Table of contents for Issue 16 in Project Calm

Of all our topics this issue – fire, play, kindness, a good yarn – awe is the theme that threads everything together: experiencing the world afresh with all the wonder, magic and innocence of a child. Ruby Deevoy’s feature about awe on page 60 sums up what mindfulness means to me. Being curious, letting the magnitude of nature overwhelm you (in a good way!), allowing yourself a moment to delight in little things, and being present in the here and now. It’s a way of living that’s available to us all, but ‘mindfulness’ and ‘self-care’ have become somewhat commercialised lately. Caitlin Metz and Victoria Emanuela are exploring this in their work as joint venture On Being In Your Body. I’m thrilled that they’ve collaborated with us this issue to make…

1 A LITTLE KINDNESS Filled with pride at their children’s unprompted acts of kindness, friends Lucie Carr and Charlie Williams, decided to launch the Kindness Co-Op, a socially responsible apparel and accessories brand aimed at fostering compassion (especially amongst children) towards ourselves, others and the environment. The collection includes ‘Be Kind to Your Mind’ and ‘Be Kind to Our Planet’ notebooks, and organic cotton ‘One of a Kind Generation’ totes and tees. A donation to YoungMinds is made with every item sold, which funds projects that support mental health and emotional wellbeing for kids and adolescents. thekindnessco-op.com 2 LOVE YOUR BODY RIGHT NOW Diet culture, mainstream media, social conditioning, prejudices of disability, sexuality, race or gender identity – all these things create a structure in which we may not show…

Being a gentlewoman involves learning to pay attention to the world around you. Just look up once in a while, take off your headphones, switch off push notifications. If you consciously side-step instant gratification for something moremeaningful, you will notice people and their moods, places and their beauty, and you’ll notice something new about yourself in the process. Start asking questions, listening to and being interested in people. We need to seek out real-life connections not double taps and follows, allowing ourselves time and space to be empathetic and emotionally astute. Being a gentlewoman today has nothing to do with social class, background, money or professional standing. It has everything to do with a woman knowing herself and using her stability to lift up or support the people around her.…

MAKING A FORTUNE TELLER Remember these? Our favourite paper games from childhood make excellent creative prompts. Here’s a ref resher how-to… Step 1 Carefully cut out your fortune teller with a sharp blade and metal ruler. The piece will need to be perfectly square to ensure the fortune teller works properly. Step 2 With the writing side up, fold the square in half vertically, edge to edge. Open out the square, rotate it 90 degrees and fold it in half the other way. Open out the square. Step 3 Rotate 45 degrees, then fold the square diagonally from corner to corner. Open the square, rotate 90 degrees then fold in half diagonally again. Open it out. Step 4 Your square has four creases that intersect at the centre every 45…

Who isn’t fascinated by fire? The flickering flames, the blaze of heat and the smouldering, smoking embers as it slowly dies. Fire is like the heart, it is a beautiful thing, bringing light with its sparkle and dancing flame. It draws us in around its warmth and glow, bringing community and conversation, calmly relaxing and uplifting our spirits, soothing our soul as we watch the fire crackling, flicking sparks of light that drift up into the night sky, reaching up to the moon and the stars above. The whiff of wood smoke wafting in the air heightens our senses, evoking primal memories and permeating into our clothes and hair. Take pride and build it with care. There is a ritual to building a fire. There is a way of doing…

This issue we get cosy in a favourite armchair and delve into a good book, or ten. From tomes as treasured objects in themselves, to how we display them in the home; rewriting endings, to finding empathy through reading, books and stories offer so much more than a temporary escape. They introduce us to hundreds of new worlds and possibilities, broadening our horizons. Elsewhere, interiors blogger Medina Grillo encourages us to think differently, too, by having a sense of play with our decor, and we search for the most striking styling ideas for the heart of the home: the fireplace.…

It was a story made for social media. Celebrity book curator Thatcher Wine hit the headlines earlier this year for his work with his childhood friend Gwyneth Paltrow. Thatcher felt there weren’t enough books to fill the shelving in Gwyneth’s home library. So he ordered an extra 500 via his company, Juniper Books. Perfectly acceptable in theory, but when Twitter discovers that not only do you sell books by the foot, but you also then create bespoke dust jackets to match your client’s interior design… Twitter erupts. “It’s not about having it all be so ‘perfect’ that no one wants to disturb them,” Wine responded. “It’s about the right balance of making them look like they belong, but also that they should be read and enjoyed.” Ridiculous? Maybe, but when…

My favourite books as a child transported me to fantasy worlds. Enid Blyton’s Faraway Tree and CS Lewis’s Narnia series proved that the logic of science and the limitations of real life need not apply in fiction. They were tales written to take us to different places, far-off lands and bring us back again. Same but different, an escape from the everyday. When I was young, I accepted the way stories ended, because it didn’t occur to me to challenge the authors I admired. But what if you don’t like the way a book ends? From the age of five, my friend Sarah began writing her own little books, but after a few years, she started to rewrite any endings that didn’t feel right to her. “I wanted good people…

Floral fiesta Designer Pearl Lowe’s Georgian property in Somerset, England, was built in the 1820s with warm yellow Bath stone – the curved walls and arched windows are classic in design yet manifold with architectural quirks such as their wonderful fireplaces. In the drawing room, she has created a sense of country-house grandeur with an extravagant floral display underneath an antique mirror surrounded by her collection of rococo furniture, large sofas and tiger-print ottoman. These images and an edited extract come from Faded Glamour by Pearl Lowe, published by CICO Books, with photography by Amy Neunsinger. Readers can buy Faded Glamour (RRP £19.99) for the special price of £14 at rylandpeters.com. Just enter the code CALMGLAMOUR at checkout. Free P&P in the UK. Offer valid until 20th December 2019. Magnificent…

I bloody love books. I’m the kind of person who keeps a stack of books teetering on the bedside table and arranges bookshelves by colour. I’ve got copies of my favourites on my Kindle so they’re always on my phone and, while I grew up on a steady diet of Enid Blyton and remember parts of The Magic Faraway Tree like they’re childhood memories, it was Stephen King that got me through my teens. I dutifully read the classics for school, but at home I wanted thrilling, spine tingling stories to devour. Books were my escape and when other kids were out riding their bikes, I was getting lost in another world. As I’ve become older the book love hasn’t diminished, but the type of books has noticeably shifted. I…

RUBY DEE VOY Ruby Deevoy is a natural health and wellbeing writer. She lives in the beautiful Scottish countryside with her son and husband. She finds her dose of awe in the starry night sky. Read more on page 58. @RDeevoy MEDINA GRILLO Medina is the author of Home Sweet Rented Home and the voice behind the blog Grillo Designs, sharing creative and affordable ways to decorate your pad. She writes about playful interiors (page 93). grillo-designs.com SHERI BATEREN Sheri Bateren is a cognitive behavioural psychotherapist. She is also the founder of Mind Canvas, an organisation that runs mental wellbeing workshops. Sheri writes on creativity and compassion on page 22. mindcanvas.co.uk ELIZABETH SULIS KIM Elizabeth is a writer based in London and founding editor of Cunning Folk magazine. She writes…

When did you realise you wanted to be an artist? Quoting a dear friend of mine, it’s not a realisation you have but it’s something you work towards every day. Where does your love of the natural world and fantasy come from? I think it stems from my childhood, we grew up in an ecosystem thriving with insects, birds, flora and fauna of the native Aravali biodiversity in the heart of Gurgaon city in northern India. We also farmed on the outskirts and grew up with stories that tied us to the natural world. Over time, we lost all this to a rapidly growing city. My artwork stems from a space of nostalgia and wonder – of the relationships we once shared with the natural world, the magic it offered…

Awe: it’s a fast-track to mindfulness. Whether it’s sighing at the starry sky, studying the beauty and intricacy of busy little bugs, or a cosy feeling of deep gratitude for the warmth of a campfire, a sense of wonder can be accessed almost anywhere when we’re out in the fresh air. We look at humankind’s fascination with fire, too, this issue – its potential for comfort, sustenance and fresh starts, a powerful force to be treated with great respect and care. Matilda Smith’s beautiful matchbox messages within this section are a project designed to spark energy and self-belief.…

When was the last time you found yourself gazing, open mouthed and wide-eyed at something so wonderful it made your heart skip a beat? If you think back to an occasion where you felt truly wowed, you’ll likely remember the rush that came with it. The feelings of joy, wonder and perhaps even a little fear that goes hand in hand with witnessing mind-blowing magnificence. This unique combination of emotion and experience is what’s known as awe and, aside from a knee jerk reaction to exceptional ability, virtue, beauty, threat and the supernatural, it also just so happens to be one of the world’s greatest sources of wellness. Until recently, there’s been little research into the experience and benefits of awe. But over the last 15 years, studies by UC…

This issue we’re inspired to gain a new perspective on our travels by sketching our surroundings or collecting the ephemera of trips away for scrapbooks. Both provide a great way of slowing down, noticing the details and creating a lovely keepsake of your journey. Designer Becki Clark has created a nine-page scrapbooking guide with beautiful paper elements for you to cut out and collage. If writing is more your thing, budding novelist Sian Meades’ regular travel column focuses on writing retreats this issue. A little time and space may be just the inspiration you need.…

Our playlist this issue starts with a story about a library – “whispering through the dusty aisles,” all magic and possibility. We continue by celebrating awe in Prototyperaptor’s dance anthem, via dedications to kindness from HAERTS and Natalie Merchant, and the burning fires of feeling in the form of love songs from Maggie Rogers and School of Seven Bells. Grace Acladna’s recent London takes fire as a great leveller; while Sufjan Steven’s Prairie Fire That Wanders About is an epic celebration of the city of Peoria, Illinois. In amongst the foot-tappers we praise fortune tellers, stories and the importance of play, rounding off with Embers, Tracey Chattaway’s glowing lullaby. 1. Library Magic – The Head and the Heart 2. Awe – Prototyperaptor 3. New Compassion – HAERTS 4. Kind &…

Just like the earth, you are a giant composite of interconnected ecosystems working symbiotically to sustain yourself. Finding adaptable ways to nourish all of your ecosystems creates a stronger network of resilience throughout your life. You do this through our philosophy of selfkeeping, a practice that cultivates radical resilience and brings you back to the core of your being. It centers embodied wisdom, showing up for yourself every day, and taking action to make your body a home. There are many facets of selfkeeping, some tied directly to your survival, and others to your evolution as a human being. These facets consist of your physical, social, emotional, mental, and spiritual ecosystems which you must nurture diligently. SELFKEEPING WITH VICTORIA My childhood caused me to live outside of my body for…

Pay it forward, random acts of kindness… thoughtful gestures are so rare in today’s world that social movements are started just to remind us to take the time. If you’ve been on the receiving end of this kind of compassion, you’ll know how much it can lift your mood. So this issue we’re looking at all the ways we can be kinder, on- and off-line, to ourselves and others. Psychotherapist Sheri Bateren writes that being kinder to yourself makes for enhanced creativity. A sense of silliness does too, as professional clown Ash Perrin shares with us in his piece about the importance of play. We round off the section by playing with some paper, of course, to make nostalgic fortune tellers.…

When did you realise you wanted to be an artist? I can’t remember a time when I didn’t draw, but it wasn’t until I was in sixth form that I realised it could be a career! I started as a children’s book designer, then became an illustrator. Can you describe your creative process? Coming up with a strong concept is important, so I typically focus on how best to express it first – be it through composition, mood or colour. What have been your favourite projects to work on? Recently I’ve really enjoyed making simple little animations of quiet moments – I’d love to explore this further. Where are your favourite places to enjoy nature? I love walking in forests as I always find it so peaceful and restorative. I’ve…

Play shapes us as human beings. Yet, as we get older, it can be tempting to write off play as something flippant that we either ought to leave behind us in childhood, or turn into a deadly serious business instead. In the world of work, for instance, play often becomes linked to competitiveness and to winning, rather than to growth and happiness: “He’s back in the game”, “She’s a key player”, “They smashed it out of the park” – you get the idea! The danger is that if we simply write off play as irreverent and superfluous, or as something that entails hard graft and competition, we are potentially dismissing the first decade of development that takes place in our lives. Nearly everything that forms the foundation of who we…

We’re delighted to bring you this special offer to save 11 on the next four issues of Project Calm. Rather than a subscription, this offer is for the next four issues only and offers great benefits, such as free delivery, a 25% saving and it means you won’t miss any issues in 2020! You’ll discover new ways to bring the joys of mindfulness and making into your life, plus enjoy all our special pull-out extras in each issue so you can get crafting straight away! We have so many gorgeous plans for our future issues – I do hope you’ll join us. LARA WATSON EDITOR GREAT REASONS TO BUY YO R PROJECT CALM COLLECTION Don’t miss an issue Save 25% – just £32.99 for the next four issues Free UK…

A lot of the time, I’ve found that decorating my home (or any home for that matter) has a lot to do with trial and error. You know, finding out what works, and what doesn’t. A decorating project often isn’t as easy or as simple as you might first imagine, but it’s a creative process and it can be viewed as a type of experimental play. Yes, there may be tears of frustration, plot twists and plan B’s before you finally reach that moment when you feel everything is as it should be, but despite any worries that ideas might not come together, the whole process can still be rather fun! I’ve come to appreciate, love, and crave that feeling when it all clicks into place: that moment of pure…