HEADSPACE + HEARTSPACE Page 9 of 22

Love is in the air! Time out for good reason

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Love is in the air! Time out for good reason dwylhq1

There are some times in life that are so precious they just have to be savoured, for as long as possible. Getting married is one of them, which is why I have decided to take five weeks off work to enjoy every moment of my upcoming wedding and honeymoon.

Wedding dresses

“What will she be wearing?” they all asked

I am so grateful that Do What You Love gives me the flexibility to do this. Please know that the team is still here to support everyone involved in our courses, and we will still be blogging over the next few weeks (if a little less regularly) – and then I will be back with photos of hand made loveliness, tales of romantic adventures and a brand new name! (Along with a LOT of exciting changes and new things to share with you…)

Wedding wobbles

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wedding inspiration

I have had my first wedding wobble this week – nothing to do with actually getting married – can’t wait for that! But more to do with the getting-things-done-by-the-wedding piece. My man and I spent a dreamy day on Sunday planning our service etc, but ever since the long to-do list we created has been weighing on my mind. Haven’t ordered the flowers yet! Or the cake! Or finalised the menu! I am normally a master of organisation and until now have been completely unstressed about it, but this week I just suddenly felt overwhelmed with the need for everything to be perfect, and done already.

But then my lovely man reminded me that whatever happens it will be perfect because we are going to become Mr & Mrs in the company of family and a tiny group of close friends, and it will be a happy celebration of love. It is so true, and deep down I know that, but that doesn’t stop me wanting to make everything by hand and make it all gorgeous.

I was up at 6am this morning sorting all my inspiration images and making lists (my default action when feeling worried about something), and two hours later I felt much better. Sometimes the big things can take on a life of their own which distracts you from the most important thing – WHY you are doing it in the first place. It’s true in business and it’s true in life.

So from now on, for the countdown weeks ahead, I am going to clear my diary of anything that isn’t a priority, breathe deeply, and focus what is really important: Transitioning from one phase of my life to another with the man that I love.

What do you desire?

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What do you desire? desire introducing

Those of you who have taken the Do What You Love e-course will know that something life changing happened to me nearly two decades ago, when I was 17 years old. I was on a boat in the middle of the Bay of Biscay, on the first of many big adventures, when I had a major a-ha moment. It was the summer before my final year of sixth form (like high school in the US), and I was getting ready to apply to university. Up until that point my mind had been set on a career in finance, and that had been a major influence on my academic choices. But then, on one particular glorious day on the high seas, I realised that I felt free, and that that was how I wanted to feel for the rest of my life.

Ever since that day I have used ‘How do I want to feel?’ as a major driver for how I make decisions about my life. I have not once made an important decision without considering this, and I think it is the most powerful question of all.

If you have never asked yourself ‘How do I want to feel?’ in relation to any or all parts of your life, try it. It works miracles. It not only opens your eyes, but gives you a completely different perspective. And it means you chase what your soul desires, not what your peers or bank balance tells you you should. And there is a major difference.

Recently Danielle LaPorte brought out a brilliant new programme called The Desire Map which, at its heart, asks this simple but powerful question. But Danielle digs deep beneath the question, and helps you excavate your desired feelings in every area of your life. I have been doing this for the past twenty years, but never before has someone so brilliantly and clearly laid out a path to help you work through your own feelings to find what it is you truly desire. And therein lies the key to where your best life is waiting.

The Desire Map is a brilliant resource which I would highly recommend if your New Year’s Resolutions feel a bit like a soulless to-do list, and you want to dig deeper this year.

Go on, make 2013 the year you use your desired feelings to make your decisions, and ultimately do what you love, for life.

The blessing of storage – and why it is worth making time for a clear out

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Painting

In the process of painting everywhere white to start afresh

When we went to live abroad for a few months last year we had to clear out our house for the tenants. We decided to put everything in storage, although ended up getting rid of a huge pile of things in the process (especially out of the big black hole that is the attic!) Now we are back we have unpacked our luggage, put away everything in the boxes we shipped (mainly books, stationery and more books) and repainted.  We have taken a few things out of storage, but more than 70% of what we stored is still in there, and I have hardly noticed. Compared to before our house seems much emptier, but in a really good way. It is lighter, more airy, more us.

Having culled my wardrobe and given many things to charity shops when we went away, most of what has been stored is beautiful, useful or precious to us. But I have come to realise that we don’t need to have all of it on display, or within reach, all the time.

From time to time I pine for some of my books packed away at the back of the unit, or for my easel, tucked away behind some chairs, or for this jumper or that skirt. But mostly, I like having a whole lot less stuff around me. It is easier to make things look beautiful when there is less clutter. It is easier to think when there is less to distract you. And it is easier to clean when there is less to move around! Not to mention that paying for a small storage unit is cheaper than getting an apartment or flat big enough to have everything on display. A blessing on many fronts.

The beginning of the year is as good a time as any to declutter your house, your creative space and your mind.

Why not try it?

Make space for new good things.

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Have you decluttered recently? What difference did it make?

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PS If you want to think more about this topic you might like to check out the blogs ‘Unclutterer‘ or ‘Zen Habits’

In dreams and in love there are no impossibilities

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 Beth & Paul wedding invitation

From the moment he proposed I knew that I wanted to make our wedding cosy, handmade, special. And one of the most exciting parts of that for me – a paper lover and stationery addict – was the design of the wedding invitations.

We have opted for a very tiny wedding – only around 35 people – which is hard in one way (as we’d love to have all our friends there) but perfect in another – because it can be intimate and friendly, and because we can enjoy spending time with everyone there. And having just a few guests leaves room for more unusual invitations, and more time to spend on each. Although I wasn’t quite expecting it to take me two months…!

Adventure is a massive part of the life my man and I share, and it was one of our years for 2012 when we got engaged (in the middle of a big adventure in Japan), so it seemed appropriate to use that as inspiration for the invitations. In the end we decided to make each one a message in a bottle, with the invitation wrapped up inside the glass.

In dreams and in love there are no impossibilities invite5

The invitations can be pulled out of the bottles using string with a key attached – a key which looks medieval, like the building where we will get married later this year. I made the invitations using paper I made myself at the Awagami paper factory in rural Japan.

In dreams and in love there are no impossibilities invite1

The front of the invite itself is an illustration that I commissioned from talented designer Libby McMullin, using one of my favourite quotes: “In dreams and in love there are no impossibilities”. I hope we continue to believe that every day of our married lives.

In dreams and in love there are no impossibilities invite41

Wrapped around each bottle was a mini paper book, hand stitched, containing details of the day’s logistics. The cover of this book was a piece of exquisite paper from my favourite paper shop in Paris.

In dreams and in love there are no impossibilities invite31

I loved every moment of making them, and never stopped to think that the RSVPs might also be made with care.

In dreams and in love there are no impossibilities birdcage

Here is the one my parents sent back to us – a gorgeous tiny envelope reply tied with ribbon inside a delicate bird cage. What a precious gift.

Ahhh weddings are so special…

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Are you married? What were your invitations like? What did they mean to you?

Hello 2013!

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DWYL declaration

(The Do What You Love declaration and a sneak peek at our new branding, all to unveiled very shortly with a brand new website!)

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I have a very good feeling about this year.

Apart from the fact that I am getting married(!!) there is so much to look forward to. And there is something in the air that makes it feel like a year full of possibility.

I know there are some big changes coming, but I am excited about them all.

How about you? What are you hoping for in the year ahead?

Whatever it is, I hope you spend 2013 doing what you love!

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PS Do What You Love is getting a major overhaul for the new year – stay tuned for a brand new website later this month, with heaps of fresh resources to help you make 2013 the year you finally start doing what you love, for life!

Farewell 2012

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A cup of celebratory gold-leaf tea

A cup of celebratory gold-leaf tea for you

2012 was always going to be a big year. It had a circle round it in the ten year calendar of my mind ever since London won the right to host the Olympics back in 2005. And for many years I was involved in that monumental build up… but then I changed track, and ended up here, with a very different 2012 from that which I had imagined. It has been a sparkling, eye opening, special year, so I thought I would write it a letter.

Dear 2012,

You were extraordinary.

You made me slow down, speak up, laugh every day.

You made me move half way round the world, and back again.

You taught me how to make beautiful paper with my own two hands.

You showed me sunrises and sunsets, mountains, sand dunes, ocean, sky.

You introduced me to some amazing new people, and saw me get engaged to my true love.

You were full of adventures, you made me learn and grow, you pushed the boundaries of what I thought I could do.

You surprised me, uplifted me, delighted me.

And you have brought me here to the cusp of 2013, where I have no idea what is going to happen next year, except that I am going to get married, go on a honeymoon, start a new chapter and choose love.

I am grateful for so many of the things, people, experiences, opportunities you presented – please have a word with 2013 so they keep on coming!

Thank you 2012. For everything. I will miss you

Beth

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Wherever you are in the world, whatever year lies behind you, and whatever year lies ahead of you, I wish you a moment of stillness to be thankful, and to choose to make 2013 the year that YOU do what you love.