The world’s gone mad, we said…

The world’s gone mad, we said…

Hi there.

Thanks for popping in. Enjoyed this morning, colouring in a Silver Birch. Looking forward to showing you how I do the leaves tomorrow at 10 am!

So strange, isn’t it. One minute we’re planning holidays abroad, weddings, factory moves, hip replacements, family reunions; Life is steamrolling ahead at its usual breakneck speed.

The next minute, we’re locked indoors, emergency hospitals are erected almost overnight, and people are dying in their thousands. Shops are shut, High streets are like ghost towns, all holidays are cancelled, all concerts are cancelled, sporting events cancelled. Restaurants, pubs, gyms – all closed. The economy is crashing down round our ears and millions of people are about to lose their jobs.

And us? We’re learning how to colour in a Silver Birch because it keeps you sane. Unbelievable really. If you watched a film of how events have unfolded since Christmas, you’d say, “Nah. Contrived. Unrealistic. Could never happen.” Yes. It could. And it has.

It has never been more important than now for us to have things to do, to have a routine, to make a plan – and stick to it. Almost like a machine, I get up earlier than ever, have breakfast, dress nicely every single day, put on make-up every single day. These are all things which happened sometimes, sporadically, but not always. It depended on the day, on my mood, who I was seeing, where I was going. Now it’s always, like clockwork. It’s not so much a question of self-discipline; it’s more a question of security in control. When I know exactly what I’m doing and where I’m headed, I feel safer. And in a world where it is becoming abundantly clear that we have little or no control – I have to control the controllable. I’m not alone. It is a basic human instinct to want security and know what’s coming up.

So if colouring in a Silver Birch and a Nuthatch at precisely 10am every morning with loads of others, if grabbing a pen and a piece of paper and following simple doodle instructions gives us virtual company and that sense of control (not to mention positive achievement) – then hooray.

Here’s the Silver birch up close:

Time to go visit my parents with Dave, take them their shopping – and sing Happy Birthday to my Dad in the garden.

We used to say “The World’s Gone Mad”, didn’t we? We used to berate the pace and the commercial fever. We used to complain that things couldn’t go on like that. Little did we know.

Stay safe, keep calm and carry on crafting.

Love always

Barb xx

PS Check out the new Pergamano.com Gallery. The artwork is tagged. And this afternoon, there will be a Tag-Gallery launched on the Claritystamp.com website too. Really cool x

30 thoughts on “The world’s gone mad, we said…

  1. After a very stressful week, with your help, I succeeded in controlling the frustration and panic, and came back to hour by hour controlling the things I could control. Doodling and colouring give me an hour of peace. Thank you, Barbara, for all you do for us, and showing us that it is OK to show that overwhelming emotion that hits us all every so often. Please carry on doing everything you are doing, and remember that we are all here for you. xxxxx

  2. Ah can’t wait to color in the trees today. Give John a hello and happy birthday from Texas. Yeehaw! Thanks for all you do.

  3. Thrilled to bits with my silver birch tree. Had to draw one but couldn’t believe where the hour went. I was thinking of my silver birch in the garden which is probably 30 foot high and which I grew from a tiny sapling. Left it in a pot for years. Boy has it made up for it since! Hope your dad has a good day, despite the restrictions. See you tomorrow. Xx

  4. Happy Birthday to your dad (is it a big one? – birthday that is…oo-er Mrs!).
    These times seem like early retirement to me, I wish I’d known what to expect when I retired, and here it is, a gift to all those people who are still working. I hope they will remember what it was like when their time comes to officially stop working.
    Hope your mum and dad are both well.
    love
    Maggie (Bendy Yorkite) – Bendy is the cat, not me!

  5. Love it, I didn’t do very well with my trees messed up a. Bit then I thought I have the book so go to get it out then thought o now I gave it to great grandson for Xmas well I do have another set of post cards as I bought two sets was giving one set to grandkids but might keep it now x

  6. Happy Birthday to your dad. Hope you have got cake as well. I agree everything has gone mad. I had the year planned, once the better weather came we were not going to be home much. Wow, if I had only known, perhaps as well I didn’t. Any way garden is looking great, head gardener ( Fred) has worked hard. Housekeeper (me) has blitzed the house. The hour in a morning really helps especially on those bad days. In fact thank goodness I have all my hobbies. xx

  7. Yes most days I get up put on my face and put something in that gives me pleasure. Then I best put whatever jewellery takes my fancy. I do this even more so on the days I feel down. Take care x

  8. its my son’s 18th tomorrow he is looking forward to your next doodle or colouring session. we do them every morning with you. my birch tree came out well i was so suprised how effective it looks. thanks for the techniques and skills you are teaching us. the sessions relax us both Alexander is autistic so it works well for that and focusing.

  9. Happy Birthday to you Dad, your smile will no doubt brighten his day.
    Lovely colouring in, I’m still working so hope to catch up soon , must make time x

  10. I shall have to catch up with you tomorrow when I get in from school. It is my turn on the rota to go in and look after vulnerable children and the children of key workers. I was thinking of printing off some copies of the geisha and getting them to decorate her dress using one of the previous YT videos. Of course if the weather is good we will try and be outside as much as possible as it is easier to social distance there. Hope your Dad has been having a nice birthday. Stay safe.

  11. Happy Birthday to your Dad! I still have some way to,go,with the colouring but enjoyed today and look forward to tomorrow. I attended an on line funeral before I came to yours. It was a bit surreal, he was a retired work colleague who would have been 90 this year, his death wasn’t virus relate, he slipped into a hypo and didn’t come back. He lived a very full life right through to the last couple of years,W hen he lost his sight completely. He spent his whole life helping everyone – a lovely man. X

  12. Life as we know it has indeed been turned upside down and we’ve been shaken a lot, but things will eventually return to something more like normality, and in the meantime we have our hobbies to keep us amused. Thank you Barbara and a Happy Birthday to your Dad. x

  13. I’ve been missing out on the doodle sessions at 10am as I’m lucky enough to be still working, albeit from my home office. Can’t catch up yet as feel bad for hubbie not able to go to play golf etc.. so spending spare time with him.
    once were back to normal (whatever that becomes) I’ll catch up with you all. In the meantime I can see from FB what a difference you are making to peoples lives Keep up the good work xxx

  14. Like a lot of others here I am so enjoying the SHAC Shack with you. Thank you again for giving us your precious time and all your experience for doodling and colouring. I was so amazed watching you the last 2 days, I have never been able to colour properly with shade depth etc. It’s really like we are all together in your craft room. Wish your lovely Dad a very Happy Birthday and hope you had a lovely afternoon seeing them in their garden. Love Pam xxx

  15. Looking forward to catching up with the colouring at the weekend when I’m off. Got my postcards and pencils ready!

  16. Happy birthday to your dad and I hope you had a lovely, albeit distant, visit with him.
    Like you, I get up early, put on my face, mainly so I don’t scare myself when I look in the mirror and wear proper loathes, rather than loungers. I only go out for my daily walk and weekly shop, but it makes me function better and feel better. It was like when I was working and never achieved the same level on dress down days. Funny how the brain works, hey?
    I enjoyed watching you colour the silver birch so beautifully, but have decided that colouring really isn’t for me. Mine looked like a grey tiger gone wrong. I am not bothered, as I am happy just to watch you and admire what you and others produce. Doodling is my game, so on non doodle days, I shall join you, enjoy the banter and relax. I tried, but hey ho, you can’t win em all! Have a lovely evening. Hugs. Annette X

  17. Hey Barbara
    I discovered you on day 1 of the doodling and have been with you every day since. I love craft and had only recently started card making. I have always said that I can make things but I can’t draw… Well you have changed all that! I’m amazed at what I’ve achieved and am going to carry this on as long as I am able to. Thank you so much, you bring joy to my day and I’m sure I speak for a lot of the Shack Shac gang
    Keep on doing what you are doing, sending love…
    Joan xx

  18. Another day when for just over an hour I forgot what is going on in the world. Thank you Barbara. But why did I find another trunk !!!!! I should have waited until I read your blog. See you tomorrow.

  19. Happy Birthday to your Dad, hope you had a good visit albeit at a distance.
    This nut hatch project looks great and we look forward to catching up to it as we are a bit behind on our doodling.
    Thought today I’d have another go at skip filling after the bad back day yesterday. Took it easier though, watched some old video tapes between jobs before getting rid of them, it’s amazing what we keep that is out of date now.
    Looks like another sunny day tomorrow so hubby may get to mow the lawn while I finish filling the skip, keeps me out of mischief for a while !!!
    Thanks for all you are doing to keep us crafting and happy.
    🍒🍒🍒

  20. Ooh at 70+ I am learning to colour in properly! Great fun, and really pleased with the result. Enjoy being a doodle-bug, whatever the subject! Thanks Barbara. Love the corner stamps, too. I thinkI I bought mine from you at a craft fair in Kensington?! Hope your dad enjoyed the jelly!

  21. Life has been shaken up but it has brought the diamond people to the top, where we can all see them. Look around there are some real stars stepping up, including you. Wonderful news about the tagged gallery. Hope you had fun with your parents.

  22. Enjoying the colouring …good to give my pencils an airing! Just watching for a few days while eyes recover from macular treatment. Very happy to do that, very well explained, thank you so much Barbara.
    Good to have an idea of what we shall be doing each week. ..very helpful. Keep safe.x

  23. Hope you and Dave had a good afternoon with your mum and dad and that he enjoyed his birthday (and his jelly!). That made me laugh this morning.
    I have absolutely loved doing the nuthatch and the tree although I had to abandon mid-session today. Work crept in! I have watched the video through to the end but have got no further with my tree. I’ll have to work for a bit tomorrow so will probably not catch up till over the weekend but that’s ok. I spent the afternoon in the garden. I ended up paddling in the pond!! That was the only way I could cut out the old reeds. I did make sure my neighbours were in their garden before I started just in case I took a header! That would have been a sight for sore eyes! Lol. As I was pulling other weeds out of the pond, I discovered a wee newt and some baby newts. So lovely to have them in the pond. That stopped me from pulling out any more weeds! Anyway, I am jiggered tonight so think I might head to bed a bit earlier. I feel a shopping spree coming on tomorrow. Not sure I’ll be able to resist Linda’s plate!! I can’t possibly have one missing from the set. It just wouldn’t be right!! Lol. Anyway, take care and I’ll see you in the morning. Hx

  24. Am loving your daily lessons in the mornings Barbara & although I have crafted, painted & drawn since I was a child, I still learn from watching you and enjoying the banter. I had to retire from work early due to ill-health and as you often point out, it’s the best kind of therapy for me, especially as we cannot be with our Grandchildren during these awful times. On a happier note, Shack forms part of my surname and I always amused my children by signing cards I ‘d made them with “handmade by Jane @Craftyshack”…so now I have become a Craftyshack in the SHAC Shack in the mornings!😄
    Ps. Also love your Pergamano site & will be placing an order tomorrow as your discounted prices are too good to resist….so thanks for that too!👍

  25. Just wanted to pop by to say a big thank you for the daily SHAC-SHAC – I have been following along, live some days, catch-up on others, and it’s really helped – with your gentle guidance, I’ve discovered that I can draw, but more importantly it’s provided a moment of calm, which is sorely needed (used to get this from our weekly visits to the local hospice support & therapy drop-in centre, but that’s closed at the moment due to COVID19).
    Unfortunately this week I’ve been, shall we say, distracted, after my 89-year-old Dad fell and broke his hip. He’s undergone surgery but, because of all the COVID19 restrictions, we aren’t able to visit him in hospital, which makes it so much more difficult.
    Anyway, I managed to catch yesterday’s colouring session late last night and it was so peaceful, watching how you built up the colour and listening to your calming voice. I hope to have a go at the colouring myself, perhaps at the weekend.
    So thank you for putting in so much effort for us, thank you for learning to run a recording studio and be director, camera-operator and performer all in one, thank you for keeping us company and inspiring us. xx

  26. Love the colouring from the last couple of days. The trees look amazing. Been feeling a bit nervous the last couple of days but I know its because they keep saying Boris is going to be making a statement in Sunday about easing the lockdown…not sure we are ready for that yet but as you say we can only control the controllable. Xx

  27. Hi Barbara just wanted to say not only am i setting my alarm as im worried ill miss my Daily doodle at 10 but now your helping me to sleep.
    I only joined at kite day so all the others from the beginning are on catch up. Last night was the heart. I warched it in bed and i think your voice sent me to sleep. Lol not in a bad way but in a calming relaxed way. Cant wait to carry on and start doing the patterns. As a zentangler this is in my comfort zone . I also amazed myself by doing the heart and words free hand .
    Looking forward to watching more colouring at 10. I woke up early my head full of all the drawing left to do 😁

  28. Hello Barb, I really need to catch up with my colouring, but the day job gets in the way. I suppose I am fortunate that I do and can still work from home, so shouldn’t grumble, but wouldn’t mind a few less hectic hours. Hope your Dad had a lovely if somewhat isolated birthday. Take care and stay safe everyone, it is hard to believe what has happened in a few short months. I just pray that we all get through this, and be kind to others. Bx

  29. Hello Barbara from Julia 🇦🇺. I’ve been watching the reply of the Nuthatch and I have to say you are passionate and inspiring. I’m a new crafter to Groovi, have watched many YouTube videos and am inspired by the dedication and love of the craft by you and your presenters. I have learnt a lot just watching and have just received my Mini Starter Kit. I would love to buy all product from Clarity however the cost of shipping to Australia is cost prohibitive and takes about five weeks to arrive which doesn’t suit me because “I’m impatient and want it now” 😅 I wish there was a larger supplier in Australia. Absolutely love everything I see.
    Regards
    Julia 🤗

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