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Confidence Found at Last. Thank you.

If someone had told me two years ago that I had talent and made lovely things my response would have been, “ Ahh sure it’s not that good.” or “It’s easy. Anyone could do it.” It's called The Imposter Syndrome.  Having pride in my work and accepting compliments is something that has taken me years to come to terms with; to say “Thank you.” instead of feeling embarrassed and wanting to hide. I’ve always painted, but it was never a career option at school. Get an office job. Get a public relations job. Earn a steady wage. So painting remained my hobby.  Painting is good for the soul. It helps organise thoughts, zone out, relax and ease worries. I highly...

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Christmas at Les Papillons

Merry Christmas! Pets are the heart of many homes and in preparation for this Christmas I've been painting pet portraits, on brooches and necklaces, to be opened tomorrow morning. The first wearable portrait I painted was Ginger. He is our splendid cat. He doesn't bite. He doesn't scratch. He adores snuggles and he helps keep the rodent population in check. A decade ago Adam had a poem writing task set for homework, so we decided to make our new kitten the subject to wax lyrical about. "Being a cat is a marvelous thing and my years as a kitten are worth remembering I would pounce from the sofa to a more comfortable chair  and be praised for being marvelous and...

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New Lamp Design.

It was the `1970s when they stopped making wooden spools for ribbons and threads, in favour of much cheaper plastics.  In the 70s there wasn't much thought put into polluting. Growing up in Northern Ireland during that time was about entertaining yourself. I loved to play with my Grans' Singer sowing machine. She had three in the house. I'm not sure why. They were riddled with woodworm, but they still worked and I used to sew rags together to dress the (wooden) peg and spool dolls. These memories are where the idea for the lamp bases came from. I spent my childhood playing with dogs, looking for horses and riding motor bikes. My first was when I was 10. It was...

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