The Studio // The Playroom

Earlier this week I sat down and wrote up a bunch of blog posts, on paper, because I'm old school like that and I was outside watching the boys run around (and get stung by bees... true story) and I haven't had the money to replace the laptop that died at the end of last year.
... that's not the point.

The point is that I had all these posts about things that I have been doing over the last few months, as I wanted to at least attempt to bring this blog up to date.

Alas.
The only thing that I really want to talk to you about and show you is my cool new studio.

So everything else just has to wait.


When I wrote up the business plan for The Elm Tree one of the main drives, although it was never stated directly, was to create a work environment for me that would allow me to contribute financially to the household while also allowing me to be with the boys. The boys were the priority.

The move to a studio-based online version of the store was a straight forward decision. On my own I couldn't maintain opening hours, without becoming a somewhat negligent mother, housekeeper, and wife. As it is I am an utter failure at maintaining the tidiness of our house.

So we closed the shop and moved. Now we work from our very own studio/playroom.















Utilizing an old school building pegged for eventual redevelopment, Pop Up Parramatta has crammed the place full of creatives like artist Tam Cao + children's fashion label Museak (aka the very talented Kristal)
I am in good company.

The Elm Tree - Handmade in Australia

Not long before the Samurai was born I decided that I really wanted to set up a business that sold handmade goodies and then taught you how to make things... it seems rather counter productive to teach people to make the things that you are also trying to sell them, but I am standing by my initial business plan.

I have awful timing. Brand new baby + brand new business = stress, and when it came to the 'something's gotta give' point it was naturally the business that gave.
I just couldn't do it on my own.

Enter Katie.
Katie has a lovely daughter the same age as the Samurai.
Her husband is studying full time. (like mine)
She speaks Mandarin after living in Taiwan (like me!)
Best of all, she is in the perfect position to be going into business with me.
BEST of all she is WILLING to go into business with me.

So we have been working our butts off this past month putting our application into the Parramatta Council to be part of the Pop Up Parramatta initiative that places creative enterprises like ours into vacant commercial properties.

We've been meeting with stockists, working out budgets, calling in favours with trades-people we know, re-purposing furniture we pick up from the side of the road, meeting with the bank, taking photos, sourcing materials... and having a lot of facebook chat conferences hahaha.

Half (or 2/3) of the space of the store will be dedicated to selling the work of local artists and designers in a marketplace style set up. All our products will be aimed at children, with a focus on sustainability.

The rest of the space will be used as a classroom where we will teach crafting and art classes for children and adults.
We just want to bring the focus back to the community, to makers and craftspeople and away from the commercialism of big stores.

That's the goal.

If you or anyone you know would like to be part of a shop like this, as a teacher or as a stockist (we sell on consignment - no commission, only rent) please contact us { hello@theelmtree.com.au } 

My Angel Gabriel

Since he could hold a pen/crayon/pencil/paintbrush, I have been doing art with the Angel.

He is a marvellous mess maker, but as far as I could tell he never really enjoyed drawing because he was mostly just scribbling. There is a lot to be said for using quality art materials when working with children... a cheap watercolour set which didn't share colour properly frustrated Gabe to no end, but as soon as I let him use some proper acrylics he wanted to paint every second he could.

Yesterday we sat down and because I had no other pens to hand I let him use sharpies to draw a picture. He drew this:

That's us. Ronin, Gabe, Ky, and me... I'm a cyclops with three eyebrows. Mutant mum. 

I didn't tell him how to draw people, or how many eyes we had to have, though I did remind him that we needed arms and legs - and so we look like potatoes. Which is marvellous.

It was the first time that he actually tried to draw more than just a collection of shapes. Since then he's been an unstoppable drawing machine and I am super happy about it, because it means when we turn the TV off, he has more to do than making a mess with playdoh (so much mess!)

Today he drew monsters.

 

 Such a cheesy guy.

It is wonderfully rewarding to see him enjoying art, I think all children like to make things and be creative and use their imaginations when given the opportunity.
I am working on a business plan to open up a shop where we will do just that. Give children (and grown ups) the opportunity and materials to get creative.
I am very excited.

On the visibility of pain

On Thursday night the angel (behaving very unangelic) was holding a mug and in his goat like climbing all over the counters in the kitchen, he fell. The mug smashed in his hand and left him with small cut.

He cried and cried when he saw the blood. I washed it off, and put some gauze on it. Taped it up and then I cut the toe out of a baby sock, made a thumb hole and pulled it over his hand so he couldn't see any of it anymore.

The next day it was a clean pink line of sealed over skin. But taking the gauze off prompted another round of wailing. He cried and cried until a plaster was stuck over it and the sock replaced. For the record, he dropped a framed picture and wooden bowl on his head later in the weekend and has some nice big bumps and a scratch on his forehead that looks nastier than the healed cut on his hand, but we didn't even need to do anything about those but give him a kiss. Why? because he can't see them!

I thought I was some kind of parenting genius until I realised that the sock had become a problem in and of itself.

 

He wore that sock all weekend until I made him take it off to have a proper bath. (He cried again)

Our hurts change as we get older, but I think we still do this. Cry over our nothings just because we can see them. Maybe there is some deep meaning there, but mostly this is a lesson to me. About making sure that my first aid kit is always present and prepared, because I am the mother of my own children - and that means that they are going to be naturally accident prone for most of their lives and combined with Kyle's adventurous daring that equals constantly bruised legs, arms and skulls.

I have been interstate visiting family, and now I have a cold, but I do have some art coming so this blog will get back to business soon - with less of my general ramblings and more of my arty ramblings - promise. 

Happy mother's day!

I realised while I was painting Lisa and four of her five Kings that I had featured mothers of boys. Maybe this was some kind of subliminal bias as I have two children and they are both boys - but I did invite other mums who have daughters to be a part of this conversation about motherhood.

I have had a wonderful time learning more about the beautiful women who have shared their stories with me (with all of us) and if you missed any of them, check them out:

Lisa
Caley
Jess
Kesh

I love my mum. She has been firmly on my side throughout my life (despite the foolish choices that I may have made), and I have never doubted that she loved me.
I hope that my boys will always know that I love them too. Even when my hair is falling out (by the handful) and I am airing out a wet bed (again) or doing any of the less than glamorous jobs that come with being a mum... it will all help me to love and appreciate my own mum more.

Thank you for inspiring and uplifting me with your examples and encouragement (not judgement or comparison.)

Happy Mother's Day ladies :)

Lisa {Mother of Kings}

I think that as mothers and as women generally we are guilty of comparing ourselves and our children to one another in a competitive and non-constructive way. Collecting out experiences in an open and non-judgemental way could be so beneficial.

I have two sons. Sometimes I am at a complete loss when it comes to what I need to do in order to help them to become men of principle... and happy ones at that.
Lisa's attitude of making moments count, and not counting moments is inspiring to me and reminds me to be grateful for the goodness of life.

You can read more about her household of Kings on her blog.

Something that I have learnt over the last twelve years is that life can change in an instant. In 1995 I married my best friend Aaron, and four years later our eldest son Jalen was born.

Almost twelve years ago my life changed in an instant, when our second eldest son Noah, was diagnosed with a condition called hydranencephaly at nine weeks old. The short version is that he was missing most of his brain because he suffered a stroke while I was pregnant with him. We were told that he probably wouldn’t live longer than four years old and we left hospital with our beautiful baby, who we now knew was severely physically and mentally disabled.

Aaron and I were blessed with four beautiful boys. Our sons Harri and Kobe were born after Noah and they reminded us that life is awesome, as they brought a lot of joy back into our family. I love being a Mum and life was hard at times, but also wonderful.

As a Mum I feel like it’s my responsibility to teach my boys, but Noah taught me more than I could ever teach him. He taught us to appreciate every single day. He taught us that it really is the little things in life that are the most important. He taught us that our family is the biggest blessing that we have, and that we needed to make the most of the time we had together, because you never know when it’s going to be taken away.

A lot of people say that being a Mum is the hardest but best job you can do, and I totally agree. Noah needed full time care and had a lot of health issues, and life was far from what I had imagined it to be, but the blessings of having such a special spirit in our home, far outweighed anything else.
Our life once again changed in an instant, when we sat around Noah’s bedside in the Intensive Care Unit as a family and say goodbye to him. It was just three months after his tenth birthday and his body shut down after years of illnesses and he passed away.

Our hearts broke that day and we had to adjust to life without our beautiful son. My heart was far from being healed when just three and a half months later my husband Aaron suffered a massive heart attack right in front of me and my boys, and passed away.

It has now been nineteen months since Noah passed away and sixteen months since Aaron passed away, and I’m still don’t really believe that this is my life. I’m now a single Mum raising my three boys on earth on my own. It’s so hard to be grieving for Noah and Aaron at the same time. It’s so hard to be grieving myself, but having to help my boys through their own trauma and grief.

I am grateful every day for my three boys, as they are what keep me going every day. We are learning together to find the good in life. We cry together often, but we also laugh together still. I’m grateful for Noah who taught us to make the most of every day, and I’m trying to remember that now and to teach my boys that as well.

Our days feel empty without our whole family here, but together we are trying to focus on our blessings, and our biggest blessing is that we know that we will be together as a whole family one day.

*

Caley + Ike {Mother's Day}

I used to see Caley at church events and we had friends in common, but I never really knew her. She's a total babe though - yeah I was checking her out...

She's still pretty of course, and together with her husband has produced a gorgeous little boy who fills up my instagram feed with his dark eyes and smiles. 

You can follow Caley on her blog.

Before Motherhood, I only knew what it was like to have the love of a little dog.

This dog was the love of my life (and still is) however it is amazing how much the heart grows and allows room for another type of love. The love of a child. Not just any child, your own child. A child who has your humour, eye shape, little hands and even the same eye brow raised movement when he's looking at you, the same way you look at them.

You share the same kind of love for each other, for the other man in both of your lives, their dad, your husband and together you all complete a role on what makes a woman, a Mother.

The most important role in the world. I say this because I've had many roles. I've been the daughter, I've been the friend, I've been the Aunty with no kids, I've been the career maniac, the Wife but this role tops all roles combined, the role of a Mother. It has opened my eyes into a different world, not just in my own world but looking out from it. I see things from a different perspective, a different emotion, a different fear, a different ball of emotions all wrapped up because of one cute little bundle.
I understand my Mother so much more. I appreciate her so much more. I understand the hardships Single Mother's go through and the joy that their little ones would bring to their worldly experiences that have been tipped upside down. I understand the loss of ones that have not been able to experience Motherhood, an emotion I could never truly understand until I became a Mother and how heartbreaking it is to love something that does not yet exist. Motherhood completes me, it completes our family, immediate and extended. It's my little place in the world which is home for me. Home is where Mum is. Always has and always will be for me.

My own Mother was the most perfect example for me to learn from without even realising I was learning from her. Subliminal Mothering at it's finest. Thank you Mum.

Happy Mother's Day to all.

*

Kesh + Roo {Roo's morning}

Mother's Day, like every other holiday currently celebrated by society is in terrible danger of being turned into one giant marketing campaign, whether it has already is only a matter of perspective really. 

Thankfully my mother doesn't equate the amount of money I spend on her to the magnitude of my love for her. Otherwise this would be fairly disastrous as I give her art pretty much every year. In fact mothers day is one of the reasons I bother levelling up my craft skills. 

Two years ago, on my first mother's day as a mother, I invited some friends who had children to share some thoughts on motherhood. You can read what they wrote here. 

This year I have done something similar, only I drew people instead of getting photos of them. 

Today the boys managed to sleep for a collection of hours (AT THE SAME TIME) so I had time to get some drawings done. The scanner is at my sisters house, so photos taken with my phone will have to do. I have to make it very clear that these illustrations may deviate a little (or a lot) from what people really look like. In real life Kesh is far more beautiful than my scratchings make her out to be, and her son Roo is a very jovial and happy looking fellow. (For proof of both of these things check out her blog)

In fact  its not just Kesh's face that is beautiful, but her whole attitude is beautiful and joyful. Especially when it comes to being a mum. 

 

Roo wakes with the first signs of the sun. He calls out for me, I go to him. He is standing, reaching for me. I hold him in my arms and he sleepily snuggles in. I bring him with me to our big, warm bed, then breastfeed him in our sheets. I struggle to keep my eyes open. He grabs my nose and pushes my face. This keeps me awake. He finishes one side, sits up on my lap and baby-talks happily to me. Once the other side is done, he finds his Dadda next to me and wakes him too. Pulling hair, grabbing noses, hitting cheeks.
We are awake.
He has our attention.


Dadda and Roo snuggle and roll around on the bed while I watch and laugh. In awe that they are mine. He crawls between us making faces, raised eyebrows, crazy smiles. He’s animated. He machine gun laughs at us and then rests his head on my chest for a three second cuddle.
The day has started.


We drive to the beach to watch Dadda swim. Roo crawls after the seagulls. Dadda calls out to Roo mid-stroke, Roo laughs and squeals with excitement. He knows his Dad. Roo races for the water. He wants to swim but the water is fresh.
He doesn’t mind.
He loves the cold.


We come home. Breakfast. Vegemite all over his face. Toys on the floor. We pray, grateful for a new day. Back to bed for Roo.
This is our morning.
We are happy.

*

Kesh Coulson