An Autumn Field Trip

 Hi everyone,

Finally, back to say hello and to catch up. The summer was, well, hot and dry. Much hotter than anything we have experienced before. Early mornings or later evenings were, at times, a good time for a stroll.

Autumn has arrived and it is lovely. We still have a lot of leaves of the trees. Usually by Hallowe'en the leaves have fluttered away.

Made it to Pumpkin Inferno this year. A magical, spectacular event! 

Apparently, everything is carved by hand. Can't imagine how long it takes to carve and then wire the lights, and then install everything. On the night we went, it was sold out.

The inferno just keeps getting better and better. So good, too, that nothing scary jumps out at you. Yes, I am a scaredy cat. 

The photos were taken with a cell phone because my big camera was taking in too much light, and I couldn't find a suitable spot to sit down and make the needed adjustments. (Just as well because at this point there's no way to transfer them to the main computer.)

The main computer needs a new power supply—perhaps. My son needs to check it out for sure. So I am limping along on an iPad, which is working well. Could never complete a post using the I pad. Must be the new updates.

The village venue was sectioned in categories, and I tried hard not to get people in the photos, so this post will be a random showing from here and there.

          In case you are interested here are a few photos of  the Inferno from 2017 

   

                                                            Love this photo

                                            So loved the lights and pumpkins in the trees.

                                           There were hundreds of carved pumpkins all over the village.                                                          No two faces were the same.      

                                       

                                                                           
                                The cat category was fun. Cats everywhere, including the roof.         

                        Unfortunately, several photos are blurry, so just a few pics of the cats.       

     

                       

                                                             Nursery rhymes

                                                                    Hickory dickory dock…

                                                                          

                                        Humpty…

                                                                  

                                                                The Great Outdoors

                                                                     Marshmallow?

                                                        Who needs a birch bark canoe? A pumpkin one will do.

                                          

A bit fuzzy. Boo!

                                            

                                                      The Scarecrow and Dorothy.

               
                                                                     Mad hatter 

                

             Needless to say it's the big bad wolf and the fashionista Little Red Riding Hood. The        wolf, looks bad—bad to the bone.

                                                           Alice Through the Looking Glass

                                          

                                       There he is! The Knight in Shining Armour.

                                                                   The Gilded Age

            

                                                      

                              Tea always as must, along with an occasional fashionable tea party.

                                           Linking to Link Parties via my link party page.

                                                       Thanks to all for hosting!

Bright Side

Hi everyone,

Starting out on the bright side today with a pic of flowers. Love the colours--so uplifting.

Just now we have a few feet of snow with more storms on the way, so I haven't been out and about to my usual haunts to take photos for a while.  We are, however, really enjoying  longer days. 

 

                                Green tea in the mug. The wood cut is by Elizabeth Harbour.

                                  Love is in the air too.  Happy Valentine's Day to everyone!

                                                                          * * *

                                      

                                                   Soft pastel on Clairfontaine Pastel Mat paper

Above a large sheet of Pastel mat paper that I've been putting off cutting to specific sizes.

Since I have precision challenges, I called on Chat GBT and ask the best and most efficient way to cut the sheet into 5 x 7 inch pieces. What a wonder. Spit out the info in a few seconds. Too bad the program couldn't cut paper as well. :) 

Great to have sized paper on hand. Now I can easily grab a piece of paper and paint a small painting.                                              

                                                     

                           

 

Tried out Canson XL cold press, sketchbook paper. I think it is wood pulp paper. Not as good as cotton rag but not bad.  Still working on the pears. Will see what happens when I erase the outline and then paint some shadows under the pears. 

Plan to paint the pears using soft pastels as well.

At the end of the month, I will be closing my Etsy shop.  It's difficult to get seen there, and the fees have gone up again. 

 

 

Another drawing. 

 

Linking to Nicole's Friday Face Off link party among others.

                                          

'Til next time... 

                                                 Happy Valentine's Day!

                             Linking to other Link Parties via my link party page.

                                                   Thanks to all for hosting!

      

                                                    Cultivate Your Dreams                                                                                                        

And the Days Go By

                                                                      First Light
 Hi everyone,

This makes three sunrises I've seen this summer. The show starts a bit early for me. Just now the sun peeks its head over the horizon at 5:36 a.m. 

                                                                           Sunset

 We've had extreme heat waves this summer. Unbelievable really.  

 Now when the temperature drops to 24 C or 75.2 F it seems cool. On the hot days, I usually stay in, but yearn to get out there to enjoy the summer breeze. The good news: temps often drop after sundown, so it’s a perfect time for a walk. 

Unfortunately, forest fires are raging again this year. Among others, there was an evacuation order for a town I used to live in. 7000 people were evacuated from Labrador City to Happy Valley-Goose Bay, Nfld. The route took them over the worst unpaved “highway” I've ever encountered. And I have covered a lot of unpaved territory, including the shale cover of the Dempster Highway. But my drive to Goose Bay was a long time ago, so perhaps things have improved. I certainly hope so.

Because of the wonderful firefighters and the gift of rain, the evacuation order was lifted on Monday. 

People are returning to there homes which have, thankfully, been saved. Wonderful!

                                                                   

                                                            Can't resist the peonies.

                                    

Green tea

                                              Linking, among others, to T stands for Tuesday

 

* * * 

Easel and the drawing board items...

                         

                                              Trying out acrylic paint on a linen panel. (In progress)

Debating whether to add a small Goldfinch to the left side. I also want to make the foreground darker to incorporate a range of values. Maybe mix the light green paint with black which I do not have to make a deep green? I am used to mixing watercolour and acrylic is very different. Of course, I may just buy some green paint and call it a day. Sounds like a plan. 

  

 Speaking of Goldfinches, they are a joy to watch. Here in late August, they feast on thistle seeds. They are experts at fishing the golden seeds out of the fluffy interior of the thistles.

The fluff floats on the breeze and when I turn a corner and happen upon a finch or two, they will sometimes ignore me and carry on. 

 

                  Another drawing from Sargent's Portrait Drawing book.  Didn't quite get the tilt of the head correct etc. Fun to try these master copies though.

Tip: the distance between the eyes, should be the same as the width of an eye.

                                                             Pastels on Pastelmat paper. 

                                                     

                              I'll be travelling here and there soon, and will be back in the fall.

                              So have fun and be well.

                                             'Till next time...

                                                                  Cultivate Your Dreams 

                                 Linking to Link Parties via my link party page. 

                                                  Thanks to all for hosting!