The love we don't always see ....

 Most of us are surrounded by love we feel but not always see. I have shared various Valentine sentiments several times 

This past week I sewed two little needle book hearts which I will gift to friends, a little reminder of how much I value their friendships. 

Our sideboard once again has roses on it - Old Country Roses by Royal Albert 

Some previous valentine posts - 

a little thing called love ...

True love is not just one day 

I heart Valentine 

What is love? 

Love is what you do 

This morning I saw this post by a cousin and it really struck a chord with me 

We do not fully appreciate the often unseen love that sustains us when we need it? 

Life is hard at times, it can toss us on the waves we did not see coming & we need a safe haven to rest in; the kitchen table we can cry at, the hot tea that revives us, the listening ear which helps us to make sense of the world. These friendships are not celebrated enough.

I treasure the love of my late Dad's sisters on my whatsapp group whose messages wait for me when I wake up - they are 2 hours ahead of my time & they surround me with their love & care. I awake most mornings to messages from friends & family scattered across the continents with wishes for the day, little things they want to share. These are some of the unseen people & their love ... 

I decided on the spur of the moment to try to visualise the love of the many unseen people who are there for me - I love symbolism & so I used a fairly coarse backing fabric & cut outlines of people from a very earthy colour which I arranged first on the square. The coarser fabric represents the earthy side of people, the raw, real side of us that we show to those we trust explicity .... 

The hearts which cover this are in various shades of red, blue & cream, some of the patterns cut in half, some blue hearts, some small, some large, some pure - all powerful symbolism for the ones we encounter. 

I wanted these outlines to be without features - the faceless ones who are there for us. I machine stitched them to the fabric then covered the whole image with a very fine clear lace / gauze I had to indicate the almost invisible nature of our support system, the hearts there but unseen ... 

The thicker lace pattern at the base represents how this love grounds us as it reaches upwards towards this hidden group & their hearts. 

I will probably do a hand stitched border but I am happy with this creative visual which represents the shadowy love we enjoy. 

I am especially grateful for the deep love of my husband -  this love is rare where people have space to grow ... 

Have a lovely Valentine's day & remember to appreciate the ones in your life, 

Dee 💕

True love is not just one day ....

I think that true love is too precious to celebrate just once a year ...

Last year I blogged about a funny-little-thing-called-love & it holds true for me.

Advice given to me years ago was to speak to your children & family in the same way that you would speak to friends - if you would not put down, speak or shout at your friends, then it is not acceptable to do it to your nearest & dearest! 

That is a sobering thought & it hinges on respect - respect for yourself & respect for others around you.

Respect must be practised daily in families until it is the accepted way of behaving - for me that is the best display of love - doing things out of love & respect, all the time, not just one day of the year.

A massive bunch of red roses or  the largest box of chocolates will not make a person feel loved & valued if it is not reflected in your everyday manner ...

I love changing things in my home & my heart decorations are things we like & have at home so I collected them together as a symbol of love.

The large heart shaped wreath is one I bought at a local craft fair & love the pinks; it is teamed with 2 strands of Gisela Graham heart bunting & my wooden hearts that are often on the fireplace

Our conservatory sideboard changed to heart bits that I love ....

 I love this African plate with the beaded detail - teamed with love heart sweets & some die letters we love using

 Heart shaped plates - I am sure many of us have these 'Flora' plates ...

 XOXO - always place for a bit of Gossip Girl ...

 It is looking a bit more cheerful - I really love our sideboard x

 Do you observe Valentine's Day? What do you do? I will be thankful for the enduring love of my fabulous Hubby & family - I hope I never take them for granted x


Tell all, thanks for stopping by, always lovely to read your feedback & return the visit.
Dee ~♥~