Welcoming the New

Where did December go?  I realised I have taken a step away from blogging this past month.  It wasn't intentional but I am really glad for the space.  More so these past 2 weeks have seen Jules doing alot of reflecting and looking back on the year.  Having a book published in April, developing my first Jules Dolly workshop in May, going to Portugal to do Flora Bowleys' Bloom True workshop, which taught me such a different way to paint (you can read about it here, if you fancy). I got married in Gibraltar and that was such a highlight for me. (Go here if you'd like to nose in)  I tallied up that I have done 12 commissions this year, which is one a month - that ain't bad and I'm pretty chuffed. 

Lucy wasn't well in June, but thank goddess, she's doing really fine and taking all her herbal medication. 

Next year is in the planning.  I have been writing my course and will hopefully reveal this soon, it's something I'm collaborating with hubby.  Exciting.

I have 10 weeks to write my 2nd book 'Creating your First Ever CV in seven easy steps', that is going to mean the next few months of strict structure, which is good for me.  

Here are some of the highlights for me this year:-

We're now a scooter family!

Just received my book in the post from the publishers

My first Jules Dolly Art Workshop in May 

The 2nd Canvas 'depth' from Bloom True with Flora Bowley

The 1st Canvas 'thought bubbles'

Hubby2B

Getting thee wed in Gib

Honeymooning in Gib

Connect the Dots, my biggest canvas yet - 3ft x 2 ft

Me and My Maid of Honour

Will, me and stepdaughter Janelle

A gift to a friend and her hubby to commemorate their wedding day

The Lovely Lucelee

Continuing with my oracle project 

Recreating my art'heart space.

Learning to Knit!

Anyone want to see what I knit!?!?

And so now to say cheerio to 2011 - you were good, there were ups and downs but I'm growing and learning all the time and finding my 'soulful way' all the time.  Can't ask for much more.

Hello 2012.

It's good to see you.

Much love
Jules xxxx

"A Year of Wishes: by Lori Portka and Lisa Sarick and My Wish

A Year of Wishes by Lori Portka and Lisa Sarick

I stumbled across Lori Portka's Etsy shop about a year ago now, her work is just so inspiring and is the foundation to her Hundred Thank You's project.  It's where she "dives deeply into gratitude".  A hundred paintings, a hundred people, a hundred days.  You can read more about it here.

So when I saw that she had joined with Lisa Sarick to create the 2012 Year of Wishes Calendar, I was pretty taken in.

I visited Lori's site just the other day and they are giving away 5 calendars.  To be considered we just had to leave a comment with A Wish We Wished for Ourself.  I got very carried away and didn't read it properly.  I launched in to my wish for 2012.  The deepest wish that really resonates with me.

I didn't post this wish for the competition because I thought it was not 'for myself'.  I decided to post the wish here - my place for all things.

I wrote this 2 days ago and then there's a whole debate today in the news 'should animals be stunned before slaughter' and the moment for this Wish is even more pertinent.  It was difficult, really difficult for me to read this article as I totally feel the pain of these animals.

Anyway, here's my Wish.

If I really had to choose a wish right now, it would be that human beings started treating all sentient soul animals, of the earth, sea and air,  with love, care and respect.  This is not an airy fairy wish because I think someone will like it. This is a deeply held passionate wish.

My wish is that we don't differentiate between the love of a dog and the dis-love of a cow.
That the husbandry and treatment of a pig is different to that of a cat.  That we look after our guinea pigs but cut down the habitat for our wild birds and animals.

I wish that all human beings realise that the way we treat our animals is a pure reflection on how we treat each other.  If we just took the time to see that even though we don't speak their language, they are consequently inferior and therefore we can dominate them.

I wish that human beings make a shift and act in a way so that they treat all our lovely animals, farm animals, pets animals, wild animals, as if they were a member of their own big family.

I wish this wish so much because I feel it is the foundation for love and respect for our own human evolution.

This wish is coming from my heart, I get so very upset when I see and hear about the sheer disrespect for our sentient planetsharers.

It was good for me to write down my wish for myself, now hopefully, my wish is out there. 


Blessed travels, little wish.


Much Love
Jules xx

Deconstructing patterns and LIFE

So I'm in week 2 of my surface pattern design course and I'm sketching quite a fair bit.  Looking at patterns and gaining inspiration from everything around me.   I need to spend some time now on re-establishing my artist space as I'm a bit all over the place at the moment.  

I noticed these PUKKA teas in the health shop and how they had taken the same design and used different colours for the various flavours.  Interesting stuff heh?!?! It's amazing noticing that we have patterns all over the place.

 I have been playing around and see what I can see in the papers I have around the home.  I realise that I have done this ALL MY LIFE. Creating flowers, faces, and deconstructing things.

Pages from my sketchbook

I am feeling a little overwhelmed with things at the moment.  I seem to be scattered.  I'm deconstructing my life (again).  I have so many splits in what I do that it's a challenge sometimes to know if I'm doing the right thing. Trying to work through my week and siphon off time.

Creating Art Canvases, Creating Calendars, Writing my 2nd book proposal, Working as an external marker, Careers Coaching, Health Shop Advisor, Workshop designer and facilitator at a school, Student of Surface Pattern Design. 

Do I need to stop and just focus? Do I need my own coach?  

Much Love

Jules xx

Patterns patterns everywhere

Out walking first thing with Miss Lucy Russell... now I generally like taking photos when I'm out with her, this morning I was looking at patterns ... and I found quite a few.  This is the first start to the course I'm doing over at with Rachael Taylor at Do What You Love.  I'm getting inspired. Hopefully to translate into some sketches.  There's a wicked bunch of people from all over the world and everyone seems so experienced! Yikes! Not overwhelmed.

I'm always drawing leaves like this

Love the swirls in this gate

Amazing & Natural

Rhodedendrum before flowering

I often draw these leaves too!

Even Miss Lucy was checking out the patterns

But then she wanted a TREAT! 

Will post more when I get with the sketchbook.
Much Love
Jules

I'm getting seriously serious

I took the leap - and that leap is towards The Art and Business of Surface Pattern Design with Rachael Taylor Designs.  I have deliberated and dabbled about beginning this course for such a while now.  I have been pulled to applying my designs on surfaces but I really have not been sure where to begin.  I have lacked confidence that my work is good enough.  With no tuition, formal training or guidance, it can sometimes be a mind boggling place.

So when I saw that Rachael Taylor Designs had joined forces with Beth Nicholls from Do What You Love to create a 3 module course all about SPD, I just thought "yep this is it".  So after much dowsing to confirm my intuition I decided to enrol on Module 1.

Kick off is tomorrow, Monday 14th so I'm really excited to not only meet so many creative spirits from around the world, but also to learn and apply the course to my life.

With this and writing my 2nd book I'm going to be a busy lass.

I'll post often to show you what I'm up to....

Much Love
Jules xx

Do What You Love - Bloom Postcard Swap

I have been really slow on this postcard swap, mainly for 2 reasons:

a) I was getting married early September in Gibraltar and when I signed up to the swap, I realised that I still needed to buy my dress (yikes) and organise various elements so I didn't allocate time for the postcard making : (

b) I tried something different and it took me a while!  I decided to take an original painting of mine and transfer it to a piece of material, then enhance it with paints and add some stitching.  I felt it went a tad wrong and I beat myself up about it.   I spent a good few weeks having internal dialogue meetings - can I send it, should I send it?

Anyway, I decided to just do it.  I sent it to my lovely contact Briana in Canada and I was so delighted to hear that she received it and she really liked it.  I decided to decorate the envelope as I have been into doing that lately.

All of this was brought about by Beth Nicholls, she's the lovely lass over at Do What You Love and she's pretty amazing.  Check out her website and ecourses that she's offering, "Do What You Love E-course" (which I did back in the spring -Can't recommend highly enough.)   The Art and Business of Surface Pattern Design which starts on Monday (I'd love to do this), and Hello Soul Hello Business which begins in January 2012, with author, artist and possibilitarian Kelly Rae Roberts.

Memories of New Mexico

Today, I am remembering my time in New Mexico.  Back in 2004,  I decided to take a huge leap and attend the 6th International Conference on Science and Consciousness in Albuquerque.  

Phew, I need to breathe just reading that!

It was a real journey for me.  The first time I had travelled to the States before, the first time travelling all that way on my own, deciding to spend 3 weeks there, I hired a car, travelled to Santa Fe and Taos. The creative hub of NM.

So many firsts.  It was an almost like I needed to go there.  And go there I did.  

Me and Monika (shaky phone photo)

Why am I thinking this today?  Well I remember sitting under a tree with my new friend Monika.  We had met on the first day of the conference and connected.  Ending up spending about 5 more days together afterwards in a little guest house in Corrales with Myles her husband and Nick Day, Director and Producer extraordinaire of Short Cut to Nirvana.

Monika and I spent days talking about 'reality' and even thought up every chapter of our book that we would write together.  'The Reality Busters. It was a magical time.

I remember as we sat on our little bench in the garden, Monika told me about the second verse of the Lords prayer.  One that I had never heard.  Growing up in Jewish home, it wasn't something that I knew very well, but as my interest in cultures, religions and spirituality developed, I was soon taken with this piece of writing.

We all know the beginning of the prayer - we hear it all the time.... but do you know the second verse?

Our Mother which art upon earth

hallowed be thy name

Thy kingdom come

and thy will be done

in us as it is in thee

As thou sendest every day thy angels

send them also to us

Forgive us our sins

as we atone all our sins against thee

And lead us not into sickness

but deliver us from all evil

for thine is the earth

the body, and the health

Amen

It is a shame that this second part was not incorporated into general worship.  It really does shows the male and female energies - both playing their part.  I found it last night on my laptop, so this is why it prompted me to think about the whole new mexico adventure. 

This conference was an eye opener for me.  I listened to fantastic speakers, such as Peter Russell, Candace Pert, Judith Orloff,  I met Greg Tamblyn and walked the labyrinth beautifully crafted by Joe Miguez. (sorry can't find any link to him).  I drank Margaritas up mountains and spent afternoons visiting the wonderful art galleries in Santa Fe and Taos. I took numerous photos, wrote incessantly in my journal, sketched and planned my next move.  

This all reminded me of how I just jumped at the chance. I booked my flight, booked the conference and counted it down. 

That's the kinda gal I love to hear about.  I'm wondering where she is?

Visiting Whole Foods

Discovering Miss Julia and her books!

Margaritas for 4 as the sun sets above the Sandia Mountains
(Sandia means watermelon in spanish - love that!)

So this is where the memory ends, or does it begin?

Love Jules xx

Hitched in Gibraltar

When me and hubby were planning to get married we knew we wanted it to be early September this year.   We'd been engaged over 3 years, and September was a special month for us.  At first we thought we'd go to Cornwall, where OH is from but we realised that actually we wanted to go somewhere else, somewhere different.

We looked around, searched a fair deal and Gibraltar came up all the time.  He'd been there before, but then there's not alot of places in the world he hasn't been - he's a real traveller - a true Sagittarian.  I was sold on Gibraltar because John and Yoko got married there. That's good enough for this Liverpool girlie.  So we booked a week.  Sorted all the paperwork and documentation out really swiftly and it was just a matter of turning up, attending the Registry office the day before with all the originals and voila.

Here we now move swiftly on to the ceremony which was truly lovely, special and very romantic.  Having both been married before we wanted something different and we got it.  I had a jewish wedding previously and he had a registry office in the UK, so this was different for both of us.   Our Registrar was a very lovely man, he reminded me of one of the three muskateers.

 husband and wife - just

He looked gorgeous and if I so say myself, we scrubbed up well!

We hired a Gibraltar photographer and then spent time feeling like celebrities.  Admiring our wedding rings which have cornish tin in them.  We're so chuffed to have the same rings.

I eventually found my dress in Monsoon - if you read one of my previous posts, I was having a little bit of difficulty trying to find something that would not cost the earth and would really suit a relatively hot day.  I felt that I had found my match, plus it was in the sale, so even better!

All in all, our wedding was lovely, we had a gorgeous honeymoon and I'm delighted to be a Mrs.  Never thought I would say that again, really, never would. What I can say that we all deserve happiness and love and I'm delighted that both me and hubby have found that in each other.  

Despite being together nearly 6 years, we're settled and loving it.
Yours hitched
Jules xxx

I asked the photographer Steven Gross if he'd take a picture of our shoes as they're always neglected in photos aren't they?  He had never had that request before, but I'm really chuffed with the way the photo turned out.


All photographs except the full length one courtesy of Steven Gross Fotoart Ltd Gibraltar

Long time Catchup

It has been such a busy couple of months.  I'm beginning to feel grounded now and carrying on from where I left off.  What with getting married in Gibraltar in September, the end of August and the month of September seems to have just flown by in a whirl.  

Here we are on October 3rd!

There's lots to post on and I'll get round to it over the next few days:

• The Great Stitched postcard Swap
• My wedding in Gibraltar
• Reiki clients in my Reiki Heart Zone treatment room
• Reiki healing at the Dogs Trust
• Writing a new book called Healing Me
• Contemplating writing another book about writing first time CV's
• Writing & delivering an 8 week course for a group of sixth form girls (17 year olds) called "The Art of DIY"
• Writing and Planning my online personal statement short course
• Painting commissions 
• Creating paintings out of my sketches

There's more but that's enough for now.

The Great Big Stitched Post Card Swap

I received this lovely fabric postcard from Bonnie Jobe in USA and was so delighted to get it.  It's just gorgeous.  She's put alot of time and effort into it and I was really touched by the detail.  

This is a lovely flower on a clip so I can undo it and add it to my Gorjuss bag.  One happy bunny.

The reverse side.  Isn't it just the cutest thing?

Thanks so much Bonnie.  I love it.

I am really late in putting the finishing touches to my postcard but I have been in touch with my recipient and thankfully, she understands and will hopefully get a lovely surprise when she gets it.


That's all for now but I'll be back again soon.
Love and warmth, Jules xxx

Must 'get on'

The dogs all waiting for their treat. Lucy in the background on her way!

I'm saying this to myself alot these days;  "must get on".  Have been shopping quite alot, I think I have found my wedding dress, albeit not traditional wedding attire but something floating and lovely.  As I wrote in my last post, I'm not a shopping kinda gal.  I would rather be found scanning the bookshelves or in an art shop, fabric shop - hell, I'd even say shopping in Ikea.

This past month has been busy.  I have been external statement marking for Liverpool John Moores University which has been a tight turnaround considering everything else happening.  We are near to finishing the Healing Room in our home and it's looking fresh, clean, spacious and peaceful and that's even before setting up the space.  Last year my friend Amanda who's a feng shui practitioner came over to assess the house and this healing room space is located in the heart zone of the home.  At that time and for the past year, it has been very cluttered, stuffed, overflowing and a bit of a dumping ground.  I used to walked past it, feeling dread every time I went in there.  Not good.

Since clearing it out - it's becoming a pleasure to look in - there's an openness and stillness about the place.   The deadline is 1st September for my practice to be located in this room, that's my reiki healing, and creative coaching practice.  I have a list to get on with but I feel like I'm getting somewhere.
Must get on.

Thanks go to my other half who has meticulously painted his little socks off in there and put his energy in to creating the space for me.

At the same time I have been painting - quite large painting actually and it's going a little bit weirdy.  I had moved away from my initial style of painting since going on retreat to Portugal - the delicate cocoon figures in mixed media took a bit of a back seat and I realised that this is where my heart lies so I did an about-turn and have just finished another one.  I realised I was trying to paint like other people instead of following my own heart.  I return to my own challenge which is to create a set of paintings for my oracle cards - I'm going to be painting 44 and then I will meditate and channel their meaning.  Already have 8.

Lucy is back to her normal self - although a slight head tilt, she looks inquisitive.   She jumped on the couch yesterday and this morning which is a wonderful sign.  She's a dolly through and through.

Will post my photos later.
xxxxx