Creativity and Well Being Week 2025

The theme of this years Creativity and Well Being Week is "New Horizons". 

I'm using it to introduce the concept of Pause, often sitting back and resting can be just as good for you as sitting and doing. 

When I was younger there were 3 TV channels in the UK.  On the BBC in between shows there was often a period of time where there was nothing to see as people were moving studios or changing the studios around.  A series of films called Interludes were introduced.  My favourite was the Potters Wheel, it showed a potter creating a pot on a wheel.  This pause or break between programmes filled by an interlude has always stayed with me.

Interludes were like permission to stop, to rest, to break.

I've been thinking about this a lot over the last year whilst completing my MA which looked at care of practitioner and building care into our project lifecycles.  Walking through the city at lunchtime I see lots of people relaxing and just sitting in the sunshine. So trying to bring a 10 minute break into my free-lancer life is becoming really important.

I will be sharing my "interlude" each day on Instagram (@bytinafrancis) 19-23 May at 1pm, rather than a pre-recorded film I will be live stitching for around 10 minutes.  Traditional interludes were accompanied by a music track but this iteration I will be talking a bit about stitch and time. On Wednesday my pause will come from Chelsea Flower Show because I have been so lucky to be invited this year. Being surrounded by flowers and plants will be a big change from the urban world I live in every day.  But the reason behind the pause will be the same, noting that I need a break and that 10 minutes out of my day will add to my well being.

You can find out more about Creativity and Wellbeing Week here Creativity and Wellbeing Week – Our festival is over for another year but please keep telling us about your events!