Hello Lisa.

Welcome back to another edition of THE PENCIL CASE! As always, each issue focuses on a theme to encourage a fresh look at garden design and graphics.

This week, we're focusing on the PERMISSION TO BEGIN... and how the courage to start before you feel ready is one of the most important things you can offer yourself as a designer. ♥

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Photo above by Adam Orgler.

HOW MUCH EXPERIENCE DO YOU NEED BEFORE YOU CAN START?

It's a question I hear a lot. In different ways, from different people. 

I just need to learn a little more. I'm not quite ready for that kind of project. Maybe once I have more experience under my belt.

And I get it. I really do.

But last Saturday my son, Sam, planted 8 trees at his school as part of his Eagle Scout project...and he quietly answered that question in the most practical way possible.

Sam is 17. He has no design training, no landscape background, no experience to lean on. What he had was a project in front of him. So he started asking questions, figuring things out, messing up, adjusting, and trying again. He coordinated the tree (thanks Bentley Ridge!) and money donations. Arranged the utility locates. Worked with school staff to choose the site. Partnered with the city for mulch and hole digging. Organized his Scout troop. And had one of his friends there beside him the morning of to help him prep.

NOTHING WAS PERFECT

Nothing about the process was perfect. Everything about it got done. And then on Saturday, with all those moving parts finally in motion, he showed up and led. I have to say, I was incredibly proud of him.

When I asked him afterward what he learned, here's part of what he said:

"Even with a solid plan, things didn't always go exactly as expected...and I had to adapt in the moment and keep things moving forward."

I read that and thought...that is every design project I have ever worked on. That is every project you will ever work on too.

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Photos above by Adam Orgler.

START BEFORE YOU FEEL READY 

Sam didn't wait until he felt ready. He couldn't have...the project required him to move forward before he had all the answers. So he planned carefully, asked for help, made mistakes, adjusted, and kept going. The experience taught him things that no amount of preparation ever could have.

You are probably doing the same thing Sam did before Saturday...gathering information, thinking it through, trying to feel ready enough. And that preparation matters. It really does.

But at some point the trees have to go in the ground.

The designing, the deciding, the leading...that is where the real learning happens. Not in the waiting. Sam figured that out at 17, planting trees at his school with a Scout troop and his best friend and a plan that needed adjusting every step of the way.

You already know more than you think you do. And the project in front of you is waiting. Start before you feel ready. Adjust as you go. Accept it as part of the learning process. You've got this.

LET'S DO THIS!

Whatever project is sitting in front of you right now...the one you've been circling, researching, almost starting...give it a yes this week. You don't need more experience to begin. You need to begin to get more experience.

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Two ways to keep moving forward if you're ready...

Our 10x10 GARDEN DESIGN TIPS email journey is 100 tips over 100 days for just $10. A gentle, steady way to build confidence one idea at a time. 

And our membership THE GARDEN DESIGN COLLECTIVE opens again next month. If you've been circling that one too... the waiting list is a lovely place to land. ♥︎

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If you know someone that needs design inspiration, please feel free to share this newsletter. Anyone can subscribe right here. I also keep a VAULT of past issues in this secret location.

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May you give yourself the grace to simply begin.

From the studio + garden,

Lisa 

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PAPER GARDEN WORKSHOP

Thank you to Mandy Orgler for designing the lovely graphics in all these newsletters.