Embracing Winter's White Space
Whew! The ice storm was a drag! I hope you all fared well. The studio lost power for a couple of days and as I write this we are hoping that we don't have any burst pipes like so many people do. I was able to work from home, thankfully.
This whole thing actually ties in nicely with what I've been thinking about a lot lately which is the phrase "white space". I consider January and February to be the white space between the craze of the holidays and the excitement of Spring. In design, white space provides a visual rest between elements which gives the eye an opportunity to rest and appreciate the detail.
I think that parallels nicely with this time of year. This is the time of year where we get the opportunity to be pretty much a bump on a log. It's good for us! It's hard though, isn't it? We all get bombarded with weight loss pressures, organizing pressures, resolution pressures. Ugh! Enough!
I came across this quote from "The Wind in the Willows" children's book (such a great one!) and it is perfect:
There you go! You've been given permission! That being said, being cooped up this week has been really hard! Ha! I just want to go on walks and breathe fresh air like we did when we were in Massachusetts over Christmas. We got out as much as we could in the cold, crisp air. The beach is an entirely different experience this time of year. Here are a few pics of walking at Ned's Point in Mattapoisett, on Buzzards Bay:
So, if you want to get outside and be creative and productive (all so good for you in a non-pressure kind of way 😜), I suggest bringing in some greenery to freshen up your home. For example, while I was in Mattapoisett I had picked up some lilies and baby's breath at the grocery store and then I went out and foraged for all of the other elements.
It was nice to just wander around without any time constraint at all. I was alone, it was cold and breezy which I love and I didn't really know how this was all going to come together, but it did.
When I came in...
I turned music on, poured a glass of wine and just let it all flow. It made my mother-in-law really happy, which isn't the easiest thing in the world to do — so it was a win all around! Either bring in what you have around you, even just branches can be cool, or supplement some flowers you pick up from the store. Bringing the outside in and giving yourself the gift of something pretty to enjoy is a nice little treat.
So take the pressure off of yourself. Ignore the external messaging to go, go, go. Take this time to be quiet and calm. Spring, in all of its fresh gloriousness, will be here before you know it. I, for one, am doing my level best to just be. I'd love to hear how you enjoy Winter. What do you do?
And, before I go, we are going to be in Portrait Magazine next month so keep an eye out for that! Additionally, I will be on a couple of Podcasts too! I love listening to them and being interviewed on them is really fun!
The first one is already out and is called "Home Space & Reason" by Kristina Browning, a local realtor and all-around amazing woman. Give our episode a listen and make sure to check out the rest of her podcast, it's really, really good!
I have a couple of other podcasts I've already been on, if you're interested in listening. One is called “All Shine, No Flash" by my now friend (we didn't know each other before) Ann Smith. She talks to all kinds of local (and beyond) business owners and leaders and it's also really interesting if you're looking for a new podcast.
The other podcast only has a few episodes and it was by a long time friend of mine who was just curious about how spaces can help you to feel better, so it was more of a thought experiment by her. It's called "The Lavender Room" by Cheryl Janis. She's one of those spooky (in the best way) friends who calls me when I'm in a tough head space and somehow, from Montana, she knows!
The lights are flickering on this last (hopefully) day of this ice storm so I should wrap it up!
'Til Next Time — Arlene