Beautiful change

"the curious paradox is

that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change."

-from Energy Medicine by Donna Eden

loving pictures of hanging dresses. When I was more than a little larger, I hung the prettiest dresses in my prettiest size on my bedroom curtain rails- just because I loved them so much. I couldn't wear them, but I loved to see them, and they were the last thing I saw going to sleep at night, and the first thing when I woke up. Here's the bit that made the magic - ie. the fitting into them again! work- everytime I saw them I got so excited at the moment when I'd look beautiful in them once again. That moment was so powerful and positive, the journey to getting there just melted away...

Do you need to hang a pretty dress somewhere, too?

pics from Country Style and From the Right Bank to the Left Coast

The Loving Home

"The homes we occupy are seldom ideal. A space that satisfies our basic needs may nonetheless leave us wanting where location, décor, or style are concerned. Yet every home has the potential to be beautiful.

When we fill our homes with love, we transcend worldly factors such as market value and design. Our conscious, loving intentions can literally transform the spaces in which we live, dispelling any lingering unharmonious energy and replacing it with an ethereal beauty that is felt rather than seen. Our homes become spiritual dwellings that feel soulful and alive. Regardless of their outward appearances, they radiate love, making all who enter, including ourselves, feel instantly welcome.

Turning a space into the beautiful outward expression of your inner warmth is as easy as projecting love into it. When your intentions are sincere, you can infuse the walls of your home with your energy, your emotional sensitivity, and your generosity of spirit, turning it into a haven of affection, joy, laughter, and togetherness. It is up to you, whether you want your personal spaces to be peaceful and quiet or lively and inspiring.

Begin by cultivating awareness within yourself. This will allow you to see your home as an integral part of your existence rather than somewhere you simply return to at the end of each day. Consider how you relate to each element of your space, and remind yourself that every room in your home can serve a purpose in your life and the lives of your loved ones. Finally, lovingly thank each room for providing for your needs. As you become more mindful of the manner in which your home contributes to your well-being, you will discover that, more and more, you want to love and be loved by it.

Appearance and other superficial qualities can be deceiving. An aesthetically beautiful home can prove unwelcoming. And a home that seems mundane in every characteristic can be as comforting and cozy as a beloved relative or friend. When you nurture and care for your home as if it were a loved one, it will absorb your tender intentions and project a love so touching you will soon come to feel a great affection for it."

-beautiful truth from DailyOM

pic from livingetc.com

Wonderful ways with cork

Earth hour got me wanting to think of new ways to reduce, reuse, recycle.

Not so much at the moment, but some times past... like when the nights are long and frosty and the days dull on the Isle, i've really wanted to find some useful way with the wine corks that seem to multiply magically on the kitchen bench...

I read (somewhere) a while ago the cork tree was endangered- have you heard that too? Hence the swap by the industry to those plastic stoppers, and now, screw tops for wine. And then I read that the reduction in the production of real corks had left villages who solely depended on it without income.

And are bottles of wine a responsible choice for our environment in the first place? Perhaps do away with bottles completely; and choose casks made with recycled cardboard. Better yet to only drink bio-organic wine, and refill containers direct from the vineyard. And we shouldn't fly there to refill, or even drive, with the emissions we'll be responsible for. There's only one solution I can see. Let's plant some vines of our own.

While we wait for these to grow, there's still the dilemma of what to do with all these rioja and champagne corks.

Before you suggest i might like to make a hat to keep the flies away like a true Aussie, enjoy these pictures instead...

And if you want more inspiration on how to enhance your eco-style by incorporating cork into your building, you'll enjoy the post here at {this is glamorous}

(The POP! board above is my favourite. what's yours?)

pics from the lovely Terramia

It's the Big Night In... Earth Hour on Saturday

2 days to go! Are you planning a candlelight supper at 8.30pm your local time on Saturday night?

Last year in Qatar we had so many ideas! Things to do in the dark...

Guess what? The beautiful Isle of Man is switching off the lights this year on Saturday night... goes to show we are all loving our earth more and more every year.

See you ;) in the dark on Saturday night!

And see the official video here!

A Deliciously Lucky New Moon

We're going to experience something fresh..

Something delicious...

Something exciting and very memorable

this moon-cycle...

What is something simply wonderful you'll love to see happen in your life in the next fortnight?

Private readings and flying stars

So... how's your luck so far in 2009?

If your reply is "shocking!" then I guarantee you're missing a few remedies to calm and balance your home or workplace flying stars.

You can check here to see what you need, and if you've done it right. I offer them all at this link as a package, so you can order if you so desire. If you'd like more info, please email me and ask for your free Extra Flying Star Special sheet.

Would you like a personalised reading?

Ready, waiting for you...

Feel free to get in touch for a private tarot and intuitive session regarding any issue you are presently experiencing. I am especially writing this for some past feng shui clients. I would love to work with you again and am sure a sunrise on this set of circumstances is soon.

Love and blessings

xxx

Thought to-day

IF you are headed in the right direction... just keep going.

-Buddha said something similar.

Veg on High

Are you vegetarian? Sometimes I am, sometimes not- and we've all had our eight years being meat-free, haven't we?

These past few days I've eaten a veritable jungle of veg. Just can't get enough! Avocadoes, pinenuts and almonds ensure I don't feel light as a feather- but, to be truthful, I'm walking on air! Last time I felt this good was leaving the Four Seasons Doha after a spa day! Bring on the broccolini!

Double Happiness for mums n bubs

If you're a middle-east or UK mummy, happy Mother's Day! I have been wanting to show you this delightful photo for a while now. Isn't this just the sweetest mum n bub picture? And, if you can see them, the bubs t-shirts read "Double Happiness", inspired by feng shui!

Elizabeth Wong, founder and owner of Baby Monkey, the organic children's clothing company in New York who make them, has clear ideas on why feng shui is so good for children. Here are some of her reasons for creating gorgeous feng shui theme apparel for children...

• Feng Shui stimulates and encourages a child's individuality which results in a more positive attitude towards life and allows them to embrace it rather than look at its faults. This can easily be achieved by the color of their room and inspiring decorations.


• Feng Shui gives children security and balance. By simply positioning a child's bed in the correct bedroom location, future health problems and reoccurring ailments are discouraged.


• Respect for parents and a good relationships with others can be achieved with Feng Shui by displaying cheerful pictures of the parents in the children's rooms. This can also lead to the dissipation of any behavioral problems that may have previously occurred.

I once had a client whose bub was a real grizzler without any obvious- or medical- reason. An analysis of the childs four pillars astrology revealed a lack of the element earth. So we made their bed closer to the ground and painted the room a warm buttercup yellow. Also changing the colour of a bubs bed linen from pure white to cream or lemon can settle an insecure child by enhancing the element earth.

Wishing you Double Happiness this mum's day and with your children always!

xxx

Inspiring friends

whenever i feel like a breath of fresh air...

I love to visit A Home Far Away

and,

Echoes from the Universe (if we're lucky, Sky Blue Sky Black by Jackson Browne will be playing while we read...)

Somehow, when you're not up to it yourself, these two blogs have the ability to put an upside-down world straight.

xxx

Gratitude vs. Appreciation

How do you feel about this statement, a thought of the day by Abraham-Hicks?


"Take the worthiness that is yours, and let the "Fairies of the Universe" assist you. Stop taking so much responsibility upon yourself, and live happily ever after.
Shorten that crevasse between where you are and where you want to be, on every subject, to now, now, now, now, now. Ride the wave.

Just pluck the fruit... You don't have to be the one who puts it in the ground any more. You can just skip across the top of things and pluck the fruit of all of the things you want. "Oh, fruit. Oh, delicious this, delicious this, delicious this, delicious this."
In other words, it's all right there for you; it's ready for you to receive it as fast and as soon as you will vibrationally let it in."


A few years ago, this would have me squirming in my seat! "What about those who do put the seeds in the ground?" I would be thinking, "Surely it's not fair if I come and skim the goodness off the top for myself?"


What an example of scarcity mentality! If we open our ears and minds and look for the evidence all around us, life becomes a magnificent, abundant playground provided for the enjoyment of our senses. Relationships become playful, rich, learning, interactive experiences... the creation of our families and career and travel as we go along become magnificent unfolding of what we love best...



It really is so incredibly beautiful, the pattern of life, the energy that weaves it all together, when we get a glimpse of the way we were truly meant, as human beings, to live!







~~~







Sometimes my life is so beautiful I want to cry, and I wonder how I got so lucky. I have a magnificent, generous husband with a career he adores and his own wacky, independent life. I live in the most beautiful places on earth and can drink, eat, think about, and spend my time any way I like. Counting my blessings, I walk the tightrope of sincere gratitude and sometimes still fall into the abyss of "I'm not worthy..."




When this happens, I remember wise words on the difference between Gratitude and Appreciation. Gratitude, although beneficial; is a fervent prayer. We can be grateful, and feel as if whatever we're thankful of won't last or is in short supply. It's because gratitude is ownership, and we're in possession. Appreciation, on the other hand, is an outside perspective. When we express sincere appreciation, we appreciate the beautifulness we're enjoying without neediness or holding on. We are the "innocent bystander" beholding the riches life is placing before us.



Like watching a ballet, or savouring a glass of Penfolds Grange '88 at the Fifth element wine bar in Brisbane's southbank...
The magnificence of life was put here for our admiration. And there's no reward the universe seeks other than us to clap our hands in delight and say, "Oh, how wonderful! Isn't it divine! Lucky, lucky us!"





pic 1: a beautiful view from byron bay lighthouse, Australia's most easterly point; pic 2: a gorgeous lunch at chill on tedder

What does your breakfast say about you?

What does your breakfast say about you...

And help create in your day?

Yang choices include eggs, spicy foods, breakfast meats, smoked salmon, coffee, hot cereals, citrus fruits...

Yin choices include teas, juices, dried fruits and jams, fruit toast, yoghurt, smoothies, pastries, cakes & croissants, cinnamon...

Craving Yin in the morning can indicate a desire to increase the comfort, love and understanding we receive in our life.

Craving Yang can mean we're looking for a day of excitement, new opportunity and insight.

interesting, isn't it?

image 3 from lazy afternoon chez lisen

the Joy of Work

No man needs sympathy because he has to work . . . Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing. - Theodore Roosevelt


picture of Highland Coos from BBC's week in pictures

Enjoy the Journey...

wherever you are...
enjoy your journey today!

Blast from the past? Follow your heart

"...When you think about other people and what they think of you, do you understand that what they think of you has very little to do with what you are? It has mostly to do with the habits of thought that they have developed.

It has more to do with them as thinkers than it does with you as the subject of their thought. If nothing is more important to you than that you feel good, you can form a fantasy about someone who is in your life and they will begin to modify to meet your fantasy, because Law of Attraction is a very powerful thing."

I love this thought from Abraham-Hicks, because it reminds me of right now... loving showing Husby all the places I love in Australia, and meeting people we've not seen in ages and ages. Time changes all sorts of things, doesn't it? And the imaginings we have in our own mind of people we used to know could be very different from their reality...

in this case... i encourage you to do as i do, and just follow your heart in linking up with anyone from your past

keeping foremost in your mind the reasons why you want to rekindle your friendship and how enjoyable you remember and hope that person's presence will continue to be in your life...

Follow your heart in your blasts from the past!

xxx

Where the heart is

come home to serenity. love. adventure. understanding.

A dream?

perhaps... but an achieveable one!

with the tips in March Cheat Sheet's "9 ways to better bliss".

xxx