Recently, I’ve been playing around with resin as another medium on which to add my words. I love how versatile resin is. You can make so many different things with it and I’ve had a lot of fun experimenting. That said, I have run into a few hiccups! I’ve had a couple of serious Mr Bean moments, one involving half set resin all over my hands that I couldn’t get off which resulted in half a roll of toilet paper stuck to my fingers. If you ever find yourself in this situation then it turns out salt and olive oil is the answer!

Anyway, I wanted to show you one of the pieces I have made that I‘m very proud of. It actually nearly went in the bin as I’m quite the perfectionist and all I could see were the flaws.

I had originally set out to make a plaque for a wall or a stand – a flat surface that I could easily add some words to. But as anyone who knows me will tell you, I’m not very patient. So, I went and picked up the whole piece before it was fully set. Thinking on my feet, I quickly decided to mould the resin around my mixing bowl. My wall plaque was now a free form decorative bowl.

However, there were lots of small bubbles in the resin and the edges of the bowl were really rough and ragged. I sighed and huffed and was ready to throw the whole thing in the bin. Then I thought to myself, well what if I turn those imperfections into a feature. So, I painted white over every single bubble that I could see and spray painted the edges and the outside of the bowl in gold. And just like that my bin worthy disaster turned into a piece I was proud of.

With the white dots and the gold, the bowl now has a galaxy feel to it and so to finish off the piece I have added the words “imperfections can be precious if you just let them shine through.”

Making this piece taught me some valuable lessons. Patience is key! Always wear gloves when working with resin. And don’t write things off too soon. The bowl will soon be available to purchase through my website along with several other products but in the meantime I’d love to hear what you think of it.

All of my poems and quotes are protected under Copyright ©️ Sally R. Wilkes of Rhymes To Remember and are registered with The UK Copyright Service. They may not be reproduced in any form without my written permission. 

A couple of years ago, I spent a morning eating cake and drinking tea whilst learning how to weave on a loom. I picked up the technique relatively quickly and was really pleased with my finished weave. But then the kids and general life took over and so I put it to one side and completely forgot about this new found skill.

I recently found my weaving loom in the back of a cupboard and decided that I would have another go. I sat and watched YouTube videos to remind myself how to do the various different weaving techniques and since then I’ve been spending my evenings weaving away. It’s actually quite relaxing, almost therapeutic!

I then decided to see whether I could add some words to my finished weaves using embroidery thread. I wrote out the words that I wanted to embroider on a piece of paper and set to work embroidering. Well I can tell you that this was far from relaxing and most definitely not therapeutic! I don’t know why but I just found myself in a permanent state of clenched teeth. I now have a new found appreciation for anyone who embroiders by hand.

However, being the determined individual that I am, I persisted and managed to add some words to two different weaves. I tried to come up with some puns so that the words tied in with the weave rather than just stitching on some random, unrelated quotes.

The first of these was: “From tangled mess to small success.” This phrase hints at the weaving process itself, as it begins with a pile of tangled wool and, in most cases, turns into something worthy of hanging on your wall. On reflection, I also feel that it’s quite a nice metaphor for my own writing journey. I started writing in the early weeks after my daughter was born when, quite frankly, I was a mess! And, whilst I wouldn’t necessarily describe myself as a success story, I have definitely come a long way from that emotional new mum scribbling poems down at 2am in the morning!

The second phrase, “weave your way towards the horizon”, ties in with the specific weave that I planned to embroider it to. I had decided that the weave looked somewhat like a path weaving it’s way forwards beneath a sunset. Again, I feel that I may have unintentionally written another metaphor for my journey here. I have always been able to see where I want to get to – my horizon. But so far I have zigzagged in all different directions trying to get there. The path forwards is never a straight one!

I’m not sure how well the embroidery thread works on the weaves, as it doesn’t stand out that much against the wool. I’m wondering whether it’s too delicate and perhaps it would have been better to try and embroider my words using wool. Nevertheless, I plan on making both of the weaves above, along with some of my other word-free weaves, available to buy on my website very soon. I’d love to hear what you think to them. Likewise, if you have any suggestions for anything else you think I should try then I’d love to chat!

All of my poems and quotes are protected under Copyright ©️ Sally R. Wilkes of Rhymes To Remember and are registered with The UK Copyright Service. They may not be reproduced in any form without my written permission. 

Just over a month ago I posted a video on my Facebook page in which I spoke about loss with my good friend Lauren. If you haven’t seen this yet then it’s worth a watch. Lauren’s Nan sadly passed away a year ago and as a way to remember her she asked if I could turn all of her family’s cherished memories of her Nan into a poem. This poem finished with a phrase that her Nan would always say, “love you most”. Lauren has since had these three words tattooed onto her wrist as a way to carry her Nan with her for the rest of her life.

I’ve written a number of blogs now on the theme of “Paperless Poetry” and Lauren’s tattoo got me thinking about how a person’s body could essentially be used in place of paper. Now, obviously I wasn’t about to go and ask someone to get a permanent tattoo for the benefit of my blog. So I decided to get in touch with a lovely lady who I worked with last year on a styled wedding shoot – Mazz Loxton.

Mazz Loxton is a hair and makeup artist based in Sheffield. She is also an award winning body painter. “I have experience painting at public events, photoshoots, film, celebrations and competitions. I just love the challenge of a creative brief, and the opportunity to create meaningful, impactful art.”

I sent Mazz four lines from a bespoke poem I had previously written for a bride to remember her mum on her wedding day and asked whether it would be possible to paint it onto skin. Now, ideally this would have been added to someone’s upper leg, chest or lower back, all of which are more private and provide a bigger canvas to work with in terms of painting. However, given the current circumstances of lockdown, Mazz only had her own body to work with. As such, she had a go at painting the poem freehand onto her wrist:

I love the idea that a bride could use this as a way to have a lost loved one right there with her on her wedding day. Or perhaps they could have their favourite quote or saying added around their thigh in place of a garter. If you would like to find out more about body painting, whether it’s for a wedding, a baby shower or something different entirely, then please get in touch with Mazz through her website or her Instagram page.

All of my poems and quotes are protected under Copyright ©️ Sally R. Wilkes of Rhymes To Remember and are registered with The UK Copyright Service. They may not be reproduced in any form without my written permission. 

In my previous blog post Burning Love I introduced the idea that poems don’t have to be limited to paper and talked about pyrography as one example of this. Well in keeping with this theme of “paperless poetry” this blog is going to focus on another surface – concrete! 

Yes I hear you. Concrete is grey, dull and ugly. Why would you want to use it for anything other than construction? Well I had these exact same thoughts. That was until I met Gemma from Concrete Gems.

Just over a year ago I wrote a bespoke poem all about Gemma’s business. She sent me a few paragraphs about what she made along with some photographs of her work. Well I had to eat my words at that point. Gemma’s creations were simply stunning and they were made out of concrete!

So I asked Gemma why concrete? “I enjoy the process of taking the same stuff that the ugliest buildings are made of. Then making it into something comforting, stylish and modern. Concrete is so much more versatile than people think. I am constantly amazed at what I can make with it. My products are mainly small pieces, clocks, candles, coasters etc., which will look great in any home. The industrial texture and look of my work complements the modern urban home. Conversely, it also provides a stylish feature to more traditional houses as well.”

After being introduced to Gemma’s work I just knew I had to have a piece of my own. So after finishing her poem, I challenged Gemma to recreate my Rhymes To Remember logo in concrete. And here was the result:

How does she make such beautiful pieces? “A lot of care and attention goes into the finish of each item. I use silicone moulds to cast the majority of my concrete, which I have made myself using my own prototypes. This means the pieces are truly individual. Each piece is hand finished: some are sanded to reveal the stone effect underneath, whilst others are finished with wax or other painted decorations. Some of my pieces also include resin, which I am only just starting to really experiment with.”

When I started with this idea of paperless poetry for my blogs I just knew that I had to get Gemma involved somehow. So I challenged her once again. Can you add a poem to concrete? I wrote a short verse to send to her and this is what she came up with:

Gemma varnished the concrete then added the words in black vinyl. I definitely feel this is a concept that could be taken forwards. What do you think? We would love to hear your thoughts about it.

And so there you have it. Another example of paperless poetry! If you have any suggestions for other surfaces or would like to feature in a blog yourself then please get in touch.

All of my poems and quotes are protected under Copyright ©️ Sally R. Wilkes of Rhymes To Remember and are registered with The UK Copyright Service. They may not be reproduced in any form without my written permission. 

When someone says poetry, the majority of people will immediately think of words on a piece of paper. But poems don’t have to be limited to paper. There are endless possibilities for displaying poetry. It is after all a form of art! As such, over the next few months I intend to use my blog to showcase some of these ideas with you, the first of which is pyrography. 

Pyrography, in a nutshell, means ‘writing with fire’.  Most commonly this involves the burning of wood, but other receptive surfaces such as cork, leather and paper can be burnt using heated wire to create artwork and lettering.

Recently, I was lucky enough to work with the incredible Cowshed Creations, a small UK based business specialising in bespoke pyrography and handmade wooden gifts and décor. 

“Here at Cowshed Creations we use a variety of different wood species, ranging from locally sourced birch, cherry, ash, alder and sycamore -which is all dried, cut, planed and sanded here, to ready prepped basswood imported from America (known as lime in the UK).  Having such a varied wood stock means we are able to cater for all sorts of custom requests for example, whole log pieces, large statement artwork on wood slices and bespoke shaped signs.”

“Everything is burnt by hand (no lasers) and so pyrography can be a very time consuming activity, however is incredibly rewarding.   We take orders for items which can be completed in as little as thirty minutes, scaling up to large statement artwork which can involve over seventy hours’ worth of time. Every item is different and, when working with wood, incorporating the grain, knots and other markings into a piece results in a unique, artisan feel.”

Cowshed Creations took one of my bespoke wedding poems based on a couples love story and turned it into a series of wooden centrepieces. The idea is that each centrepiece features a section of the love story and provides a name for the table. So here, for example, it would be “The First Date” or “The Proposal”. 

I am absolutely over the moon with the final pieces and I think they would make for a beautiful and unique touch in a rustic wedding. To see some other examples of wedding décor offered by Cowshed Creations then take a look at the ‘Weddings’ section of their website.

“We always encourage new and original ideas and love working with couples to bring their ideas to life, so please do not hesitate to get in touch via the ‘contact us’ section on our website.”

All of my poems and quotes are protected under Copyright ©️ Sally R. Wilkes of Rhymes To Remember and are registered with The UK Copyright Service. They may not be reproduced in any form without my written permission.