My Happy Place Project

Every once in a while, a really neat project shows up in my Instagram feed.  And when it does, I want to jump on board!  Enter Chris Bennett of Christine Bennett Design and her Lucky Me Lifestyle.

You know how you find someone on a social media platform and you like their style, their spunk and you think you could be friends in real life?  A while back I came across an Instagram feed that I really liked and so for a bit I would just like or occasionally make a comment.  And she ‘followed’ me back, and slowly we interacted more. Then, one day Chris posted a little painting she did and left somewhere for a stranger to find.

That post was probably what tipped the scales.  I commented and a little conversation ensued and then some emails went back and forth.  I knew that at some point in time, we would be getting a painting of our own to drop off somewhere for some one to find!  { We’ve since met a few times in real life and she’s even more vibrant and enjoyable in person than online 😉 }

Let me expand a bit more about exactly how this works.  It has a name, My Happy Place Project, and the basic idea is that a piece of art is dropped off at a happy place and left for a stranger to find and take with them to be enjoyed!  Chris’s pieces for this project are happy clouds and happy waves.  She has left them on the ferry to PEI, her son’s favourite park as a child, a well known pie place in the states and some has been shipped off to the other side of the world for her friend to plant.  She even worked with Argyle Fine Art and created a book with paintings and drawings from 150 people who submitted their ‘Happy Place’ and then stashed it somewhere for someone to find….which they did!

Here’s the thing….she may never know who found it, where it is now or anything about it after she walks away.  But!!  Some people have used the hashtag so she did hear back from a few of the strangers!!  The stories are heartwarming, like one person who had just moved to the area and was feeling pretty lonely but having found the painting, their day was brightened up!  And that’s why I wanted to be a part of it!

So, during the Homegrown Vintage Market, where Chris was a vendor { the vendor who I got my lovely Chicken Mug from!! } she pulled a beautiful chunk of wood out of a bag or box and handed my our Happy Place Project painting.  I was nearly in tears!  It was gorgeous.  But I knew it wasn’t mine to keep.

The girls knew we were getting something to drop but they didn’t know what.  So they were pretty excited to see what Chris made for us.  And then when I asked where they thought we should stash it, they knew exactly where they wanted to go.  The Balmoral Grist Mill.  And I knew it was the place.  See, the grist mill is somewhere we used to go as a family when I was young for Sunday picnics or just a drive.  We would skip rocks along the river with dad and explore the mill if it was open. It holds special memories and I love bringing my family there now.  It happens to be on the way home from Tatamagouche so if we go for a drive for coffee, we might swing in for a quick little visit.

Once I had recovered enough after the market, we piled in the car and headed to the grist mill.  The girls were so excited.  I could barely get them to stand still enough to take this picture.

I wanted to make sure it was sheltered a little, it was later in the day and the forecast wasn’t great.  So, we tucked it under the overhang of the building.  And then we walked away.  The girls wanted to go the next day to see if someone found it but I wanted to wait a little longer, I didn’t want to run into anyone with it, either!

A few days later, we checked and it was gone.  I hope whoever found it loves it and appreciates it.  I hope it brightened their day.  I’m glad other people enjoy our Happy Place, too.  And thank you, Chris, for letting my family be a part of the adventure the ‘My Happy Place Project’ is!  If you have Instagram, you can see the other projects HERE…how fun, eh?

And if you ever find yourself by the Balmoral Grist Mill, I highly recommend you stop and enjoy our Happy Place and make some memories of your own with your family!

To be continued,

Lori