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Taking Time to Live Well
Taken from Be Wild Be Free by Amber Fossey (Harper Collins), artist and mental health expert who instagrams at @zeppelinmoon.
We’ve reached the end of our March ‘Balm’ issue. We hope you enjoyed reading it as much as we enjoyed making it.
Our April issue will be on shelves (and on your doormat too) if you order directly from us. In the meantime, we hope this gorgeous illustration by Amber Fossey cheers and comforts you a little.
Taken from Be Wild Be Free by Amber Fossey (Harper Collins), artist and mental health expert who instagrams at @zeppelinmoon.
It’s been a slightly surreal few months, and we liked the way this illustration by Amber Fossey from our back cover gave us a bit of a new perspective on it all. Sometimes looking at something in a slightly upside-down way is all you need to gain a new view of the world.
We hope you enjoyed our February ‘Heart’ issue, and it gave you a bit of heart, and something of a lift during the last days of winter. Spring Proper is inches away now and our March issue is in shops from tomorrow or you can order it via our online shop.
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Taken from Be Wild Be Free by Amber Fossey (Harper Collins), artist and mental health expert who instagrams at @zeppelinmoon.
We’ve reached the end of our January ‘Snug’ issue. Our February issue is in shops from tomorrow or you can order it via our online shop.
We hope you enjoyed feeling ‘snug’ with us. Here’s the illustration from our back cover, which made us all feel pretty snug, too.
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A thought to mark the winter solstice. We first published this chalkboard in our October 2018 issue and somehow it feels even more pertinent today. Yule is traditionally a time to both embrace darkness and celebrate the return of the light, so we’re hunkering down with a candle tonight, enjoying the dark and the quiet and looking forward to spring, too.
Merry Yule! May the light burn brightly for you.
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From Am I Overthinking This by Michelle Rial (Chronicle Books)
We’ve reached the end of our August ‘Promise’ issue. September is winging its way to your shops and doormats as we speak.
We had some hot days in August here at Simple Things Towers. We hope you were lucky enough to get some nice weather (and a few ice creams ), too! Here’s an illustration from our August back cover to raise an end-of-summer smile.
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From Am I Overthinking This by Michelle Rial (Chronicle Books)
We’re nearly at the end of our July Unwind issue and our August issue is just around the corner. We hope the issue helped you unwind a little, as well as find some things to inspire and give you hope.
Here’s an image from our back cover, to make you smile. Will it be ok? We’re hoping for the best, too. It usually works out just fine.
Buy this month's The Simple Things - buy, download or subscribeMore from our July issue…
From Am I Overthinking This by Michelle Rial (Chronicle Books)
We’ve reached the end of our June issue this week. We' hope you’ve enjoyed reading it as much as we enjoyed making it.
Here’s the image from our back cover: in many ways a poignant one this month. With all the bad and frightening things there are in the world, a reminder to take action while remaining calm and staying angry (in a useful and positive way) is pretty timely. We were remided that it’s ‘doing’ that changes things, even when our actions may be quiet and small.
Our July issue is out soon. We can’t wait to share it with you.
It’s leap year day today. How are you making the most of your ‘extra’ day in the year? Perhaps you’re just taking some time to yourself, to rest, read or enjoy making or doing your favourite thing. But with February 29th landing on a Saturday this year, we’re hoping to use the opportunity to try something for the first time, unencumbered by the daily routine.
A new thing can be as big or as small as you like, from a paddle-boarding lesson or an impromptu trip to a place you’ve never been to making a recipe you’ve never eaten before or picking up a book by an author you’ve not yet read.
If you’re also promising yourself to try something for the first time today, let us know how it went here. Happy extra day!
We first published this chalkboard in January 2016 but we thought it deserved another outing!
Illustration: Am I Overthinking This? by Michelle Rial (Chronicle Books)
We’re waving off our February issue today. We' hope you’ve enjoyed it. Here’s a little illustration from our back cover that we hope makes you smile, courtesy of Michelle Rial from ‘Am I Overthinking This (Chronicle Books).
Our March issue is in shops any moment now. We’ll see you on the other side!
A moment of quiet to end the year
This chalkboard featured on the back cover of our October 2015 issue, but we thought it was worth looking at again. The last weeks of December can feel a bit fraught, even when they are full of fun, and a moment of quiet is sometimes all we need to calm our minds and be open to ‘hearing’ more. .
Whether you’re out on the tiles tonight, gathering with friends or celebrating the end of 2019 peacefully at home with a book and an early night, we hope you find a moment to practise being quiet and hearing a little better. Who knows what you might discover in a moment of silence?
Here’s to a peaceful 2020.
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Am I Overthinking This? by Michelle Rial (Chronicle Books)
We’re saying goodbye to our November issue today. We hope our back cover illustration from Michelle Rial’s Am I Overthinking This? raises a smile with you.
Our very special Christmas issue will be in the shops soon.
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Am I Overthinking This? by Michelle Rial (Chronicle Books)
A cartoon from our back cover to cheer your day
We’re seeing off our October issue today. All the pumpkins, spooky stories, toffee apples and tea have made us feel properly autumnal. We hope you’ve enjoyed it, too. Our November ‘Cosy’ issue will be snuggling up on supermarket shelves this week so do pop out and buy a copy.
Meanwhile, please enjoy this cartoon from our October back cover.
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Am I Overthinking This? by Michelle Rial (Chronicle Books)
We’re waving off our September issue with the final thought from our back cover
Our September issue will soon be off the shelves and we’re welcoming in October. We hope you enjoyed the Begin issue. Perhaps it inspired you to take up a new hobby, learn a new skill or just mark the beginning of a new start, or a new season.
The illustration we used on our back cover made us all laugh so we’re sharing it with you here. It’s from Am I Overthinking This? By Michelle Rial (Chronicle Books).
Am I Overthinking This? by Michelle Rial (Chronicle Books)
We’ve almost reached the end of August and are already looking forward to our September issue hitting the shelves.
We’ve enjoyed ‘pausing’ and all that encompasses this issue, taking time to enjoy the things on our doorsteps we often miss, time to learn something new or try a new skill, and time to spend in simple pursuits, cooking over a fire or reading a book.
The illustration we used on our back cover struck a note with all of us at Simple Things Towers so we thought we’d share it with you in case you missed it. It’s from Am I Overthinking This? By Michelle Rial (Chronicle Books). We hope it makes you smile, too.
Goodbye August! Bring on September!
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This marks the end of our June ‘shine’ issue. We hope it brought a little sunshine into your life.
As is tradition now, here’s a haiku we penned as an ode to June. Write your own in the comments below or leave it for us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. Five, seven, five, remember. We’ll send a lovely book to the author of our favourite.
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Illustration: Nicholas Stevenson – Folio Art
Please enjoy our back page chalkboard message and a seasonal haiku
We’ve loved all the fun of our Treat issue and we hope you enjoyed the slightly out-of-the-ordinary cover of this issue.
Here’s an April haiku in homage to all that. Do have a go at your own and leave it in the comments below. We send a lovely book to the author of our favourite each month.
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Photography: Catherine Frawley
Please enjoy our back page chalkboard message and a seasonal haiku
From overnight bakes to wild walks, to indulging in the art of bathing, we hope you’ve enjoyed our Soothe issue this month. Here’s to lighter, warmer days to come.
We’ve penned a haiku in homage to February. Do share your own below (5, 5, 7 syllables, remember). We’ll send a lovely book to the author of our favourite haku.
Last days of winter,
Only twenty-eight, at least.
Thanks, February.
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We celebrate slowing down, enjoying what you have, making the most of where you live, enjoying the company of of friends and family, and feeding them well. We like to grow some of our own vegetables, visit local markets, rummage for vintage finds, and decorate our home with the plunder. We love being outdoors and enjoy the satisfaction that comes with a job well done.
