Ready.

The rain was falling hard on Saturday morning, but the house was full of smiles as we prepared ourselves for a day of yoga and ayurveda. I had friends and family down on Friday night for various reasons, and on Saturday the friends and I headed to the yoga studio for a workshop with the Ayurvedic Yogi. The workshop was well-timed for all, and heralded a new beginning at the spring equinox. As the morning began, there was a general acknowledgement that at this time of year, just before spring really gets underway, we may well be feeling sluggish (yes), uninspired (yes), tired (yes) and a little overweight (umm...that too). Our workshop was just the remedy we needed.

Picture from Lilypodyoga.com

Ayurveda is to the body what yoga is to the mind. The Ayurvedic Yogi believes that our bodies are in need of as much love and attention as our spirits, in order to maintain full and healthy equilibrium. In order to meet your body's needs you must first discover your own natural dosha or constitution; Vata (predominantly air and space elements), Pitta (fire and water elements) or Kapha (earth and water). Whilst we all have a little of each type, and sometimes different parts of our bodies are predominantly different dosha, there is usually one which stands out. In order to maintain your natural doshic balance, different types are advised to make careful choices about what they eat and drink, as well as what they choose to put on their skin.

My dosha is predominantly Pitta but with quite a few Vata elements. My body type fell quite neatly into the Pitta type - average build, strong constitution, pale skin and prone to overheating; the Vata elements appeared to be linked more with my emotions - prone to anxiety and creativity in equal measure, occasional skin irritations or digestive problems when overwrought. In order to balance the overheating I should really be avoiding coffee, hot foods and alcohol and in order to balance the occasional dryness of my skin I should be using naturally nourishing ingredients such as milk powder, oatmeal and ground almonds.

We spent our morning in a long yoga session, then settled down together in Charlotta's kitchen for an Ayurvedic lunch. Our lesson was in the afternoon and we had the chance to make our doshic beauty products which really are good enough to eat; if you wouldn't put it in your mouth, don't put it on your skin.

The day was truely restorative. And today, the rain had gone. Spring has sprung and now, I am ready for it.

Pit Stop

Mum and I have been planning a creative weekend, so this morning when my alarm went off at a very early hour for a Saturday morning, I knew it would be worth it. I drove from mine to my parents where we sat in the morning sun, basking in the beginnings of spring, enjoying our coffee and our garden. This was our little pit stop on the way to Statford upon Avon, where we were looking for Liberty Print fabrics to make some clothes for me, Mum and baby.

There is nothing more restorative than sitting in this same spot, with a warm cup of coffee out of a familar bowl, mulling over the week that was.

We found some beautiful fabrics; for Ella, the sweetest little magenta and green floral cotton; for me, some indigo silk with a simple print on and some purple paisley cotton; for mum, a petrol blue wool, made using the finest weave. Luxurious.

The results of the last, and expectations of the next, project...

A quiet moment has allowed for a bit of a play with my camera as I potter around for a Saturday morning. The weeks are passing so quickly, and work is as chaotic as ever, but it has been wonderful this week to have some bright mornings and cold but very sunny afternoons. A quiet weekend is proving to be the perfect remedy for all that rushing about.

I ended up steering clear of birds, but the results of the printing course were satisfying. The experience lead mum and I to feel that we needed to go back to the Letterpress asap, now that we have got the hang of it. It was with great regret that we realised my grandfather had been a printer, and yet we had not kept any of his wonderful machines... If only we had known the joy of it!

This quote is from a favourite of mine, Gaston Bachelard's Poetics of Space, which considers the vital role that architectural spaces have on our psyche; the lino cut, as ever, has such a naturally primitive look to it that I felt it suited the tone of the quote. I was going for a Farrow and Ball-like tone in the ink, I love their earthy tones, and the printer that we worked with was just so patient with us both, that he helped enormously to make the perfect hue.

Next, I will be working on this battered but beautiful glass-fronted cupboard which needs a proper sand, some edges fixed, three new shelves and lots of pretty things inside. It's got potential, but my big question is whether to sand and leave as stripped wood, or to paint a similarly earthy grey to give a sort of Swedish vibe... decisions, decisions...

Enjoy the spring sunshine.

xxx

Being an Auntie

Things have changed a bit again round here recently. There must be something in the wind or the water that makes the world spin in a strange and eventful way once in a while, as over the last three months there have been major changes, tiny changes, hoped-for changes, unexpected, tricky changes and the planned and excuted change of a pregnancy and birth.

My big sister is a natural mummy, and she has produced the most extraordinary little thing I have ever seen - who looks just like her! I am so excited about getting to know this little girl - the first of many grandchildren for Granny and Grandfather - roll on Christmas hols so I can sit and hold her and know her.