Happy La Mama's day!

I have been calling my mum all sorts of things ever since I was little - I loved to play around with her name so she was everything from La Mama to Miss Moops to Moples. And when she became a granny, rather than having a traditional grandmother name, she is now called Mopsy. And just like her unusual names, she is indeed an unusual mother. I don't just mean in the way that she is an artist and a little eccentric in her taste in harley davidson bikes and studded jackets, or in her quirky and extensive collection of over 2000 tiger items, or even in her kooky made up language, Boutchakoque, that she only uses when she speaks with cats. I actually mean she is different - really different - in her mothering. When my sister, Amanda, and I were little, she was just full of love, resourcefulness and creativity, and we had the best childhood anyone could ever hope for. But now, her mothering has morphed into something as special as when we were children, but also totally unique and we feel truly blessed to have her in our lives still. Now, instead of turning chocolate wrappers into goblets or sewing our own design into a prom dress like she did when we were growing up, she is building dreams and turning trash into treasure. Literally. She is amazing with her hands and as she has grown older, she has become the most amazing handy-woman and carpenter. When we first moved into this house a year ago, she was over here every day from morning until evening, with only a short break at lunch when we sat in our grotto, and she turned the chaos of this house into a home. She hung pantings, fixed lights, put up curtains, sewed sofa covers and pillows and planted the garden.  She buried a power cable under the lawn and hung dreamy fairy lights in the grotto and hooked up lanterns in the tree. She built a storage area for all my studio gear, put together a storage shed kit, and even created some beautiful bed side tables out of antique doors, balustrades and drift wood. It was as if everything she touched turned to gold in the emotional sense - she wasn't just setting up our house - she was helping us turn this new space into the most beautiful and happy home. And in no time at all. We are so incredibly grateful for all she does for our family. I used to get a little sad whe we lived all the way out in Somerset that she did not have a really close relationship with the kids, but when I finally gave up forcing it, it happened naturally and when they came home from school each day, the first thing they would do was look for her, and spend that precious time I knew was so special to all of them. So this post is for my mother - for all her quirky and different ways, and to say how thankful I am for all those differences, for it is what makes her so truly unique.

I want to do an entire post on all she did for us for the house and show the before, during and after of the bedside tables, plus all the other cool stuff she did, but there were so many photos, I thought for this post, I would focus on her and what she loves most. She is Harley mad and although Bermuda doesn't allow engines as large as Harley Davidsons here on the Island due to our 40km speed limit, she was able to semi satisfy her passion with a fun Husky.

She likes to dream that it is a real Harley. She also has a Mazda painted red with a Ferrari sticker on the front and a Ferrari key chain so she is all about the imagination which is fun.

Like I said, she is a sewing goddess so she kitted out her jacket and gloves  and even the saddle bags with studs.



The BB is for Blackburne and is the logo for my (also eccentric) father's double strung tennis racquet that he invented.

Remember I mentioned the tiger obsession - check out her helmet - isn't that mad? She is an artist so painted it on the helmet for fun. Check out some of her watercolours and mural work on www.joyblackburne.com

So thank you Mummy (Mammie in Dutch) for all you do, and for being not only a very hip and funky mother, but also just a very individual you! We love you. Happy Mother's Day. xxxx