I always love the aftermath of opening my studio and house to visitors. After the stress of the preparation, the house is transformed into a zen-like gallery and the studio becomes a wonderful organised space with clear surfaces and tidy work areas. Needless to say, this is not its normal state of being! And invariably it doesn’t last long after the final visitor has left, but for a day or two, I float around feeling contentedly on top of things.

Last weekend I held a Christmas pop up shop. It was the first time I’ve opened up at this time of year and I really enjoyed it. Though my visitor numbers were not as high as my May Open House it seemed as though everyone was buying, so I had the enjoyment of having time to chat to visitors along with the benefit of lots of sales.

I also appreciated having a couple of neighbouring houses opening up at the same time, as it provided a mini Xmas shopping experience for our visitors. This will definitely be on my calendar for next year, and I may even manage a little private viewing evening on the Friday to catch those early shoppers.