I’ve admired the work of designer Florence Broadhurst  – whose body of work is today printed by the wonderful Signature Prints – for many, many years. I’ve mentioned both designer and print house  half a dozen times here in the (blog)house over the years, and I referenced them in My Heart Wanders as one of my all-time inspirations. So you can imagine how thrilled I was when the ever-admired Juliet Rogers contacted me this time last year to photograph her very first range of antipodean stationery for her new venture aptly called The Wild Colonial Company, which features none other than Florence Broadhurst’s breathtaking designs.

It was a dream job in every way – beautiful client, incredible product (fittingly described as ‘ground-breaking design and superb quality’)… I had an absolute blast shooting each and every notebook, journal and gift card, using my home as my studio, bringing in elements from my garden and finding little treasures around my home to compliment the collection…

I’m currently using this beauty (pictured above) as my journal. It’s as lovely to write in as it was to photograph, and seeing it sit on my bedside table beckons thoughts and ideas to page. Back then I didn’t get a chance to show you some of the images from the shoot, but today I’m thrilled to have a moment to do just that…

I hope you’ve seen this gorgeous collection in bookstores and boutiques around the country but if you haven’t, take a look at The Wild Colonial Company’s website to peruse the full range – you can shop the collection directly on the website too, with shipping to the USA, UK and New Zealand as well as in Australia.

Thank you Juliet for calling me for this fab job! Although it’s a year overdue, I wanted to write this post to say congratulations for venturing out into the wild. I look forward to seeing more. xx

the chaos of my working space – there is no room for neatness in my creative world…

It occurred to me while composing the behind-the-scenes blog post for Country Style this week (the post just went live, you can read it here), that you guys might be interested in my story & styling process… as a writer/stylist, perhaps it’s interesting to know how I start with the topic for my monthly column with the magazine, the writing process along with the story concept, styling and the shoot. It’s a different method to styling on its own, or writing on its own – it’s all intertwined and it’s a practice of creating that I really enjoy.

First of all some of you who live outside of Australia might not be aware that I currently write a monthly column for a magazine here called Country Style. It’s a beautifully edited and popular publication that features gorgeous homes from coast to coast, country artisans, recipes by country chefs, as well as craft and decorating features.

I’ve been writing for them for about a year now and was given the simple direction by editor-in-chief Victoria Carey to write what I’m inspired by, in line with my  ‘enhance the everyday’ aphorism.

Composing my column is quite a long process from start to finish, and begins 6 months prior to the story release.

First, I present the story outlines for 6 month’s worth of stories. Fran and I brainstorm these with the seasonal theme guidelines given to me by art director Giota Letsios. To come up with the story summaries Fran and I talk about our current interests and inspirations, as well as aspirations for things we’d like to make, artisans we’d like to meet, things we’ve made, or seen, or done. If something grabs me as we talk – if I start to be able to visualise an idea as a styled story, drawing together props in my mind while creating colour palettes, we stop and work through that idea. If the story continues to unfold visually in my mind as we talk it through – if I get a stronger feel for it – then I write it down as we talk, do some quick sketches and move on to the next theme idea. If the idea doesn’t develop visually in my mind as we talk, we leave it be and move on as well, coming back later to see if I can further sketch it out. Coming up with 6 stories in one go is quite a challenge for me, and often one or two ideas can be knocked back by the creative team so then we need to start again. This initial process can take about 4 weeks. By that time we have 6 clear story ideas that we all agree upon.

In the lead up to the scheduled shoot day (with the aim to photograph all six stories in one day) I then present six storyboards to Giota so that she gets an idea of what is in my head. Here is an example of one of my past storyboards…

It’s very simple and loose as although the idea of the layout is strong in my mind, I’m not certain which props I will use on the day. But it’s a good exercise to decide on colour backdrops, whether it will be a horizon shot (an image with a horizon line) or an OTT (over-the-top camera shot), along with a rough idea of the materials I plan to use.

Then I start collecting. In the weeks leading up to the shoot I keep each story idea in my mind as I walk through my home, around the neighbourhood, and while gazing into windows of beautiful boutiques as I walk with my baby girl. I spend less and less time surfing the web for my shoot ideas these days. Because even though there are more and more visual aids like pinterest for creatives, I find it hinders my creative progress as it tends to suck up the short time I have available to prep.  I find that when I need fresh, new material, I need to look within rather than without. So, I pick up bits of bark, string, and flower petals as I wander. I collect things I have in my home and make little samples of ideas along the way. If I really like something I snap an image of what I’ve created or collected and build a mood board of images to send to the art director so that she gets a clearer visual impression. Just before the shoot date I brief my assistant Julia on the stories we will be shooting. She then collects props at her home that she thinks I’ll be inspired by on set, and she sources the flowers I’ve requested from the flower markets and Grandiflora. I source extra props as well as backdrops from some of my favourite places like Major + Tom.

setting up the prop tables on set

Next comes the shoot. Julia and I, with our cars full to the brim with props, meet with photographer Craig Wall at the magazine studios. We discuss the storyboards and props and sets needed.

As a stylist, I’ve slowly evolved my style over the years to seeking a looser, less-styled approach. I like to infuse each story with a spark that comes to me ‘in the moment’ – I set up the shot while Craig sets up the lighting, then I relax into it and ‘let loose’. For this issue’s paper love story, Julia and I made the paper pieces there on the spot, only using what we had. We fashioned a crown from a piece of bark and string, making little flags and feather-like sticks to adorn it. I love the rawness of  this style of working, it’s a process I am adapting and enjoying more and more.

After the shoot, we cart all the props back to our homes and to stores if we’ve borrowed some. My props usually stay in baskets in my office for months before I get to unpack them these days.

I don’t write the piece until a few months before the issue is released. That way I’ve allowed some time and breathing space between stages which I find important for the way I work. I use the photograph created to guide my thoughts and reflections. I write the piece in about a day though I’ve spent a few months thinking about it and making mental notes about the direction I want to take the piece. I’m a slow writer. And yes, from this detailed blog post you might gather I’m a slow creator! But I think that’s because everything today has to be faster and faster (that’s what I tell myself!).

So that’s it! I send my finished written article to the creative team at the magazine, they make very minimal changes, if any, which I’m very thankful for. And a month before the issue goes to print they send me a proof to read over and check.

xx

Has it been almost three months since I last spent some time here in the (blog)house?

To think that a year or so ago I started dreaming and thinking obsessively about the possibility of creating a book of little handmade treasures. In the dark hours while feeding Laly, the idea bloomed in my mind, and now, after a lot of work and wonderful support from you, my latest book, Little Treasures: Made by Hand is complete.

Through all the making and doing, I’ve wondered to myself whether it was completely outrageous to have launched such a huge project so soon after giving birth, and in so many ways it was. I forgot that making a book in itself is a birth: I think I figured that because I’d made three before, that this ‘little one’ would be a walk in the park. But each book holds a large part of my creative being and so each has come with its own steep learning curve. The self-publishing aspect of this one, combined with my new life as a mum, certainly took hold of me like none of the others have.

With that said, I can say without hesitation that I am delighted to have this special little bound treasure in my body of work, an everlasting keepsake of Laly’s first moments of life shared in the form of a visual story of incredible handmade pieces given to her by creative souls around the world.

And the beautiful truth that there is no way this book could have been born without your support.  Not just from those of you who pledged but also those who have ceaselessly cheered me on from the sidelines, helping me get to the finish line.

The project is now finalised as we have finished the mailout of all the books and packages from the crowd-funding campaign.  That means that if you ordered a book or package back in February from the campaign then you should have received it no matter where you are in the world. If you haven’t then please email us at info@piajanebijkerk.com and we will resolve it for you as soon as possible.

I’m also really excited to announce that the book is now available for sale in my online book boutique and we can post worldwide!

Also we are now at the stage where we can take wholesale orders around the world so if you would like to stock Little Treasures: Made by Hand in your own boutique then please email info@piajanebijkerk.com with your order request and location and we can send you more information.

Thank you for your belief and encouragement of this midnight dream of mine.  I don’t know how I made it through the past year but I was comforted during many an early morning hour with the knowledge that so many of you were cheering me on from afar.

I’m incredibly happy to be able to spend some more time here in the (blog)house. I’ve missed you.

xx

My days are spent trying to keep all the juggling pins up in the air, and honestly, I’ve never been a great juggler.  What will happen if one of the pins fall you ask? Well that happens often, and everything drops to the floor, then I pick them all back up and give it another go. Romain and I feel so incredibly tired all the time, and it does worry me, but I trust those who tell us they felt the same way when they first became parents. At around 8pm every night, which is when we get to connect at the end of the day, we just look at each other, and usually laugh at the absurdity of our frantic days. We laugh about how, 2 or so years ago, we sat on the sofa in our houseboat in a far away land, wondering what we’d cook for dinner, whether we should go out, where to? Should we call our friends to see what they’re up to? Midnight would come around and we’d flop into bed, tired from staying up late, knowing we could sleep in until 9am or longer, whatever. Hilarious.

I just snapped the above photo to show you how neat this little corner of my home is at this very moment. It’s the tidiest it’s been in months. Along that window since February, boxes and boxes of Little Treasures: Made by Hand books have been lined up, now there are only ten or so boxes remaining.

It’s a long weekend here in Australia and I will be taking those 3 days off to look after myself and my family.  I will try not to think about all the books and packages still to be sent out, or the people I still need to email, or the articles I still need to write, or the fees I need to pay and the invoices I need to send. I will clean, do loads of laundry, cook, garden, and attend to my chickens (yes, you heard right! I wrote about them here) – those juggling pins, along with changing nappies, settling, soothing, playing and feeding, all need to remain in the air.

Last weekend I took lovely Tessa from New Zealand on her day wander which she bought during the campaign for Little Treasures. What a treat for both of us – I don’t get the chance to wander and stop in at my favourite boutiques these days, and Tessa text me at the end of the day to say thank you again, that it was beyond her expectations. I can’t tell you how happy that made me.  One of our favourite parts of the day was visiting Tracey Deep in her floral studio, watching her make one of her amazing floral scultpures (photo above). Thank you beautiful Tessa and Tracey! In an effort to allow some self-nurturing time back into my life, I promptly booked into Tracey’s Beauty and the Bush workshop at Koskela, June 22th. I can’t wait – want to join me? Details here.

Have a lovely weekend mes amis. I realise my blog is one of the juggling pins I haven’t managed to add into the mix, I know you understand though, and I thank you with all my heart.

xx

Hi guys. Sometimes – actually, every time –  it’s hard to write a blog post after a long break. So much has happened between posts that I don’t know where to start, or what to share. But then after a while of sitting here looking at the blank box, I realise the best place to start is in this moment.

In this moment, I am sitting in my little home office/studio/dumping ground, at the desk, writing this blog post. Laly is having her midday nap (what a wonderful difference it is to be down to one long day nap!), and Romain and I are working on getting the last remaining shipping invoices to the book buyers from the campaign, and then I hope to be able to start getting some of the packages together throughout the rest of this week, so that we can start sending them off around the world next week.

As I’ve been collecting the shipping and adding the details in the spreadsheet, I’ve been receiving lovely little notes within the invoice payments, with inspiring and encouraging comments. It warms my heart so much, and encourages me to keep going.  I’m very thankful for the support, I would not be able to keep creating if it wasn’t for those of you who voice your cheer.

Laly is growing so much. Among so many skills she is mastering, she has just started to walk, and I’ve noticed how much she is uplifted by positive remarks and reassurance. Her face lights up when we say “Bravo!”, and “Well done!”, and if she stumbles through trying her new skill, it will be one of those remarks that encourages her to try again.

Last night after Laly went to bed, I reflected on the words that she is hearing the most throughout every day. Other than “Maman” and “Papa”, I realised the words we are repeating the most every day are “cuddle”, “câlins” (french for cuddle), “snuggle”, “beautiful”, “love”, “bonjour”, “bravo”, “kisses”, “bisous” (french for kisses) and of course “Laly”. It got me thinking about how lovely that is, how much that must make a difference to someone’s life.

I had intentions to write a post about Laly’s first birthday, but as you may have gathered from Romain’s previous post, things happened. My health took a turn for the worse, and I’ve spent the last month building it back up. I’m not quite recovered, I understand now that getting Little Treasures to the insane deadline that we had created for it was detrimental, and not just for me but for my new little family. If I am not well I cannot look after my baby and that is incredibly scary. And I’ve understood that in the future, if I want to continue doing projects, that they will have to be spread out and take much, much longer, with as many helping hands as possible. It’s just not possible for me to do what I do and be a Mum at the same time.

I got very down for a while wondering why other new mums could work on their projects, write regular, extensive blog posts complete with photographs (knowing how long it takes me to compile such posts), earn money, and cook a meal. Seriously? I mean, seriously? I just don’t get how. Friends assured me that these mums have help from their parents, in laws and siblings, and that on top of that they must have nannies, cleaners, and possibly butlers. They reassured me that the difficult circumstances I have going on in my life at the moment are taking their toll on my health. But I just kept seeing that it was all a reflection of me being incapable. I’ve been taught to cope with whatever comes my way, no matter what.

So not only has my little Laly been doing a lot of growing these past days, so have I. I don’t think I’ll ever write about all that has been going on lately here on the blog, I know there is still much for me to go through in the coming months and years and you know when you’re in the thick of something, it’s hard to stand back and take an observing eye to share it with the world. I notice that when I try to explain to people what has been happening, it is just a bunch of words, words that sound hollow for something so deep. But I sense that one day I may feel ready to write about it.

In this moment,  I thank you for being here, and for your understanding and for your love.

À bientôt, mes amis.

xx

PS I took these photos on Saturday, at Laly’s first easter egg hunt, a very special day created by my talented friend Tracey.