As we move firmly into the new year, I'm reminded in so many ways of how very much I have to be grateful for!

The Markets are fantastic, and the wonderful customers I'm meeting challenge me to stretch in every way, just so I can watch their eyes light up when they see something that calls to them.

I have a beautiful space to teach in, thanks to the wonderful folks at the Wyreena Community Art Centre, and I can't wait to get stuck in to teaching again- I've missed it so much!

And to put the cherry on my (keto ;-) ) cake- I have an Exhibition running for the month of April at the Wyreena Community Art Centre Gallery!
I'm beyond grateful for the opportunity to share the thing I love doing most in this world with friends I've yet to meet, and those already firmly positioned in my heart.

As a Maker/ Crafter, one of the most common things I hear from my fellow Makers, is that we all have days where we doubt ourselves; those moments when what you envision in your head isn't matching up with what your hands are doing, and we tell ourselves that we aren't good enough yet- whilst forgetting how very far we've come from the beginning, and just focusing on how very much there still is to learn.

Those days are the toughest- and yet, they are our greatest gift too
.
We get annoyed and frustrated with ourselves, and push to better our skill set. Those mistakes teach us more about the mediums we work in than all the perfect results could ever do, and these are the days when we can sink fully into Gratitude... because we're in a place where we can do what we love!

We realise that we will NEVER BE BORED! There is still so much to learn for ourselves, from others, new teachers to meet, and new students to teach, and with every day- a heart full of gratitude for where we are, right now.

So here I am tonight- stuffed up with a cold, downing Lemsip and lozenges, and STILL grinning like a loon because I get to be in my workshop making beautiful things. I've no idea where this journey will take me but I'm riding the wave with a truck-load of Gratitude in my heart!

Blessings, and keep loving all those wonderful mistakes my friends :-)

Storm

I can't believe we're 9 days away from Christmas!

Am I ready, you say?
BAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Not even close! ;-) 

The Silly Season means that most Makers like me, are working like crazy to get enough stock made, and keep up with demand... everything else tends to go by the wayside.
Strangely enough- this is the time of year that I'm happiest, because I love what I do.  Being in the workshop for 14 hrs a day is excellent- and puts me in my happy place :-)

It's hard slog starting all over again after a big move, but I have some loyal customers, that I love seeing at the markets (you know who you are my wonderful friends!) and although the 'Big Plan' I had for my first year in Australia hasn't quite turned out the way I imagined, I'm loving it here none the less. Plans are guidelines and are open to change as circumstances change. It's pretty exciting to go with the flow and see where it all takes me.
​
I was absolutely spoiled in the USA; tools, materials all the goodies everywhere you looked. It's a lot harder to get things here, so I'm challenged on a daily basis to figure it out, adapt, re-think.... and I'm becoming a better Maker for it.

Melbourne is wonderful.

The markets are fantastic (seriously one of the best Market scenes of any city I've ever lived in) The people are lovely, and I'm really loving being back in Australia.

Now that the markets are done for a few weeks, I have time to get into the workshop and trial new techniques, work on my Certification in Aussie Metal Clay (loving playing with this stuff. The colour palette is extraordinary, and it's made by a couple of the nicest ladies you would ever hope to meet. I'm really looking forward to working with their metal clays, and seeing where the material takes us) and working on a few of the more time consuming pieces that I had to put to the side. Bone carving, inlay- all the goodies coming up.

All this time to play/ learn/ explore/ discover....
It really is Christmas, isn't it? 
;-)

Love and light to you all for your Holy-Day season
Storm
xoxoxox

What a wonderful night last night!

It was so good to set up my stall, schmooze with you all, and introduce Gilded Poppy to the community, formally, for the first time.
Denise, Tim, Nancy and the crew... wow, what an excellent show you put together. You are such loving professionals, and our community is richer for your presence in it!
Hanging out with the incomparable Katherine Erickson from Silk Road Tribal was a joy as always (and thanks for that first glass of wine ;-) )

I loved listening to the snippets of your lives that you shared with me over the course of the evening. I loved watching your eyes light up when you saw something I'd made that made your heart leap. I loved finding out what new costuming was in the works, and planning a new piece to fit right in there. 
As always- you are all such a source of joy and inspiration to me.

Thanks for the hugs- both physical and energetic.. it makes my world go round, and I can't wait to get back out there amongst you all asap!

Keep those hugs coming

Blessings

​Storm

Up and at 'em this morning. I bounced out of bed raring to go, after a late night playing with the most GORGEOUS smoky emeralds, hand carved wood and crystal (not necessarily together- but now I've written this- it sounds awesome! ;-) ) and was heading to the workshop, when I realized I have work at the store today.

Mixed feelings abound!
​
I love working part time at Ben Franklins in Redmond, Washington. The bosses are great, the staff are fabulous and the stock is wonderful. I'm surrounded by people with dreams; oozing creativity- it's like a dip in the sublime for me every day.
But, but, but...... I also REALLY want to be in my OWN workshop today.

Isn't that just like Life?

One step forward, one step back, and a quick shuffle to the side. Here we all are- doing the Cha Cha.
I've found that for me, there are two ways of looking at it.
I can ignore the responsibilities and distractions, and sprint along on the straight and narrow path to my goal (the Expressway to point Z) or, I can put my dancing shoes on, and Cha Cha back and forth through whatever life has to show me at the time, knowing that everything around me has the potential to inspire me, and that the journey is much more fun if I dance across every point; every letter on that trip from A to Z!

Here's to every distracting, wonderful, seemingly irrelevant point along the path. Brilliant- all of them.

Cha, cha, CHA!

Blessings

Storm

So many things happening over the last few years, and I've felt as if Gilded Poppy has been on hold, but finally, FINALLY she's ready to go!

Our lives hold trials and tribulations galore, and sometimes it feels as if that's all there is, but I've found, over the years, that if I stick it out, stay positive and don't give up, I usually get where I'm going (though not always in the manner I expected! ;-) )
Ducking, weaving, flying over hurdles and crawling through the mud of every day life has been a great journey, and now I've finally scraped the time together to dedicate to this wonderful dream of mine... sharing my passion for wearable art with you all. I'm so excited to walk this journey together!

Over the next few months, I'll be ramping her up and getting a Gallery full of the most luscious goodies I can craft for you all to play with, and I'd love for you to tell me your dreams- what you envision yourself wearing, how you feel your costuming supports your soul as you dance your way through the days. Keep checking in as I add to the Gallery, with sections for Jewelry, Costuming, Fabrics and more... the possibilities are endless!

Bring it on my friends, and here we GO!

​Storm

As I live this life, I've found along the way that I've had to make decisions as to where I'm going and what I'm doing. Sometimes that meant little changes, like the flat I lived in, or the job I held at the time. Other times the changes were more significant, like getting married, or changing country... or both, simultaneously!

At almost every stage, these choices have meant that I've left behind friends and family- both blood and those wonderful people you find along the way who become family in your heart- indistiguishable from those you were born to.

Never an easy thing- ever, although it can look like that to the people you had to leave. Every time it was an act of courage to leap out into the unknown without the comforting knowledge that your friends would be there to be your safety net. And every time I did it I had to start again. New home, new friends, new family, new life.

Despite the fairly constant change, some things stayed with me. Everywhere I went, a case of 'Crafting Goodies' went with me- size and composition varying depending on how much I could carry! A love of dance...luckily not a heavy or bulky thing to pack and easy to take along for the ride ;-)  and lastly- a sense of curiosty and humour, the most important thing of all!
A dance studio was one of the first things I'd track down, along with a great cafe and small restaurant- all three vital to finding new friends and making a new 'Home' and the most vital thing of all... the knowledge that whatever change had come around, it was here because it was meant to happen!

Our Dance Community is like that too. We join a studio, make a new family, sometimes break away to start a new troupe. People come and go. The circumstances of our lives change and we flow with it looking for that place where we feel most settled, inspired, challenged, nurtured.. where we belong. Sometimes the shake-down period takes a little longer than we thought, and we test first this place, then that place as if we were dippng our toes in a pool to see if the temperature was just right for a refreshing dip. That can be unsettling too- but if we stay true to ourselves, there's no doubt in my mind that we all end up where we fit best, and where we have the most to learn- and the most to give.

And for those in different cities, countries, studios...? They stay a part of me, as all of them made me who I am today- enriched, blessed, loved and ready for the next leap of faith!
Many thanks and blessings to you all,

Storm

Hello my friends
We had an unexpected blessing up here in the Pacific Northwest weekend before last… 3 whole days of warm sunshine! I dragged all my sewing out onto the balcony and toasted the ache of the long winter from my bones, whilst reveling in the play of the sun across my skin and through the facets of my beads. Absolute bliss.

That weekend, I sewed, worked in the garden, ran with the dogs, danced, laughed with friends and generally achieved so much. Then when the Grey rolled in again on Tuesday, I felt my energy and zest for moving drain from me like the slow leak I had in my Jeep tire for so long… no puncture- just a sticky valve that couldn’t be found, and was a constant nagging drag.

As the week progressed I found myself thinking about how we react to ‘The Grey’ in our lives. There seem to be so many shades of it these days. 

The Grey of the weather, The Grey of financial worries, The Grey of ill-health, The Grey of unsatisfactory work, or relationships, or any number of other ‘Greys’ that we allow to drain our enthusiasm and joy for Life in the same way my sticky valve drained the air from my
tire.
The final question I was left with was “So… now, how do I cope”?

I find that when I dance… The Grey loses ground. When I sew, it loses ground. When I laugh, help friends, sing to my dogs or in other words, do anything that could be called My Bliss… The Grey doesn’t stand a chance!
At any time, when we choose to take control and Act instead of Reacting to outside circumstance, we gain back a measure of calm.

As I surround myself with generous, creative, active people, I find that The Grey has a much harder time influencing my mood. Being amongst you wonderful people is like standing in the warmth of the afternoon sun; nurtured, filled and gilded with happiness in its simplest form.

So find your laughter. Dance with your friends. Sing to your dogs and find the Bliss that makes your life glow!

Blessings Bright
Storm

So.. here we are... finally!
For so long I've promised to get this Blog up and going, only to be sabotaged by all the wonders of new ideas, luscious fabrics and opulent finishing touches that drag me back to the workshop and away from the computer. This of course, is a good thing, as at the end of the day, I'm doing what I love the most.... creating unique, one-off costuming pieces for myself and all the other wonderful, inspiring, enriching dance-goddesses out there.

Gilding the Poppy, as it were ;-)

The old saying refers to Gilding the Lily... but I've always thought the Poppy was a much more significant flower.
It stands for Rememberance. For loved ones we've lost, for places we've left and most importantly- for those parts of ourselves that we've lost, or let go of, or have been afraid to manifest.

As dancers, we do so much more than follow a set piece of choreography. We're first and foremost Storytellers. We tell the story of the dance, we tell the story of the music and inside that, we share our own story with those who dance with us, as well as with those who watch.

For those of us who dance with choreography, our challenge is not to lose ourselves in the technique to the point that we become wind-up dolls; perfect, but soul-less. For those of us who dance forms like ATS Improv- our challenge is to be aware of the cues and leads- but dance fluidly and freely through them.

So much beauty to show through movement- no speech required!

Our costumes; these beautiful pieces of wearable art, Gild the Poppy that we manifest in our dance of Rememberance. They glimmer and flow as we move fluidly to show that we remember we are beautiful, we remember that we are worthy of acceptance, from ourselves and others, we remember that we're each and every one of us divine in our dance through life.

I guess we're all Poppies, and it's our choices that make us shine.

Welcome to Gilded Poppy!

Blessings bright
Storm