Tyvek

Remember the piece of tyvek wrap that I found? 

You may already know that it works really well for making your own stencils and masks. Tyvek is easy to cut and it won't tear....so the stencils and masks last a long time. 

It's the same stuff they make some large mailing envelopes out of...so you may have some in your stash. Or maybe you'll find a piece or house wrap along side of the road like I did!

I drew a line for the stem in so I could keep it straight...then I free handed the leafy plant.

Both pieces are very useful in gelli plate printing. The one of the left is a stencil and the one on the right is a mask.

I started playing with the stencil this afternoon. Here I layered several images on top of one another then outlined them with paint pens.  

I cut it into a wonky vase shape...and I think I'm going to fill it with some sort of arrangement that will include scribble flowers. We'll see. 

   

Laying Low

Today was a day just lay low. Paul and I had are Covid boosters yesterday....and we both tend to feel a little punky the next day. So we leaned into it and just paused. We both feel better this evening so all is well....and we continue to be grateful that we have access to vaccines.

It was a good day to sit more than usual at my puzzle table....and I'm nearly done with this silly puppy mess! 

I'll look forward to finishing the last few pieces during my breakfast. 

Contrast

Last evening as I was walking across my lawn a teeny tiny purple flower caught my eye....it was just glowing in the setting sun. My plant app told me it was "strict blue-eyed grass"...and not actually a grass at all, but in the iris family. 

I had to stand in the shade to photograph it...and it was hard to get my camera to focus on something that small. I was smitten with this single....tiny perfect bloom....a beautiful contrast to the green and somewhat scrappy grass.

I took this photo this morning...and fell in love again because yesterday I didn't see the fabulous little stripes or the details in this precious center.

After happy hour this afternoon I wanted to show Paul...and just like that it had shriveled up and was gone.

I'm so glad I paused to look...then go back and look again. It's always worth it! 

This morning while Paul and I were walking one of our regular routes this amazing wisteria caught my eye. I've probably seen it before...but it's like I was seeing it for the first time. It was stunning!

What instantly struck me, however, was the contrast of these very robust and showy blooms against the single tiny blue-eyed grass bloom from last evening. Both beautiful in their own way....and I actually think my heart leans towards the blue-eyed grass.

One of my quiet creative projects over the past week or so was Becky's June calendar page...and she just got it today....FOUR days early! In keeping with my theme of whatever is on my table I used more of my strip scraps...and some of my recent scribble flowers.

The envelope liner is a catalog page 
that as just sitting on my table!

And I'm chuckling because it actually pairs nicely with this photo from my early morning swim. My toes could be the flowers and that red striped umbrella in the background matches the one contrasted red stripe strip in the collage with the fencing and the colors mirroring the rest of the collage strips. You can't make this stuff up. Ha ha...actually I just did. We see what we want to see.  

  

Details

We have been working on pool renovations at our condo complex for quite sometime...and today was our grand opening celebration. 

Being on the pool committee there were lots of details to tend to all along the way. And today there were balloons to pick up...brownies to make...and things to set up and spiff up. 

We have a new cedar privacy fence, new pavers and mostly new landscaping. 

I live right across the street...

...so it's easy for me to pop over for early morning swims. I's just a delight.....and I am fully aware of how lucky I am.

But other than helping to water the new plantings....that project is behind me now.....which hopefully means more time for art! But I did have a nice visit with Margie this morning and was able to enjoy some of her art. 

I was tickled to see her recent finished coloring page on the right...and one in progress on the left.

They are fairly large pages...and I'm going to try and shrink the image down to make some cards for her to send. She's one of the best note writers I know!

I love the color scheme she chose. Well done Margie! 

She's got a nice little set up with a rolling cart with all her supplies...

and the sorted fall colors on the left are all ready for the next project...which is going to be fabulous!!!

And here's maybe the most useful art found object in a while...a piece of tyvek I found alongside the road.

Bonus points for anyone who knows what I'm going to use it for!

Figuring Things Out

 "There's really not a difficult thing unless you decide it's a difficult thing. Otherwise it's just the next thing you're figuring out." Flying Edna

There's always something to figure out isn't there? Some of it's hard...and some of it not so hard...but it's all figureoutable.

I've been working on this birthday puzzle I got from my sister LaVonn for a little while now. It's only 750 pieces...but more challenging than I would have thought. I've been plugging away....and just a few days ago I saw that I was close to connecting the top to the bottom...so THAT became my goal. I got that last blue connector piece in this morning and now I see that I need to connect it side to side.

It's a crazy mess made by a puppy with some things to search for at the end. I'm thinking of my friend Jane...who just got a new puppy.

It was a rainy Memorial Day here in Maine...and a perfect day to stay tucked inside doing this and that. I spent some of the time trying to acclimate myself back in my studio. I need to do some serious clean-up...but I also need to do a little art. But where do I start?

Start small...with some doodles a little tag.

I always have a lot of pieces and parts from various projects laying around...so did a very simple little assemblage with a new scribble flower as a focal point.

The latest Fodder School lesson involved some doodle flowers....and I was quite inspired by someone in the class who did more of a scribble flower. I've done similar things before with scribbled watercolor flowers.

I did several pages of flowers and they're not all great...

but they do look better when they're cut out.

Then I experimented with a quick little scrappy vase for some scribble flowers. 

This was just a practice run...but I do like the concept...and I'm looking forward to figuring it all out!

Garden View

"She cleared out all of her old ideas of things until she could hear her own joy with almost no effort at all."  flying edna

I know I'm a broken record....but it's been a spectacular spring so far and the plants and blooms have loved it. Paul and I have too! 

This is one of my favorite garden views...and I wanted to share how it was progressing. And...I secretly wanted to show off off my new funky shoes.

Last fall I divided most of the crowded plants. I think it's coming along and going to fill in nicely with just enough breathing room. 

The blue salvia are for the hummingbirds and they've been visiting regularly. 

This whole patio garden is lush and green and I'm almost at the point where I'll be in maintenance mode with all the gardens and I can just sit back and enjoy it all.

Then sometime soon my attention will turn more towards art again. 

But I did do a tiny bit of machine stitching today. I did the decorative stitching on the gelli prints a while back...but now have plans for this little gem!

The oblong rock that looks like a potato has a great story that goes along with it and because of that story it will always have a prominent place in my garden. https://joyfulputtering.blogspot.com/2020/05/rock-in-garden.html

43

Many of you have heard all this before...but here I go again. How can I not?

Paul and I got married 43 years ago today...the day after we graduated from college. We didn't have much money....so we kept it pretty simple....and it was perfect!

One of my favorite memories of that day is when we asked some of the neighbors in the small college town of Lamoni, Iowa that morning if we could pick flowers from their yard to decorate the church. We got an overwhelming response. 

Here, my sisters LaVonn and Nancy are working on the arrangements.  

This is one of my favorite photos.

I actually think Paul still looks at me that way....sometimes.

I know I post these same photos every year...but isn't that part of what you do on an anniversary. Paul and I had a great day together today.

My dad wasn't well, so this was probably a difficult trip for him. 

He died the following December.

Our very simple, but thoughtful invitation.

An artist friend designed the cover to our program. I had forgotten how special it was.

I can't imagine life without this wonderful man.

Nighttime Mode

It was another busy day full of chores and this and that....and I'm tired. So it's a good day to write about a discovery I made about my new iPhone. It automatically goes into a nighttime mode when I'm trying to a photograph when it's dark....and it was a delightful surprise. I've never been able to take photos at night.

Last night I went for a late evening walk looking for the moon....but it wasn't visible yet. But I was quite taken with the glow of my upstairs studio lights from the street...and I loved the way my phone captured it. 

The studio was where I was last evening finishing up the two little scrappy trees...and I finally have them in the mail!  ✔

Here are a few more nighttime photos from other late night walks.

It was pretty dark down by the pond...but the nighttime mode illuminated everywhere there was any light.

There was a crescent moon a couple weeks ago...and I was excited that I could actually photograph it through the clouds. 

You can barely see it there on the left. 

Only one more....I promise. Look at that glow around the moon...but look closely an you can actually see the stars!  ALWAYS look closely! 

Rainbow Delight!

There's nothing that brightens a busy day better than a rainbow. 

Margie has been coloring again...and we were both pretty tickled that she colored this page in rainbow order! It's just a delight! Well done Margie!

Woodland Magic

I look forward to the spring woodland flowers every year. I know I'm a broken record on this....but I can't help but celebrate the woodland magic!

All of the woodland flowers are white...but I am interested in getting some pink shooting stars from a gardener friend when they're ready.

I have a few trillium plants that are thriving....and hundreds of starflowers are sprinkled here and there.

And the sasparilla, my favorite, will be blooming soon into little white firecracker balls!

And the Canada mayflowers are just starting to poke through too.

I just learned that this is azure bluet. It's a teeny white flower and there are tufts of it scattered around the yard and a few in the woods.  I think it's absolutely charming!

This starflower and foam flower from my garden ended up on my window sill.

I made progress on the scrappy trees today...the blue sides are done. The other side will be bright Christmas colors along with the black and white.

I've posted the process before...but I'm going to briefly share it again. I trace the tree with a pencil on release paper then overlap and iron on the prefused strips to cover the outline.

The pencil line is easily visible from the back so using my quilting ruler and rotary cutter I cut out the tree just a bit inside the line.

Then all I have to do it peel off the paper and fuse it onto the foam core.     

I'll work on the Christmas side later this evening or tomorrow.

Then I'll finish the stems and bases and I can get these two special orders in the mail! 

I think these trees are a little woodland magic too!