The Speed of Life

And it is so fast, isn't it?

I am happy to report that I am still alive and kicking, er, drawing, that is.

I have been working in my Etsy shop today, adding new thermofax screens for your printing pleasure.

I am adding a new perk to the shop this go round.
I will be offering at least three different sizes for each individual image. You can pick and choose which size suits your needs!
And, as always, I continue to offer custom sizes as well.

Have a peek at a couple of new designs I added.
Then run over to the shop to see the remainder.

This is a scan of a doily that I made years (and years) ago.
It makes a wonderful print!

Thank you for hanging around, waiting to see if I would re-emerge.
A girl just needs a bit of time to pursue other interests now and then, doesn't she?

Lazy, Hot Southern Days

I can't believe it's been over a week since I posted!
That blows my "three posts a week" right outta the water.

I don't have any "real" artwork to show for it either.
I've been traveling a bit with my sweetie, my son is home from college (for the summer)
and I'm still battling the
(sing to the tune of "where oh where did my little dog go?")

"where oh where did my energy go"
(Oh, where oh where did it go?) blues.

So, have I done ANYTHING?

Um, well...I did draw two or three small things.

I thought about doing several things...
but, after thinking about them for too long, decided not to put the energy into them.

I should say here that I have to avoid that particular pitfall...
if I think about/plan a particular project too long,
I get tired of it.

I guess it goes back to what I said about working a piece in my sketchbook too long...
If I do that, I feel that I have worked through whatever it was that I was trying to work though (whether it was a design issue or an emotional issue) and don't have the desire or the need to actually make that piece of artwork -
I "made" it in my sketchbook.

Do any of you ever feel that way?

The gardenias are blooming here
along with the most fragrant magnolias.
Too bad I don't have a smellicamera...
I'd share these in a heartbeat!

Now - get out there and make some artwork!
(she said to herself)

Natures Timeline

No matter how important we think our lives are, nature moves in her own time.
I took these photos of some of the flowers in our yard a couple of weeks ago but haven't been able to post them until today.
Busy, busy, busy.
This is our "side hill" flower bed. It's a mix of this and that.
A true flower lovers garden, always in progress.
Moving this, adding that, throwing this away, sharing this...

Here's the front of the same bed. Lovely thrift and phlox blooming like crazy for two or three weeks.

This is a bed in our front yard - I love the way that the flowers are hanging over the side of the old bricks that we edged the bed with. Later we will have purple and white coneflowers (to feed the goldfinches with), Stellas blooming all summer, volunteer vincas and yellow marigolds. Maybe two or three other flowers thrown in the mix...it's always such a surprise as to what pops up here in the front bed.

I have a topiary that I made from an ivy vine on my side porch. I usually keep it trimmed quite tight but here lately I haven't wanted to disturb the family living inside of it...

A precious little mama bird picked our topiary for a secluded little bungalow for her new babies!

Can you see their shiny eyes inside?
It took mama bird a while to get used to us coming and going - as the topiary is right beside the side door.
She will sit tight now as we brush past - running in and out of the house as we try to make sense of our hectic life.

Remember to flex your creative muscles!

I'm getting ready for the "Scraps, Fragments and Artifacts" class on May 4 in Seneca.

The Lake and Mountain Quilt Guild is hosting this class. I'm really looking forward to helping a room full of quilters pull their scraps, fragments and artifacts together to make an awesome piece of artwork!

Tenderness

My husband knows how much I love getting fresh flowers,
and having them in our home just brings this...I don't know, this tenderness to each room that they are in.
This weekend, he brought me some beautiful roses.
All goldenrod, yellow, orange, apricot colored...just beautiful!
I was taking pictures of them each day - watching the progression of how they open and show more luscious colors...
enjoy this with me.

Flowers & Plums

Well, I went out to survey our vast domain here at Number 2 Hardeman Street and found all sorts of flowers, bee's and plums..hey, wait...did I just say Plums?!? Yes, we have 2 Plum trees and they are full of plums! It's the first year they have produced fruit. They plum was as green as the tree when it first appeared, then slowly has changed colors over the past few weeks. Now they are beginning to ripen up...soon we will have delicious plums to devour...plum preserves to slather across crisp crunchy toast...

I am glad to report that the bee population in Piedmont seems to be fine. I snapped a couple (or 20) pictures of the Purple Coneflowers and Gerbera Daisies with bees dining there. Hey, I'll show a few to you!

This is a teeny tiny bee having a teeny tiny snack at the Gerbera Cafe. He must have flown in before the lunch rush.

Here at the Purple Coneflower, we have 2 maybe 3 diners...When I first stepped in, there were about 6 diners, but a few of them left before I could snap their pictures.

Around at the side of the Manor, we have the Star Gazer Lilies blooming. They are beautiful! And very large. Probably about 6 inches across. They smell like a summers night in a tropical garden. And look at the specks of darker magenta/red in the center...I thought it was just color at first but upon closer inspection, it's a projection of some sort from the petal of the flower itself. Hmmm, interesting. Very interesting at what Mother Nature does with Her Flowers.

I also have several Dahlias in the Side Garden. Here is one that has the most beautiful yet rather strange blooms on it. The petals of the flower looks like velvet and are just as smooth to the touch.

See the layers of petals opening up...

Here's a picture without a flash...

And one with a flash. Interesting color difference.

Here's one of our huge Angel Wing Begonias. These plants are so easy to grow, and to keep all year long. Also one of the easiest plants to root as well...I just break off a piece of stem and stick it in a pot of dirt...or water. It roots and grows quickly.

The leaves are so shiny, they look almost fake.
The only draw back is the mess that the falling flowers make...