One New Hard Drive Later...

About a year and rather many extra days ago, I did a sketch in my notebook. It was an idea that I knew I would go back to but other things kept getting in the way, like they do. The seconds and minutes, hours and days, moment by moment never wait. So a couple of weeks ago it was time to bring this picture to life.
I don't often show my work in stages of progress, so thought this would make a change.

                                                     'Out Of The Depths We Called You'

The title of the picture was inspired by a  favourite piece of music by Terry Oldfield (brother of Mike) from an album called Out Of the Depths (De Profundis) If you have been a follower of this blog right from it's beginnings, it may be familiar to you? I'm often putting it on the music play list every now and then.
This painting has been finished for a while but I haven't shared it sooner, as my laptop which is only just over a year old, decided to play silly games with me.  So if you were wondering where I was and why I hadn't blogged for a while that was the reason. I did have an old computer to use to check Etsy, Twitter and Facebook etc but because it was a wee bit slow I didn't bother uploading pictures and kept tasks to a minimum. Anyway one new hard drive later, here I am back and can share some images of these laptop-less days.

                   

I've spent a lot of time in the garden and have been making the most of the sunshine filled days. There have been visits from a squirrel, a grass snake, many slow worm, quite a few bumble bee (sadly hardly any honey bees) I  found a dead orange tip butterfly in the greenhouse and made a special place for it with dandelion seeds and forgetmenot. 

The fields have been spread generously with butter. The floral kind.  Last week we saw a badger snuffling among the golden flowers. It didn't see us as was too busy, so we had the pleasure of watching it just a few feet away, for about a minute. I didn't have my camera with me that night. Yes, you guessed it!.

But there have been other characters to capture other days.  :)

On the river where the water witch lives with her tangled green locks of emerald hair the swans have three silver cygnets.

Everything seems touched by gold in June's evening light, even the tiniest of  flies.

The moonlight and clouds always mesmerize me and inspires  new imaginings in my sketchbook. Here a moon moth.

The Offering Of Light'

'Out Of The Depths' is available to buy as a print in my shop here. And I will be back shortly with details of a giveaway.In the meantime, I will leave you with these flowers picked from the garden. :) x

I Think Mice Are Rather Nice

I think mice are rather nice.

Their tails are long, their faces small;

They haven't any chins at all.

Their ears are pink, their teeth are white;

They run about the house at night.

They nibble things they shouldn't touch;

And no one seems to like them much,

but I think mice are rather nice.

Rose Fyleman

This poem reminds me of when I was a child and came into my head after I bought this picture at a car boot sale at the weekend.

I could hear it whispering "buy me, buy me"  and I knew that if I didn't, then later on at home I would regret it. So I followed my instinct and paid the £3.50 (a bargain!) and brought it home with me, ignoring the odd looks from the daughter and husband. I'm so glad that I did. It looks as if it's a picture of  maybe the Royal Ballet, Beatrix Potter characters that someone has kept and put in an old heavy glass frame?
                                                                        ~*~
After a cup of tea and a loving cuddle with my new bargain mousy picture....Squeak squeak! ;)  I wandered down to a local garden, which was open  for the National gardens scheme.
Cantax house is the home of Sculptor Deborah Van Der Beek and the garden is an interesting treat.
As soon as I walked in my spirits soared  to see the beautiful wild flower cow parsley so often cut down on roadside verges left to show off it's delicate beauty.

It really set off these wonderful wood carved men folk in their wildness. 

There were enticing windows and doorways. 

And white forgetmenots. Something I don't have in my own garden, but something I must try and get growing.

The Iron man,  I think? 

I love this bird. 

I wish I'd took a few more photos of this one, as he was very thought provoking. A baby bird in his hand and his stomach had burger, fries and beer bottle tops embedded. His back had toy cars and parts of mobile phones. Do you see the hands and feet coming out of the top of his head? 

All in all an enjoyable day and the sun shone too.

Now it's back to work....

x

Original Paintings For Sale

My 'Winter' paintings  have just come back from the framers. I've been meaning to get these done  for ages and finally got around to it. Something I can tick off the list. Yay!

Quite a lot of folk have enquired whether these paintings were going to be for sale so I can now share that, yes, they will be going into my Etsy shop on Wednesday 22nd May at 7pm (UK time)

                                                             
                                                                           ~*~
There were some beautiful moments of light this weekend. I managed to capture some of them.
I was up at dawn on Saturday morning and this was my view from the bedroom window.

A liquid gold seeping through the clouds. 

The gold came and went that day.I caught another glimpse later in the evening.
Here the young ash illuminated. The light behind it's new leaves making it a vivid sulphur yellow.

Sun caught through branches, as it was setting.

I will leave you with a song named Sunlight, in which I love the imagery.

Walking In Woods

Give me a land of boughs in leaf,

A land of trees that stand;

Where trees are fallen there is grief;

I love no leafless land

~A E Housman

I've been walking in woods. Away from the noise of roads and traffic. A cathedral bursting with green and birdsong. A place to listen to your thoughts, and let go of baggage and chatterings of the modern world.

When I walk in the woods I wonder what it would be like to live here away from everything for a whole year. I would learn the language of the birds and be quiet under foot as woodland creatures are.  I would discover where the birds made their nests and I would be dressed in green  of course, so no one would really notice me there.

 Hours would be sat  up high on a comfortable branch watching and sharing the view with the rooks. I would need a head for heights and be an exceptional tree climber. I'm sure I could acquire these skills.... ;)

But at night I would come down and sleep among the moss and leaves beneath a twiggy shelter made of hazel sticks....

I found violets in the woods.

and orchids in the spaces between.

 From a distance the beautiful blackthorn was wearing a cloak of snow. Snow in Spring. Snow made of petals. Or a white cloak of lace, a Spring bride.

At home in the garden the Apple tree is also wearing her coat of many blossoms.

"Keep a green tree in your heart and perhaps a singing bird will come."
-- Chinese proverb

Some little birds appeared in the Holly tree today.

And look! then they tried to nest in my basket.....

Keep an eye on Etsy over the next few days as they will be making a flight to my shop.
Tweet tweet, chirp chirp....
xx