to spend a few days with my parents I shall ...

To my own surprise I'm really rather enjoying this November and without too much conscious effort to embrace its awkward corners. Not a month that normally fills me with excitement, too many grey skies and dark evenings, too much autumn fatigue - a not quite winter but it might as well be sort of association. Happily it's got more of an October extension vibe going on this year, still very much autumn here which is suiting me down to the leaf carpeted ground. Every time I walk outside I come back in with yet another clutch of leaves which I strew artfully about the place - perhaps more aptly described as covering every available surface so it looks rather like a storm just blew right through the house!  At the weekend we had a little jaunt down to visit my parents in Cornwall and Mama and I started in on the Christmas craft-arama with a vengeance. Fabric leaves above were spares from a grea t wreath making day . The wreath itself is in hiding as it will be gifted...

It Felt Love - Hafiz How Did the rose Ever open its heart And give to this world All its Beauty? It felt the encouragement of light Against its Being Otherwise We all remain Too frightened

A few weekends ago I found this little wooden tray or shelf at a jumble sale. I am so head over heels in love with it. For twenty English pennies I bought myself a holder for the tiny pieces of my collection of pretties from nature. It sits to the right of the tv on our mantelpiece and I spend much of the time I am supposedly watching a programme gazing in adoration at these little treasures. I had to share as I feel I am in danger of turning in to a hoarding miser a la Mr Scrooge. sat at home gloating over my riches! It seems fitting to feature it in a post of its own as there is a metaphor here for where this blog has headed; a space to hold the little pieces of life that I want to honour. With that extra clarity about what this blog is about these days I'll try not to let it get dusty in here just as I'll try to take the time to clean and curate this treasury.