summer reflections…

hello again, it been quite some time since i have have found the time to reflect and note my thoughts, so it will be interesting to see what comes up!

once more the year has been passing with its ever-increasing speed and life has been changing as it always does and will.

however, i have perhaps managed to pull back from its forceful flow a little better this summer, protecting time for what i knew i needed, (ah the wisdom of age!)

i wanted to recognise some key moments, something i have not always been so good at doing, and to make time to really feel grateful and thankful for what i have and what i have achieved.

this summer has marked 5 years of the store, as well as 20 years of marriage for me.

both have required huge energy, passion, commitment, and bloody-mindedness! and both have rewarded me with love, support, friendship, humour, and kindness. (wow.)  its not until to write this stuff down that you really see how lucky you are.

i also made a promise to myself to actually do some of the things i talk about and don’t get around to, including reaching out to make new friends, taking my oldest daughter to Amsterdam to get tattoos together, actually remembering i am a designer and i need to get inspiration from time to time (who knew!) planting stuff, as well as just sitting down more.

so, on a lovely holiday to spain we celebrated 20 years of marriage alongside our kids in a carefully chosen hotel (albeit on the wrong date, long story!!) and with a party in the store garden we toasted 5 years of shopkeeping, ending with dancing and scotch eggs, (we know how to celebrate in style!) and a few days ago a lovely lady i had never met drew a picture on my arm which will be there forever.

in the pausing and acknowledging of these achievements i have found a fresh energy which i know will serve me well as life picks up its pace once again and i move onwards towards new goals and changes both welcome and unwelcome, buoyed by the experiences and pleasures of the past.

creatively, i have found myself inspired by the colours and casualness of their companionship, bike frames and baskets being a good example in amsterdam, as well as via more conventional sources in recent showroom visits.

with several city design breaks planned in the next few months i look forward to building on this new influence and bringing a more relaxed and easy nature into the store and my design work (and indeed life) in general.

i hope you to found pockets of time for yourself this summer and i look forward to seeing you soon and sharing whatever comes next.

with warm wishes and excitement!!

sarah xx