oldyarns. tells the bowerbird stories

story 294. alone.

sitting in the heavy stillness

of this too warm

summer's night.

 house finally quiet.

silent, silence.

a tiny sliver of the day.

words,

the right words

are not near.

watching days slide by.

story 287. Humphrey.

a sneak peek of

the first Postale Society postcard in the

Vo11/Ch3 series 'Matildé & Humphrey',

which has now posted.

if you are a member

expect your postman to be bringing yours

any day now.

(touchingly, my Dad agreed to lend his penmanship

to Humphrey's voice in telling the story.)

 

 

story 286. softly.

nourishing breakfasts amongst

fallen petals

a beautiful light filled room

to sleep, comforted

a giant bunch of fresh camellias

by grandiflora

(& a little sneaky fox by kylie gartside).

*

a weekend of softness.

thank you.

story 266. all yellow.

yellow chrissies

 brightening my table.

 
and it was all yellow.

story 235. at home. (or sisters part 2.)

sometime mid last year,

 a very special visitor came to town.

the brainchild of Georgina,

she and Sunny have made

heads turn & hearts leap,

childhood memories awakened.

 

well, news travels far & fast

& they've garnered some impressive fans,

notably Peppermint

and Country Style magazines.

I am blessed enough to call this

clever lady my sister,

as well as collaborator,

chief motivator,

and muse.

I am also lucky enough to enjoy her family's

storybook countryside home

when I want to get out of the city.

(we call each other the town mouse and the country mouse.)

these photos are a peek into her space,

her place,

her way of being at home.

 

breath in,

sigh, exhale.

enjoy.

 

*

the two of us are busy plotting, planning,

making lists and dreaming big.

working on a special project together,

one we hope to share with you soon.

fingers crossed,

there'll be plenty more to sigh about.

*

{all photos of perpetual-one at home on the Sunshine Coast,

taken during a brief show of sunshine between the summer rains.}

story 231. a slice of green.

*

happy new year,

bonne année,

gott nytt år*

to us all.

*

a slice of summer for you

from our holidays.

rain has turned this part of the world

bright lime

shade of greens.

*

the sun shyly peeking out between the clouds,

bolder now.

*

here's hoping to the days ahead washed clean

like washing drying on the line

smelling like fresh linen

begging to be worn anew.

*

new beginnings are always promising

the opportunity to reinvent

to take a new path

to live deliberately.

that's my wish for me & you.

*

'til soon.

*

{words to consider here by Mr Seth Godin}

{patchwork of images out and about on the Sunshine Coast this week}

 

*french & swedish, languages in which, in my perfect world,

I am fluent in...

story 230. hush.

'tis the night before christmas

and all through the house...

its (still) raining steadily outside.

making the lights seem twinklier.

the pressies are wrapped,

using brown kraft paper

stamped with vintage postal office stamps,

typed tags,

candy ribbon,

and a little holly.

the baking is done

and ready to share.

the quiet before the

joyous chaos

that is a big family christmas.

we can't wait.

 

*

 

wishing for you and yours

 

a

joyful

restful

replenishing

holiday season.

may we be blessed.

amen.

 

 

 

 

story 229. channelling nigella.

for me christmas is a time to bake

sweet treats for

friends & family.

I am convinced there is a

sincerity and affection

to be found in the simple offer of

of homemade goodies.

a long time family favourite

is my rocky road.

the one and only rule is to use the best dark chocolate,

(I like the 70% cocoa solids) you can find.

all measurements are approximates and you can substitute pretty much anything as you like it,

(I suggest you try using good turkish delight.)

 

400g dark chocolate

360g soft jellies, halved

200g marshmallows, halved

80g dried cranberries

150g pistachios, roughly chopped

50g toasted shredded coconut

 

heat the dark chocolate over a double boiler until molten.

mix in the dry ingredients

and pour into a shallow tin.

layer cling film over the mixture and use the back of a spoon

(or your hands) to push it into the corners,

and level out the top.

refrigerate until set, then cut into small squares.

this year I've also tried a recipe for

chocolate truffles from the Bourke Street Bakery cookbook,

found via the Christmas issue of Inside Out magazine.

so far they're a hit too.

I've packaged the treats

in collected vintage tins.

tied up with ribbon.

*

its always a joy to indulge your inner

domestic goddess.

 

 

 

 

 

story 228. sisters part 1.

I am lucky to be part of a big family;

four sisters, we are (and a snow-white haired dad).

I am so proud of each of them -

 their achievements

and triumphs -

in their chosen fields and with their own families now.

 

the last couple of years,

my younger sister, Georgina and I

have found ourselves on a similar

adventure:

to take a chance on a creative dream.

to get past the 'what ifs' and 'its just'.

(we've attempted to ban that word - just - from our vocabulary,

so limiting, so constrained, so unimaginative, so uninspired.)

and

just* look at her now.

here she is gracing (so beautifully)

page 65 of the new peppermint magazine.

gorgeously photographed by Elouise van Riet-Gray

the feature tells of her journey with

a 1960s vintage caravan Sunny (literally) in tow

to sell her thoughtfully curated vintage and handmade wares.

and

she's only just* begun.

 

(*authorised exceptions to the aforesaid ban)

 

*

if you happen to be holidaying on the Sunshine Coast

come say hi.

perpetual-one (with me as a little helper) will be at the

Peregian Beach Markets

Sundays January 2 and 16.

story 227. little people.

# 3 - little folk.

almost trite I know, to say Christmas

is for and about

 children.

but perhaps its because they just 'get it'.

no questions asked

no expectations

just pure unadulterated joy

at being together.

 delighting especially in their adults

playing kids for a day.

take some candy

plus lots of silliness,

there's everything they need.

 

where did we let it become complicated?

 

{photos of awesome christmas poster

sent by our dear nephew this week. he did it himself.}