Mindful Thoughts For Makers

Mindful Thoughts for Makers explores how the making process can be used as a tool for meditation, and not just a means to an end. Part of the Mindful Thoughts series, this lovingly illustrated little book muses on all aspects of making, including: Motivation Experimenting Making mistakes Monotony Perfectionism The making community The environment . . . and many more Making can be much more than a business or hobby, it can be a spiritually enriching activity, slowing us down, and connecting our hands to our heart. Textile artist Ellie Beck reveals, through 25 focused reflections, why creating with our hands is uplifting, rewarding, and soothing for the mind, body, and soul. This book offers meaningful insights to all makers from artists and bakers to tailors and woodworkers—the list is endless. If you like this, you might also be interested in Mindful Thoughts for Cooks . . .

Lose yourself in the creative process with 35 meditative makes. In today’s busy world, it can be difficult to find time to slow down and make time for the simple joy of making, so Clare Youngs has designed a wide range of beautiful and tempting projects to help you experience the pleasure and satisfaction that making something with your own hands can bring. The best thing about practicing mindfulness through craft is that you have something tangible to show at the end, and you can start small with the coral reef-inspired embroidery hoops, or just by making pompoms and tassels to be added to the edge of a pillow or blanket. You can learn techniques such as block printing, punch needling, shibori dyeing, weaving, macramé, and quilting, all of which encourage a mindful approach, and a way to experience a feeling of “flow”. Make unique things for yourself and your home, using natural materials such as wool, cotton, linen, and leather. Clare is a believer in making new things from old, using what you have, and adapting old fabrics to counteract a throwaway society, and all her designs have a Scandinavian-inspired, modern esthetic.

"Mindfulness is about being truly present and fully engaged with whatever we're doing at that moment, anchoring ourselves in the present. We aim to be aware of our thoughts and feelings without getting caught up in them, letting go of distraction and judgement. We usually focus on the past or the future, but with mindfulness, we pay attention to what is around us, things that we would normally take for granted. So why not put some focus on your home environment? The layout, ambiance, and decor in your home can offer a perfect complement to the sense of wellness that mindfulness creates. It is our home, after all. This book contains 25 thoughts that let you use mindfulness to improve your living space, from decorating and cleaning to how to harness the light during the day and sleep more comfortably at night."--Provided by publisher.

Apart from the sheer enjoyment of using our hands to create something new, crafting helps us to connect with who we are. Mindful Crafting explores our relationship with our creativity and self-expression, and reveals how the act of making is the beautiful epitome of conscious living. Sarah Samuel casts fresh light on how the basic human need to create is often forgotten as mass-consumerism grows, and how we can all still find our unique path, craft and our own means of individual, joyful self-expression. Through personal anecdote and expert insight, this book unearths the true value of craft, and how we can meet our soul’s yearning to be creative and open ourselves up to infinite possibilities.

Explore how crafting and mindfulness come together to soothe our mind, body and soul. Apart from the sheer enjoyment of using our hands to create something new, crafting helps us to connect with who we are. From the comfort of our own home we can be in the moment with our materials and our mind. Through focused meditations, personal anecdote and expert insight, Mindful Craftingunearths the true value of craft, and how we can meet our soul’s yearning to be creative and open ourselves up to infinite possibilities. For all crafters - whether you’re a potter or a painter, practise needlework, woodwork or jewellery-making – this book will support and encourage you wherever your crafting journey takes you. Sarah Samuel looks at the steps you might encounter, including finding space and structure, changing direction, and common obstacles like creative block and lack of time, and shares the mindful practices that will see you through. If you like this, you might be interested in Mindful Thoughts for Makers. . .

Making with our hands taps into our innate creativity, and is uplifting, nourishing, and soothing for the mind, body, and soul. Mindful Thoughts for Artists is a lovingly crafted book of reflections on the joy of making and the journey of self-discovery it can take us on. Appealing to all artists, this curated collection of 25 reflections encourages creators to live in the moment, to observe the beauty in everything, and above all, to ensure that the creative process is driven by love and enjoyment.

Footnotes on the Zen path.

Journey through a magical woodland, with poems to read and things to find My woodland’s full of animals, of every different kind. So shall we stay here for a while and see what we can find? Experience the everyday wonder of nature in this first book of poetry, exploring a magical woodland year. With poems by acclaimed writer Rachel Piercey, join Bear on his journey from spring to winter with lots of friends to meet, places to explore, and things to spot along the way.