Precious things.

'I should like to bury something precious in every place where I've been happy and then,

 when I'm old and ugly and miserable,

 I could come back and dig it up and remember.'

 EVELYN WAUGH 

To bury precious things is a concept I've had a lot of time to think about lately. With life comes inevitable loss and sometimes the need bury some things we love when it's time to say goodbye. A memory, a love, a word, a promise, a smell, a treasure. 

I am packing up the tiny house I have called home for the past 3 years. Here in this house, I've spent so many nights shivering in the cold, rugged up in bed, pleading for the light of morning. I've washed countless dishes. Cooked for the people I love. Discovered my love of gardening. Reignited my passion for painting. Set up & taken down my easel over & over again. Broken my favourite bowl. Cooked porridge in my pj's & roasted veggies from my backyard. Fallen in love. Sat on the couch peering into the dark, the silence humming while I nurse a broken heart. 

To leave all of that, to wrap & box up all that I own, each object with it's own quiet memory attached, is something I am ready to do. But the preparation to do so doesn't come without moments of unexplainable sadness. A gentle grief that I can't describe or perhaps justify to anyone. This tiny place has housed some of the biggest moments in my life so far & although it is just bricks & mortar, a roof & walls (albeit damp ones!) I feel as though I will be both literally & metaphorically closing the door on a vast chapter & stepping into some unknown territory. 

Don't get me wrong - I am SO excited for this new adventure & the idea of sharing my living space with other people has, over time, become a lot less scary to me. I am looking forward to the sound of floorboards creaking under someone else's feet as they pad back & forwards to the kitchen. To the distant voices of telly in another room & the smell of whatever they're cooking for tea reminding me that it's time to put the paintbrush down & resume a normal eating routine ;) The house I'm moving to has already been a part of my life & I love it very much. There is light & air & high ceilings & a giant garden that I am so thrilled to be able to potter in. I can finally have a big loved-up veggie patch & the best thing? My very own studio. I cannot describe the joy in my tummy whenever I think of that! Does everyone get that excited about a space to make artsy mess in? I feel like I've won the lottery. 

This is the first change, that I've consciously made, in a long time that I am extremely positive about. But thank you for allowing me a little space to confess the sorrow that comes with saying goodbye. 

Here are some things that have been precious to me in the the last couple of weeks.

Nanny's bulbs that appear in all their sunset coloured glory each year in May. Seeing that first flash of orange bobbing around beneath the wattle tree is almost like being hugged by her again.

New potty babies that have gone to new homes to be loved & hopefully house little planty creature.

Hand written mail & knowing that someone's trip to the letterbox might make them smile.

Laughing & laughing with my incredible big sister.

Lunch with Mumma bear for Mothers day. Feeling blessed to the tips of my toes to be able to sit beside her. She's always warm, my Mum.

Bleary-eyed, early morning trips to the market with a dear friend, armed with coffee & coins & the hope of discovering junk & treasures. 

Painting into the early morning hours, listening to this & needing to drag the heater out so that things will dry. 

Gorgeous gardens, flowers bowing their heads in the wind. Winter turning everything green & learning to feel better about the cold.

Witnessing my little brother achieve something I am so indescribably proud of. Wanting to wrap him up & protect his big beautiful beating heart but knowing he is brave & that, sometimes, we just have to trust. Trust the patterns, trust the hopefulness in our hearts, trust that goodness prevails & that even though we sometimes need to bury precious things, we might just dig it up & remember again. One day. 

xx

Finders Keepers

Dearie me, I've got a cold. So I've decided to be dramatic about it. Tonight I've turned my bed into a nest of recuperation, complete with soup, tissues, a new interiors magazine & I'm even watching trash telly. I feel pretty lousy & what better way to cheer myself up than settle in my bedly nest and update my blog.
I was the luckiest girl on the weekend, with the chance to go to Melbourne for the Finders Keepers Art & Design Market. It's an event I've been longing to attend for ages & who better to share it with than my beautiful Mum & Dad. I even got the chance to see my gorgeous bestie there!
The turn out was UNREAL & the atmosphere was excitement + + + Inspiration & creativity positively hummed in the air & the stalls were jam packed with beautiful bits n pieces that were a delight to peruse. After visiting the market both on Friday night & Saturday afternoon, I was able to spend the rest of the weekend eating, laughing, thrifting & exploring my favourite city with Mama & Papa bear. I am proud to say they celebrated their 30th wedding anniversary last week & I felt SO blessed to be able to share such an incredible weekend with them. I promise not to waffle on about how much I love them TOO much on here but if only I knew how to express just how much their unfailing support & encouragement means to me. They have NEVER demanded I be anything other than myself and I'm sure you'd agree that often those people are few & far between. This year I've been a little bit lost but they always manage to make me feel anything but. And we laugh so much! It's like medicine for the heart.
OK, here are the pictures of my wonderful weekend away. ENJOY!

I quite fell in love with Kinfolk, a GORGEOUS volunteer run cafe on Bourke Street. A blissful haven amidst the Melbsy madness! Their profits go to 4 incredibly worthy charities which only adds to it's charm & loveliness. I had brekky at Kinfolk when I first arrived on Friday morning & was so happy to be there, I couldn't wipe the grin off my face!

The birds & books topped it off! I could've stayed all day!

Just the sweetest place. Please go if you get the chance?

This little beauty kept me going all day! After a 4am start, I definitely needed it.

I took 2 photos at Finders Keepers... t w o!! I got so caught up in the excitement of it all, I failed in the picture-taking department. But at least I know I saw it all with my eyes & tried to soak in as much inspiration as I could. I was red-faced & hyperactive by the time we went to dinner Friday night. We followed it up with delicious pasta on Lygon street & talking late into the night. Check out the Beattie Lanser blog. It's just as gorgeous as her stall. What an inspiring lady.

Check these beauties out?! Aren't they just the coolest thing you've ever seen?! I would love to have taken one home with me! The idea of upcycling is so exciting & this takes the cake. They are called Jukecases & you can find out more here.

Leave Finders Keepers.... find a crocheted tree. Brilliant. Life was smiling on me this day :)

The beautiful Carlton Gardens. How many times have I strolled through this very spot at very different stages in my life? It is nice to look back & realise you feel healthier about lots of things as you grow.

May I introduce you to possibly THE funkiest cafe I have ever had the pleasure of slurping in!! It's in Fitzroy & it's called Sonido! There was a waiting list just to sit & have a coffee!! We were lucky enough to grab a spot pretty much straight after stumbling across it. The staff were as eccentric as the decor & it was a paradise of eclectic wonder. The walls were covered in bits & bobs, the coffee machine was a brilliant green aqua, complete with toucan statue, the chairs didn't match & the menus were made from old record covers. We had Columbian hot choccies, the most delicious limeade.. ever! and shared a raspberry brownie that almost had me licking the plate. Looking at my funny little photos, I can almost feel the atmosphere, hear the music & remember how deliriously content I felt being in there. They have a website :)

That yellow door... perfection!

Our happy little table :)

one of my many new planty obsessions - succulents in tins. About to get stuck into making some myself!

The Paperback on Bourke Street. A fantastic little booky hideaway, often open til late in the night. Books aren't going anywhere, my friends. We need to keep places like this alive!

One of Melbourne's many laneway coffee shops. Breakfast time here is chaos but the coffee is quick & creamy & you cannot help but be swept up in the excitement of it all.

A Melbourne icon :)

Everywhere you look, there is something worth stopping for just so you can take it in. These windowsill pots caught my attention. I can only imagine how stunning it looks inside!

A pot graveyard that made me want to weep!!! If only I could have smuggled every single one of these home with me on the plane?! I managed to buy 3 tiny ones that would travel home safely. Camberwell markets are still my very favourite. It was awesome being able to introduce them to Mum & Dad who loved them as much as me!

The pots that took the plane ride with me & some vintage material scraps that I can't wait to get stuck into!

Some things that happened during my weekend adventure

1. I watched the sunrise & felt so so alive
2. I met some amazing arty creatures who reminded me that if making lovely things is what matters most in our hearts, we have to make sacrifices & break some rules of convention to make it happen.
3. I realised it's never too late. For anything.
4. My heart swelled to the size of a watermelon.


xx Jessie Lee.