Curating a Creative Space

I spent a delightful morning rearranging my office/studio space. I am blessed to have a lovely outside space set away from the house overlooking the pond garden. 

The sound of running water and birdsong fill my studio. Birds regularly come for a drink and a bath and I have a regular visiting baby squirrel coming to my door to gather the nuts that I lay out on the deck. it is simply sublime and my little creative, peaceful oasis.

When we first moved into this home, I had set the space up with the shelving running along the wall where the shawls are now hanging. However, this took up a lot of space leaving the space behind my desk redundant. I really wanted to have my sewing machine out permanently because it is much easier to be spontaneously creative and crafty when all your tools are at hand.

The space has a dual purpose. A space for my desk and computer for my writing and running my creative events business, and the need to be a place of creativity and inspiration.

One morning about two weeks ago, I was catching up on some admin when the idea for a new layout suddenly took hold. My husband was about to start cutting the lawn but I needed his help with moving the shelves and bringing in another table for the sewing machine. 

He is used to my 'sudden ideas' so very kindly helped me sort out the studio before cutting the lawn - such a kind and patient husband!

He even took the time to hang up some of my shawls. I want this space to be a place that inspires creativity and nurtures a slow, creative life.

I brought a comfortable chair into the studio. The studio is such a lovely garden room and is insulated and has heating which keeps it warm in the winter. A place to sit and work on my knitting or stitching, perhaps while watching a favourite vlog, is just what is needed.

The little quilt on the back of the chair is waiting to be hung on the wall. I made the embroidered tote bag and cushion when we still lived in South Africa so bringing them out of the linen cupboard  to use and enjoy on a daily basis brought in a little nostalgic memories of when my girls were small.

I cleaned all the cubby shelves and enjoyed sorting out my fabrics ...

and books...

I dug out some of the pretty letter writing supplies that I have and popped them on display. I want to send more snail mail this year.

While sorting through my stash, I found a couple of gorgeous kits I bought a few years ago but which I have not got round to doing. 

I want to work on these projects and have them done before the year is out. I don't want to keep putting my making on the backburner.

So, I have picked out 3 projects and set them up in various places around my home. Having them close by and ready means that I am finally spending time working on each project. 

I have a copy of the "A Needlework Enthusiast's Book of Days" planner by Needlework Press arriving any day now and I plan on using this to plan out and document the projects I want to work through in 2026.

I have to say that I am loving feeling so productive and I find that getting back into my hobbies with purpose has been inspiring my creativity. 

I have been very purposeful in setting aside social media and stepping back in a big way from 'hustle culture'. Instead, I am embracing a more 'analogue' traditional lifestyle which is far more familiar to me. 

I am finding the gentle rhythms of keeping my home, creating and trusting God in each moment, is helping me recover from the burnout that realised I was suffering from after too many years of pursuing something that was not meant for me.

One of my  little projects that I want to do is to take these little jumpers and make them into a garland for my studio. I think that it would look so sweet.

When I was dyeing yarn, I knitted up a whole lot of mini jumpers to showcase my colourways. These were always such a hit on my stand with people wanting to buy them. They are so quick and easy to knit up. 

I think I shall put together a little pattern for any knitters amongst my readers...another project to make a note of in my 'Book of Days' calendar!

My studio is very small. Much smaller than the sewing room I had in our previous house. One day I would love a lovely roomy room where I can have a cutting table and both my sewing machine and overlocker out at any one time, and lots of lovely wood and glass storage cabinets. I would love to be able to host workshops with lovely fellow creatives. 

But for now, I am just really enjoying quietly reconnecting with my creativity in my little studio overlooking the garden.

The Seasonal Weekending - A Sunny Bank Holiday Weekend in the Garden

Hello my lovely friends. Here in the UK we are looking forward to a Bank Holiday weekend and gloriously...apparently we are expecting a heatwave over the next week and clear skies!

I hope that you have all had a lovely week. Mine turned out to be slower than anticipated as I came down with a throat infection but sometimes taking a bit of time to slow down can be a good thing. I pottered about the house and just indulged in some lovely homely things like picking flowers from the garden and opening up an embroidery project that has been sitting on my To-Do list for over two years! I'm looking forward to more of the same all weekend long!

This morning I woke up feeling like I am on the mend thanks to a couple of doses of antibiotics, which is just as well given the anticipated weather this weekend. I don't want to be cooped indoors feeling poorly when the sun is shining!

From the moment I opened the conservatory doors this morning I could feel the warmth - so lovely after a cold spell. I immediately opened all the doors leading into the garden to let in the fresh air.

Of course, I took advantage of today's warm weather and got all the washing done, it is currently drying in the sunshine and warm breeze. I have to say that it is so nice to have the washing drying outside rather than in my kitchen. After a long winter of my kitchen doubling as a laundromat, it is nice to return it to it's summer state!

In Season

May is the month of large swathes of frothy Cow Parsley in bloom. Living in the country we get to enjoy this seasonal treasure every time we go anywhere as the lanes are flanked with billowing clouds of this gorgeous wildflower.

I picked a huge bunch for the house. I have found a way to maximise this delicate flowers longevity once picked. First you punch the stems into boiling water for 30 seconds, then straight into a vase of ice-cold water. The blooms have looked fresh for well over a week. 

Today I noticed the kitchen table littered with tiny white petals. The flowers still look fantastic but it is an indication that they won't last for much longer. We also eat breakfast at this table each morning and I really didn't fancy the idea of the falling petals landing in our food. 

Still wanting to enjoy them for a little while longer, I moved the vase to the outside picnic table where I think they look too beautiful.

In The Garden

I love walking through the garden first thing in the morning. I take my cup of tea and slowly stroll along the path to see what changes there have been from the day before. At this time of the year there is always a lot going on.

The Iris's have been teetering on blooming for days and happily,  the first three blooms chose to greet me on my morning inspection walk.

I planted a couple of Geum's next to them and the contrast is just lovely. Geums are a MUST in my garden, they are prolific bloomers and will flower all summer long. I couldn't resist capturing the early morning light shining through the delicate orange petals this morning!

I headed up to the greenhouse to check on my plants and open the vents and door ahead of the days heat. I was delighted to see that the first few tomatoes are starting to form! This is the first year I am growing tomatoes in a greenhouse so I am expecting a satisfactory harvest this year!

The pond continues to thrive, I spent a good 40 minutes this  morning sitting by the pond and watching the busyness of life lived out beneath the surface and on top.

The Tadpoles get bigger every day and some have already got their little hind legs growing.

The Newts are less bothered about our presence these days and happily bob about the surface of the water snapping up the fish food and soaking up the sun's warmth.

Frog life is still going strong, in fact they have been rather vocal over the last three days. I was able to sneak up on them and see what all the noise was about. They were sitting along the edges having a good sing-a-long although in reality i suspect it was more to do with notifying neighbouring frogs not to encroach into their individual territories. It's a busy pond!

While I was sitting by the pond-side, I noticed a good many damselfly's laying their eggs in the pond moss. 

We should have some damselfly nymphs hatching in about 2-5 weeks. Now, they are hugely predatory and will prey on tadpoles, so I am hoping that by the time it gets to that time, our tadpoles are nearer to frog stage and that a good many will survive. 

Well, I'm of to pick up my needles, I plan to sit outside as long as possible under the shade of the gazebo this afternoon knitting and stitching - perfect convalescing activities - and I hope to feel a bit more 'human' by tomorrow! Whatever you are doing this weekend, I hope that involves a bit of time outdoors and doing something that brings you joy.

Blessings in Christ

Shirley