Less, but better...
Finding what 'fits' in the Q4 of Life...
Sixty feels like the kind of number that makes you pause, take stock, and ask yourself where time has gone. And what you still want to do with what remains.
I am incredibly lucky. But if I’m honest, I also feel a little daunted. Time suddenly feels precious in a new way. There’s still so much I want to make, see, paint, and say.
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While searching through old photos (to remake my branding video for 2026) it struck me how quickly life moves. One minute you’re in the thick of it, the next you’re looking back wondering how the years slipped past so quickly.
It’s sobering. But it’s also motivating.
I’ve ordered a new travel easel for my upcoming European trip. I chose the wooden version rather than the (much more expensive) metal one. I like tactile things. Materials that feel warm in the hands. Things with grain, texture, and a sense of story.
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Last week, I sold a couple of paintings. One of them hand-delivered locally. Those moments never lose their meaning for me. Art going directly from my hands into someone’s home is the very best feeling.
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I'm slowly adding more canvas prints to the website and beginning to phase out older works. With new works this year, I'll be offering limited editions of prints too rather than open editions (so there will only be 25 or 50 available, in total). Some older pieces will be removed entirely.
So if you’ve had your eye on an original for a while, consider this your gentle nudge. Sometimes things aren’t meant to wait forever.
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There's a 'Wishlist' feature on my website, which I find endlessly fascinating. Seeing which pieces people return to again and again offers a quiet insight into what resonates.
At the moment, my newest piece, 'Stillness among the leaves' is currently on 29 wishlists, and St Ives Harbour is on 332 wishlists!
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With Dulux declaring blue as the colour of the year, do you decorate according to trends, or have you found your own preferences over time?
I have painted a lot of art in blues, largely because I lived by the sea for so long. Blue became part of my visual language. But green…green brings a different kind of calm. Grounded. Restorative. Reassuring.
And lately, I’ve noticed something else returning. Not just in interiors, but in the way many of us are choosing to live.
A quiet move back towards quality.
Personally, I’d rather save and buy something well made than fill my life with things that don’t last. Whether it’s furniture, clothing, or the art we choose to live with.
Old wooden tables with scars. Chairs that have held generations. Books, held by others' hands. Objects with weight and history.
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In many ways, that’s how I see my work. Art that isn’t shouty or fleeting, but something you live with. Something that settles gently into your space and becomes part of your life.
If there’s a thread running through all of this, it’s this:
Life moves quickly, but meaning is made slowly.
Through choosing well. Through trusting what speaks to you. Through allowing yourself beauty, even now. Especially now.
Whether that’s a painting, a piece of furniture, or simply a moment to pause, this chapter still matters and I, for one, intend to make the most of it.
