Studio and Balance Space

It's the middle of July - WOW! faster than the speed of light and all that. So much juicy stuff has happened since my last blog. I journeyed to Melbourne town for the first two modules of a Healing Touch Clinical Aromatherapy course ( powerfully humbling ) a mind, body and soul pot pourri of theory and hands on learning and experiential training that left me, simply, in awe of the beauty, goodness and healing available to us on this human journey. All this and more, as I took a leap of faith into the unknown and had wonderful adventures staying with a Dutch Couchsurfer ( who turned out to be a Dr Who fan, a Foodie - specialising in cheese connoisseurship and a fellow traveller). I then moved on to stay with a lovely woman in the quirky suburb of Brunswick ( where my course was situated) - turns out she has the voice of an angel, sings Irish ballads ( operatic trained ) and is a masseuse and Feldenkrais practitioner by day. We cooked yummy food and wrote a song together while roasting slices of Camembert cheese on freshly picked rosemary skewers, over an open fire. One of my contributing lines was " muscat woman with the flowing hair, playing her basouki in the peacock chair". ( New to me - a Basouki is a roundish looking guitar-like instrument of possibly Greek origin). Needless to say a lot of fun was had by all. No time for painting but everyday the street art and multicultural diversity fed my creative appetite from a visual smorgasbord of colour, architecture, people and nature. I then came home to find my ever loving and supportive husband had transformed my son's old bedroom into a studio/balance space for me, as well as re-plastering and painting our hallway and adding 9 glass blocks into a wall in the smallest room in the house, bringing in a wavy, watery light that brings me immense pleasure every time I look at it." Thank you" seemed like such an inadequate way to express my gratitude and joy - especially when I now walk in to these love filled spaces in our home, so I painted the cupboard in the hallway - an expression of the love I feel amongst this gift I've been given ( and it just happens to be outside the bedroom door, so it is one of the first things my husband sees in the morning when he gets up). Pottering and nesting into this new space has been a delight - using some old wooden drawers, I measured and fitted some of my older paintings, like drawer liners, to be framed by the wood and we mounted them on the walls and I lovingly placed my oils onto the shelves they created (recycling fun). An old set of comfy chairs, a pot plant in the corner, a borrowed screen from my daughter and voilà! the space it is ready : ) So so much to be grateful for - the studio has a peaceful, tranquil feel to it and overlooks our garden and pond. Mango the cat loves to sit in a sunspot at the window looking out. I am now off to bed and dreamland. The heArt centre of our home

Studio space to create and Balance

It's the middle of July - WOW - faster than the speed of light and all that. Sooooooooooooooooooooooo much juicy stuff has happened since I blogged last. I followed my heart to Melbourne town for the first 2 modules of a Clinical Aromatherapy course. I decided to take a leap of faith and instead of booking into a motel, I put out to friends and friends to be and ended up staying with a Dutch Couchsurfer (who it turns out is a Dr Who fan, as well as a foodie, specialising in cheese connoisseurship) for the first two nights.(Gotta lurve Couchsurfing) Then I moved on to a lovely house in the quirky suburb of Brunswick ( where my course was situated) to stay with a lovely woman ( who it turns out is a beautiful singer, who doubles as a masseuse and feldenkreis - Spelling?? practitioner by day). I had lots of wonderful adventures among the backdrop of street art, multicultural, Sunny!!!! Melbourne. The course was a mind, heart and soul pot pourri of theory and hands on learning and experiential training ( intensive and powerfully humbling) which left me, simply, in awe of the beauty, goodness and healing made available to us on this human journey. No time to paint but the art everywhere in Melbourne, both on the buildings and in nature was as balm to my creative passion and fed me daily, like a delicious smorgasbord. I then arrived home to find my forever loving and supportive husband, had transformed our son's old bedroom into a studio/balance room for me, re-plastered and painted the hallway and added a row of glass blocks to a wall in our toilet ( bathroom for USers), bringing in a wavey, watery light to brighten every bathroom visit LOL. I was so full of admiration and love for the enormous amount of work he managed to get done in ten short days - truly a labour of love. 'Thank you' just doesn't seem adequate enough to express my gratitude and joy. The studio has a peaceful tranquillity about it that draws me in, where I can look out onto our garden and pond.