Inspiration

I’ve had a lot of work to do over the last few months, well of course I have, I’m running Ben Pentreath Ltd along with starting my own business. At the moment I am working three days a week, Tuesday to Thursday at the shop with the remainder of the week working on designing and producing my range. I have to admit I’m finding the work work balance a little tricky to get the hang of. By the end of three most enjoyable days working at the shop, I’m normally chomping at the bit to get on with making more candles, applying a couple more layers of lacquer to the Intaglio Boxes and gessoing, well, everything and also wanting to get started on turning a new idea into something tangible. I can blast on with that for four days happy to be lost in my world of Bridie Hall at Home only to return to other work on Tuesday totally spent because I didn’t have a weekend. Although it’s tough I am willing to accept that this is the way it is going to be for the foreseeable future, I’m not such a weekendy person anyway. My solution, as I think I may have mentioned in a couple of my other blogs is a decent lunch. This I consider my weekend, my mini break if you will, once possibly twice a week for a couple of hours I go somewhere, normally Brindisia (get there at noon for a table) in Borough Market, Ottolenghi or Pips Dish Pop Up on Upper Street or the Marquess Tavern near where I live in Islington and get stuck in. A couple of glasses of wine along with the full three courses if I’m on my own, loads of small things to share if I’m with a friend and just….. relax. Sometimes there is a little more wine and a little less food, the company is always excellent, I’m quite easy going about it all going on for a little longer if it has too. That’s when I consider it a holiday. This, normally followed by a short afternoon nap (I have it down to a perfect 40 mins) and I’m back refreshed and rearing to go.

In the last couple of weeks I have eaten the following at the Marquess Tavern.

Potted Shrimp on Toast

Ham Hock Terinne – If I was stuck on a desert island this would be my luxury

Warm Goats cheese with lentils & Beetroot

And this from Pips Dish on Upper Street

Beetroot and Hamhock Terrine was just the beginning!!!

 And also over the last couple of weeks I have managed to start production on a couple of new images and patterns for trays. They look like this.

16″ Camellia Tray – They are HUGE and gorgeous.

Caning pattern tray – the first prototype!

So, I guess it’s a Work Lunch balance that I’ve perfected. How does everybody else do it?

I feel like I do everything at the wrong time. I like to garden first thing in the morning before I go to work so it’s normally all in order all the time. I like to go to bed quite early on Friday and Saturday nights because I really like waking up really early on Saturday and Sundays to get stuck into Bridie Hall work and I don’t really like going anywhere any other time ha!