My appreciation for photography evolved over time to be awed by the magic that can be created via set design, especially in still life. An article on London-based set designer Imogen Frost offers, via a curation of her work, a wonderful glimpse in the worlds she creates. Whether artistic or commercial, it makes me want to explore the possibilities.

I’ve been increasingly aware of the waste coming out of my household so of course, sustainable beauty has been on my mind. It’s probably a sign of the times, the increasingly obvious violent effects of climate change. Going increasingly plastic-free is a desire that seems to be hard to achieve: so little quality products are available in sustainable or recyclable containers. If you’re anything like me, and you live in the US (not sure if the brands are available outside the country) this article is for you: 7 best products for a plastic free morning routine. Take note, beauty brands. Time to get clever with your packaging.

My exploration of the importance of boundaries at work, which you may have read about in previous articles, expanded thanks to the research I gleaned from this article in the NYT. Changing our scheduling practices, knowing when to put ourselves offline are important tools for sanity and productivity in the blended or hybrid world, because: ‘When our work is interrupted by a digital distraction like a message, it takes 23 minutes on average to return to the original task, according to one study.’

"If you have a long-term ambition for your business, take your customers on the journey with you." says Helen Baynes, this week’s guest on Out of the Clouds. The Customer Experience Consultant and Strategic Advisor, spent her career in the fashion and online retail world, via Harrods, Net-a-porter and Cult Beauty where she deployed her talents in customer centricity. Helen is now pioneering the digitalisation of traditional retail service values to meet the rapidly changing needs of increasingly digital consumers. Her diverse clients include champagne houses to fine jewelry to wellness supplements. Helen and I had the chance to collaborate recently, which gave me the desire to talk to her some more about key principles in customer care, experience design, the importance of listening to clients, partners and customers and how happy staff leads to happy customers.

I am ashamed to say I didn’t know of the Garden Museum in Lambeth, London until I discovered this beautiful exhibition of botanical portraits by photographer Kate Friend. For this series, the artist chose to approach people who she’d wanted to meet and who have a relationship with flowers but aren’t gardeners themselves. Friend followed her instinct which took her to visit studios and homes of people whose work she respected and the result is stunning. Her favourite (and mine from the selects on the museum’s website) is Yurgen Teller’s strawberry.

Returning to the eternal city for a visit is a dream I am contemplating. A new colourful exhibition at Maxxi Museum in Rome is celebrating the vision of futurist painter Giacomo Balla makes my dream even more enticing.

POLYWORK is the name of an upcoming professional social network targeted towards Gen Z and millennials where one can share the varied projects they are working on. Why? Because a single job or life is so pre-pandemic, as Digiday offers. I could not agree more. As a consultant, mindfulness teacher, podcast host and writer, I've been living the "polyworker" for a few years and it's not always easy to explain it. If that's you too, get yourself on the waitlist for Polywork and read more here.

Some of my favourite writers of all time, such as Martha Beck and Julia Cameron, advise that we keep a record of thank yous, testimonials and any written forms of gratitude and congratulations and re-read them regularly.
I procrastinated on that until recently, when I created a note just for that purpose on my iPhone. There, I copied and pasted any new thanks and congrats coming through. I must say, it was worth the minimal effort of setting this up. Every time I open it, it warms my heart.
Perhaps this Forbes article will inspire you to start your note for shared praise and encourage you to write thank you notes for others. Clearly, it’s worth it.

This is true: I absolutely love podcasts as the Guardian does; I ask myself, are celebrities ruining podcasts? As if their platforms weren’t pervasive enough? There are some great shows hiding amongst them though.