Starting Again

 

I am starting again with Calico Living blog today. I started this blog more than 2 years and feel it is time to redevelop it to more accurately reflect how I live or at least want to live. 

Calico Living is about lifestyle – about real living. Life can be too serious sometimes, and I believe it is important that we each design a lifestyle that works for the way we want to live. There is no right or wrong way – just a good way.

And.... its Spring - what better time to start. 

A balanced lifestyle needs to take into account our working lives, children and family, friends and also ourselves. I have spent many years working in the homes of clients and I have never seen two lifestyles exactly the same. There are many factors in creating an achievable and enjoyable way of living that suits all members of the family.

For me, using my limited time to the best advantage to make sure that I have more time to spend of relaxing and enjoying life means that I need to get my home into the right order. I loathe housework, and really wish it would do itself. Don’t even get me started on ironing. Yet, housework is a necessary chore. Keeping the house organised reduces stress on everyone at home, keeps the home looking nice and means that you will not want to fear the occasional friend who pops over unexpectedly.

Saying that though, everything needs to be done in balance. If you become a slave to absolute neatness and Spartan cleanliness in the home then I think you are missing out on so much more. I am very keen on balance and staying true to the principle of moderation.

I want to play a bit more at home. My home is my cocoon – my safety net. It is also the place where I can really express myself. I spend so much time redesigning other’s homes that I feel I have not quite got things right for me at home. So for me Calico Living is means for me to focus on exploring and discovering new things. Experimenting at home, trying my hand at a few different handicrafts while at the same time sharing my knowledge and experience with my readers.

I love cooking – I cannot see why so many of us do not learn to do better in the kitchen. After all we spend many hours of our lives eating. The quality of what we put into our bodies is important, but the pure act of eating should be enjoyed and savoured. So I will be sharing some of my recipes as well as trying out some recipes where I feel I could do a bit better. (I am not the most confident baker!) 

Life is all about learning. I study all the time. An interior designer has to be very aware of trends as well as changes to new products. I hope in this blog to not only share my knowledge of interior design, but also share my views of changes in trends at home.

Of course I am a keen crocheter – please don’t think it is a granny kind of thing. My book Hip Crochet released in March 2013 shows that crochet is not dull and for old biddies. It is current and very much on trend and this draught excluder sits at the door to my living room – not because I have any draughts, but simply because it is bright and full of fun. I am also releasing a number of new patterns through Ravelry.com and will introduce them here too.

It isn’t all serious – this living malarkey. There should be time to explore and go places. Outside interests are important. Finding fun things to do. Having lazy days out at the beach, packing that perfect picnic lunch and collecting pieces of driftwood to turn into a piece of art.

There is the “Good Life” principle too – foraging, making jam, using honey and building the odd bug hotel. I just love what my friend made... I can't wait to make my own version. 

Apart from that I hope to keep the blog up to date with my progress in the garden, my work and my home as time goes on.

Spring is the perfect time I think to start again with Calico Living and I hope that you will enjoy the journey with me.