Early Autumn
I fervently hope that this letter does not find you sitting with your head in your hands, or shouting in frustration at the radio, as I have found myself over the last week. I have banned myself from listening to the news for a few days, opting instead for musical theatre playlists which I find myself singing along to! My taste in music is somewhat eclectic, but there really is something for every mood isn’t there? I recently stumbled across the Instagram account of Anna Woodlap, an organist whose joyful enthusiasm in playing makes me smile every time I see it.
Many of you have visited me here at Oak Tree Barn, or read about how it all came to be and our trials and tribulations, so you’ll understand that it is with very mixed emotions that we have put the barn on the market. It has simply proved beyond us to identify a way to create the sort of family home we long for here, planning constraints and the cost of building are such that we have concluded a move will be less stressful and prolonged. As I write this I’m awaiting a call from the estate agent, so hopefully next month will bring a positive update!
Somehow these letters don’t feel complete without a photo of Gertie!
I’ve recently become involved with a group endeavouring to support asylum seekers and refugees being housed in a local hotel; with no transport, no possibility of work and not a lot to do in the vicinity life is pretty challenging for them. A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to accompany a group of them to Birmingham to spend a day at Polinations, a celebration of diversity and migration through plants (read more here). It was thoroughly refreshing to be amongst different company, they were enormously appreciative of the trip and it once again made me really count my blessings.
A couple of images from the sunset show at Polinations
I’m still pondering prints and have various paper samples which I’m going to experiment with to identify what feels and looks right to me, and hopefully others, and I think this is the image I’ll have printed on various options.
September has been a month of family birthdays, busy weekends, getting back to yoga classes, a bit of pottery and lots of photography. A friend kindly let me visit her lovely home and garden where I had a lovely day photographing anything that caught my eye - mostly her dog and cats! I also did a brand shoot for my hairdresser who was utterly convinced she is entirely unphotogenic, I hope you’ll agree with me that she looks gorgeous!
For the past couple of years I have been part of a group of small business owners who support one another, sharing ideas, celebrating the triumphs and commiserating the disappointments. They are a wonderful group of women and this month I’d like to share an offer from Astrid Bracke, a small business mentor, who has an uncanny ability to simplify muddled messes and tease out practical solutions. She has a number of 30 minute 1:1 calls available until the end of the month, to provide a listening board and help find some clarity. For anyone struggling in finding the way in their business take a look here.
Finally, when I pondered what to share in my letter this month one of the above group suggested ‘pictures from my camera roll’ which I thought a brilliant suggestion, so below are a couple of my day to day snaps!
With love and very best wishes,
Vx
Playing with collaging
A day at The Goodwood Revival