Not all heroes wear capes, but most of them carry a functionally stylish, infinitely serviceable bag. From James Herriot to Mary Poppins, there is a certain workaday grace in keeping exactly what you need close to hand. While our daily adventures might not (always) call for birthing a foal or pulling a floor lamp out of our purse, the same powerful magic applies.
From youthful forays into dipping our Mother's old bridesmaids dresses into a washing machine full of RIT to more recent experiments with grown-up-feeling shibori tie-dyes, we have always had a long fascination with the transformative power of dye. When we met Minneapolis-based botanist and artist Libby London we knew we had found a kindred spirit.
Have you ever wished that you could wake up in an English farmhouse, sprigs of heather and primroses in a vase on the bedside and the smell of fresh-baked cardamom scones and just-brewed tea wafting up through the perfectly weathered old floorboards? Sigh. Us too. Luckily, until our "dreamhouse in the Cotswolds" becomes a reality, we've got just the thing for bringing some of those beautiful English countryside vibes into our everyday: John Julian's exquisitely crafted porcelain.
Every gardener has her favorite tool (Lillian gravitates towards the spade, Susannah the hand-mattock), and when we stop and think...why? It all comes down to the feeling that you get when you pick it up.
There are infinite things worthy of celebration. The usual big ones: birthdays, anniversaries, grand accomplishments, particularly excellent Wednesdays...but also smaller triumphs: the explosion of flowers in the meadow, the discovery (or re-confirmation) of the existence of fairies et al viz. the presence of fireflies, the first snow, cake, Ruby...Ruby eating cake.