the analog beauty ethos

“Colours are beginning to imagine how they will return. Then, imperceptibly, somewhere one bud opens and the symphony of renewal is no longer reversible. From the black heart of winter a miraculous, breathing plenitude of colour emerges.”

- John O’Donohue -

Analog everything seems to be having a very trendy moment, maybe you've noticed, too? As I share these thoughts with you on the internet! It feels more challenging than ever to balance the need to stay in touch across the various facets of our lives with the necessity of rest for our brains and nervous systems. We aren't meant to move as fast as we feel like we must and to spend so much time in virtual worlds. And it does appear that some collective recognition of that truth is emerging. Perhaps it's not about leaving the digital world entirely, but being more intentional about how we engage with it.

 I've long sought to embody a slower ethos at the studio, making simple, honest, handmade products, at a human pace, supporting small farmers and distillers who also do their work on that scale, supplying me with real raw materials, directly from the earth. Analog beauty isn't a trend here, it's been the core of my philosophy from the beginning.

Your support for work made by hand, with integrity & intention, matters more than ever in these times of profound disconnection. A scent, a quiet moment of care, a ritual. A return to the senses. Bit by bit, we re-connect with ourselves, with each other, with the earth. We make space to imagine and act to bring about a kinder world.

I've just blended a very small batch of a special limited-edition tea for this season. A luxurious jasmine green tea with a hint of citrus, each tiny ribbon of pomelo rind cut by hand and air-dried, and the tea itself grown & hand-processed in Yunnan according to centuries of tradition. Something for the very earliest days of spring.

and now a few bits and pieces:

listening:

to Land by Liz Hanks, Maxine Pennington's playlists for Radio Alhara and Akofa Akoussah. Also to the new Immanuel Wilkins album, alongside Ahmad Kaabour in light of his recent passing, Billie Holiday in honor of her birthday on April 7th. and to a piece composed for cello and flowerpots

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reading: 

one last meditation on the winter garden, as I start my first seeds of the spring garden indoors. and Index Cards on Listening as Gardening and Gardening-as-Listening, from the Bureau for Listening. Plus, wildflower meditations and adding this related book to my list. and also: cooking with flowers

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admiring: 

this beautiful series of images by Chilean artist Piedad Aguirre and the making of Rachel Dein's bas relief snowdrop impressions. Also: falling cherry blossoms,this great resource for creating gardens with native plants from Pollinate Hudson Valley, this poem and a love letter to the endangered irises of the Levant (a quick summary here and the full article here)

above from top left:

nearly ready to move my amaryllis collection to their summer home around the corner on a shelf, and to take the lemon verbena back to the garden, after the winter indoors

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sent this very magical vintage piece to a new home recently. find yours here…

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this particular angle of the light returns

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our current vintage tea strainer selection, so good at the moment!

above:

this little treasure was not easy to let go of, but I thought that the choice of filling it with our forest botanical perfume was an inspired one.

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our spring skincare sampler. everything you need for a simple & nourishing ritual.

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this season in the magic cabinet

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our new limited-edition tea blend

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below:

preparing this spring’s batch of our preserved cherry blossoms, a beloved ritual.

&

fresh vintage to celebrate peony season

"Spring comes quickly: 

overnight the plum tree blossoms, 

the warm air fills with bird calls."

- Louise Glück -

from Primavera in “Poems 1962-2012”

The garden has kept me very busy this spring, growing more plants from seed than ever. So much to observe, to tend, to learn. Grateful to be in the midst of it all.

Until next time,

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more spring things

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