With Love From Me to You!

 

Welcome December and the thoughtful moments of the closing year. Winter has descended fully in Southern Ontario with three snowstorms already and lots of frosty days. Full disclosure that Winter is not my season! I have spoken of that often.

I have an eternal season of Spring in my heart and mind but I have stocked my library with comforting winter stories to read as I slow down to try to appreciate the gifts that winter will bring. Squirrels digging for peanuts in the snow, the glimpse of bluejay framed against the wintery pine and the flash of red as I see a cardinal at the feeder. Winter does have gifts.

The light hits the studio at different times of the day. It gets dark shortly after 3:00 PM but not before a burst a light shines on my desk. The light fades quickly and I find that I need to adjust my work schedule so I am working at the brightest times of day. There is lots of artificial light in the studio but I seem to work best with the sunlight filtering through the window.

During this busy season, I hope you find your rhythm. Think about what you may need to adjust. I am a great encourager of taking the time to nourish yourselves. Artistry requires a lot from us. There is the dedication to practice, the experience and expertise in materials and the nurturing of any creative sparks that come to us at odd moments of the day or night. It is a difficult path to work with your hands but ultimately so rewarding. 

This year, I have been so blessed to watch the growth of dedicated students. The work they have done has truly encouraged me as I continue to work on the next course of study to present. There is definite pressure in this work. There is an endless list of tasks to be done as I prepare for courses and complete commissions. But there is so much reward in seeing what students are creating and how they have grown in confidence and artistry. 

There are just not enough words to say thank you properly for all the support you have given me through emails, cards, letters, texts and the genuine gift of friendship. You are such a blessing to me and I look forward to all that 2026 has in store for us. My January classes are open for registration online.  Sweetie Birds  will be hosted by The Gentle Penman and the class is meant to chase away the winter blues with fun bird inspired letter designs.  These designs certainly bring me joy and they can be adapted to suit any season.

The 2026 edition of the Artful Flourish  will be hosted by Ardington School online. The Artful Flourish is my most important flourishing class which gives you the skills to build on and truly understand the art of the flourish. Learning to Flourish has given me so much peace over the years and it is an absolute necessity in my daily practice. Even if you are an absolute beginner, The Artful Flourish will set you off on a beautiful exploration into the world of true offhand flourishing.

My  tentative teaching schedule for 2026 will be posted to my website later this month. You can also email me to request the pdf of the schedule  There is lots to explore together and I am so excited about upcoming classes. My yearly Youtube Christmas video for 2025 is now up on my channel for you to enjoy. You can find my YouTube channel here.  I have been adding content to the channel this year and will continue to augment the resources that I post there in 2026. Lots in store!

Sending lots of love to you all as you keep your traditions for this December season. I hope you find Joy, Peace and Health this season and may it increase even more in 2026. With love to all of you!

All Things Bright and Beautiful

 

Somehow November came in with as a whirlwind of leaves, chilly air and the beauty of changing light. I walk in the afternoons to the sounds of dry leaves underfoot with a brisk pace and in awe of the colours that break through the landscape. There is no doubt that autumn is beautiful. It has its own rhythm and pace and sense of wonder.

The squirrels are so active and entertaining when they see me in the garden. I carry extra peanuts in my jacket pocket just in case! November needs to be noticed and appreciated even though I know it begins to usher in the winter season.

My schedule remains busy as I juggle my teaching schedule and finish commissions while trying to prepare for the 2026 year ahead. Sometimes I don't know how to keep up with all the work and get genuinely overwhelmed. When that happens, I notice my desk is cluttered or the shelves need dusting. I take a real pause and clean my space to help organize my thoughts and mind. The tidying motions act as a refreshing of my mind and a clean desk space welcomes work again. I wonder if you have noticed the same thing in your own work space. See if it helps the next time that you feel overwhelmed with all that is happening in your schedule or in your daily routine. Maintaining an inner calm for me is aided when I can clearly see over the surface of my desk. 

If you are starting to feel Festive already, I have a special December Flourishing Club class coming up! Stocking Stuffers will place an adorable little mouse into a Stocking setting. It will be a charming way to spend an afternoon with the beautiful community we have built at Ardington School. If you book your place today, you will be able to use a discount promotion that expires at the end of the day. (Nov.2 UK)

Our Flourishing Club community is a delight. I have been so inspired by the work of the students as we work on projects together. The slightest glimmer of inspiration these days can lead me down a path that may become the next flourishing club idea! Stocking Stuffers was built out a red stocking ornament I received as a child that was made of felt with a pom pom mouse emerging from the top. Ardington School will also host The Artful Flourish in January. As of this moment, it is not yet posted on their website, but you can ask to be included on a waiting list. The Artful Flourish is my most important Flourishing Class and will provide a foundation for you to build on. It is the workshop that introduced me as an instructor and in many ways, it helped me build all my other courses over the years. The foundational cartouche is explored in detail and this is the class that will help you understand what to see and how to develop flourishing skills. 

And looking ahead to January, I am offering Sweetie Birds for The Gentle Penman. I wanted to present a  lighthearted approach to adding sweet little birds into a simple drawn letter design. Although the subjects are highly stylized and filled with seasonal character, the skills that are featured will nourish your confidence. The designs are based on illuminated letter but created with a child like sense of appreciation for the bright and beautiful birds we encounter, even if they are just in our imagination. 

My hope is that these Sweetie Birds will charm you over the winter months and bring a smile to your face as you work on designs that are meant to fill you with delight as you polish up drawing and painting skills. 

Whatever is happening in your corner of the world, I want you to know that the work of your hands can bring so much joy. From a desk that needs another tidying here in my little studio here in Ontario, Canada, I will be cheering you on as you appreciate the beauty that surrounds you, take walks, rake up the falling leaves, tidy your workspace and pull out a fresh sheet of paper to bring something to life. Happy November dear friends. 

How did it get late so soon??

It is already October and I am still wondering what happened to the summer. I think it flew by faster than any I can remember. Deadlines now feel like  pressure so I will be posting less on social media until I am caught up. But despite the work load, there is beauty to be found in each passing day. Some little treasure is waiting to be discovered. Or a chapter in a book might be extra intriguing and deserving of your full attention. No matter what stress, busyness or interruptions happen in your day, I encourage you to really be present in the moment. This is the only October 1st of 2025 we have. And it is special. 
 No matter how busy the day becomes, the afternoon walk is so important to me.There is something so inviting about a wooded pathway. A change of pace and scenery will revive my mind. I look forward to the walk and it is like a sacred appointment that cannot be broken. 

The wild daisies are incredible this year. Now and then a little rabbit will run through them and brighten my path and stir my imagination. Walks help me to reset my thinking and take a breath. The pressure disappears and I come back to my desk refreshed and ready to work.

The leaves are just starting to change colour. I found a gorgeous leaf on the path and brought it home to study and draw. It should be a fun challenge in coloured pencil when I get some free time. 

Classes have been very busy but at the same time so rewarding. The Midnight Garden class at Ardington was an amazing experience. I don't know when I have seen such amazing work produced by the students. Part of the reason that I am so behind in my work these days is because I spent so much time experiment on dark papers instead of working ahead on the next classes. I was just having too much fun in that Midnight Garden! Thank you Ardington for hosting and thank you dear students for such incredible work. 

There is always so much to learn and explore. Each class teaches me new lessons as an instructor. Students bring their own insights and I have come to truly love this online teaching experience. I feel. as if we are building a community of artists. I see students encouraging each other and building their own friendships.People get to know each other from all parts of the world.  It really is an honour to meet so many of you through the classes and I am so grateful for your support. I don't know how you keep up with all the homework but I am so thrilled with your progress!  If you are up for it, there is more in store for you as we head into our Autumn and Festive season. I will be teaching Festive Faire for the Gentle Penman later this month. I wanted to bring the magic of a Vintage Fairground to this class. The addition of scrolls into the design will help carry a message on the carousel horse. 

These designs are rooted in tradition, but my designs will be infused with a Victorian flair. I can't help it! The Victorian side of me always comes out! Traditional flourished deer and horses have a charm to them, but I love to see what else can be done. 

And the magic of gilding and colour will bring these to life! Registration is open at The Gentle Penman for this two session class. 

Saturday November 8th will be a study day for me for Abundant Joy Title Flourishes. I will leave registration open a little longer but this class will be kept small so I can interact with the students. It is hosted online but I try to create the atmosphere of a little retreat where we can truly study and grow together. I uploaded a little flip through video of some of the inspiration behind Title Flourishing on my YouTube Channel.  The process of these flourishes is really hard to describe but they are mesmerizing to create. 

Registration info for Abundant Joy Study Day is on my website if you would like to be part of the day.

And finally Ardington School of Crafts will be hosting my Into the Woods class in November. This class is an extension of The Advanced Alphabet Garden and Enchanted Meadow class. Students will learn how to design and draw an illuminated letter adorned with a festive animal. Squirrels, Rabbits, Mice, Birds and Foxes are always my favourites. Once again, I have spent so much time with these charming designs that the days seem to race away from me! These are addictive! Painting skills grow in time and with practice. I learn something new with each project I create.  I hope these little letter designs will bring you a smile as you anticipate the Festive Season.

Savour the days of October. There is grace and beauty to be found in each day. I hope your month is full of inspiration and beautiful moments. Thank you for your friendship and support and for taking time to read the blog. You mean the world to me!

The Embodiment of Dreams

 Reflective mornings with a cup of coffee and a stack of books have been such a welcome part of my summer routine. The garden still has bright spots and the light in the mornings brings so much inspiration.

I am hanging onto every last drop of the season, but the chill of the air has already returned in the evenings. I admit that I don't want to let go of the subdued summer pace but September is here and I am grateful for the work in front of me. I have realized that I truly love the process of reading and deep study. One of my students emailed me and told me that she sees the online classes as " arranged education." This phrase has stayed in my mind. What a joy it is to study and to arrange the things that will illuminate my mind and be reflected on the page. While continuing to study the life and work of William Morris, I was struck by a phrase he had recorded. "My work, in one or another, is the embodiment of my dreams."

Without question, Morris was a workaholic. He was a polymath and constantly working on multiple projects at a time. His art and design work often took a backseat to his political work and his business obligations. Yet he found the work of his hands to be the embodiment of his dreams. He recognized the pure privilege of his work. I feel the same way. I do find the computer work, the endless preparation of notes and keeping up with social media and administration to be tedious at times. But there is such a dream like quality in being fully immersed in the work I wish to pursue. As a busy instructor, it is always a privilege to work on upcoming classes even though my mind is constantly in the seasons ahead. I work on autumn and festive flourishes in the spring and summer. But I stay mindful and present in the beauty of each passing day! My September Midnight Garden class is sold out at Ardington School, but at the time of this blog post, there is still room in Into The Woods which will launch in November.

So much went into the preparation of this class! I know I will return to the themes of this class over and over again. I never want to be finished with designing illuminated Letters.

There is also Abundant Joy waiting for you in a Festive Themed Study Day!

We will spend the day Flourishing together. Vintage Title Flourishes will be the theme but this class is meant to enrich your studying and flourishing skills. I want you to understand this style and how the flourishes can be combined with both Broad Edge and Pointed Pen. Festive touches will bring them to life. I have enjoyed creating these title flourishes on special illuminated names rather than full certificates.

There is always a special twist to these designs which can be designed in pencil or explored in true offhand flourishing ways. I had fun adding a mistletoe motif in coloured pencil to the Noel design.

We will look deep into historic examples as we study together.

This will be my fourth online study day and those of you who have subscribed to my newsletter will get an email with registration details.  Festive Faire will also have beautiful carousel horse designs to flourish in my class for The Gentle Penman in October!

Why do I return to the flourish so much? It is my sincere belief that flourishing holds the keys to greater skills with the pointed pen as well as confidence and trust in your own ideas. Flourishing is not about copying. Calligraphers are often far too inclined to copy things exactly as we see them. There is a deeper view that can be revealed through offhand flourishing. All flourishing skills can be learned. We just need to trust the process and understand that some of us take more time as skills build in our eyes, minds and hands. But the skills do come! I have loved every moment of the summer as I flourished birds almost on a daily basis! But autumn is approaching and the summer routine will give way to a more robust schedule.

No matter how you choose to spend your time, I am grateful for all of you who read these blog posts. You have become dear friends to me and I appreciate your support and feedback. I have also started a Substack blog where I will post about things that I am discovering or reading. I will figure it out along the way! I will close this blog post with a view from Signal Hill in Newfoundland. I had the joy of visiting my daughter and son in law for a few days this August and was overwhelmed by the beauty there.

Wishing you all good things as September unfolds. You are such a blessing to me. 

Staying Refreshed

 Without turning a page in a calendar, I know August is approaching by the sounds of the bumblebees in the Japanese Anemones along my garden fence. The first sounds I hear while I sit at my garden swing with my morning books and my cup of coffee is the garden music of those bumblebees. It can be overwhelming and mesmerizing. The anemones remind me to appreciate every last ounce of summer before the inevitable change of the season. I did not plant these beautiful flowers, they just drifted into my garden from my neighbour's yard and I welcome them with joy each summer.

Though these summer days are passing by just as quickly as the blossoms open and fade, I am enjoying a summer of being refreshed by my favourite flourishes and favourite books. As a summer project for Ardington's Flourishing Club, I set a challenge to practice bird flourishing. I know several students are practicing these lovely designs and I have enjoyed become more and more fluent with these little winged beauties.  The practice of bird flourishing brought back a flood of wonderful memories for me and I have used this summer season to refresh my mind and my practice with the styles that drew me into the calligraphic world in the first place. In my heart and soul there are the designs and patterns of ages past. I love the opulence of the Victorian era, the jewel tones of the Medieval and Renaissance worlds and the ornate pattern designs of William Morris. I am just as at home with a little mouse scampering across a page of Beatrix Potter's Work as I am with a page of historic Italian Hand penmanship. I can be moved to tears by a children's book and the older I get, the more I realize how important it is to pursue the things that you love. Actively pursue what brings you joy!

I think there can be such a sense of refreshment in revisiting your favourite things. This is also a valuable form of practice. Some of my absolute favourite pieces of artwork were flourishes or illuminations I have done over the past several years. They get tucked away in a portfolio and forgotten. But leafing through the designs again, makes me want to do more and more of them. As I flip through the pages of my portfolios, I see the heart motif over and over again. I will likely never stop doing that motif, but I learn something new about each design I create.

Italian Hand practice also follows similar flourishes and even similar words on the exemplar page but each stroke of the pen and each letter that I create, refreshes my mind and my skills with the pen. There is a welcome sense of comfort in this practice.

I think you know that you are still passionate about a subject through your desire to continue to work on it. If you are feeling a bit stuck at times, try to review some of the work you have done in the past and see what sparks with you.. Try not to fall into the trap of comparing yourself to others or feeling you should have progressed more than what you see on the page. Trust the speed of the journey you are on and be content. Progress comes at a different pace for all of us.

After all these years as a calligraphic artist, I still feel the bounce in my step as I open the studio each morning. I want to get the administrative tasks out the way so I can work on artwork. Looking at the past has refreshed me in so many wonderful ways this summer but I am also brimming with new ideas. The Fall edition of the Ardington Flourishing Club will be a Rhapsody in Blue. Blue flourishes in many shapes and sizes and all done with the passion for the pointed pen. 

The Festive class planned for The Gentle Penman online for October is Festive Faire. Once again, the increased study time in offhand flourishing had me diving into carousel horses and scroll designs with the vibrancy of Fairground art. I will give you a sneak peek here. The class will explore flourish infills as well as a simplified inlay technique. 

These designs can be a bit intimidating at first glance but when broken down into simple shapes, they are wonderful to explore. Registration is open for both of these fall courses and I am almost ready to send out an announcement about my November Study Day.  I will keep you posted about it! As these days of summer seem to rush by for me and I know I will soon be immersed in my fall line up of classes this theme of staying refreshed is so important to me. I truly appreciate all the labours of the pen and the diversity of studies I have been exploring. I love making discoveries, working through all the ideas and releasing new classes. But I never tire of the sound of the nib on the paper, or the feel of the pen in my hand as I begin a tiny flourish on an envelope or a large illuminated piece. This work is such a joy and I am so very grateful to attentive students who are eager to learn and find that same joy and peace in the process.  Sending hugs all around. Thank you to all who read this blog, correspond with me and take time to attend classes or watch the recordings. I hope you have a beautiful August. Enjoy each day as it passes knowing that there are treasures to find!