Be still and listen…

Be still and listen…

Hi there

Thanks for popping in. Sunday. A day off before Monday…

Spent the morning with my parents. Had planned on taking Dad’s birthday present over to him. Remember the static bike he wished for? The one which was delivered during our doodle session on Wednesday? So Dave decided to read the destructions and assemble it PRIOR to taking it over to Dads. Good job he did! The part which attaches the saddle to the bike was missing! In the words of Victor Meldew, I don’t believe it !!

Let’s face it a bike with no saddle is about as useful as a car with no wheels – and a LOT less comfortable! Ah well. No big shakes. It will get resolved in time.

Dave and I have been trying to get a good walk through the woods in every day, just to clear the head. Couldn’t resist sharing this view with you from the trail…a perfect doodle…

So before we go off on our trek, which takes one to one and a half hours, depending which path we opt for, here’s a little demo from yesterday’s HOCHANDA TV shows, using our wonderful pair of Nature Dies, illustrated by our friend Mel. CLICK HERE TO FIND

Mel drew these images a while ago, and we made them into stamps, stencils, Groovi plates AND Dies. They are very lovely, and the words have always resonated with me. But never have they been more poignant, more important, than now. Right now.

I spoke to Mel for ages on the phone last night. She is well. She is actually enjoying the solitude, she and her two beautiful dogs. So I take some strength from that, and will try to turn it round when I get fearful, and be more at one with nature, as is she. I think that’s her secret…

If you want to know HOW I used the die to create a mask, then you can either go to HOCHANDA.com and watch yesterday’s 11am TV show on Catch up (13th June). Or you can scroll back to my blog on 9th June, called It’s all about the Mask. That shows you a photo step by step. Either way, all you need is a die and a pack of our Blank Mask Material. Treat yourself! It is top spec, reusable. You can cut masks for ANY of your stamps, you can cut masks from your dies. Reusable and robust.

So we shall be off to the woods now, for a silent talk to the trees, and to eavesdrop on the chattering birds. We do stop stock-still and listen very carefully. The woods are ALIVE with life.

Love and hugs

Barb xxx

26 thoughts on “Be still and listen…

  1. I have found a lot of peace and amusement from watching the wildlife in my own garden, especially the newly fledged tiny birds following their parents to my bird feeders. Breathing fresh air, listening to the breeze in the trees and bird calls is so calming. Enjoy your woodland walks. xxx Maggie (Silvercrafter)

  2. Beautifully captured photo and certainly can be one for doodle.
    Thank you as always for your care and share.xx

  3. There is a lot of peace in being still and listening. Some part of nature is always making a noise be it rustling, calls or water flows. I love watering and tending my tiny plot. Veg from pots taste great.

  4. Do like a long walk through the woods. We have just come back from a two and a half hour walk through the woods and up by the river at Glamis Castle .it was beautiful to hear all the different birds when you stop and listen.

    1. Loved walking around Glamis Castle grounds last October while staying with friends in Forfar. Its a very peaceful place and beautiful countryside. Looking forward to getting back over soon.

  5. Afternoon Barbara. It’s been a beautiful day here once the sun broke through the clouds this morning. It had been rain forecast all day here ….well they got that one wrong.
    You live in such a beautiful part of the country and I am glad that you and Dave can get to enjoy the peaceful countryside. You work hard enough so it’s important that you take time for yourselves. It refreshes the mind.
    I am looking forward to the SHAC shack this coming week to see what you have in store for us all but I will be late to the party tomorrow as I have to do to the dentist! Yes you read that right….they phoned me up to make the appointment as I had had my checkup cancelled just before lockdown so that are catching up. Not sure how I feel about it really but they have such rigorous rules in place to protect everyone I think it will be ok.
    Enjoy your evening together. Love and hugs xxx

  6. Hope you had a lovely walk. I sat by the ponds in the garden this afternoon and listened to the running water and the birds. Lots of sparrows around and lots of colour. Very hot today. Back in now to make tea and work! Hope tomorrow morning goes well. I’ll catch up with you later. Hx

  7. I love spending time with nature, and really blessed to have lovely country walks on my doorstep. We are about half a mile from the Clyde and although there have been loads of houses built, there are still lots of nice walk routes along the Clyde and Calder. I particularly like we wee bit where the 2 rivers meet, as very few folk go that way.

  8. How funny. I have just been sitting in my shady garden with my eyes shut trying a bit of meditatative breathing, listening tho the birds, sheep, cows, bees and a distant tractor. It didn’t last long, but I tried!

  9. The woods are right next door to me. We have deer that visit us and bat’s vflying around our garden in the evening. Its the foxes extreme cries during the night that always freak me out. 🤫 xx

  10. I have these dies and love them. I live bordering on ancient woodland – nearest trees 10 ft away and full of birds. I wake every morning to the sound of squabbling, singing, pursuing a mate and all kind of other bird chat just outside my window. Noisy lot are birds!! I try to identify the various species but there are so many it is more peaceful just to listen. I totally understand Mel being at peace with her dogs and nature -I’m the same with my dog and our woodland walks each day. I take my friend’s dog too as she can’t manage to walk outside now, but she also enjoys watching the birds and other wildlife we see all around us. There is no healer, comforter and constant entertainer than nature!!

  11. As just had a beautiful red butterfly in are garden don’t think I have ever seen a red one before what a wonderful little thing Bob did get a photo, what a blessing hope you had a great walking heard lots birds hoppy singing see you in morning lots love. Joy

  12. No woods close enough to us to enjoy, I envy you.

    Nature is a great healer. I love the sound of the birds, the rustling of the trees and the whoosh of waves breaking on the beach. All so relaxing. When I have trouble sleeping I try to imagine these sounds which push out negative thoughts and soon fall asleep.

    Did the washing early this morning, then to the supermarket for necessities, home before 10.30 and straight to the doodle Youtubes, lunch in the gaeden, then 3 way stamping this afternoon. A perfect day!!! Sunny all the way.
    Stay safe everyone 🍒🍒🍒

  13. That sounds like bliss. We saw a swallow resting on the telegraph pole in next door’s garden yesterday and it was chattering away. I’ve never seen one so close and so still -it was beautiful x

  14. I hope you had a lovely walk Barbara and sad that the bike seat was missing, so frustrating, but as you say will be resolved in time. When we go on a walk I always stop to listen to the birds, but why is it you can hear a bird singing loudly in a nearby tree but you can never see it..lol. x

  15. I have these stamps, dies and A4 stencils and I love them. Beautiful designs and love the sayings. I have done the A4 stencils back to front on a gelli plate ready to paper cut. XX

  16. Had a lovely, long, lazy Sunday (a lot of days seem like this at moment though!) in the garden, pottering but mostly reading, even had a few drops of rain but we didn’t move. Had dinner out there to and have only just moved in. Hope you had a lovely walk. See you in the morning x

  17. That view looks lovely. hope you enjoyed the rest of your walk. We have had a lovely day with my Mom, catching up with what I have been doing in the SHAC shack each morning & showing her one of the Facebook clips – I chose Thursday’s with the story about the clogs. She was singing along as soon as the name of the song was mentioned but burst out laughing when you said clothes instead of clogs.
    See you in the morning at 10 to learn which of the postcards we are going to use this week.

  18. That was a shame missing a part of your Dad’s bike, a very important part too. All sent to try us Barb. Glad you had a lovely woodland walk listening to the birds. Hat a beautiful view. No woods round here anymore, used to be lots when I was a child. We usually walk around a fairly local park just to get some exercise. Hope you enjoyed your Sunday and made time to relax. Looking forward to tomorrows colouring see you at 10.xxx

  19. Hi Barb,
    Hope you enjoyed your walk through the woods. I love nature and am lucky enough to live in the countryside. I enjoy watching the rabbits playing in the field behind us ,just before dusk, they are so funny. Mind you,I’m not so keen on them when they come into the garden and eat all of my plants and leave little deposits all over the lawn! I spent some time watching a sparrow hawk in the garden today which was lovely. I have these dies, stamps and stencils and really like them and certainly very apt for the current times. Sorry to hear about your Dad’s bike, that would have been painful! A case of ‘they don’t like it up them!’ Hope it gets sorted soon. Love and hugs,Alison xxx

  20. Hi Barbara
    At the beginning of lockdown I made over 30 of these Dies very simple cut into cardblanks and backed with designer paper cut from the 12+12 pad, and sent them as a pair to family and friends to record the start and end of lock down and put in a frame so we never forget 2020. They were very gratefully received. Thank you Barbara and Mel.xx

  21. Thank you Barbara, I walk along river with hubby and dogs about once a week. It’s two minutes from our cottage and we usually meet nobody. If we do they are over 2 metres away. The rest of the days I walk the, round our orchard and study the leaves, birds, sheep and enjoy the sounds. Some days I can and others my head is too busy worrying. I wonder if it will ever be safe to go out and about. Then I come back in and go to the ShacShack, that settles me and I can breathe again. Stay safe and thanks again

  22. Isn’t it so wonderful Barb. Once you get your ear in. I take my dose of nature from me garden. Love the background buzz of bees and wasps with a blanket of birdsong over the top. Wonderful.

  23. Hi Barb, you live in a beautiful part of the country with views like that and the place to take long walks. Hope you enjoyed it. Love this die set, and you have given me an idea for a card I need to make. So thanks for the Inspiration. Bx

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