Shapes from the forest floor

I haven't had a day in the studio drawing and playing in AGES so today I spent the whole day doing just that.

I printed some of my photos from yesterdays walk in the woods and picked out shapes ready to be scanned and turned into patterns.

The next bits not ready to share yet....

Wonderful woods

I just had a lovely walk, up Horsehold and through the beech woods looking ideas for a woodland inspired wallpaper.

I'm loving the texture of the forest floor.

There's so much beauty when you look up close.

Sparkly dew

and tiny lichens reaching for the sky.

Tree roots hugging beech nuts

and great shapes everywhere.

There had been so much rain that the stepping stones over the waterfall had been covered up so I disappointingly had to turn back but in doing that I noticed a new path that followed the waterfall down to the canal, one that I had never noticed in the 14 years I've been doing this walk! 

The rest of the walk became an adventure.

 It was gnarly and treacherous but every bit as magical as it looks from the other side of the canal. THANKYOU to whoever painted the yellow way markers on the trees as it would have been hard to keep to the path.

I wonder who lives in here (the yellow way marker person perhaps?)

Eventually the path brought me out at the slippery cobbled path down to the canal.

That was a great walk. Lungs full of air, camera full of pictures and a head full of ideas! Perfect.

Pattern Observer

I'm really honoured to have an interview on the Pattern Observer blog today. This wonderful site run by designer Michelle Fifis is a wealth of help and support for pattern designers. I took her Ultimate Guide to Repeats e-course last year when I needed in depth help into getting my wallpaper designs into repeat....that Paper Meadow was a tricky one you know. 

You can read how the course helped me here.

Home London 2014

We're back from HOME London. It was good.

I was pleased with my new stand. 

Nesting cupboards really are the way to go. 

Everything fitted in Suzis little car. It was brilliant.

It was a good show for me. I came away with ten new southern stockists for my lamps and lots of interior designers waiting for their own Hannah Nunn wallpaper sample books to show their clients. There were lots of good conversations about the wallpaper business. I learned loads about how it all works.

It was also lovely, as it always is at a show to put some faces to names you only know online and I met a few of my fellow Surface Pattern course students, some of whom were showing their work for the very first time. Zoe Attwells stand looked gorgeous.

It was great to meet Cara Holland of Pattern Booth and see her new geometric wallpapers which she had printed at Anstey at pretty much the same time as me.

I've admired Sian Elins wallpapers online for a while. It was nice to see them in the flesh. 

She has such fresh colours and designs and the photography on her website is absolutely lovely.

Lush Designs were there in style. I realised how far they have come since I first started buying their stuff for the shop 8 years ago. Their range has expanded hugely. I enjoyed standing in for Maria while she nipped to the loo. I was poised and ready to be her and sell some stuff...but she really only was a minute so I didn't get the chance!

Nice to see her Wild Pigs wallpaper for the first time. 

I bought some lamp bases for Radiance too. I'm excited about them.

Mini Moderns were there looking amazing. Wallpaper heroes!

These cats caught my eye on Yokes stand. They are called Ronnie & Frank. So cute.

And it was nice to get to know Miriam from Mintprint with her bold lampshades, prints and cushions. She was a sweetie.

Alongside Home and  the long established Top Drawer was a new show called Craft which I managed a quick look round. Harriet Caslins lampshades were so beautiful. 

If only I knew her when I wrote Illuminate because she would have been in it!

...as would Alison Graham. They were gorgeous.

But I did spot someone I wrote about. Graypants (or 'the boys in grey trousers' as Maria from Lush called them). These boys live in Seattle but they have a European distributor now.

AND I got to see the Early Bird pendants by Amy Adams of Perch! ceramics in Brooklyn which featured in Illuminate too.

Well that's it for my photos but I wish I could share all the beauty that my eyes saw because there was SO MUCH. I did some nice shopping for Radiance too so we can look forward to some of the prettiness coming our way soon.

HOME London

Next weekend I'm doing a trade show in London called HOME. It at Earls Court and runs alongside Top Drawer which I often visit for Radiance and a brand new show called Craft. It's a new show for me and I'm hoping to find some stockists for my wallpapers.

 It's a big deal getting a van down to London with all my show cupboards and stuff but I had an idea! Clare Scott has made these two sets of nesting plinths for me. They all fit inside each other and fit in the back of a small CAR! Hooray. It's a revelation! And two of them are cupboards for stashing stuff away on the stand. Wondering how to paint them...will sleep on it.

Lots to do to prepare this week but I'm excited to be taking my work to London town!

I'll be on stand F67. Come and say hello. x

The Art of Attention

I do like this time of year. It's full of new wishes and dreams and a fresh energy to make them come true. It's been so lovely to have time at home with family and friends and time to let the dust settle after a really manic build up to Christmas. There is so much I want to do this year (as usual) but after being ill in October and November I know I have to be more gentle with myself.

I had the most inspiring yoga book for Christmas which has helped me a lot so far. The Art of Attention by Elena Brower and Erica Jago is the most beautiful yoga book I have ever owned (and I have loads). 

Such beautiful design and awesome photography and full of wisdom and inspiration for practice.

Erica Jago's yoga stick figures are exquisite.

It led me to find out more about one of the authors Elena Brower who has a yoga center in New York and founded Yogaglo, a website with loads of online classes which I have been enjoying every morning this week (and a meditation the middle of last night when I couldn't get to sleep). It's brilliant.

So while the intensity is high on the outside (you know - big dreams, hard work) I'm trying to cultivate a softness on the inside (I want to enjoy every minute of it). 

I recommend this beautiful book. Their website has all the details and this lovely video says it all.

Yoga is just the best thing. I'm so glad I have it.