Facebook Instagram - Mandy Saile Instagram - WhirlInCircles Behance Behance Pintrest www.MandySaile.com Email

Sunday, May 31, 2020

A Favorite Day With Fizz

Just a day back in early Spring when we brought blankets outside on the back deck


and hung out and played with the super adorable Barnaby Fizz....it was a favorite day.

Saturday, May 30, 2020

Throw Pillows Now Available

I am so excited to announce that you can now get
"The Golden Monkey King", "Florin Blue", "Feather Song" and "Teela In The Garden"
on throw pillows and a bunch of other products now in my new Society6 page.

Sizes available are 16 x 16", 18 x 18", 20 x 20" and 24 x 24"
regular prices go from $29.99usd to $49.99usd
and right now there's a sale on for 25% off.


The quality of these pillows is gorgeous.
They are 100% twill polyester fabric with a faux down pillow insert.
The print is on both sides
They are available in an indoor or outdoor fabric
Each is individually cut and sewn by hand
and every order is custom made just for you.

Tuesday, May 26, 2020

Two Fuzzy Heads Then Three

A gorgeous robin found the perfect spot for a nest right on top of our vine trellis in the front garden.


I thought there were 2 but today I saw a 3rd head pop up.  I am utterly amazed by her & her babies.  

Monday, May 25, 2020

Fizz & The Deck

For a little bunny who spent the first two years of his life locked & ignored in a small cage,
Life can be overwhelming when you are rescued & suddenly have a big world to explore.
Starting in the Spring I have been taking him outside on the back deck, he was quite nervous at first


and he had to get used to bigger wide open spaces with tons of new noises & smells and it took him awhile to get brave & comfortable but now he's zooming in the yard like it's nobody's business & watching him it such a great reminder of why we give up travel & fancy furniture to do what we do with & for these amazing animals!

Tuesday, May 19, 2020

Foxy Goddess

I am pretty excited about how this ink pen drawing of my fox goddess is coming along.


You'll be able to get it on t-shirts, bags etc really soon as I am setting up a shop with Society6.

Monday, May 18, 2020

Floors & Bursitis

I shouldn't be on the floors so much
because I've been dealing with a trochanteric hip bursitis the past year in my right hip...


But it's super hard to ignore these adorable little faces,
so I can't help but bring my work down onto the floor sometimes to be closer to them.

Sunday, May 17, 2020

Mask It Up

I am pretty proud of myself that I got some masks made up for us
because my sewing machine & I definitely don't get along! I don't have the patience for bobbins!


I'll have to have patience to make just a few more though for my Mom and a couple friends.
How is this even life now!!!  Just because humans are disgusting & eat everything that moves!!!!

Saturday, May 16, 2020

Not Super Great News

Well my honey had another scope recently and it wasn't the news we were hoping for.
We were hoping that all was clear & looking good.  We were not expecting another surgery.
The doctor said that it doesn't look like the cancer is back but things still aren't healed up enough either so another surgery is necessary to get in there for another sample to send away for testing
and to clean up the area that should be healed by now. 


The surgery is next week...
I won't be allowed in the hospital with him...he'll have to spend the night. I hate that I can't be there.
This has thrown me for another loop.  I barely got out of bed for two days after this news.
Having to wait for the pathology of these samples is torturous...and I am feeling scared again anew.
Send us good mojo that the surgery goes perfectly smoothly & the pathology comes back clean.

Thursday, May 14, 2020

Quarantine Sun

Quarantine life keeps us at home pretty much ALL the time...
we just go out for groceries, the pharmacy or the hospital.


But we love that part of it...staying at home with the buns.
We have every intelligent excuse not to go out and that suits us just fine right now!

Tuesday, May 12, 2020

Banana Bread Kinda Day

I've been working hard but I've also been resting hard.
When you live with chronic pain, you just at some point have to succumb to resting your body.
So I'll work for a couple hours and than I am going to give in to what my body wants!


Some days I can't rest but today is feeling quiet & like there's room to take it easy.
So since I had another night of bad sleep, woke up with a very sore head & it's snowing out!
It's mostly going to be a resting, reading, snuggling buns, make banana bread kinda day!

Monday, May 11, 2020

Happy For Our Yard

We are lucky to have a nice big private yard...
I feel for people stuck in apartments during quarantine.


We've been isolating for over 7 weeks now...
being out in the yard with all the buns makes it easier.

Sunday, May 10, 2020

Sweet Sir Frogget

Oh my dapper Sir Frances Frogget convinced me to give him a quick kiss...


He's whispering sweet nothings into my ear and has quite the silly story to share.

Saturday, May 9, 2020

Chronic Life Silver Linings

So with a neurological disease in the form of chronic migraines
and a disease of the nervous system in the form of fibromyalgia,
Some days I really really struggle...well let me be truthful, most days I struggle.
I TRY to see my body as a magical and intelligent vehicle but often I hate this body of mine...
not for how it looks but for how it feels & makes me struggle & fight just to have a normal day.
I am really struggling still with the fact that I now have two chronic pain illnesses.  1 was enough!


On days when I need to be extra strong for my loved ones, like during our many hospitals visits,
I often feel like I am falling short because I am suffering so much myself.
It often feels like by the time I deal with what's happening on the inside of me,
I just don't have enough energy left to deal with all the crap that's going on on the outside of me.
I worry I am not giving enough to others and I am really struggling with that sense of weakness.
Especially since my husbands cancer diagnosis. I feel like I have to be stronger than ever before
but the truth of it is, I've never ever felt so weak in my whole life.


BUT all that being said, I am also feeling quite uncharacteristically unapologetic.
I have been zoning in on my priorities because I have to shave the nonsense away.
I am concentrating on; taking care of me, my family and my art business (because it's been put on the back burner the last year or so and that's not feeling okay with me whatsoever, I believe in my work).
Since my loves cancer diagnosis and since my own diagnosis's,
I can now more clearly focus on what's important in my days &
I am finding I can let the shit go easier, either that or I am just not putting myself so near it anymore!
There's a streamlining of priorities happening & that's a really good thing, a silver lining if you will.


And because of it, the streamlining I mean,
I have been able to find just a smidgen more energy to give....
to myself, to my loved ones &  to my business...
it's happening, there's movement and that's heartening.
It's still hard...some days are harder than others.
Because when I open my eyes to just how debilitating each of these diseases are all on their own,
let alone together, sometimes all the facts push me down, wayyy down
& it takes me awhile to crawl my way back up again!
BUT it's all a 'work in progress' & I am happy to share my struggles along the way.

Friday, May 8, 2020

Missing You Betty-Loo

Betty-Loo...
Today marks 2 years since we lost her unexpectedly during routine dental surgery...
I am haunted by her little imploring face, in the carrier, as she was carried away from me...
she didn't understand what was happening,
I wish I could have had her know for sure that she was SO loved...from the first moment we saw her.
I promised her that she'd be okay & we were waiting to bring her home before she knew it.


We had adopted her less than 4 months before...
we didn't have a chance to make up for all the awful things this poor soul had gone through.
I am haunted by unfulfilled promises.
It was nobody's fault, her heart gave out, but it still makes me angry.
I miss her so much.  These are the very last photos I have of her...our Betty-Loo White.
I was just starting to get to know her...she was a quiet sweet wonderful princess in elegant white fluff.

Thursday, May 7, 2020

Are You Heading Out?

How's quarantine treating you?  Are you going to be heading out as soon as quaratine is lifted?


We are not.  We plan to self-isolate for atleast another month to see if there are anymore breakouts!

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Beady Plans

Higgins and I treated ourselves to some new beads not so long ago...
I have a whole new line of products brewing away in my mind featuring my illustrations.


We're pretty excited about what we plan with them but alas we have to wait for quarantine
to be over to be able to get to the store for the rest of our supplies!  Sigh!!

Tuesday, May 5, 2020

Snuggles, Blankets & Yarn Oh My!

Just being cozy...it's been cold here you guys...brrrr...


Look though, my vegan yard stash is growing, oh all those colours are so scrumptious.

Monday, May 4, 2020

Reflections

Just part of my neighborhood...a river we kayak down a lot that was flooded this time last year...

  

See those big rocks? We launch from a dock 5m from those! it was still beautiful flooded though!