Van studio

If not now, when?

I am truly giddy with excitement. I bought a van! Much more than that though I got it converted to my own brief. Most of you know my daughter,

Molly Ella

, and that she has a van and now I have one too. Her very talented partner has converted it so that it will work as a mobile studio meaning that I can do far more work in the field. Working up close and personal with the natural world offers me my best work and the van is going to allow me to park close by and see the sun rise and/or set on my favourite places. It is an absolutely fantastic conversion allowing for studio space, relaxation space and even sleep space. All in a tiny wee van and all done with so much care and attention to detail.

You are joining me at the beginning of this brand new journey. It is true that hubby and I already have a much larger camper van which is, again, a conversion. Sadly, it is far too big and heavy for me to drive as driving is not one of my super powers. This wee van, on the other hand, is much more me and is designed for one person plus a trusty border collie called Frank. Would you like to travel with us and get to know the island I call home and all the beautiful spaces contained within it? You would be most welcome. The van even comes with a built in heater so colder days are no problem.

The subtitle of this piece is ‘if not now when?’ That is my personal mantra as I shuffle into my 6th decade on this beautiful planet. There is absolutely no point in putting everything into the future and I understand that. Like many of you, I suspect, I have lost far too many friends far too early and I need to make the most of every single moment. When I saw Molly’s van I got it entirely. She has a border collie too! There is something about heading out on your own that makes complete sense to me and I know it does to Molly. Our relationship with the natural world is sacred and the vans gives us the chance to be amongst all the beautiful places throughout the changing seasons.

Molly uses her van as a space to read and write. I want to use my space to create arts and crafts inspired by the immediate world around me. I will be art journaling, collaging, stitching, spinning, weaving and so much more. Substack is where I will be sharing this journey and the beautiful island I call home. I may, in time, venture further afield and I may even join Molly on the occasional trip. Scotland is our home although we were both born in England. My parents were born in Scotland and I moved my family to the island in 2002. I rarely venture out of Scotland as I don’t see the need. To me, Scotland is just as good as it gets.

My van is, essentially, a blank canvas and over the next few months you will see it change as I put my stamp on it. I have seating/bed foam to cover, many drawers and cupboards to fill and then wee bits and pieces of my creative soul to start popping up as I make the van the art studio is was destined to be. The workstation is genius. It lives attached to the inside one of the rear doors of the van and then I take it off there and connect it to the side of the door and it is just the perfect height for working on. Even the foam I am sitting on is the perfect height. The man is a genius. I have running water, a sink, a place to charge my phone and laptop. I even have lights. Tinted windows were added and they come with internal windowsills! I know!! I have shelves and wee cubby holes as well as huge drawers under the seating area. I really don’t know how to thank Molly’s partner because this van has given me a whole new chapter at a time when new chapters are very important. It is the time when all four children are now adults and so it is time for me to get out there a bit more and do what makes me happy.

In 2013 I wrote a blog post every day for a year as part of a sponsored programme that tracked different women living in Scotland. It changed so much about who I was and I will always be grateful to it. Over ten years later and home school is behind me and I have far more time for me and I think that is important. I loved everything about my home schooling journey with my children but it is an ‘all in’ type of experience. This new experience is slower, more mindful and more about me. However, just like in 2013 I want to share that experience in the hope that it might inspire other folk at a similar point in their lives to write their own new chapter. The majority of this van content will be available to my free subscribers with just the more in-depth art studies available to my paid subscribers. This is in line with my current content. Not everyone wants a deep dive into artistic processes and projects but I hope this free Substack offering will be of interest to folk.

For sure this van is a story telling opportunity. She even has a name. I have called her ‘Willow.’ I have worked with Willow creativity for more years than I care to remember and when I ran a flower farm, and created for weddings, willow always took centre stage. You can expect to see some willow pop up in the van…. The van will travel the island seeking out small corners and big landscapes with equal excitement but it will also serve an additonal purpose. Some of you may have read a recent note where I made a commitment to litter picking. I want to do some good with the final years of my life and I want to clean up the island and other areas in Scotland. So, I am arming myself with all the necessary equipment to do this job well. Those of you that know my art well will know that some things I pick up might even appear in my work. I think when we all understand that there is no such thing as ‘throwing away’ the world will be a better place. So I am going to do my bit. I also have something more to share on this subject later in the year.

For now, I am off to drive the van again as I need to get used to it while the island is relatively quiet. I took the photos on my drive so let’s all hope the next photos from the van offer us all some lovely views to enjoy. Mission accepted.

Welcome to my wee corner of Substack. I am a seasonal artist living on the Isle of Arran, off the west coast of Scotland. I am the custodian of approximately two acres of land that includes a woodland, a meadow and my wee garden. I offer a seasonal book arts project for paid subscribers if you are interested and you can read more about that HERE. Grab a cuppa and lets delve into our relationship with the shifting seasons….