I’m coming to you this month from my keyboard as I have come down with the most awful cough, the type that leaves you with red eyes and hurting ribs and the inability to string a sentence together, and no one wants to see that on a video!

This month has been busy, as per usual! I actually went through my diary at the beginning of the month to make some space for a couple of things I wanted to do. One of them was my swimming, which of course I haven’t been able to do as much of due to the dratted cough, and the other was time for writing my book.

My Book

Some of you will know I’m writing a book. It’s not an art book as such, but a book about how I have got to where I am now, founder of a successful art business, living a peaceful life doing what I want to do. I’m working with my amazing coach, Susie Pearl, and we are hoping to find an agent and publisher for my book, How To Be It.

I’m finding it really cathartic writing about all the things I’ve done over the last six years, and how I’ve found myself again, from being the doormat wife to becoming a successful business owner, all from my own hard work. I’m finding lots of memories from childhood are popping up as well.

New Team Member and Studio

We have a new face in the team! Lovely Amy has joined us as Marketing Assistant and is being trained up on all things funnels and pipelines. Amy has been with us for a couple of weeks and has settled in really well. She loves dogs which is of course a requirement and part of her job description!

Lucy and Amy now work in the amazing new studio at the bottom of my now lovely garden, only took me 17 years to get it to a lovely state. My studio was a bit of a pipe dream I have to say, people kept saying “ooh have a garden studio” and I always thought yes that would be nice, but never really thought it would be a reality. It was on my dream board though…

Well it was finished at the beginning of November, has the most amazing views, a gorgeous panoramic window overlooking the fields and is so toasty warm, which is particularly nice in the awful, miserable, misty weather we’re having in Yorkshire at the moment.

My Studio Life

I’ve completed a couple of really lovely commissions this month, I do put my heart and soul into everything I do and each piece that comes off my drawing board tends to be my new favourite. I’ve got a lovely old black and white cat called Toulouse currently taking pride of place, he’s larger than life size so I’m able to pack a lot of details in.

Dora is continuing to fit into family and studio life really well. She and Nelly are firm friends, and Slipper and Vinnie are being a little more tolerant. What’s good is she isn’t phased by them jumping around her. She definitely thinks she’s the same size as they are, she’s now a whole 5kg!

The New Year

I’ve got some exciting things happening in the new year, an amazing new tutorial that I’ll be starting around the middle of December which I cannot wait to get cracking with! Think North American wildlife, as well as the chocolate Labrador puppy I’ll be starting very soon.

We’re also counting down to the Academy opening it’s doors again in early January. There are a lot of excited people waiting to join me, and I’ve got some live sessions booked in the next few weeks as well. So if you fancy joining me, and all the other excited people, on those live sessions, make sure you sign up here, so we can send you all the information you need.

As always, thank you so much for your continued support it really does mean the world to me, and don’t forget to listen to my podcast which comes out every Monday. There are some fabulous people I have been chatting to, some names you will know and some who you might not, but you will fall in love with!

You can find my podcast episodes here.

For now though, I’m off to fill my cup with more honey and lemon (and a little brandy).