Watercolour Skies

                               "Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet."
                                                                  Stephen Hawking

 The other day, I stood still in the woods until my hands got very cold, staring at a changing water colour sky. Looks like a light indigo, or French ultramarine and a light phthalocyanine blue. Gorgeous!

This morning I was up before dawn, hoping to catch a glimpse of Venus and Jupiter in the eastern sky. It was worth it!
 I also wanted to watch the recent eclipse of the moon, but the weather had other snowy plans.

               And the sign says: Do not fed the wildlife. It's clearly overlooked and overruled.

More gift tags. Some people also use them as bookmarks. They are time consuming to make, but I love to paint them. I think it has a lot to do with the colours.

                                                      A bevy of Easter colours. Tres uplifting!

                                        I've also been painting tulips this week.

I am not sure if I mentioned it in an earlier post, but I am currently forcing tulips and snowdrops. I've never seen a real live snowdrop. I can't wait! The bulbs are in a neighbor's extra fridge because they can be cooled anywhere near fruit; that creates ethylene gas and that impedes flower development.
I've got my fingers crossed!

On the needles...

                        Beginning a pair of socks. Pattern Lydia Bennet Secret Stockings
from Jane Austen Knits magazine 2011. Yarn from Tanis Fiber Arts.  I love the picot edging.

                                                     Thank you for reading along.

                                                 'Til next time...Cultivate Your Dreams!

The View From Here

Outside . . .

Hello beauties! 

Doe a deer a female deer. 👀

All bluster along the river.

The yellow weeping willows.

Inside . . .

Lately, I've had the urge to knit something. Awhile ago, I bought two skeins of Brooklyn Tweed yarn, so I may knit one of their hats. In the meantime, besides a bit of seed planting, and stamp making, I've been drawing and painting flowers.

At the moment, I have snowdrops on my mind. Must be that spring thing creeping up on me again.  I'd love to see a snowdrop. Besides white, I did notice that, these days, there are amazing yellow and pink ones, too. 

Last fall, I looked for snowdrop bulbs, but didn't find any. If all goes well, and I can find them I will order some by mail next fall and try to force them. Forcing requires about 12 weeks of cool temperatures. A small fridge should work, although they can't be cooled near fruit.

I tried both sides of the Moulin du Roy 300 lb. watercolour paper for the Himalayan poppies. Another beautiful flower that I've never seen. I'm still not sure which side of the paper I like best, although the right side seems a bit more vibrant.( Yes, I am still arguing with paper. Fabriano was sooo perfect!)

I just noticed I am missing a flower stock. :)

Flower doodles.

💖

 (If you've been watching When Calls the Heart, season 5 starts Feb 18th. I can't wait!)

 My last Amaryllis for the season.

Enjoy the week . . .😘

Birds of a Feather

A visit to the bird sanctuary brought unexpected surprises. When I got out of the car, the Chickadees flew to me looking for food. I found a fortune cookie in the car, so I thought I'd share. As you can see it  wasn't entirely appreciated, although for politeness sake they did try a nibble.

 

WHAT"S THAT? Where are the seeds?

ANY on the ground?

I drove to the next town for supplies.  That's better!

I told you I 'd turn my tail on you if you didn't stop taking my picture.

That red dot is a cardinal. The first one I have ever seen. There were eight around. Thrilling!

The doe came to see if I had a treat for her too.

Off the needles....

Shaelyn Shawl. The colour reminds me of the Chickadees, so I thought I'd add the pic to this post.