The Yoga and Creativity Space

Every morning for the last sixteen years or so I have got up before everyone else in my house and headed to my yoga mat for practice. Through thick and thin, through good times and bad times my practice has been my passion and my anchor and it has looked after me. It's not something I have talked about that much on this blog over the years but I can tell you that my practice has been the power and enthusiasm behind all the creativity that I have shared here over the years. It's been my driving force.

I never wanted to teach before, really because I had a lot of fear about it (what do I know about it? I should just stick to what I'm good at blah blah) but I decided to face my fears and do my teacher training course with Yoga Campus, so for the last 18 months I have been studying hard and re-writing those stories about not being good enough in the process!

And I have been growing a vision about the kind of space I'd like to teach in. A beautiful, inviting space full of colour and light. Warm and comfy props for deep relaxation and restoration. Somewhere peaceful for meditation and for listening to ideas. And also chairs and tables for for when inspiration strikes and you need to journal and mind map and plan big ideas and dreams. Ultimately the creative process is what fascinates me the most and I'd love to help people manifest their creative dreams through yoga.

Last month a space right across the hall from my design studio came up for rent and I JUMPED on it.

I could have a space to teach but also rent it out to other teachers for classes and workshops in yoga, meditation, group-work, well being, art, writing....whatever! It was the perfect place for my vision and being right next to my workshop was absolutely perfect. There was lost to be done. We have fitted a new floor, had the ceiling tiles replaced, painted everything and I have had lots of fun choosing colourful mats, cushions and yoga props.

So here is the Yoga and Creativity Space!

I am so very in love with it. 

There is space for eleven mats and each mat has a bolster, two blocks, two bricks, a pillow, an eye pillow, a cotton blanket and the softest 'sheepskin' you ever stroked (from Ikea made from recycled plastic water bottles) so everyone will be comfortable and well supported.

I bought some old stacking school chairs and me and Oonagh have painted them all in these lovely colours. 

There are twelve chairs altogether so there is room to run a workshop for eleven people (plus seating for the teacher).

And there are six tables too which can be configured in all sorts of ways....

How's about a very important meeting here?...about something fun of course!

There is a cloakroom to store bags and coats and to change into yoga gear.

And the space has a kitchen too equipped with twelve plates, bowls, mugs, glasses and cutlery and although it's not equipped for full blown cooking I have provided a portable electric two ringed hob so you can heat up a big pot of soup for your workshop lunch!

I'll make a website soon with more details of what is going on and news of my workshops and classes as and when I develop them. For now if you are interested in renting space then please email me on hannah@hannahnunn.co.uk and tell me your plans and your dreams and maybe we can work together :)

Yoga in the Spanish Mountains

Last week I traveled to the Spanish mountains for a yoga retreat.

We all met up for a night in the mountain village of Competa for a night on route.

 It was lovely to meet my new yoga family.

The town may be all white from a distance but there was so much colour in its tiny winding streets

   

It was good for my senses to be somewhere so different from home.

Then we climbed and climbed up winding mountain roads to our retreat at Finca Los Pinos.

My home for the week was this wooden cabin in the trees.

I was in heaven sitting at my desk on the veranda reading, drawing, writing and dreaming with birdsong all around me and red squirrels darting about.

There was a bit of a squirrel chase one day. The squirrel got away much to the annoyance of the cat!

The retreat was run by my dear fiend Jackie Jones from Shrewsbury. Jackie and I were friends-at-first-sight when we shared mats next to each other on a Rod Stryker intensive a few years ago. I have talked to her lots about yoga but I have never experienced her teaching before.

  I LOVED it. A beautiful flowing breath led practice on a platform under pines and eucalyptus with ten lovely warm souls. We practiced morning and evening and breathed in so much of that clean mountain air.

We had some good walks. 

To the mountains

 I admired these two bikers for getting to the top (we got a lift)!

and to the big blue sea

I found a kindred spirit in ceramic artist Ruth Gibson who perhaps takes even more close up photo's of nature than me!

We held everyone up while we looked up close at new flowers and seed pods.

There was lots of time to relax between yoging and eating.

It's amazing how much time opens up when you don't have to think about what to cook three times a day!

What luxury to have beautiful healthy meals all laid out for us. The food (mostly veggie except for this last party night) was exquisite. The host David and the lovely staff looked after us so kindly with much attention to detail.

 Mealtimes were long and laid back and good time to chat and get to know each other.

It was altogether a magical experience and my mind and heart is still full of the lovely impressions from the week. I have come back with a sense of deep refreshment and I am very inspired to crack on with my yoga teacher training and get teaching. Having a week of deep yoga and lots of playtime does wonders for the body, mind and soul. It gives you a taste of a state of being that is harder to find when you're at home with the demands of business and everyday life. But, once you taste it, it inspires you to give yoga even more space in your everyday life. 

I recommend Jackie as a teacher. She has made some online classes on her website to help people learn some simple sequences they can do at home. 

Thank goodness for yoga x