". Arranged Words: nature
Showing posts with label nature. Show all posts
Showing posts with label nature. Show all posts

31 Oct 2023

Parade of Colour

 

                                                                       Sumacs 

Hi everyone,

Here we are surrounded by beauty. "All good things come to those who wait." Apparently still rings true. So pleased to witness the late autumn show. Nature is full of surprises. What a beautiful world we live in.



Generally I try and take photos off the beaten path, but not this time.  Absolutely adore these colours—straight out of nature's paint box.

                                                          
                                                                         Stunning


What a difference a day can make.
October 30th. Snow disappeared by early afternoon.



                       
Hallowe'en tonight so those ghostly looking rain drops could mean spooky goings on are afoot.

When I was a child I was taught to spell Hallowe'en with an apostrophe. Does anyone else remember this? It's not something you see anymore, but I really like the way it looks. Lends a touch of mystery to the proceedings.

             * * * 

                       Mr. Edgar Allan Poe--first airing, I think, of a drawing from several                                                                               years ago.
                         
Quoth the Raven “Nevermore.”  E.A. Poe.

Have a safe and Happy Hallowe'en!
              
'Til Next Time...Cultivate Your dreams

                                                Linking to Link Parties via my link party page. 

                                                         Thanks to all for hosting.  




29 Sept 2020

The Beginning of Autumn

 

 Hi there,

       
Today, I am writing this post on my iPad. I had doubts about it ever happening. But Blogger, with its new interface, has finally plunged into the 21st century. 
     

Fall has arrived and everywhere you look you can catch a glimpse of gorgeous colours with hints of    more to come. It’s such a beautiful time a year. Certain garden flowers that have been bleached out by the hot summer sun, are also enjoying a vivid revival.
 I never long for fall, and often lament the passing of summer, but at this point in my life, I enjoy fall almost as much as I do spring. 

“Autumn, the year’s last
loveliest smile.”

William Cullen Bryant 


Reeds swaying in the wind.

Goldenrod and Asters

Awhile ago, someone ask me what I keep in my desk drawers. I admire curiosity. As far as I’m concerned it makes the world go round. Anyway, maybe one day I will shoot a video tour of my little corner studio, although I am not sure I could make it interesting. In the mean time, here's a sneak peek. In drawer number two: tubes of watercolour paint. The gorgeous bright pink: Opera Rose. Not a lightfast paint but oh so lovely.

                                                           Candy pink hydrangeas. 

Moms and Roses

On a walk, I noticed this feather. It looked like it was floating.


I added a few more watercolour leaves to this painting. As you can see, there are real leaves here too. 
                                                                           
                                                                                                                                                         

The art cards I ordered arrived, so I printed some greeting cards made from a larger Calla Lily painting that sold awhile ago. I really like the matte finish on these cards.


 When I cut these watercolour gift tags out of watercolour paper and add splashes of paint, I am in relaxation mode.  Although messy, adding texture with salt, alcohol, and cling wrap adds to the fun.

'Til Next Time

Cultivate Your Dreams.

Linking to Link Parties via my link party page. Ladies, many thanks for hosting. 





27 Jun 2017

Lovely Summer Days & Celebrations

Hi there,

Just dropping in to share a few pictures from my recent nature walks.
As you know, I love to get out and about. Well, more than that. It's an absolute necessity for my  over all well-being.
On my walks, I've been lucky to encounter little animals and many other things of beauty. Yesterday we had a mink check us out. He was on the boardwalk and when he saw us he ran for cover, but he did peek out from under a boards to look us over. So curious. It's a trait that I admire in humans and in our fury and flying friends.

Wild Blue Flag Irises. 

I had to lean over the barrier for this one. Love the iris at the bottom. Wish I had a better pic. It would be a lovely one for the drawing/painting board. Maybe I can go back out there and take one today. 😉

Love the shape of these leaves.

Musk mallow. The seeds must have blown into the wild places because this plant is a native of India. White flowers, for me, are hard to capture in a photo. Any pointers?
Water lilies backed up by a winning chorus of frogs.
A huge wasp nest. 

  Sights and sounds.
What no seeds?


To those who ask, I didn't make the cut off date for an entry in the juried art show. Last year it was held in September, and I was hoping or the same this year.  I did, however, go to the opening night to cheer the others on. There were approximately 186 entries. And what a wonderful array of great paintings!

As a country, we are celebrating 150 years of Confederation on July 1st. U2 along with some other great bands will be entertaining us on Parliament Hill.

Speaking of celebrations, to my American friends do have a wonderful, safe and happy 4th! 

I've decided to take a little hiatus from blogging. Thank you so much following my blog and for reading along. I do appreciate each and every one of you and I love to read your comments!  In the meantime, you can find me here.

HAPPY CANADA DAY ! 



7 Mar 2017

Watercolour ~ In The Tropics

Hi,

Generally I don't keep track of the time it takes me to complete a painting, because timing yourself can take the fun out of it. But in case you are wondering, I worked on this painting for over thirty hours. Seems long doesn't it? But for me it was rather fast. Detail takes a long time. A looser style might be faster, but I know a lot of control goes into it. 
The finished painting compete with the delightful mess I make.

If you are new to painting, it's not wise to set your work station up like mine. As you can see I use foam board as a drawing board and balance it on the end of the tray that holds the water. That, of course, means that each time I wet the brush, or dip it into the clean water I pull it back across the paper. That could be disastrous, especially if you are using brushes that don't hold the paint well. 
The ideal set up: if you are right handed the water should be on the right hand side and vice versa for left handed people.  I learned that later, but love my set up so I don't want to change it. ( Definitely one of those don't do as I do things.)

Somewhere in the middle of things...


Please excuse my picture taking today. I have a bully of a cold.  I have not had a cold for a long time, and I had forgotten just how undignified they really are. If Rudolph could see me now, I know he would be envious of my nose. Swathed in comfortable clothes, all I am really missing is the moose slippers. Being a Canadian girl, I really should own a pair. My son said, "You don't complain." (and then after a long pause) said, "Much Mom." The poor young man missed his calling, he should be in the diplomatic core. 


Up next:
A prayer plant. A first for me. It's so beautiful.  I've drawn a leaf to paint. I am thinking the lighter one might be easier, but O those dark greens with the pink are glorious.

Enjoy the week...  

"If you love nature, you will find beauty everywhere."

Vincent Van Gogh

24 May 2016

Drawing From Nature

May 24, 2016

A new to me wildflower. I think it's Bellwort.

What a wonderful weekend. Needless to say I was out and about admiring all the new growth.  Just  look at those greens! I recently read that nature walks are one of the best things to do for your health.  Apparently being out in nature decreases stress and is instrumental for sound mental health and overall well-being. I wanted to say: really? I mean really! To me that is self evident. (Although I have met people who absolutely detest leaving the sanctity of their homes and gardens and they are well and happy souls.) Speaking of gardens, they are another refuge...a sanctuary in the midst of it all.  It must boil down to what ever makes your heart sing. For me, that can be nurturing a house plant too, but I do love to take a walk in the woods. It renews and invigorates and, for me, is absolutely essential.

* * *
Last year on a walk through the marsh I met a grandfather (?) with a teenage girl who was boo hooing profusely about the bugs, (where where they?) the heat ( it was hot) and on and on it went. Secretly, I send her a message of good will, hoping that if she calmed down enough she might notice something to appreciate...something to pique her sense of curiosity and wonder.  Of course, I also wanted to say crease and desist, but I thought, as the fussing increased long after I should have been out of ear shot, that just might take a village.  ;)

Wild geranium
Violets
 A fungus surrounded by Solomon's Seal

Sketches...

Now and then I randomly decorate a few of my shoppe order envelopes.
Walking Fern. Difficult to tell which end is which. They creep along the ground.
I hope to paint these two soon.

Lately my ipad often refuses to let me leave a message on your blogs, and sometimes it's difficult to tell, especially if you have comment moderation on.  So if you haven't heard from me in awhile it's not because I haven't been trying. (I've used my other computer recently.)  What's surprising is that it doesn't seem have much of a problem if I try and post a comment on WordPress...what's up with that?  

 Enjoy the week...










5 Aug 2015

Nature Studies

Drawing recently from nature, Queen Anne's Lace or wild carrot. To me, it's not your average weed. It's intricate and delicate and before it blooms it's wrapped in a wondrous package.
I found wild coneflower, or echinacea too.


To answer a request, I'm including a list of the art supplies I use and a few tips that I've learned.

Staedtler pencils. 2H-6H, (H for hard) but I prefer the 2H, although, occasionally, I use soft leads or B pencils, especially 2B.
FW acrylic inks.
Kneaded Erasers and plastic erasers.
Tracing paper ~ a must, unless you draw straight onto your watercolour paper.
Sketchbooks ~ look for good quality paper.

After researching watercolour paper and trying several different brands, I prefer hot pressed paper for painting.  Fabriano Artistico and Arches are acid free and 100% cotton. I use140 lb weight. (The higher the weight the thicker the paper.) I prefer Fabriano, but I am getting use to Arches. It requires a light hand, but can take several glazes.
I use watercolour blocks that are glued on all four sides; the paper doesn't require stretching.  (There's a small hole at the top of the block, you insert a thin knife and go around the block to remove the sheet from the block when your painting is completely dry.) I also buy large single sheets. It's cheaper that way, but the paper requires stretching or it will buckle and it takes time to cut the sheets into the sizes you want. ( A scary breath holding activity!)

I occasionally use Strathmore Watercolour cards; they are cold pressed ~ not as smooth as hot pressed paper.

Watercolour paints. I mostly use Schmincke and W& N. Windsor and Newton is bright and clear.  Schmincke can look chalky sometimes and I  do like Sennelier paints as well.  I also have a set of Derwent watercolour pencils that I received as a gift. In the beginning, I was using the watercolour pencils to paint with.  Around here, they are cheaper if you buy them individually.

* If you are just starting out, I would recommend that you buy good quality watercolour paper, a few tubes or pans of professional watercolour paint/or good quality watercolour pencils. They do make a huge difference! A (sable or faux sable) #4 watercolour brush is, in my opinion, a must. They are expensive, but should last a very long time if treated well. Never use it to mix paint with. (A tall order--one sometimes forgets.)  And you will annihilate it if you use it to apply FW inks.

Interesting optional items: Masking fluid and Gum Arabic.
Masking fluid is used to cover small stamens etc, that you will paint later, or any area that you want to keep white while you are painting. When it is completely dry, you rub your fingers over it to remove it.

Gum Arabic extends the drying time of paint, adds vibrancy, and is also used to add shine to eyes, reflections etc.

In the end, it's all about personal preferences, so experiment, have fun in the process and you will  find out what works for you.


  Until next time enjoy creating...