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Logbook May 2020

Hello, hello !

How are you doing ? Im writing from my lovely Studio, enjoying a good cup of tea, listening the last album of Muse (simulation theory – 2018) . It’s amazing how their music has changed from their beginning but is still recognizable ! Well I like this album. It is 4 months now since I launched Dragons Are Real and I have a desire to tell you more about me. Thats why I have come up with the idea to write this logbook, a monthly meeting with you to show you what’s happening “behind the scenes” A space where I will reveal more about my world and my inspirations.

Spring was absolutely amazing here on the Isle of Lewis ! Blue sky, little wind, days longer and longer and the rebirth of nature. It was so relieving after the stormy winter we suffered. The evening light is absolutely delighful. The sky here is a moving painting with such warms colours. It is always a pleasure to sit and read a book in the living room and have this amazing view through the picture window. I read The girl on the train by Paula Hawkins, a good thriller. Have you read it ?

I’m experiencing my first gardening season. It is a dream to have a big veg and herbs garden. In 2018 I explored Scotland through a Wwoofing journey, in 2019 I follow a great Herbology course with the Royal Botanic Garden of Edinburgh and ‘ve been successfully graduated with a certificate in Herbology. I look forward to try all what I’ve learned. So this is the first year of gardening with a little bunch of seeds. Tomatoes and Brussel Sprouts are a success, Sweat peas seem happy around their tipie. Herbs are growing slowly but surely. The seeds I sowed were given to me and are a bit too old so we won’t have a luxurious garden this year but as the old saying goes “Rome was not built in a day”.

Of course, Spring arrived in a unique and strange way because of the worldwide pandemic. Our renovating works in the house were seriously slowed down and visits with family and friends were delayed for later. It is also a quiet time for my Dragons whereas it was supposed to be the beginning of the high season. But in every situation there is something to learn. After a moment of pondering about how to adapt to the new situation, I found the energy to work on the future collection. What I can tell you for now is that it includes wood work (I love this material) and I will launch this new collection in September ! Stay tuned. I will reveal a bit more in the following months. I am looking forward to get all materials and tools to create all of this ! It will be great.

This spring I also started to learn and practice natural dyeing with plants. I got 3 books last year to improve my knowledge about the power of plants. I have so much to discover. For now I’m using Rebeccas Desnos’ Botanical Colour at your Fingertips and it is a really good guide. Following her instructions, I dyed pieces of old linen fabrics with red and yellow onions skin, gorse flowers, daffodils and roibois tea. Red onion skin and gorse dyed are my favourite ones. They are so bright. Gorses are everywhere here and it is delightful to watch these awesome and dence bunches of yellow flowers. I have some ideas of what I want to do with them. I will develop this in the following months to offer you something in early 2021.

Meanwhile, you can meet the new ones in the Dragons Are Real’s family: the fairies of the wood. I worked many months, imagining, drawing, making tests and improving my skills. I always loved dolls and dollhouses. Even now I’m still astonished when I see one in a shop. When I was a child, I received a wooden doll house made by my dad. It was entirely furnished with wood furniture and accessories. A happy family of 4 was living there. They were simply designed and beautiful with just wood and cloth. They were perfect to imagine stories and adventures. It is with these memories I made the fairies of the wood. My fairies are for all children, to give them possibilities to create and re-create themselves though fantastic adventures. The fairies of the woods are simply dressed, wearing few but pretty colors and made with quality materials. The face is deliberately basic to not restrict the fairy to just one emotion.
If you like them, I am sure you will love the fairies of the flowers coming in June !

Well, I think I wrote/spoke enough today. I hope you liked this new kind of post and it will become a nice meeting between us. Let me know if you have any questions, requests, suggestions I will answer with pleasure.
Take care,
X
Mathilde and the dragons !

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