Hearth and Soul NZ

11/12/2025

In the December chaos, a 50 minute break from the hustle and bustle. Starting with making a nest, you are guided to find the intention to rest and to set any other intention you might have for the session. It's a beautiful permission to let your body relax while your mind stays active enough to take a journey. The crystal singing bowls fill in the background, a sound vibration that helps the mind gently shift gears.

Nidra was designed for busy minds, understanding that trying to meditate within busy-ness is near impossible. Nidra allows you to slowly move towards meditation rather than trying to drop straight in. By the time you reach that part of the journey, you may have fallen asleep and that's fine, or you may find yourself simply held by the sound of the bowls.

The place of intention in the practice is important - your intention is a place to return to if you find yourself distracted. Natasha also brings one with her in case that's one too many things for your mind. This week it is a peace mantra - Lokah samastah sukhino bhavantu - May all beings everywhere be happy and free.

Bookings in MindBody

07/12/2025

A wee ramble follows what's on - that includes Saturday Slow Flow Yoga and a Yoga Nidra.

Yoga
Monday
Slow Flow 10am and 6.30pm
Power Flow 5.30pm

Friday
Slow Flow 9am and Yin 10am

Saturday
Slow Flow 10am Yoga Nidra 11am

Xmas Eve has had a Slow Flow 10am and Yin 11am added and don't forget the beautiful New Years Eve Cacao Sound Journey and Yoga session from 10am.

There are Soul Chat and massage spaces open Thursday. The latest Around the Hearth should be out on the email this week and it's week two of the new subscription offering so it's all keeping me busy enough.

So a ramble about managing busy...
It's a time of year when competing demands can make our lives feel too busy. Balancing expectations, looking after ourselves and getting all the things done can be intense even without Xmas added in.

Busy enough is how I often reply if people ask about my life and business. Busy enough is based on enough. Don't get me wrong, it's no shrinking vision in terms of where I'd like to get to materially, it's just that how I get there includes other versions of abundance too:

Time
Creative space
Love
Family
Friends
Spiritual practise
Monty
Hearth... to name a few in no particular order

The list could feel like a juggle if it wasn't for the joy and playfulness I approach all of the above with. If busy enough starts to steal that whimsical joy, it's turned into plain old busy.

At this time of year there's often a few extra joy thieves running around. I pack a little extra fairy dust into my day so that should I meet one I can see them clearly before they start their patter, and recover faster. Fairy dust might be an extra teddy bear traveling shotgun in my car, or my particularly pink wrist beads that have become almost standard wear; a beach stone hand polished by someone who brings me great joy, and, of course, Monty.

December and often into January is about being prepared and next week I might have to ramble about a very useful word - no.

01/12/2025

It's snuck up on me. It's Cacao and Tarot this Wednesday 6-8pm

This month, let's explore the Wheel of Fortune. How does this card from the major arcana help us understand fate, our free will, and how to intertwine both? Add a sprinkling of astrology and it should be a fun night.

$25 or add a Full Moon Reading and make it $50. These are available later this week as a recording dropped in your inbox of choice.

Yoga this week is the usuals
Monday
10am Slow Flow, 5.30pm Power Flow and 6.30pm Slow Flow
Friday
9am Slow Flow 10am Yin

New Years eve 10am-12 is booking up so get in quick for cacao, intention setting and some yummy yoga $35

There's a wee bit of space for Soul Chats and Massage this week. Thursday morning and Friday afternoon are looking good. Book the double for $160 (otherwise $95 a session). You can also add cacao to anything for $5.

As for a ramble...
December 1st, is often when the year suddenly seems short/close to the end. We get reflective, taking stock of the year. But what if we lived like that all the time? Reflective, aware of how short even long days really are. Gratitude for all the wonders. A willingness to slow down and soak it all in. An intentional life. It takes some doing, to shift the inner narrative. It can feel like learning to breathe again. It is a juicy way to live. So, yes it's suddenly December 1st, and yes it's a fabulous day in a fabulous life so far.

27/11/2025

This little guy
Often the first to greet you when you arrive at Hearth and Soul, usually never far from your feet or mine while you're here.

Monty's story...
He started out in the wrong house. Anxious. Rushing to the end of a lead and screaming on car rides.
I was living in my yoga studio - not exactly dog owner material - but the universe wasnt having excuses. At 16 months he arrived and happily slept through his first yoga classes, waking up to greet the next class before flopping back down on his bed.

Napier...
He took moving in his stride: Always an interesting stride with those short front legs. The arrival of Palmy visitors still sends him into crazy levels of joy and the quizzical 'how did you get here?' look.
When I leased a space initially for Hearth and Soul he voiced his opinion - no, just no. After six months I moved the house around and brought it all home. He sighed, found his sleeping spots, and his people. His next job was persuading me to take him to yoga.

Official role: Grounded Healer and snuggle buddy
He tells you if you've bought visitors of the spirit kind - often joining them on the porch couch or a garden wander. He finds your feet when you need comfort and flops down across them. He sighs, often, stretching out in ways you probably need to. And as you leave he watches from the porch, or wanders to the gate. A good shake and a drink of water later and he's ready for what's next - as long as it's not a bath.
And if you don't want a Monty in your session, he has yummy other places to be.

23/11/2025

A Monday ramble followed by what's on this week...

Filling our cup: It can be as simple as a moment in the garden noticing what's growing, flowering, finding its way through the soil. It can be reaching out to someone who you know will help you laugh or cry and saying 'hey, I could do with some magic.' It doesn't have to be complicated or expensive. It's the little top ups that keep us able to give in a thirsty world.

Yoga this week
Monday
10am Slow Flow 5.30pm Power Flow 6.30pm Slow Flow
Friday
9am Slow Flow 10am Yin

I'm doing a beautiful New Years eve offering at Hello Sunshine:
10am - Cacao and intention setting, sound journey with the crystal singing bowls, some Yin into Slow Flow and then off into your New Years eve
A 2 hour soak for $35.
Bookings on MindBody

This week at the Hearth and Soul sanctuary there are a few spaces left for a Massage or Soul Chat. You could also pick up a voucher for that person who needs to treat themselves.

The last Cacao and Tarot night for 2025 is December 3rd from 6-8pm We're going to explore The Wheel of Fortune and fortune telling vs looking for insights. It's going to be fun - especially given that The Wheel of Fortune leans towards the astrological houses.
$25 for the night or $50 and get a personal full moon reading dropped in your inbox.

21/11/2025

The Lilybit Subscription Offering is no more. In its place is From the Hearth and it is entirely koha based. Each week there's an email with links to
..30-45 minutes of Restorative Yoga ..30-45 minutes of flow Yoga..a mantra and pranayama session (chanting and breath control)..a meditation ..an insight reading from the tarot..in inspiration ramble from me..an inspiration from The Circle

To get yourself subscribed pop me through a message and I'll send you through the details. Here's a taste of the insight reading for this New Moon.

Central...V of Wands reversed Underlying energy...II The High Priestess Past influence...Queen of Pentacles Present moment...IV of Swords First healing step...Ace of Pentacles Wild card...IV of C

16/11/2025

A Monday ramble follows what's on...

Yoga
Monday
10am Slow Flow
5.30pm Power Flow
6.30pm Slow Flow
Friday
9am Slow Flow
10am Yin

Readings/Soul Chats
New Moon Readings Thursday/ Friday
20ish minutes of tarot insight in your inbox $30

In person, or via video chat, over a pot of tea, $95 for an hour long session ($80 if you're making it a regular thing)

Circle Sessions
A deeper dive into wisdom through The Circle. These are channeled insights, written over about half an hour. They are quite different and I'm starting to love working with The Circle in this way. More on this in a previous post. Cost: $45

Massage/Healing
There's a couple of spaces available this week and yes, you can book a double - Soul Chat and Massage $160 for the two ($95 each at full price).

Ramble...
Stress is medicine when we get to choose it - when we're pushing to get that project over the line, from painting the kitchen to a business proposal. The art is remembering to take the pressure off again. To let the muscle build that was under load. Keep the load on constantly and that muscle can't recover, can't build, and eventually it collapses instead.

Choosing our stresses can be a luxury. It can also help us make better decisions: what is worth disturbing your peace for? This might be survival - paying the bills - or we might find ourselves stuck in survival mode. Stuck there, you're probably not choosing, you're probably loaded up and not taking those breaks to recover. Sit a while. Choose wisely. Stress is also the medicine that can reveal and when we reveal we have a chance to heal.

14/11/2025

Set up ✔️
Vibe ✔️
Faery energy ✔️

9-3 today
Come and take rest, check out the beautiful offerings and soak a while

11/11/2025

'Natasha, Can you work with spirit?'
Oooh...that's a question and a half.

There's ancestral spirits, of the land and place.
There's our own ancestors.
There's the wisdom guides and guardians.
And my answer is yes.

Wisdom from our guides is where I'm landing today to try and describe what it's like to sit with my crew: The Circle. Describing because in the beautiful quiet of the current moment their voices are clear and people have asked - can I have a reading?

Oooh...nerves...mine...to write
The Circle are bright beautiful light pouring in to remind us of our knowing, our wisdom, our path, our time. I write with them, words that often make me pause and reflect myself. It is beautiful. I hadn't forgotten how beautiful, I'd just never asked them about readings.

They said I was ready.
I could feel the 'at last'.
It's not our first beginning again.

They are not like a tarot reading, they ask 'how is your spiritual life?' They are contemplative, putting words around fragments of light.

The bit I'd never thought I'd write - sessions available. The response is written and dropped in your inbox.

09/11/2025

Monday ramble and what's on - including the beautiful Be Different Studio Community Day!!!

Saturday I'm taking the healing bed I made many moons ago, surrounding it with crystals, beach stones and driftwood and dedicating it for rest. Playing the crystal singing bowls, the invitation is to listen rest, soften and be receptive to your inner world and wisdom. 20 minutes and then a cushion to sit and reflect on with crayons and paper.
$25
We're there 9-3 with a beautiful collection of practitioners, workshops, and simply soaking in community. Above Chantals Wholefoods in Hastings St, Napier.

Yoga
Monday
10am Slow Flow (full)
5.30 Power Flow
6.30 Slow Flow

Friday
9am Slow Flow
10am Yin

Rumour has it we are down to 2 spaces in Taking Yoga Deeper next year!!!

At the sanctuary of Hearth and Soul it's a busy enough week so check your diary for next week, and book ahead for a yummy massage or Soul Chat. It's New Moon next week too for those wanting the 20ish minute version of a tarot boot camp in their in box.

A Rest Ramble. ..
Why a space to rest?
No phone.
No prompts.
Just rest and bowls.
Because you deserve it.

I lay down and looked at my ceiling the other day, circa 1910 gorgeous wood, and realised I didn't do that nearly enough: and I teach this stuff!!
A yoga Nidra session 9/10 booked on Saturday says other people recognize the need for rest but finding time, a space, a total reset space?

Monty loves rest. He's up on the bed before I've even got the pillow comfortable, a hefty sigh, and he's out. He's a good lesson in how to do it.

Rest makes room, for meditation, contemplation, healing, softness insights, sleep - all essential.

Have you taken rest today?

06/11/2025

For our to-be teachers, what style do we focus on? I want you to be confident enough to teach a Slow Flow class, and we give you opportunities to teach practice classes to grow that confidence. There's also personal coaching in 2027 to support you as you head out into the world (6 sessions are included as part of the course).

In 2027 there are 2 professional development opportunities - a Yin Yoga Course and a Yoga Nidra course - for those wanting to add strings to their bow.

With 3 spaces left, we'd love a full house. Chat to me after class, or grab a chai with me to talk through if the course is right for you.

04/11/2025

November 15, 9am - 3pm
Imagine sinking into a handmade healing bed, surrounded by crystals, beach stones, driftwood and healing intention. You are invited to take rest like a medicine. To be intentional, receptive to you. I'll play the crystal singing bowls to create a space to breathe, and soften. To be. To rest.

I'll awaken you gently after 20 minutes and invite you to sit a while and integrate, on a pile of cushions placed just so, with crayons and paper if you need to capture reflections.

Community Day special - $25