The Secret Life of Perfume Bottles (And Other Pretty Things I Create)
Hello and welcome —
Step into my studio — a small, light-filled space tucked into the garden of my home in the Surrey Hills, officially an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (unofficially: full of cyclists, dogs wearing Barbour jackets and the occasional pheasant with a death wish)
Through the big window, light pours in and dances across bottles, brushes, and jars of half-finished ideas. Outside, there’s a pergola draped in climbing roses in the summer, and in the distance, open pastures where our nearest neighbours — a family of donkeys— conduct loud but well-meaning conversations.
I don't have a grand house, but it’s the perfect place for me, my Australian husband, our son, and a frankly excessive amount of art supplies. (I left a career in microbiology — complete with a PhD — partly to follow my creative heart, and partly to justify buying more craft materials than anyone strictly needs.)
Now I settle into this happy little space to paint flowers onto perfume bottles, engrave messages in glass with great concentration and questionable posture, and write beautiful things in calligraphy — by hand, with ink, and usually with a cup of tea gone cold.
This is my studio. This is my joy.
And I hope a little of it reaches you, every time you unwrap something I’ve made.
Want to see the magic behind the scenes, catch some perfume bottle makeovers, or just read my ramblings (mostly about ink and paint, which is occasionally coherent)? Follow me on Instagram @fluidcalligraphy — because who doesn’t need a little extra sparkle in their feed?