The Tale of an Encouraging Toucan...

Want to encourage yourself
(or someone else) with this toucan?
Tap or click here...

Hello there

And as ever, I hope you're well and flourishing in these crazy times.

Here, I had so many " Spring wildflower" intentions for you. And this post is the tale of how they got overtaken, by a toucan.

He (and he is a he, because, as I found out, they seem to have have brighter beaks and feet than the females), came flapping into my mind, full of life and joy, about a week ago.

Apart from checking online how many toes toucans have, and their beak size relative to their bodies (answer: huge) this image is pretty much that which I "saw" in my mind's eye from that first evening...Which definitely doesn't always happen. :-).


At first...

At first, I thought this was an entirely private thing, great for sending a boost to a friend. then, as this bird absolutely wouldn't leave my mind, on he went onto some products to inspire and cheer.

Here he is on a fridge magnet...

Being great on a greeting card...

And absolutely rocking it
on a tote bag...

But when he still wouldn't leave my thoughts, I modified this image, and a new toucan pattern was born. So if you're up for happy toucans on, for example, a mug, or cushion/throw pillow, here they are.

Happy toucans on multiple mugs...

And yes, this is how much a toucan throw-pillow

or cushion can brighten up a space...

So...

So, adorable cute and joyous though he undoubtedly is, this is one toucan that clearly wants to multiply, and bring as much joy to people as he can. If he floats your boat, please make him happy too, and grab some toucan joy here.

Finally...

As you can imagine, the "problem" of having an unexpectedly happy toucan is an absolutely excellent one to have. But if you're craving considerably smaller birdy/ easter type designs, if you tap or click here, you should find a selection of all my previous offerings on that theme.

I'm not sure whether they'll be a post next week-it's more likely to be the week after.

(Update on April 9th: Yes, the next post will be on or around April 16th. But if you need even more toucan joy until then, this toucan has joined friends and made his way onto fabric...

Happy Toucan Fabric,
available on Spoonflower.Com

But in any event, and whether or whatever you're celebrating or not at the moment, I wish you lots of joy (whether toucan-related or not) and send you huge love and thanks for being here.

More soon.

P.S To get details of new posts by email, please join the newsletter here. Many thanks.

And a PPS update on June 4th 2026. You just can't keep a happy toucan down, can you? Here he is on a new encouragement card at Zazzle...

Toucan Encouragement Card: You Too Can Do This Card
by BoundingSquirrel

___________________________

Thank You

Thank You ecard-Click or tap here to download
(Image v. much sized only for ecard/screen use)

Hello there

As you can probably guess, the subject of this is a huge "Thank you"...To everyone and everything who reminded me (since my previous post-(in all its now mostly-struck-out glory...)...

♥ That the reason most people come here is to look at happy and joyful things, (yay!)...

♥ That if I really need a "niche", that's a fine one in itself, and...
♥ That it's perfect OK if I don't physically have time to post examples of every single design from and to  absolutely everywhere. I have a stockist/Linktree page which covers that.

Then, literally to cap it all... My right knee weighed in with mega-twinging. Which, for me is always a not-so-polite nudge that, "Clare, love...You've been walking in the wrong direction on this one..." 

As soon as I changed back to the central focus of whimsy and joy-those twinges were gone. (Which settled the matter once and for all, as I quite like at least being able to get from A to B :-).

Sooo

Enough from me, and huuuuge apologies for the confusion and waffle last week.

 I'm keeping some of the re-design, and still likely to change the main post sending day to earlier in the week (as with this one).

But otherwise-it's back just to a focus on whimsy and joy. Because who doesn't need a bit more of that right now, anyway?

Thank you so much for your patience, and for being here, and enjoy your week.

More soon.

___________________________

Love, Peace, Joy, Courage Potion Bottles Pattern: Free Image Download

Click, tap or double-click here to
 download and use this image if you'd like

Hello there, and more than anything, in the light of all that some are experiencing around the world  hope that wherever, whenever and however you're reading this, you're safe, happy and finding ways to thrive.

This hope made me wish that we as a species could physically bottle love, peace, joy, and courage potions and send them out at a moment's notice to wherever it's needed. 

This pattern, in all its whimsy,  was the result of that thought. And if the idea speaks to you too, please feel free to download and use this image in your projects if you'd like. (Credit is always appreciated, but never required: my full angel policy is here).

Once again, I can't vouch for the size of download you'll get, as still haven't fathomed out how the blog is processing images these days.

And...

And yes, just to be clear, the idea behind these is potion bottles and jars. So, yes again, I have been thinking about Halloween designs. This year's designs  all are cosy, warm and comforting, but all the details will keep for another post.

For now, am just going to thank you so much for being here, and let those love, joy and peace potion bottles do the talking.

More soon.

___________________________

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Mimosa Painting and Thanks...

"Mimosa Flowers" by Clare Walker. Update: Now available as a print
(There are no watermarks on prints for purchase)

Hello again

This is just a quick visit, made for so many reasons. As you can imagine from the details shared in my previous post, am not anywhere near back to work yet. But did want to pop in and say....

1) Thank you to every single person who has, in all their various ways, shown so much care (to both Jim and me) during the past few difficult weeks. It's made, and is making, a *huge* difference. And if I haven't thanked you in person yet, I will, but please consider yourself soooooo thanked right this second, also.

2) Quite a few people commented that their own creativity had suffered during experiences of grief.  It became very easy to appreciate just how this happens, so the mimosa flowers in this post (and yes, they are different in style to "before," and who knows where this will all go yet?) represent my first postable effort in that direction.

If the info helps you or someone you know, am also repeating right here that this is the first effort in the direction of creativity that am posting. The first was a doodle. In the second, the next day, the colours were off. In the third, the colours were brighter, but just "off". Several tries later, (and I forget how many days elapsed in total) this suddenly emerged.

It all felt (and feels) like having to run dirty water out of a pipe until the water runs clear again of it's own accord. And am not fooling myself that am yet anywhere near continuous "clear water days," yet.

It's just that creativity brings me joy, and was the road back to joy that inspired the start of this blog in the first place. So my motivation to keep creating is and was, *very high*.

3) The inspiration for this digital watercolour painting was our neighbour's mimosa tree (in the photo below, it's behind the white elderflower, and stretching into four adjacent gardens...).

My own mimosa reference photo

If you're a regular reader here, you'll know that my own reference photos, like the one above, have a track record of being-less-than-stellar :-). 

But hope that even from this, you can get the idea about just how fulsome and bright this was when we got back from the event to mark my Dad's passing...And it has only got even brighter since.

The odd thing...

Which is odd, considering that this plant is native to tropical and sub-tropical places, and the weather in London for most of this spring can best be described as having been "really cold and wet".

In previous, warmer springs, the flowers have been nothing like this bright and beautiful.

But one of my first associations with mimosa was and is, seeing it on many, many childhood holidays in Portugal, one of the most beloved places of, you've guessed it...my recently-departed Dad.

Coincidence? Maybe. Magical thinking? Gotta be in the mix somewhere. (Though now I come to ponder it, what the heck is wrong with some extra "magical thinking," in a world in desperate need of it anyway?).

And on that note, I'll leave you to ponder the beauties and the mystery of it all. Not sure when am posting next, but will post again.

More soon(ish)

Update 19th May: It has been (gently) pointed  out to me that this plant could in fact be a labernum, which would blossom easily here. So have been busily looking at various pictures...And am still not sure, until I can actually ask my neighbour, who owns the tree. But in a way, whether an especially frondy-leafed and  bobbly-flowered labernum, or a very "waterfalling" mimosa, this plant has done its job.

I've had some lovely memories to enjoy, and a fun art afternoon. You have (am hoping) something you've enjoyed looking at. And at the end of the day, perhaps that's what art is all about.

Enjoy your weekend xx

___________________________

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New Artwork: It's OK to be Happy, People Need Joy

Hello. 

If you're in a space to be thinking about joy today, I have something for you.

(To share this image, retaining the watermark, the link is here)

This was a piece of digi-art journaling (hand-lettering and painting, but in a digital art program...Krita, in this case) I got up to this week. 

If you've read these posts for a while, you'll know that this isn't the first discussion of "can art/happiness be justified when X is happening,". But this just wanted to come out, as a full technicolour reminder that joy helps the world rather than hindering it.

And yes, it's a little brighter and bolder than I might have necessarily done things for a good while. Some of the credit for that must go to the workshop I'm on this week. Am purely a participant, not an affiliate or anything, But if you've been having any kind of creative block, stuckness or general "loss of colour," in your life or work recently, it may speak to you too, and you'll find all the details at:

https://radiantearthstudios.com/unlock-your-artist-challenge

And finally

And finally, pretty much for fun, I did put this image onto Redbubble as well, and am enjoying the look of it on magnets, mugs, and the like, here.

So I'll leave you with some more visual goodies (clicking on the pictures should click you straight through if you're interested.

It's OK to be Happy People Need Joy Magnet

It's OK to be Happy, People Need Joy Mug

It's OK to be Happy People Need Joy Cushion/Throw Pillow

And more than anything, I wish you a happy and joyful weekend.

Day 67/100: This Really Happened...

 

Hi again. Hope you're thriving, in all the circumstances.

Today's cartoon is based on a conversation I had recently which first led me to question my sanity, and then to want to publish this cartoon in order to defend joy. 

If you're genuinely feeling joy at a given point, please don't do what I did in this situation. Let it shine, because we need it more than ever now, not less.

Enough waffle. More tomorrow

New Digital Painting/Art Journal (AEDM Day 17)

Day 17 of the Art Every Day Month challenge, and this is as much a note to myself as anything else.
Joy comes naturally to me...but so does an accompanying smidgen of guilt if others aren't in the same place.

Then I pondered on this...When you think about it, it does no good at all to dim your own joy too far...It may in fact lead a person to be less effective in helping others than they might otherwise have been...and to have fewer reserves to draw upon in their own time of need.

Just on a personal level, felt like a point worth remembering-as well as a great chance to practice digi *watercolour* lettering (and backgrounds) in Krita 4.2.

More tomorrow.

Summer Lilies: At Last, A Digital Painting for the Season!

After mixing up all my seasons completely in the last few weeks, here's a real pop of summer: a digital painting inspired by  orange lilies that were fighting their way to the light in a nearby garden.

So what else to call them but, "Summer Lilies"?

NB. I know they're  *really* bright...but so were the originals. I love colours like this, but I'd love to know your thoughts too.

Enjoy!

PS. To see this design on phonecases and decals, have a look at this:

Orange Lilies Painted Flower/Floral Design Decal For 17" Laptop by BoundingSquirrel
Browse Orange Skins online at Zazzle.com