Phew! What a weekend… Isabella, Toby and I went to the launch on our new local community arts gallery, Sprout. It was a drawing free for all, including the walls. Not every day you can draw on walls. Isabella suggested we draw each other and then draw ourselves – can you spot whose who? (clue, […] Read more...
International Postcard Swap
Just a quick post this morning as I am rushing around trying to do 10 things at one (its a little boy’s 3rd birthday this week…things to make, things to buy!) Zoe at Playing by the Book is organising an international postcard swap for children to take part it. Kids send 5 postcards to 5 […] Read more...
Our community farm has arrived!!
Back last June, I wrote in a blog post about how we had spent a gorgeous weekend with our dear friends, the Dougherty’s, in the glorious Cotswold area of Stroud. Our visit included going with them on their monthly day at the Stroud Community Agriculture, part of the Community Supported Agriculture movement. One of the […] Read more...
Running with a purpose
Have I mentioned that I have been running 2 or 3 times a week since January? I have been running in the snow, in the driving rain, the drizzle and occasionally, in the sunshine. Last week I saw the first crocuses and did a little yipee inside. I am still captivated by the look of […] Read more...
A life well lived?
The mosaic making fest continues and I have popped in for lunch – one of my favourite meals of nice cheese and crackers (crumbs all over the keyboard…). Here’s one of the latest pieces. My dear husband has toddled off to Manchester this morning for his annual children’s lawyer conference – I miss him a […] Read more...
Values, pricing and the safety of community
I spent a lovely evening with some of the other BAMM South London members a couple of nights ago and, yet again, I was struck by just how non-competitive, open and inclusive I have always found the mosaic community to be. We chewed over the perrenial issue of how to price our work and I […] Read more...
Urban Grape Harvest
Our little grape harvest At the weekend we took part in our local urban grape harvest. This is a fantastic community co-operative organised in our neighbourhood (a sub area of the town of Tooting called Furzedown). The project is called the Urban Wine Company and here is a little about it from the website: The […] Read more...
Mosaic Memory Garden
There is a beautiful place, two minutes from Waterloo station, perfect for relaxing, enjoying beauty and being in touch with the broken reality of life. It is the garden of St. John’s church, in whose crypt live many creative projects including the wonderful Southbank Mosaics. We spend a lot of time on the South Bank […] Read more...
Creative Evenings
For the last few months, several local mums and I have met in my workshop to sit and ‘make’ together. Everyone just brings something that they want to work with – paints, paper, canvases, needlework, beads, mosaic… we have done all of these. Vicky, our neighbour and friend, has re-discovered her creative talents and has […] Read more...
Community & urban life
Community has been a word close to my heart since my late teenage years and a subject that my husband, Neil and I talk about a lot. Let me set the scene. We live in London, a 24-hour city of 10 million people, which is not readily associated with a sense of community. The pace […] Read more...