Hunting midwinter magic
A very optimistic tree lives outside my studio window. Every winter, at about this time of year, I'll look up one day and find that it has suddenly burst into blossom, like a shower of giggling popcorn rolling about in the gusts of wind and rain.
A very optimistic tree lives outside my studio window. Every winter, at about this time of year, I'll look up one day and find that it has suddenly burst into blossom, like a shower of giggling popcorn rolling about in the gusts of wind and rain.
At the foot of the tree, snowdrops, crocus and daffodil shoots are bravely peeping out from the cold, dark, water-logged earth.
But February can catch you off-guard. Just when you think the first fresh lungfuls of spring might be creeping upon us, this last snatch of winter can throw thundering storms at us, lash us with rain and breathe biting frost across the fields.
So, yeah. It's still winter.
However, in recent years, I've come to relish the gift of introspection, the gentle nourishment of rest, and the magical dream-time that winter brings. As an artist – in fact, I'm sure for anyone – it's very important to restock the well of inspiration, and winter is the perfect time to do this.
Here are some things you could try...
Burn candles and incense
Make your favourite hot drinks, add spices
Invest in a cosy throw blanket
Meet with friends to sit around a crackling fireplace and tell stories
Watch nostalgic movies
Listen to beautiful music that uplifts you
Give yourself permission to rest
Mashed potatoes
Listen to the robins who sing at night this time of year
Hot baths with essential oils
Going for walks during the brightest time of the day
Appreciate winter sunrises on sunny days
Spend more time in your PJs
Take time with your journal to record your dreams, ideas or notions of inspiration
Practice gratitude and generosity to remind you that magic is real… and let me know how you get on.
Pearl
Treasure haul
It seemed the right thing to do – to take some time to drift through the dreaming darkness, working on refilling the well of creativity.
Dear friends, firstly – apologies for the absence. I'm sure you managed just fine without me but nevertheless, I did feel guilty about taking some time away from the blog. It seems I'm not the only one who felt the pull of winter's sparkling dark magic this year, and with it, the need to turn inward.
It seemed the right thing to do – to take some time to drift through the dreaming darkness, working on refilling the well of creativity. To cast an enchanted fishing net into books, magazines, films, music and nature, and see what treasure might turn in it. It felt important to take time to gather ingredients for ideas... for stories, paintings, drawings, projects.
Just in the past week or so, I've been seeing the emergence of those bold trailblazers – the snowdrops and crocuses, sending out the welcome signal that change is in the offing.
And so, as we all begin returning to the light, it's time to take a look at the haul of winter's gifts in your net...
Pearl
Little treasures
E.H.Shepard was one of the first artists whose work came to my attention.
I can remember sitting on my bedroom floor, maybe aged two or three, poring over his illustrations for A.A. Milnes' Winnie the Pooh books.
I was so enchanted that I even wanted to be called Christopher Robin.
Yesterday, I found a little book of poems by Georgette Agnew in a junk shop – printed in 1927.
It's illustrated by E.H. Shepard, and the drawings are wonderful. The lines are elegant and beautiful – 'aesthetically pleasing', shall we say – and yet they are also full of such sweetness, humour and magic.
It was lovely to revisit his work - sometimes it's really worth it to take yourself back to your earliest sparks of inspiration.
I'm going to take the bank holiday Monday off. So I look forward to checking in with you again on Tuesday! I'm wishing you all a lovely spring break with plenty of chocolate.
Pearl
