When I am working on a commission the most exciting part to me is the presentation – the packaging of the product as I want the client to be excited when the parcel arrives on the doorstep. Whilst I am aware of avoiding elaborate expensive materials I do want to give a hint of what lies inside. I change my themes regularly, but right now this is the label I have designed and indeed are using. I take my parcels to the village post office and it has become a ritual now for the ladies in the shop to comment on the parcels – they say my parcels brighten up their dreary days of plain brown paper parcels!
My current commission is for some Thank You cards to be sent out by my client to friends and family who offered and sent cards of sympathy following the death of a close family member.
This is the image I was inspired by…
These are the cards I created.
I am looking for a nice quotation…..any ideas?
Today would have been Mum’s birthday…..Happy Birthday Mum! xxxx
Today's Inspirational Quote:
"When you were born, you cried and the world rejoiced. Live
your life so that when you die, the world cries and you
rejoice."
Kabir
We have had a good weekend really. As ever the gloomy, misty, foggy weather was coastal, so on Sunday we headed over to Richmond, North Yorkshire. As we approached the town a motorbike overtook us and when we stopped at the traffic lights said to follow him for a place to have a cup of tea. We found ourselves next to the river and had a lovely rest. I did have a strange sandwich – no butter just dry slices of bread, a slice of meat and an onion! Oh well – good job I am on a diet! lol! Total lost so fay 6lb!
A busy week so best I get going and kick the day into action!
~ Success is a journey, not a destination. The doing is often more important than the outcome. ~ (Arthur Ashe)
This morning I had a fantastic time on the beach with Freida. As usual we had it all to ourselves and as the sun was warm and the air was still it was a fantastic space to be. Whenever I am near the sea I always think of the times I was away from home and missed the open coast so much. I returned home when my Dad died and I knew the time had come for me to return home and look after mum. I will never forget the journey home as I knew my life was about to change, but little did I know how much. A few months later I met Jon. A holiday had been planned with friends to France for 5 weeks. It was during this time I realised I had met “Mr Right”. The journey home was a very significant one as I knew it would be the last journey I would make , as a single woman. We were married a few months later.
What significant journeys have you made in your time?
The Journey
One day you finally knew what you had to do, and began,
though the voices around you kept shouting their bad advice --
though the whole house began to tremble
and you felt the old tug at your ankles.
"Mend my life!" each voice cried.
But you didn't stop.
You knew what you had to do, though the wind pried
with its stiff fingers at the very foundations,
though their melancholy was terrible.
It was already late enough, and a wild night,
and the road full of fallen branches and stones.
But little by little, as you left their voices behind,
the stars began to burn through the sheets of clouds,
and there was a new voice
which you slowly recognized as your own,
that kept you company as you strode deeper and deeper
into the world,
determined to do the only thing you could do --
determined to save
the only life you could save.
~ Mary Oliver ~
Earth and sky, woods and fields, lakes and rivers, the mountain and the sea, are excellent schoolmasters, and teach some of us more than we can ever learn from books.
John Lubbock
Walking up the lane last Thursday I noticed the duck pond was quite quiet as for some reason the ducks had chosen the second pond as their favourite of the day. It was during my walk with Freida I noticed the amount of elderberries, brambles and rosehips which were ready for picking. Our own plums are now picked and freezing ready to be made up into Christmas drinks. This week is going to be a week of picking & pottering in the kitchen as well as continuing with preparations for my exhibition……busy busy I think!
I was down on the beach by 8am this morning and had a wonderful walk with Freida. We were alone and the morning sunshine was awe inspiring. I tend to use such times for thinking . My exhibition is approaching and one of my categories is seascapes so I used the time this morning to do some planning!
Watch this space!
Meditate.
Live purely. Be quiet.
Do your work with mastery.
Like the moon, come out
from behind the clouds!
Shine
Buddha
"Be glad of life, because it gives you the chance to love and to work and to play and to look up at the stars."
Henry Van Dyke
"If you cannot be a poet, be the poem."
David Carradine
"You must be the change you wish to see in the world."
Mahatma Gandhi
Good weather had been predicted on Sunday so we went for a motorbike ride with friends. Our neighbour knows the Dales area well as he was brought up there. He led the way and we were happy to follow, it was a proper mystery tour! We had never been on some of the roads before, but the scenery was utterly spectacular!
We stopped in Reeth and had a wonderful picnic. I say wonderful as it was a bargain! I only had a few minutes to prepare so I threw some eggs in a pan and hard boiled them. There was some bread buns in the freezer which I had bought for the price of 10p! I buttered the partially defrosted buns knowing by the time we would stop for lunch they would be just nice. I nipped to the local post office who do the most wonderful yorkshire ham. 6 slices for the 6 of us! Desert was a pineapple, again bought at a reduced price of 35p! It was quite a sight when we set up our picnic area on the green at Reeth and Jon produced his penknife and sorted the pineapple out! We did get some stares but hey even bikers can have a healthy picnic! None of those dodgy burgers for us! We rode to Hawes and after an icecream and a chat with friends we mad our way home via Leyburn, Bedale, Northallerton and Stokesley! A wonderful mystery tour! In fact Fantastic!
Wind and Thistle for pipe and dancers and never a ploughman under the Sun.
Never a ploughman. Never a one.
Hilaire Belloc
Whilst clearing our grass verge I came across a thistle growing amongst the hedging! I noticed a huge bumble bee to start with, but as the time went on a number of other creatures found the plant interesting. Although I was clearing weeds I decided to leave this one.
Hubby came home from work and we continued to work in the garden, I was weeding the dry stone wall up the drive and Jon did his favourite garden task which involves his sit on garden mower! He did a good job, especially of the verge – yes, the thistle has now been despatched!
I am glad I captured this moment and it has made me realise that when I plant my wild flower/meadow section I will plant some thistles – can you think of any more plants which would attract creatures?
