What a roller coaster this past year or so has been! For quite some time now I’ve had an ember of an idea that I’d love to learn how to make botanical themed garden sculptures and water features, and at last, I’m starting to feed that ember and enable it to develop!
As some of you know, I have a condition called Complex Regional Pain Syndrome following surgery in Dec 25, as well as IBD, anxiety and depression. I’ve had to come to terms with having a chronic condition that impacts my day-to-day life, and that of my family, but I have been blessed with receiving superb care from the Royal Navy, the team at DCMH Stanford Hall, and of course, my family. The main lesson I have taken away is that to manage pain and mental wellbeing, I need to manage stress and quite rightly, the Navy and I have decided that I can no longer remain in the Navy and manage my conditions, and as such, I will be leaving in Dec 26.
This presents me with an opportunity to either panic and spiral about what I’ll do or embrace the chance to explore my passion for nature and creativity and prioritize my wellbeing. Whilst it certainly hasn’t been and isn’t plain sailing, I am excited that I can explore a new path, forge ahead and give myself the space to bloom in another career.
After having a taster of welding and metal work at Stanford Hall in May 2025 (picture of the poppy and three nut flowers), in February I was lucky enough to attend to 5 day Sculpture Using Recycled Steel and other Forged Metal course at the beautiful West Dean College (Short Courses | West Dean), with the amazing Cara Wassenberg (Cara Wassenberg British sculptor who works in steel, glass and copper), and what an experience it was! I reached out to Cara before starting the course, so she knew of my aspirations, and she worked hard with me to ensure I produced a couple pieces that enabled me to learn the fundamental skills I would need to take my business forward. Amazingly, it turns out I’m quite good at forging metal and welding; quite a relief given my chosen path!
Whilst the final pieces may not be perfect, I love that they represent my learning journey and my love for this art. The flower is made from all sorts of scrap metal, with the leaves hand forged by me. The frame is made with recycled windows frames that were thick with grime and dirt. I cleaned them up heated them in the forge until yellow/orange and them hammered them to help develop the patina I was after. I then cut then and riveted them together using copper rivets. The leaves and tendrils were again hand forged, as was the little snail (named Brian!) and will be welded to the frame over the next few weeks.
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