Meet Julie our Founder

Ah, there you are.Mr. Wise Owl is busy searching through dusty boxes looking for old photograph albums of our founder Julie.He says “hang on to your feathers, I will be back in a jiffy,I see the faeries busy in The Soul BookShop, I will ask them” …

So far he has found, a very blurry photograph of Julie at Lourdes in freezing temperatures just before Christmas.She said Lourdes Grotto, was a very sacred experience, but the coldest she’s ever been in her life.He said to “tell you in a nutshell”,Our Founder is;Rowanthwaite Founder
Soul Guide
Guardian of the quiet paths
Seer & Empathic Pattern Reader
Healer
Storyteller
Soul Mentor
Village Keeper
Spiritual Companion
Wise Woman in the Storybook Cottage
Interfaith Minister
Modern MysticIt is quite a list,
though Mr Wise Owl insists it is “the short version.”

Ah, now he’s found his spectacles, cleared his throat, he says …“Julie, our Founder is the “Midwife of Rowanthwaite’s Sparkle”.She is an Ordained Interfaith Minister for 17 years, Storyteller, and Soul Guide, who helps visitors Wander, Wonder, and Awaken.• Wander: Through the lantern-lit paths of story.
• Wonder: At the magic hiding in the everyday.
• Awaken: To the quiet voice of your own intuition.From Whimsical Owls, (that’s me 🦉) to Sacred Gatherings.From the Rowan Star to the Pilgrim Path.

There, I found that written in an old book in the attic, but yes, I think it covers the main points nicely”.Now, I am off back to the attic, there is much to do, much to do-ooo.

Mr Wise Owl’s Editor’s Note:
"I can confirm that all the information above is accurate,
although I would have chosen a more flattering photograph
had the faeries not hidden the best album.
Rest assured, I am still searching."

And he has found a crumpled photograph of Miss Maple, Rowanthwaite’s youngest mascot, it had chew marks on it, so he has made a copy.

That’s as far as he’s got. He says he is putting things together as quickly as he can, as we are opening for our mid-winter Extravaganza and he wants his owls in a row by then.

Rowanthwaite is built from stories and lantern-light. …
but it is also built by Julie.She keeps the fire warm,
the paths tended,
and the wonder alive. 💕

A note from the founder:While Mr. Owl rummages, here are the official facts,Hello. I’m Julie.You might be wondering who is lighting the lanterns, sweeping the spiral path, and keeping the ink pot full for Mr. Wise Owl.That would be me.I am the Creator and Keeper of Rowanthwaite, though, truth be told, I think the village keeps me just as much as I keep it.Rowanthwaite is the home I have unknowingly carried inside me since I was a little girl, growing up in the foothills of the Welsh mountains.I suspect the seeds were sown during the time when my mother worked as PA for the self-proclaimed, ‘King of Hay’ (Richard Booth) as he was dreaming up the Town of Books, Hay-on-Wye.She worked right in the heart of his home, witnessing the eccentricity up close.Oh, the stories she told me …He would send crates of books back from America.My mother would return laden with armloads of 'rescued' treasures.Books that had crossed oceans just to find their way under my duvet, where I devoured them by torchlight.(yes, pre-internet, I am of that vintage!).They sparked my love of story,
and whimsical enchantments, that remains until this day. It is here woven into the threads of Rowanthwaite.This is one of three sacred threads that has woven through my life,The First Thread: The StoryI do believe story and our innate delight is a ‘lost, healing art’ that we need to resurrect.I hold the frequency of wonder and delight again, so that other kindred spirits can awaken to who they are.It is what helped me to build Rowanthwaite from the stones of my own journey.The Quiet Hills of Shropshire
From the Shropshire hills to the frozen silence of the Lourdes Grotto at midnight. (Yes, that’s me in the blurry photo above).

The Second Thread: The ConnectionWhile I was reading the ‘King of Hay’s ‘books by day, I was reading my mother’s spiritual library by night.From the age of 8 I became obsessed with the works of Louise Hay, Lazarus, and many other spiritual teachers, far too many to mention, but at that time the most important of these authors, was famous medium Doris Stokes.To a lonely ten-year-old girl, Doris felt like a grandmother.I remember thinking quite logically: "If I can learn to talk to the spirit world like Doris... I will never be lonely again." That was my one intention (smile).I became an expert at listening to the sacred heartbeat, the hum underneath’, that one pulse we all carry, but so few recognise.I learned to sift through the external noise and catch the frequency of a Love that has been whispering to us since the beginning.It is the same voice or sound the poet Rumi heard centuries ago,a reminder that we are never truly lost:“Didn't I tell you? I am the Ocean, and you are the fishDon't go to the dry land, I am the only water you could wish.If you are the lamp of the heart, you know where to roamAnd if you seek the Divine,know that I am your Home.”For me, that "Home" has always walked with me, that loving Presence, the Sacred hum.It brings me to the final strand of my inheritance.The Third Thread: The SoulI didn't learn to be spiritual from a book. I remembered it through the water.Yes, my mother taught me the value of a good story. But she also carried a secret on her wrist, a hidden inscription that taught me how to submerge myself in the silence until I could “hear” the Sound of the Source of all life.I didn't grow up to become a stage medium, but that childhood wish evolved into something deeper.It opened the door to the "Higher Guidance" that sacred divine frequency, I now share with others.It taught me that we are never truly alone, and that there is a loving higher intelligence always waiting for us to listen …“I am the painter of your joy, the painter of the divine”The Third Thread: The SoulAnd finally, there was the water.I didn't learn to be spiritual from a book.I remembered it through the water.

Read about the third thread and the true story of the Water, the Bracelet and the Mystery of Swn-Y-Dwr
… Here.

One person’s vision can re-enchant the world - what is your vision dearest?This is mine.

I built this place because I believe we are all ‘pilgrims’.We all need a place to rest our feet, a place to remember the magic of life, and a place where we don't have to explain ourselves.My Promise to You
I may not have all the answers (Mr. Wise Owl claims he does, but he’s biased).But I promise to keep the sacred fire lit,
the stories true,
and the gate open.Thank you dearest for keeping your own inner lamp lit (even when it’s been hard),
and for arriving on this Pilgrim Path with me.With love,
Julie
Keeper of the Keys & Lantern LighterName: Julie
Role: Founder, Village Keeper & ‘Midwife of Sparkle’.Official Credentials:
(The serious bit, so you know you are safe here)
* ✨ Interfaith Minister, (17 years)
* ✨ Spiritual Counsellor & Guide (25 years)
* ✨ Certified Storyteller
* ✨ Natural Seer & Pattern ReaderKnown Weaknesses:
* 📚 Buying more books than there are shelves for.
* 🐕 Puppies with big eyes (Maple & Blossom).
* 🍪 Ginger biscuits (the crunchier the better).‘Unusual’ Skills:
* Listening until the silence speaks.
* Finding the thread of gold in a person’s tangled story.
* Making a cup of tea that solves 80% of the problem immediately.Favourite Sound:
The crackle of a fire and the scratch of an ink pen on paper ✒️.Philosophy:
"We are all just walking each other home”(Ram Dass).

Gallery of Some of Our Favourite “Villagers”

🦉A Note from the Rafters…Mr. Wise Owl has been peering over Julie’s shoulder again (he’s very nosy) and has spotted several wonderful things currently “simmering” on the Storybook Cottage hearth.He requests that you, “Leave your name in our guestbook if you would like me to send you my owl post.”Hoo .

Light your lanterns

Dearest, receive a Little sparkle
tidbits, tales,
and lantern-light. ✨

Behind the Blue Velvet CurtainWhile the village is for wandering,sometimes we need to sit down and get to the heart of the matter.I have opened the door to the Back Room for a handful of private ‘Doorway Sessions’.This is where we lay the map out on the table, pour the strong tea, and truly look at what is calling to you for 2026.It is for the soul ready to cross the threshold.Step into the Back Room.

• Soul Map

• Back to Home

• back to Founder page

My ‘North Star Compass’Along with the books, my mum also taught me to ‘listen to my intuition’ and to have the ‘courage of my convictions’.Our Intuition(Or ‘inner-tuition’) is a very powerful built-in tool. We all have it, but we are rarely shown how to cultivate it.
We can strengthen, increase, and harness our intuition - or ‘hunches’ as Florence Scovel Shinn called them - if we want to.Courage of my ConvictionsShe taught me to trust that gut hunch, knowing and certainty.
It doesn’t shout, but it is definitely persistent!Tea with Serendipity(Coming Spring 2026)
We talk a lot about intuition and miracles in Rowanthwaite.I have created a lovely teaching offering called ‘Tea with Serendipity’ for the Soul School.If you would love to learn about and harness even more serendipity in your life for greater miracles, please put your name on the waiting list below.

Add me to the 'Tea with Serendipity' Guestbook (waiting list).

🫖 Please