The Habulous Blog



I feel like my feet haven’t touched the ground since my last blog post, I have been a very busy bunny.   Marathon training, another tradeshow, pot throwing, lots of visual merchandising in the stores, training a new team member, lino cutting and of course the dreaded admin (I really couldn’t ignore the pile on my desk any longer, I’m hoping to see the wood again by the end of next week!)

The days don’t seem to have enough hours to get everything done, I have noticed that day light  appears to be lasting longer at last, I think it was nearly 6pm when darkness over took last night, Yippee, I for one am so much happier with more daylight in my life.  Things are so much easier when we have longer days; it seems there is more time to do all those things we need to do on top of work.

Last week I returned to my lino cutting classes, something I am particularly enjoying.  I love the way lino print challenges the way in which I tackle an image; you have to think in terms of colour blocks rather than gradients. I had been working on a drawing of my local town over the Christmas period.  This image is going to form my first reduction lino print (I’ve heard this method appropriately called suicide lino, if you make a mistake there is no going back).  I’ll try to explain further, Lino printing is a form of printmaking, where the printing plate is cut into lino. Yes your right, lino as in linoleum, the stuff that also is used for floor covering. Once cut, a piece of paper is placed over it, and then run through a printing press or pressure applied by hand to transfer the ink to the paper. The result is a linocut print.  For a reduction print run, used when working with more than one colour, after the first colour print, normally the lightest colour the lino is then cut into again, re-inked, first print paper re-applied and then ran through the press again, are you still with me?  I hope so.  Anyway at my first session I managed to get 20 prints of my first colour done, I was literally running to complete the job.  Here’s a picture of my first colour, I’m hoping to complete the rest of the cutting before returning next week, so my next blog may well include images of the final piece.  Fingers crossed it works. 

The weekend was spent in Birmingham at Spring Fair a massive tradeshow which uses up all 20 halls at the NEC; I had an exhausting two days walking all the halls, in search of new product lines for the stores.  I love seeing the ways in which the exhibitors put their stands together, trying to entice us buyers to part with our budgets, this year I can safely say the cactus is a big thing, the bigger the better!

Somehow I did manage my long training run on Tuesday morning. I had to persuade Paul my hubby to drop me 11 miles from the house, I didn’t want to have the option of shortening my run and this way I had to get home.  It was literally the middle of nowhere, the end of a road somewhere in Dartmoor. The run was a pretty pleasant one, crisp with bright sunshine.  As I neared my home the heavens opened and throw  what felt like heavy pins down on me, hail, my god its evil stuff and when clad in lycra it hurts that little bit more.  The end result was a good one though I did manage to run the last mile in just over 8 minutes and 30 seconds quite an improvement on my 10 to 11 minute miles; motivation really does come in lots of different ways!

I had a lovely surprise sponsor this week too; the chairman of Back Care has sponsored me which has really touched my heart. It wasn’t something I thought they would do so a big thank you to Back Care and the rest of you lovely lot that have done the same, if you haven’t and would like to support me here’s the link. Please don’t forget to let me know you’ve read the blog, a comment or like would be great. More rambling soon, bye for now.

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It’s amazing the influence the weather has on my life,  Its early morning and I’m beginning to feel very frustrated with the grey skies, fog and drizzle that have descended upon us for the last few days; as I’m typing this I can hear the weather becoming more and more aggressive outside my window.  I need sunlight and lots of it (preferably whilst I’m on a beach, sipping a cocktail and reading a great book).

Even though I’ve had my fill of fog and damp, (I often question my decision to live on Dartmoor), I had the most breathtaking drive to Exeter last week.   The whole area looked as if it had been dusted  with white icing like a  freshly baked cake, everything was coated with an even sprinkling of frost with pockets of white mist suspended above, the mist looked as though it had been produced by  an over worked smoke machine from a night club in the early 90’s.  What made the morning so stunning was the contrast between these pockets of white and the bright blue skies with lush green landscapes. In several places it looked like a line had been drawn in the ground between the two scenes, as the sun burnt away the frost in one area and not yet reaching the next. It is at times like this I feel the opposite to today and ever so lucky to live in an area of such outstanding natural beauty.

The week has been one full of shop displays and deliveries as the new stock ordered from Top Drawer (the first tradeshow of the year) slowly trickles into the stores.  I can often be seen in store scratching my chin whilst pondering the next theme for our window display, what I’m really doing is desperately hoping inspiration will come and stalling for time.  On this occasion I was lucky, whilst I was forcing the cogs in my head to move, a delivery of rather beautiful ceramics by a new Nordic supplier arrived.  Needless to say they are now proudly displayed in the window of our Exeter store; I do love it when things unexpectedly come together.

The week was over taken by the stores and making more of our Eco Soya Wax Melts, I had a sudden panic when I realised that I hadn’t any of the best sellers made up, so I had to get on top of my supplies. With the best sellers now back in store I can breathe a sigh of relief and focus on my pottery, which is without a doubt something I love to do. The kiln is on right now performing the final firing of jugs and bowls I made a few weeks ago.  So later this morning I’m going to slowly open the lid of my kiln and peer in, hoping to see wonderful results from a new glaze I’m trying out, I have my fingers crossed.

I actually started this blog at the suggestion of a few friends (bet they regret it now), in order to share my efforts of training for the London Marathon. The last week has been a poor one on that front, I have managed to get out there and do my long runs but I really have had to force myself, I’ve felt lack lustre and totally lacking in energy. A few weeks ago I easily ran 14 miles and this week I struggled with 10 (I have to confess to walking some of that 10 too), its amazing how different you can feel each time you run.  I’m starting to worry about the amount I have to raise for my golden bond place with Back Care, so if you fancy helping me hit my target and providing motivation please, please sponsor me, every penny is truly appreciated.  Sponsorship link here.  If you are enjoying or even just persevering with my blogs please like the social media link, or leave me a comment somewhere.  It’s good to know and keeps me motivated to carry on. 

 

 

 

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Blogging is beginning to feel like a Dear Diary entry.  I haven’t actually kept a diary for about 30 years (Yes I am old!), what’s really surprising is it’s actually a good feeling taking time out to think about how to express my week.  I must admit though my teenage diary entries where most definitely intended for my viewing only.  Looking back the amount of times I had a broken heart seems extraordinary, I was one of those kids that got pretty obsessed with certain things and certain people, to be honest when something interests me I can still be pretty obsessive.

Last week already seems so far away, in many ways it was a pretty standard week once I caught up with everything after my trade show. As soon as I’m back, I update the stores about the new product lines they can expect, the team love these updates and it helps keep everyone focussed on the coming months. 

My stores are best described as Lifestyle stores, although many still call them gift shops, personally I dislike the term gift shops, as for me it still conjures up the stores of my youth, you know the type a bit stayed and not particularly dynamic, the image in my head tends to be one of collectable figurines and dust, summed up by that wonderful saying “same old, same old”. I have a tendency to get bored easily, lucky for me this trait works with the stores, it means our stock is constantly evolving, so we are able to keep people interested and coming back for more.

Tuesday was the first day I have really managed to sit down at my pottery wheel since my course at the beginning of the year (I’ve been desperate to sit down and make but had to focus on other areas of the business first).  I was concerned that once back home, the progress I made on the course wouldn’t be evident, clay can be really intimidating at times. I can report back that I ended the day with a big smile on my lips, progress has been made, Yay! Now I’m hoping to develop some new products for the stores over the coming months.  The picture is one of my course makes, which I am really pleased with and hope to make one of the potential ranges around.   

When I’m running I often feel dehydrated so I am now the proud owner of a camel bak rucksack which allows me to take several litres of water out on my longer runs.  So if you are local and you hear what sounds like a baby elephant and swashing water when you are out and about, it may well be me trying to get my miles up.  This morning I managed 13.2 miles and boy they were tough, it amazes me how every time you get out there you can feel totally different. I think over indulging this weekend really came to kick me in the teeth today, it’s made me realise that I’m going to have to focus on changing a few weekend habits as well as increasing my miles, I think the challenge is beginning to grow. 

I’m still a long way off the total I need to raise, so if you are able to sponsor me it would be greatly appreciated. Here’s a link to my fundraising page.  

I really struggle to sit still, when I have too I resemble an annoying child fidgeting all the time. Right now I'm sat in a train on my way home after my first trade show of the year. I had tried to bring as many distractions as possible to occupy myself on my journeys (I really wanted to bring my crochet with me, but the item I'm working on is near completion and would take up to much space in my luggage, plus I really would look like a mad woman trying to stitch my granny squares together!) Right now everything I have to hand isn't inspiring me, so strangely I find myself turning to my blog (something I never thought I would do).

Top Drawer is the trade show that kick starts my buying year. It's one of my favourites, not just because I love visiting London, but also as I manage to couple work with seeing family, hopefully a little shopping of my own and if I'm really lucky a visit to the V&A.

It's proved to be a good start to the year with an amazing amount of strong new products on show. Now it's the patient wait for our new product ranges to arrive in the stores, there is nothing better than unpacking and displaying new stock and seeing our customers reactions.

After the cold weather at the end of last week I was worried about my running mojo, it had gone somewhere and was probably enjoying a gin and tonic.
I woke this morning after an exhausting day yesterday knowing I had to do my long training run. One look out of the window at the grey skies and rain did little to motivate me, but I did get out there in the end.

I normally run along the embankment when I'm in London, but today I fancied a change so I set off weaving around the streets, trying to stay parallel to the Thames. I decided to run to various places from my past for a little reminiscing down memory lane.

I've always thought running had improved my sense of direction, today I proved myself very wrong, having several deja vu moments, thinking things looked familiar only to realise I had unintentionally looped back to the start, when I thought I'd ran in one direction. I'd love to say I only went off track once but it happened several  times the most worrying was when I realised I was in an area I didn't feel at all comfortable in and the signposts where for Dover! Luckily London doesn't lack tall buildings and at times like that the Shard really does has it uses! Getting lost was a blessing as it meant I managed 12 miles and even more surprisingly I actually felt like I could carry on.....

I've got a hefty amount to raise for my golden bond place, so if your feeling generous click here

Well 2017 is already in full swing, the time seems to pass by, quicker and quicker each year.  I’m determined to make this a good year, I’ve set myself both work and personal goals that I am going to tackle head on and one of my most important goals is to slow down at times and appreciate those little things that happen around me that I so often take for granted.

My children are growing up fast with Ben heading towards his 15^th birthday and Ffion now at secondary school, life is forever changing around their development and this year I really want to relish those moments whilst they still, on occasion enjoy being around us! 

My New Year started with a bang, celebrating with friends and family and then I was straight off to Cornwall to attend a Ceramics throwing course.  It was an amazing start to my year, I felt like a pig in mud.  I got to spend the week in a studio, with other like minded people taking my pottery skills to the next level.  The satisfaction I felt at overcoming some of the obstacles I have faced with making this year was invigorating.   

 

My main goal was to improve form and throw bigger pieces, I definitely achieved this during the week and I just hope that when I sit down in my home studio (really not as glamorous as it sounds, my wheel is next to the washing machine!) I can replicate what I made whilst away. 

 

I have managed to maintain my training for London Marathon, but have had moments of thinking I must be insane to want to run that far (mainly whilst struggling on my longer runs).  I have even managed an interval run this week and have come to the conclusion that interval runs are evil. For those of you who don’t know what they are, its bursts of running very fast then slow that are repeated a number of times, you leave the house thinking nice easy 30 minutes and come back feeling like you’re going to puke.   

I’m a slow runner so the intervals should help improve my speed and my overall fitness, ready for the big day.  When I think I’m running fast I’m often not as my kids like to point out, years ago they cheered me in on my first half marathon, when I saw them near the finish line, I managed to get a sprint on, or so I thought.  I was feeling pretty pleased with myself until they came up to me, and pointed out that watching me had been like watching a slow motion clip.  So there I was giving it my all, taking massive strides and apparently mimicking that famous scene from Chariots of Fire.  Right now my only real concern is making sure I make it to the finish line in April, whatever fashion that may be in.....

If you want to support Back Care the small charity I am running for here's my sponsorship link