What My Garden Will Be Like This Year

I've heard it said that to be a gardener, you must be an optimist. I think that's true, because no matter what happened the year before, you just always know the next year is going to be better. And in three years? It will be stunning. Can't you sort of already see it?

So, here is today's poem, partly from junk mail, and partly from working in the garden this morning.

Ribbons of coral, cherry, pink
Trail extravagantly around the yard.
Pink and purple cascades flow
From tall white planters.
Occasional bold yellow blossoms are
As brilliant as the sun.
The plants are more vigorous
Than in any previous summer,
And the flowers are larger.
A movement brings me back
To the grey and brown
Winter debris in front of me.
My eyes meet the slow blink
Of the Neighborhood Lion,
Who assures me that,
No matter what the flowers do,
He will be there
To brighten my garden.

On The Road, Missing Bunnies

Been hanging out down here in NC, with the Oldest, and her cat. Mostly I've been playing. Got to experience a Southern snowstorm (no thanks, I'll stay up North where we have plows and shovels), shop, do art, experiment in my daughter's play kitchen (she hates it when I call it that), and torture  play with her cat, Socks. Socks is crazy. She loves water, loves to play fetch, and is very vocal. She might be a dog in a cat suit.

 

Here she is, sitting under a photo taken by my Daughter, and in front of a little bed that I made her from felted wool, and old sewing scraps. Recognize that pineapple? Look more closely....

 

 

Yup, it's a piece made by shell at Raspberry Rabbits. I believe the pattern is in her first book? Anyway, it's one of the Oldest's favorite things.

 

As you can imagine, I have been having a wonderful time, but I am starting to miss home. And the Bunnies. And the Curly One. And even my Husband! Tomorrow I get a bunny fix, then I'll head home, where there is still a lot of winter left! I hope everybun else has been having a fun time, too. Drive safely. 

Sometimes The Paint Takes You By Surprise

You know how sometimes you start out to create something, and end up with something else entirely? That happened to me this week when I was journaling. I sat down thinking I would paint a funky girl with polka dot tights. The paintbrush had other plans. I got dots alright, but on a cheetah!

Now, I love cats, big and small. If family members weren't highly allergic, I would have a cat. Don't tell Jensen and Buttercup that. But of the cat family, male lions, and cheetahs have never really drawn me in. And yet, here was this big cat showing up in my journal.

On doing some research, I found that cheetahs are about focus, and goal achievement. Since this is exactly where I want my attention to be this year, this spotted beauty is perfect. Turns out the paintbrush knows me better than I know myself!

The subconscious is amazing, isn't it? Did anything surprising turn up in your creative work this week?  If it did, I hope you were as happy with it  as I was with my cat.

There is lots more to see at Paint Party Friday. Have fun!

Garden Assistant

Today was a beautiful day, one of the last few we will have as winter sets in. I decided to spend it working in the garden, doing some clean-up.  After I had been working for a while, a helper showed up.

Yes, it was the Neighborhood Lion, on his daily rounds. He claimed my weed bucket, but to be honest, he didn't really help much with the weeding.

 

He also stopped to smell the flowers, before stalking off.

 

He may or may not have been headed for the catnip. I'm not telling.

 

We are supposed to have one more good day before the cold rolls back in. I'll be out in the garden again tomorrow, trying to get the rest of the clean-up work done. And after that, it will be time to pull out the Christmas decorations. There's always too much to do this time of year, isn't there?

Outside, Inside

Outside the kitchen door:

Inside the kitchen door:

 

And again, outside:

 

Inside:

One more time, outside:

 

Inside:

Still outside, but trying to figure out how to get in:

"Better not let him inside, Mom. I have no interest in being his dinner!"

No worries, Weasley. I may be smitten, but I know he's not one to live peacefully with bunnies. He's no KB. The door stays closed!

Second Class

I had the second night of the class that my girls gave me at the Worcester Art Museum last night. We had to hang up the papers we made during the week, and then explain the techniques we used. It was interesting to see how individual all the work was, when we pretty much all started with the same supplies. This afternoon, I got started on my homework for next week. Since it is finally a reasonable temperature around here, I was able to work outside. 

  

Here's a closer view of some of the papers I created. I actually painted this one in class last week, with leftover paint. It ended up very gray. I masked off some of those areas, and then painted over the whole thing. It's better now, but I think it may still need something.



This one was done this afternoon, again using leftover paint. It was really dark. First I drew into it with a paintbrush handle, then blotted it with a paper towel to lighten some areas. When I decided it needed stars, I went looking for metallic paint. All I had was fabric paint, so I used that. Then I put drips of white on, and dragged the paintbrush handle through them to make asterisks, and finished up by stippling on some white with a toothbrush. I also stippled my neck and shoulder at the same time!

This next one started with an all over pink glaze, and then I added some of everything. I really, really, really wish this were a piece of fabric! 

And here we have this week's main course. Last night in class, we covered boards in molding paste, which is sort of like spackle. Then we used all sorts of tools to create texture, including putty knives, brush handles, stamps, cardboard, etc. You can see the texture in the photo. Then we had to wait for them to dry. Even as hot as it was yesterday, they didn't dry in class, so we are painting them at home.  

I still want to give this one another wash, but I'm pretty pleased with it. And, it was a lot of fun to do. I'm definitely going to try this again.

Right about the time I started to get tired, help arrived.

Thankfully, the paint was mostly dry by the time the Neighborhood Lion jumped up on the table, although he may have gone home with a little bit of green on his tail. My hands were not so lucky!

One of these days, I may remember to wear gloves....Probably not, though.

So, I'm curious. Which piece of paper is your favorite, and why? 

Friday In The Garden

When I went out to get some greens for Weasley today, I got waylaid by The Neighborhood Lion. He was actually pretty laid back today, for him. I think he must have been hitting the Catmint pretty hard.



Have a great weekend, Everybun!

This Friday In The Garden

it is too darn hot. In fact, it's so hot that the Neighborhood Lion is hanging out in the sprinkler!

If you zoom in, you can see him there under the raspberry bushes. When I first looked out, he was chasing the water droplets, but then he settled in for a quiet shower. I had no idea that a cat would do this!

Inside, I've just about finished this tiny little quilt. I want to add some washers to the corners, but that involves a trip to the hardware store, and that seems like an unnecessary trip right now.

I will also add a little ribbon loop for hanging.  Turns out that springs are heavier than you would think. When I get the washers, the one for the lower corner by the dog's behind will need to be larger than the others, to balance the weight of all the springs on the other side of the quilt. This was so much fun to make, I think I might do more.

Have a great weekend, everybun. If you are having the heat like we are, try to stay cool, drink lots of fluids, and don't forget to check on your neighbors.

A Beautiful Friday

It was a gorgeous day today, not to hot, not to cold, and the humidity  was down. It was just perfect for doing a little work in the garden. The weeds are way ahead of me this year, but the garden still has its beauty. One particularly bright spot this week included daylilys and butterfly weed.

Out back you can catch a glimpse of the Panther I mentioned in my last post.

He spends a lot of time staring at the house with these glowing eyes, but runs off when he knows you've seen him.

And I finished my quilt for the June Color Palette Challenge over at Three Creative Studios. Its another in the "Tile" series that I seem to be doing. I really didn't expect this to turn into a series, but it has just seemed to happen. I wanted this one to look like an ancient mosaic, an archaeological find. Because of that, some of the "tile" pieces are missing. The binding is a ragged sheer, perhaps some packing cloth that the fragment was wrapped in for shipping....

The thread sketching this time is butterflies, and once again it was done before quilting.

When the butterflies first insisted on being on this quilt, I worried that they were a little too trivial. But I thought about it some more, and realized that butterflies, representing rebirth, were actually the perfect image.While designing the original mosaic,  I was thinking about how when artifacts are discovered, they bring a rebirth of sorts to the people who once touched them, bringing them into our time, for us to carry their memory.  

The butterflies stayed.



Friday In The Garden

Summer is beginning in the garden, a little later than last year. We have Black (and Green)-Eyed Susans, and a nice crop of Daisies.

The Neighborhood Lion is prowling in amongst the Butterfly Weed, and some Native grasses. Unfortunately, I think he may be on a bunny hunt. I hope the bunny is smarter than the cat.

The lavender is looking fine, and smelling even better.

My favorite daylily, Miss Amelia is just starting up. There is going to be a large amount of flowers on this one this year. I'm glad to see this, because last year it didn't flower too well.

But, the most impressive flowers at the moment have to be on the Yucca plants. We have them in several spots in the yard, and they look like absolute waterfalls of blossoms right now.

And in the edibles department, its all about the peas,

and the raspberries. There is a pie in the oven right now. I wish you could smell it.

Have a great weekend, everybun! Happy Fourth to everyone in the States!

Friday In The Garden

Since I was away last week, it's been two weeks since I've done a Friday Garden post, and it's amazing how things have changed. Spring has burst out of every corner. I missed some of my tulips while I was gone, but there are a sprinkling of them still around.

I walked around the corner, and the Neighborhood Lion pounced on me from out of the parsley patch. He didn't stick around long, though. He just used my leg as a scratching post, and went off to do his daily rounds. 

The old apple tree is completely covered with these sweet-smelling beauties. 

But, the pear tree does not have very many blossoms this year. Looks like the pear harvest will be small. Some years are like that.

The birch trees are heavily in bloom. Even though they make my head hurt, I still find them beautiful, in a strange way.

The first of the iris are in bloom. These miniature dark purple flowers are a gorgeous color, but they are always here and gone too quickly. They don't stand up very well to rain, and we've been having a lot of that, like everyone else.We'll enjoy them while they last.

We'll also enjoy these, probably grilled, which we like best, although the husband is lobbying for soup. Usually I wait on making soup until we almost can't stand any more asparagus. And I switch back to grilling it when we get to the "Oh, No! It's almost gone! phase". Asparagus season is never long enough.

Back around front, we have the most beautiful sight of all.

These robin's did not choose a v ery safe place to nest, so I'm keeping my finger's crossed that the Lion doesn't find them. Send some prayers and positive thoughts the way of this Mama and her babies this weekend. And while you are thinking about mothering in difficult circumstances, check out this post by Christine Mason Miller. I plan to learn more about this project. I can't even begin to imagine what it would be like to be a woman and a Mother in Afghanastan today.

Enjoy your weekend, everybun!