A Creative Whirlwind: A Lifetime of Colour, Memories and Making Things

I've never been very good at sitting still. Give me something to create, change, paint, decorate or customise, and I'm happy. Give me a knitting needle, on the other hand, and apparently that's where my creative talents come to a grinding halt!

I've always loved being creative. It doesn't really matter what it is, either. Painting, DIY, calligraphy, drawing, decorating — I'll happily have a go. I can retile a bathroom or hang wallpaper, and although I'd never call myself an artist, I do have my own style. Abstract is probably the best way to describe it!

I do have one rather familiar picture that seems to find its way onto paper time and time again: a little house on a hillside, a tree with a swing in the garden, and a beautiful summer's day. There's always smoke coming from the chimney, too. I'm not entirely sure why, but that little scene never seems complete without it.

Perhaps it's my idea of home. Somewhere warm, somewhere peaceful, somewhere you can imagine yourself putting the kettle on after a long day.

The one creative thing I never mastered

My mum was a fantastic knitter. I grew up with the clickety-click of her knitting needles as she sat watching television in the evening, steadily turning balls of wool into beautiful Aran jumpers.

We used to go to market stalls to choose the wool, and quite often a jumper would be made from several leftover Aran wools. That meant you ended up with a completely individual pattern. No two jumpers were quite the same — bespoke knitwear, long before I would ever have thought to call it that!

Those jumpers lasted, too. I still have two that are more than 30 years old, and they're remarkably like new. They've been washed, worn and kept for all these years, yet the knitting has held its shape beautifully. They're not baggy or stretched out; they're still firm and wonderfully made.

And there's something else. When I look at them, I remember my mum, and somehow they still seem to carry the smell of her house.

It's funny how a simple thing made by someone's hands can hold so much of a person. The wool, the stitches, the familiar smell — suddenly you're remembering evenings long gone, and the person who sat patiently creating something that would last for decades.

I've often wondered why I can't seem to get my head around knitting. Perhaps it involves sitting still for too long. I'm not exactly known for that!

A girl who loved colour and sparkle

My creative streak started long before I had a home of my own to decorate.

As a child, I loved drawing and colouring, and the more colour the better. I liked customising clothes, and I was quite happy to take scissors to my own hair, too. What could possibly go wrong?

I was also a dancer, enjoying Latin American and ballroom dancing. And it wasn't just the movement I loved. It was the whole thing: the clothes, the colours, the hair, the sparkle.

Oh, the sparkle!

I loved the feeling of dancing, of moving to the music and being caught up in the moment. I still have one photograph of a dance costume, and looking back at it brings those days rushing back. There's something lovely about finding an old photograph and being reminded of a version of yourself you haven't thought about for a while.

I don't look back with sadness. I simply enjoy remembering. Those days were part of my story, just as the things I create now are part of it.

Ten minutes of satisfaction, then what's next?

One thing I've noticed about myself is that I can become completely absorbed in whatever I'm doing.

When I'm creating, I sometimes miss entire conversations because I'm so caught up in the moment. The rest of the world seems to fade away while I'm concentrating on the thing in front of me.

Reading is another pleasure, but I'm more likely to get properly lost in a book when I'm on holiday and there aren't chores or other distractions catching my eye.

Creating is different. I don't have to try to switch off. I just do.

And when I finally finish something? Well, I do give myself a little time to appreciate it. I might stand back and admire my handiwork for ten minutes or so, feeling rather pleased with myself.

Then my brain pipes up.

What's next?

And off I go again.

There's always another idea, another project, another thing I'd like to try. I might not be brilliant at everything, and I certainly haven't mastered knitting, but I've never been short of enthusiasm for having a go.

Creativity changes, but it never really leaves us

When I think about all these things — dancing, drawing, decorating, painting, my mum's knitting — I realise that creativity doesn't have to mean being an artist or producing something perfect.

Sometimes it's about the joy of trying something new. Sometimes it's about making something your own. And sometimes it's about the memories that become attached to the things we create.

My mum's jumpers remind me of her. My old dance photograph takes me back to the colours and movement I loved. And that little house on the hillside, with its tree, garden swing and smoking chimney, still appears whenever I pick up a pen and let my imagination wander.

Perhaps that's what creativity really is: a little part of ourselves that finds different ways to come out as life moves along.

These days, my creative energy finds its way into all sorts of things, including Cheshire Home Trinkets. I enjoy finding unusual gifts and little treasures that might make someone smile or find a special place in their home.

But whether I'm choosing something for the shop, tackling a DIY job or simply doodling that familiar little house, the feeling is much the same.

I get an idea. I have a go. I enjoy the moment.

And then, after a very respectable ten minutes of admiration, I start thinking about what comes next!

I suppose some things never change.

What about you? Are you a creative whirlwind who loves trying a little bit of everything, or do you have one particular craft or hobby that you can happily lose yourself in for hours? I'd love to hear what you enjoy creating — and whether there's something you've never quite managed to master, no matter how hard you've tried!

After all, creativity isn't about getting everything right. Sometimes it's simply about enjoying the journey, making memories, and having a go.