this post has been a long time coming . . .three weeks in fact . . .
on may 7 i hosted a book-party, afternoon-tea, gathering of sorts
for my dear and kindred friend pia jane bijkerk
in the grounds of st francis college in brisbane
on a beautiful afternoon surrounded by sunlight,
feasting on butterfly cakes, and cups of tea,
about 100 people celebrated
pia and her exquisite book my heart wanders
gauging by the amount of heartfelt emails
both pia and i received after the event,
we knew all the hard work was worth it,
the little details were seen,
and the spirit in which the afternoon was put together was felt . . .
the day couldn't of come off as easily as it did without the support of so many of my wonderful friends
who, as always, astound me with their time,
care, and love, giving their hands and hearts willingly
to help pull things like this off . . .
thank you to my friend sarah
who made butterfly cakes by the dozens
and a few other sweet things,
and her mum made her famous sandwiches . . .
thank you to my two dear friends maria and jan who made the
cups of tea and kept the guests filled with all the baked goodies . . .
to pia's friend zoe who was our right hand friend all day long
greeting people as they arrived,
helping before and during the afternoon tea
thank you to my ever-supportive sister tiffany
who manned the book table with joy and grace all afternoon . . .
and my mum who made us some big bouquets
of flowers from her garden . . .
the garlands in the image above were
made from pages of old french books,
maps, and blue card in the hues of the book cover . . .
all made by kristina of old yarns
and strung between the sandstone pillars of the verandah
so beautiful, thank you kristina. . .
and an extra big thank you to the talented natalie mccomas
who caputured all these shots of the day ( and many others )
natalie, your work is superb
and it was such a joy to see the day
captured the way you did . . .
a few weeks before the event i made a call out to local creatives to be a part of the day . . .
and celebrate brisbane hand made . . .
i was overwhelmed with the collection gathered
and we made 3 wonderful bundles of gifts as lucky door prizes
so a big thank you to all those lovely souls that contributed
keeping up the spirit of the handmade in a local community
that pia so feverishly promotes
in her books made by hand paris and amsterdam
a full list of the gift givers is below, with links to their work . . .
but the biggest thank you of all is to pia
who, humbly greets, writes, celebrates,
inspires, and colours so many of our lives
with words of wisdom and hope
and who makes even the most timid amongst us
believe that following ones heart is truly something
that is really the only thing we must do
no matter where, or how, or if, we think we can or can't . . .
that in the bustle of the ordinary there are moments
and ways that are possible regardless of place
or time or money
that indeed a wandering heart
no matter the size or scope of it's travels
is about taking risks even in the smallest ways . . .
michelle at nook
nicole from hot toffee
alarna from little jane street
sarah from red felt flower
kia hing-fay
erin from blossom creations
toni from giddy girl design
kim from udessi
tiel from tsk tsk
sharon muir
louise from loose.leaf paper
liana kabel
kristina from old yarns
alischa from bespoke press
selene from heikehaus
jennifer orland
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