While walking up to my studio yesterday, I saw my first flock of geese flying north. There have been robin and killdeer sightings, too, but not yet by me. These are fairly good indicators that spring is truly on its way, although it is not unusual to see robins looking for worms under the snow.
Getting back into my studio to work on the backlog of portrait commissions and other projects feels wonderful. Even though I was fretting the whole time I was away, thinking about all the work I had to do, I feel more inspired to tackle the various projects.
I started work on two portrait commissions today. Here is a work in progress of a memorial portrait sketch of Bucky, a beloved family pony. I will post a photo of the other one as soon as it is far enough along.
It was such a gorgeous day that I took a break from portrait work, and headed outside for a little tea, chocolate and sketching. It was a bit brisk out in the open, but I found a sheltered spot against some hay bales where I was able to shed my jacket and gloves. Hurray!
Jazz and Heart, our two border collies, love to accompany me on my outings. Shadow-watching is one of their favourite activities, when there isn't anything more exciting to do.
A couple of weeks ago I attended our local Rock and Mineral Show. As always there was a good turnout of vendors selling rocks from all over the world.
Not all of the rocks were ethically and sustainably mined, but by doing a lot of digging (through boxes of rocks, that is) and asking many questions, I was able to find a good selection of fair trade (most found by small independent rock hounds) stones.
I always find myself more attracted to the rough cut slices of rock, rather than the polished... Continue reading...
It was finally warm enough that I could get out for a short walk yesterday. A sure sign of spring!
I took my camera with me, on the hunt for other, more subtle signs that spring is well and truly creeping in. Some things I found:
Leaf buds on trees
Paw prints in mud
The huge snowdrift at the top of the hill is shrinking so that the road is just over one lane wide instead of the less than one lane it usually is all winter.
We are supposed to have a week of temperatures above freezing, which h... Continue reading...
We were fortunate to have a clear evening for viewing the "Super" moon last Saturday. My husband set up his camera and tripod on our front porch and captured these unusual photos of the moon as it rose behind a hawthorn thicket.
Doesn't it look like a great ball of fire? Like some magical, mystical sorcery is brewing.....
The grass has not riz, and I know where the birdies is - they are chowing down at our feeders, trying to keep warm on this snowy first day of spring. Winter is not yet letting go in my neck of the woods, and will still be hanging around for another month or more.
I do love the cold beauty of winter, even though by this time of year I am looking forward to seeing some green. The ground is covered in a soft white blanket, but other things we don't see the rest of the year are exposed. One of m... Continue reading...
I've been doing that for a few months now with some of the paintings with which I am not completely happy.
Here is one of them:
This was originally titled "Where the Eagles Fly" and was created for the Biker's Reunion Cancer Fundraiser in which I participated last year. I finished this on a tight deadline, and was nev... Continue reading...
I've been falling behind with posting my Thing a Week Jewellery Challenge efforts, so here are a couple of more "Things" for you to see. Week 7: Another eco-friendly bracelet created from vintage copper wire. This one is very substantial, simple and rustic.
And something a bit different for Week 8: An adjustable leather bracelet. Created from leather scraps that were given to me, and a large leather piece with an embossed horse-head which I discovered in a box of odds and ends left over fr... Continue reading...
Across the road from our farm and house are gloriously tangled thickets of hawthorn trees.
I am always struck by the lacy, abstract patterns created by the branches and long, spiky thorns. Beyond the hawthorns stand groves of poplar and birch.
Their linear, upright trunks contrast beautifully with the hawthorns.
Last month I posted a work-in-progress shot of this memorial portrait of my daughter's dog, Tilly (you can also read a bit about Tilly in that same post). I tend to procrastinate when it comes to finishing things I create for my family, but we are going down to visit my daughter this weekend, so I pushed myself to finish it so I could deliver it in person.
A bit of tweaking, and the mixed media portrait is now finished and at my printer/framer to be scanned for future prints, and matted and... Continue reading...
My week 6 Thing A Week offering is a cuff, inspired by trees, and again created using metal from my scrap box, which means it is Earth (and tree) friendly, always a good thing in my book.
I stamped the inside with a secret message:
Click on the photos to read more about the inspiration behind this copper and sterling silver cuff, and to find out what the secret quote is. Continue reading...
I'm a full-time artist and metalsmith living a creative life inspired by nature, and fueled by tea and dark chocolate. When I'm not in my studio slapping paint around or pounding metal, you might find me trying to tame my jungle of a garden, or playing a rousing game of Chuckit with the dogs.
Catch Me at Riverside Farmers' Market from 8 a.m. to noon:
I'm a full-time artist and metalsmith living a creative life inspired by nature, and fueled by tea and dark chocolate. When I'm not in my studio slapping paint around or pounding metal, you might find me trying to tame my jungle of a garden, or playing a rousing game of Chuckit with the dogs.
