This week I was invited to tea with the Principal of Cranbrook School, Dr Anne Johnstone—and wow, what a radiant smile she has.
As I settled into the corner of her sofa and we talked about a variety of things, I found myself feeling a little like an imposter as she spoke about her career so far. There wasn’t a hint of ego; just a woman entirely in her own power, doing what she does.
At the end, she humoured me by allowing me to recreate a few vintage school-photo poses, which are now up on our Instagram page. I was super chuffed that she let me do it.
If there was one point I pushed with her, it was that students should make sure they use their grey matter in conjunction with their hands. That combination has been one of the great joys of my own work. We also talked about AI and the extraordinary productivity it can bring to a small business like ours—and how prior knowledge, wider reading and genuine curiosity make for far better prompts and, ultimately, far better results.
Next, we made a new batch of worry beads using our gemstones, and they are super lovely. My new assistant, Ginevra, took to it like a duck to water. As we went along, I encouraged her to choose her own combinations of stones, bringing a different perspective to the process.
Not all of them are online yet, but you are very welcome to drop us a line if you’d like us to send you a video. They are surprisingly difficult to show off properly in photographs alone.
