Tread Gently Little Star Child

Are you ready for Autumn? For silver spider web spangled walks, dew dropped spotted toadstools, woodsmoke scented evenings curling up with a hot chocolate or herbal tea, writing your dreams, potions and spells, maybe in one of my new notebooks?
I've just added some new designs using some old Aceo paintings I did a few years back. You may remember them or you may be the owner of one of the originals?
Because they were so small (being aceos) it was difficult to know what to do with the designs?
After much playing around, I think they work well with the old book theme?
I've tried to capture a magical feel to them too, by adding words to each book.

The notebooks are all A5 size this time. ( I may do some A6 too  at some point?) and come secured with hemp string and a label.

More card designs have been added too. 

Owls.

And the whimsical pumpkin design that you may remember I drew last year?

Perfect for lovers of Halloween. These will be selling singly or in a pack of four.

And... the 2019 calendar.
This year it's a smaller A5 size. Neat and compact and fits nicely in little spaces.

Tomorrow is the last day of August. She has almost gone...
As the last glimpse of the tails of her ragged robe faded over the hill, she gifted me a garland of hops entangled around prickly treasure.

I'm hanging it upside down to dry, then will bring inside as Autumn decoration.

Until next time...
Tread gently little star child.
x

The Magic Of Morning Light And Notebooks For Those Who Love The Moon

Morning light as it quietly rises beyond the hill. Taken from my kitchen window.

Being more of a night owl, I'm not normally an early riser so don't often see the dawn rise. This morning though something woke me. Pink glow through lacy curtain stirred my heavy eyes to open. I went downstairs to put the kettle on for the first cup of tea of the day and took my camera to the window.  A soft misted morning of late August.  'Red sky in the morning shepherds warning' the old words pop into my head, memories of childhood. My neighbours cockerel crows and in the field just over the hedge the sheep begin a dew drop spangled breakfast. I stand with my mug in hand watching nature paint her masterpiece on the horizon, feeling blessed to witness it.

On the ceiling is a blood vein moth. Through it's wings streak the darkest pinks of the morning sunrise. This beauty rested all day, until the moon rose, then I delicately cupped it in my hands and let it fly free outside.

I'm still working on some moths. This time painted on hares again. They really should have been ready ages ago... but other things have a habit of getting in the way, like they so often do.
As soon as they are ready I will add the dates of listing times etc in my Etsy shop announcement.

One of the things that got in the way of finishing the hares was designing some new notebooks.
A pack of three,  especially 'for those who love the moon.'

'Moon Gazers notebook'

'Moon Dreamers notebook'

 And a 'Little notebook for moon lovers'

Notebooks are available here
It's quiet in my studio, enjoying the last days of summer. Just the radio on, a cd or an audio book.

And when I'm tired of the chatter of radio and sound of human voice it's just me and the sounds outside with my door ajar. And occasionally if I'm lucky I will get a visitor. This sweet one was waiting for me to add extra treats to the bird table. A relative of Robin Goodfellow? I hope so?

Some other work I've completed since my last post here.
'Dreaming Of Bees' Small hand painted talisman

 Bee pendant/talisman

(Both of the above, have already been sold in the shop)

Now summer has almost come to an end. I have a calendar in the pipeline ready for 2018 (which hopefully shouldn't be too long in the making) and some winter cards to finish designing.

Some favourite things of my summer 2017:

• Flowers, flowers and more flowers! :) 
• Pottering in the garden
• Visiting my sister on St Michaels Mount and midnight swimming beneath the moon in the causeway
• Lots of elderflower cordial
• Drinking mead sitting around an outdoor fire
• Roses. (yes more flowers)
• Swimming in the Aegean and walking among ancient olive trees
• The gentle meditative sound of grasshopper and cricket in the garden
• Seeing hedgehogs back in the garden
• The friendly birds on Holy island
• Feeling warmth on my skin and walking beneath blue skies
• Spending time with Son and Daughter both home from Uni 
• Finding beautiful moths

Flowers are those little colorful beacons of the sun from which we get sunshine when dark somber skies blanket our thoughts. ~Dodinsky

March blew away with the Dancing Daffodils

And  all of a sudden the frothy blooms of Spring arrived...

While outside the greening is in the midst of it's merrie dance, I have been busy working my way through my 2017 list of things to do. Most of March was taken up with making a new website. A job that had been years overdue and one I felt I could put off no longer. It's strange how days just float past you and merge into one another while you are so wrapped up in doing something. Before I knew it March had blown away along with the dancing daffodils. But with moments of my temper rising along with the sap outside I finally emerged from the other side and have a brand new website. The biggest change was the renaming. So instead of the old Karen Davis site, I am now officially
'Moonlight and Hares' It seemed a natural progression as many customers tell me they look for me under that name. So here it is... www.moonlightandhares.co.uk

It isn't completely finished yet, for instance I still have a shop to add. For now the shop button takes you to the Etsy shop but I do plan to get a separate one on the website as well.

Now April is here and the hedgerows are busy with birds feeding their young in secret nests. The apple blossom's divine fragrance perfumes the garden. New life is everywhere and the earth feels warm in the mild weather we have had.

The snakes head fritillaries and the sweet white violets have waved their sleepy nodding heads goodbye and now the cowslips and forgetmenots have arrived. The bugle is stretching up through the moss and ground ivy, lily of the valley, cow parsley and red campion are already blooming.
Over the Easter weekend we visited our local bluebell wood. A step into Faerie land...

It's so peaceful, no distant hum of car, just a blackbirds clear voice across the hazel tops, gentle woo wooing of wood pigeon and my own boots on last years beech leaves. Then the quiet is suddenly broken with the bark of a muntjac deer and we see it scamper lower down in the woods and a startled pheasant escapes into a clearing, fearful of who we are. The ransoms are beginning to come out. I take some leaves for a garlicky pesto for tea. In the meadow beyond there are cuckoo flower dotted in the damp patches.

Back in the garden I think I had a fleeting glimpse of a white hare, his two big long back legs showing as he leaped through the hedge. I believe he left me this... ;)

 My paint brushes haven't seen as much action this past month but I did do a couple of paintings.              'Replenishment'

A small canvas on the theme of recharging by starlight and moonlight. And...

'The Quiet Glade'

A unicorn for 'National Unicorn Day' a little while back.  Both of these images are available now as prints in the shop

Back in March whilst working on the website, I also did a little designing with my images for a set of magical nature notebooks which should be ready and in the shop quite soon.  I do love notebooks myself and have bit of a mild obsession with them and often can't resist buying another small book that I probably won't use for another year or so as I still haven't filled up my other collection of notebooks! 

It was fun designing these and I am already planning another set. 

That's all, I think, for now... I shall leave you with some raindrops on apple blossom and Mr Blackbird with his children's supper.

Don't forget for more updates in between blogposts you can find me on Facebook and Instagram. :) 

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