Changes

                                                           Looks like Indigo back there.
 Hi Everyone,

 What I miss most in the winter, besides the birds singing are clouds, but so far this year has been surprisingly mild and most days have been cloudy and awash with varies colours to brighten up a monochrome world.  

                                                                             Sunrise 

                                                           What a change...a  minute or so later.

                                                                                   * * * 

From the Drawing Board...

An oldie from the botanical blues series.

I haven't painted with watercolour for awhile, so I'll be transposing these peonies to watercolour paper to see what I can come up with.

 

Unison pastels-a gorgeous gift from my son, Jesse. I have broken them in half and have used them a couple of times. I don't think I am the only one that stares at new pastels a long time before they have the heart to break them though.      

Only one Amaryllis bulb in the house this year. I am not sure how that happened.  It cost $5.00 so I wasn't expecting much. It turned out to be a winner! It had thirteen blooms and there's one left as I type. I'll put it outside this summer to see if I can

plump up the bulb for another year.

'Til next time...

Cultivate Your Dreams

Linking to Link Parties via my link party page. Thank you, ladies, for hosting.

An Array of Colours

Hi everyone,

I hope you all had a lovely holiday.  

I always enjoy getting things ready, but I am never that eager to take the decorations down. I have  friends with a big house and they, at this point, keep the Christmas tree up year around to please their little granddaughter. Not a route I would like to take, but sometimes I am tempted to leave the tree up a little longer--say March. 

In other news, the daylight hours have increased by approximately 35 minutes, so what's not to love about that.

And the sunrise and sunset have been spectacular. The photo above: a sunset. Love the cool yellows, and the purple near the top.

Gorgeous dreamy blues with a hint of purple.

A Common Redpoll ~ Handsome to the core.

And not all that common; I haven't encountered one for a long time.

Of course I was out to feed the birds. When I arrived I found the feeders well stocked. There are a lot of people out and about this year. We are under lockdown, but with the mild temperatures the woods and parks are busy spots. Not so other years; we may only have seen one to three people, or none at all.  But it's nice to see families out enjoying the great outdoor, and they are phone free too.

* * * 

My son bought me a lovely pastel set for Christmas. I've been experimenting with some of the colours.

Pastel

I always forget to take pictures of the different stages of a pastel painting. They go through a ragged stage, but I love how they come together as if by magic.

The light is garish today, but the top photo captures the colours well. (Notice that I didn't blame it on my photography skills.)

 Thank you for reading along.

                                                                    Until Next Time...

                                                              Cultivate Your Dreams

           Linking to Link Parties via my link party page. Thank you, ladies, for hosting.

Nearly There

Hi everyone,

We've had some beautiful sunrises lately. Since the sun rises late these days,  I am usually up to see it.  Because my camera doesn't have a mirror in it, I'm not suppose to point my camera at the sun. But that's okay I like to savor the view.

 Aside: I can't seem to regulate the font size; it's either huge or tiny. All or nothing it seems. So today I am going with all. With luck it won't be too large for your screen. However, when I look at the preview the print looks small again, and that will mean the alignment might be off. If that happens, do forgive.

I stop for Madeleines.

  The middle ornament with the world circled in Hope (very fitting just now) says a Nova Scotia Christmas. My heart is in Nova Scotia more than usual this year. Sadly, there will be one less family member around the table there this Christmas. 

                                                                   

                                                             

                                                                               * * * 

From the easel...

                                                                     

                                                            In the Foothills

               

                                                   Autumn Trail

 For ease of  framing and handling, I mounted this pastel painting on acid free foam core. My first attempt using linen tape was, to say the least, unruly.  Recently, I ordered spray adhesive. Later, I imagined myself outside in a howling winter wind spraying adhesive about. Perhaps I will wait for spring. (A framer...I am not.)

           These two paintings are happily winging there way to new homes.

                    

I received this glorious Quilling Card from my dear friend and an all around lovely lady, Joannie a few years ago. It will look nice in its new shadow box frame. 

 To quill, small strips of paper are coiled and shaped to create the design. The back of the card tells me, Quilling has been done since the time of the Egyptians. I assume the paper is then glued to the card, but I can’t detect a trace of glue. What a wonderful work of art.

                       Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a Healthy, Happy New Year!

                                 And Happy Holidays too.

                           Stay safe and sound, lovely people.

                                       'Til Next time...

                                 Cultivate Your Dreams

Linking to Link Parties via my link party page. Thank you, ladies, for hosting.

Keeping Tabs

Hi everyone,

 One of my favourite things to do: keep tabs on the sky.

There always seems to be something engaging, streaming across the sky. 

Streaming? Maybe, technological jargon has gotten the better of me. 

Other than sky watching, I've been planning a little Christmas cheer. 

I enjoy slowly decking the halls, especially with the smell of cookies baking. 

So many homes here are already beautifully decorated. Baubles and lights of every colour peeking out from everywhere do gladden the heart when the sun sets early. Last night the lights looked especially beautiful because fluffy flakes of snow continued to drift down throughout the evening.

* * *

 

My four year old orchid showing off. I leave it outside until it turns quite cold. Apparently it likes that. It produces even though it has never been repotted; I keep forgetting to order the proper potting mix.  

* * * 

From the drawing board...      

                                                                      Garden Doodles

                                      Copic multiliner in cool grey. Various pencils on watercolour paper.

Since I don't have a particularly steady hand, I noticed the  grey marker tricks my mind into thinking I am using a pencil and that helps steady my hand. Give me a black pen and I am all over the place. 

 I do have several full sketchbooks, but a lot of my drawings are on tracing paper. By-passing a sketch book saves a lot of time when transferring to watercolour paper, but the sketches are fading. So I've decided, over time, to transfer the sketches to watercolour paper. I may use a large sketchbook that I have on hand. I might section it off, but I am not sure yet. 

I've also been printing stickers for my Christmas card envelopes, using

 a birdie from one of my early watercolour paintings. 

Printed on Avery Stickers #22807.

And, up next,  Holly and Ivy Stickers.

Happy Thanksgiving to my American friends.

Wishing you well.

'Til Next Time...

Cultivate Your Dreams

Linking to Link Parties via my link party page. Thank you, lovely ladies, for hosting!

Tall Shadows

         

 Hi there,

              The snow melted and we are back to the most lovely weather. Today, I've thrown open all the windows as high and as wide as they will go. Perhaps we may have a mild winter after all. But even if we don't, these warm days are a nice bonus.

Did you hear? Hasn't everyone you say. Well, apparently the world has changed over night.  A vaccine-- 90% effective. Now wouldn't that be wonderful! We could all get back to the business of living and breathing a little easier. Living more fully--not that I live in the fast lane, but just being able to go to shopping without worrying about it would be wonderful thing.  However, I know we have been so lucky, and I am certainly not forgetting about those we have lost. I do feel so sorry for all of those people and for their families and friends. 

After this, I reckon, everyone will have a new appreciation for what we all took for granted before. I know I will. Let's hope the vaccine comes soon. 

  The sun has other places to light up these days, although before it sets early it highlights beautifully whatever it touches.

                                                              I love these colours.

The willows are really hanging onto their leaves. 

                                                                           Memories

From the easel...

Beginning, Pastel on pastelmat paper.  

 In progress.

First time working on Pastelmat paper-- trial runs review.  I noticed a lot of painters seldom blend on this paper.  I wanted to blend the sky in the top photo, but I am fresh out pipe insulation foam to use as a blending tool, and repeated passes with the pastels didn't work on the top pic at all. Must be a bit defective, or using harder pastels first might have been the way to go and then blend the first layer.  I will experiment with the paper again soon. I love how the colours pop on this paper. The grey shows though, and that is, of course, with pastels, perfectly acceptable, and often when using underpainting enhances the painting.  But I think I might like the maroon colour paper better.

Who knew working with different pastel papers would be so much fun. ( I usually use Uart paper.) Of the papers I've tried so far, I really enjoyed Canson Mi-Teintes Touch paper and today’s choice: Pastelmat. Next up, Vic Bearcroft's Pastel Velour. Because the paper is flimsy, I will order self adhesive foam board to mount the paper on before I give it a try. And I am going to try making my own sanded paper too.

Thank you so much for reading along...

'Til next time

Cultivate Your Dreams

Linking to Link Parties via my link party page. Thank you, lovely ladies, for hosting!

New Phenomena

Hi everyone, 

 Appearances tell me November has arrived. This means, as of today, snow covers the rooftops, and most of the leaves have disappeared, but I haven't quite caught up with it yet. What a difference a week makes. The snow may stay or go, but mother earth has given us much and she has certainly earned her rest.

I haven't been out to capture this new phenomena, so here's to living in the past for just a little while longer.

The River Institute's sapling nursery.

  The River Institute plants native species of flowering plants and trees along the river to protect the ecosystem. In the spring, wild yellow irises line the river bank in one area.

Small birds delight in the cover and make their nests there. I found this out last spring when an angry bird started dive bombing me. I immediately moved on before I got a chance to recognize her and make her acquaintance, but I think she was a Wren.

                                

                           I always admire this wonderful big house resting at the river's edge that I walk by when I skirt around  the parameter of the marsh. You could skip out the door and down to the dock, untie your boat and zip down the river, leaving any cares in your wake.  What a spot!

* * * 

I recently bought a few different types of pastel paper, but I've only tried out one colour so far. The package has several different colours, so I picked the lightest one for a painting I finished the other day. Pastelmat paper in grey looks good as well, but it arrived crinkled, so I will probably send it back. And a Clairefontaine Velour will arrive soon too. I like to blend certain areas with my fingers, (some pastel painters do not blend) and these papers are easy on the hands.

From the easel:

       Two colour choices for the mountains here. Haven't decided which colour I like the best.

Thank you for your lovely comments on my last post. I have replied to each of you on that post because Blogger, for some obscure reason, only occasionally sends me your emails. 

   Be safe and well. 

'Til Next Time

Cultivate Your Dreams

Linking to Link Parties via my link party page. Thank you, lovely ladies, for hosting!

Red, Orange, and Gold

Hi everyone,

Weeping Willow Pond and not a turtle in sight. 

They must already be in their winter quarters.

Less than a week later--a lot of leaf fall. Here I am ready to kick my way through the autumn leaves. When I was a child, I loved to do just that. So in the spirit of keeping those memories alive, I still kick my way through the leaves now and then.

Now that it has cooled down, I have the urge to knit. Not sure what yet. Espace Tricot has a lovely free hat pattern on Raverly. Do I need another hat? Probably not, but it would make a nice gift.

I am not sure what these wildflowers are. Maybe Asters bleached out from the sun?

The tree to the right reminds me of an Ent from "The Lord of the Rings.       

         Flowering Moms thrive in cool weather.

                                                 There always seems to be plenty of Crab Apples. 

                                          

On the weekend, we took a drive along The Parkway. I left my camera at home, but I won't forget the beauty anytime soon. Autumn, it seems, still has splendid tales to tell of red, orange, and gold.

                                                                     Blue skies.

* * *

From the Easel...

                  “Sentinel”                          

   Unison Pastels on UART 400 sanded paper.                                                                                                    

Although planning a painting has its place, I often prefer to dive into the deep end. In other works, take my chances with intuitive painting. For this pastel, I did an underpainting with FW acrylic Ink. Colour: Purple Lake. You can catch glimpses of it here and there. Uart holds pastel well, but it tends to curl, and no matter what I do it will usually curl a little. When I took this picture, I forgot to tape it flat, so that slight curl cut off a bit of the tree.

Recently, I bought Canson Mi-Teintes Touch 320gm paper. While made for pastel, I heard that it can be used for mixed media, including watercolour, ink, gouache, and pastel. I am anxious to give it a try.

'Til next time...

Cultivate Your Dreams

Linking to Link Parties via my link party page. Thank you, everyone for hosting!