Pickle Fork!

A vintage pickle fork....

this was the prop I looked for late one night for my first Tiny Pages Art Exchange card....and I can't believe I found it. It might have been my grandmother's...it looks like something Bessie would have had.

The prompt for our first card was "chuckle"....and my card went to Becky.  And Becky's pickle fork story always makes me chuckle.

And I just learned that Tracie (also in the art group) gifted Becky a pickle fork...so she's in on the chuckle too!

"Pickle Fork" is a line Becky uses in those situations when she just feels like she can't have nice things or when things don't go as planned.  It comes in handy when something gets broken...or pieces and parts of something are missing or when the critters dig in the plant pots.

Because when you actually need the pickle fork...where the hell is it?

Saying "pickle fork" out loud diffuses the situation...puts things in perspective and hopefully makes you chuckle about whatever it was. I find myself saying it....and when I was visiting Becky a month ago I know I said it outloud at least once. And every time I say it...I chuckle.

Cyanotypes have become a big summer art focus for me...so could I do a cyanotype of Bessie's pickle fork?  Yes I could!  And why not add a few pretty leaves....I believe these are from my meadow rue.

Of course I couldn't fit the whole fork on the card...but the message was clear...and I chuckled all the way through making it. And I hope it made Becky chuckle too.

Rather than leaving the leaves plain white from the print...I lightly watercolored them giving it a little whimsical interest. And now that I think about it...it's a nod to the floral pattern at the end of the fork! 

This was my practice fork....and I love the deep tone of the blue on this card...so I sent that to Becky too.

Every type of paper....and every print takes on its own blue personality. The Tiny Art Page ended up being a more muted blue than this practice piece.

In hindsight...I wish I would have printed the whole fork in the practice run...just for chuckles.

Here's the back...where we were supposed to write the theme...and do whatever else we wanted. I actually put the chemical solution on the back too....and meant to sun print something....but I forgot to turn it over before I rinsed it. 

So I did a light watercolor wash instead....and added a little snippet of another print. In hindsight I should have printed the end of the pickle fork on the back. Now THAT really would have got me chuckling.  

And look what's all polished up!

And I'm actually going to use it and keep it where I always can find it! Ane every time I stab a pickle...I'm going to think of Becky...and have a chuckle.

Those Beautiful Leaves

Dotty asked me what the beautiful red leaves were in the Summer Colors post from a few days ago. 

I went back to the pond to investigate...and they were just as fabulous as I remembered. They look like little flames.

The plant is Gaura...or Whirling Butterflies. How fun is that name! The leaves started all green...and only recently have I noticed them starting to turn red. I'm going to keep an eye on them!

The flowers are on long stems and whirl and fly around....like their namesake. 

There is a group in our Condo Association planting all kinds of flowers in the berm around the pond that bloom at different times. 

The Whirling Butterflies are fun to watch in the breeze on their long stems along with the Queen Anne's lace. And today there was also a dragonfly darting around....and another pink lacey bloom. 

 

Little things

It was mostly a chore day around the condo....and Paul and I got a lot done. None of it very blog worthy...but there is joy...and certainly satisfaction in checking things off the long list. 

I started early this morning hand watering some of the new landscaping at the pool.  It was lightly misting the whole time...but not enough rain to be beneficial. Not the most pleasant weather to be working in...but I didn't mind getting wet....I was going to swim anyway. I actually take great delight in swimming in the misty rain....it feels strangely special.

My long cloth hose was squiggled along the pavers as I deeply watered a couple new trees while I swam. And much to my delight when I pulled it up the dry imprint of the hose looked painted along the pavement.  

I know I know...it's a silly little thing. But that's my point....why not delight in the little things!

And speaking of little things....after my post about the wild cucumber curls, Gretchen texted me these photos of wild cucumber seed pods she had collected. They look like textile...or wire art. I was smitten.

That got me thinking....I've picked up a few of these not knowing what they were! Sure enough...in my seed pod collection (yes I have one...and it's impressive) were some of my own pods....not quite as weathered as Gretchen's...but still very cool. 

You don't know until you know....and now I know these delightful not so little seed pods are from the wild cucumbers. Cool!         

 

And just when I thought that was enough....there it was.

A dried...and perfectly intact wabi-sabi curl. 

You can't make this stuff up. You just have to notice the little things.

Soft Summer Colors

Soft summer colors on my camera roll.

"If you want to be happy, you have to be happy on purpose. When you wake up, you can't just wait to see what kind of day you'll have. You have to decide what kind of day you'll have."  Joel Osteen

It was a soft happy colors of summer kind of day.  

This mass planting of petunias deserve another look.

Beauty in Imperfection

I'm pretty tickled with one of today's printing experiments. This was actually the second try after I had a lightbulb moment on how to improve my process. Multiple layers of glass like I use for the plants are not needed. As a matter of fact...they make it harder.

I punched 4 circles from heavy paper.  I placed the smallest one in the middle of the prepared paper....put glass on top and placed it in the sun for about 45 seconds. I quickly took the glass off and removed the first circle and placed the second and put the glass back. I did this two more times each time using a bigger circle. Once I had the 4th circle in place...I let it sit for 6 or 8 more minutes.

It's hard to get them perfectly centered...but I'm finding beauty in imperfection.

There is wild cucumber growing along the roadside at the far wild end of our condo complex. It has these crazy curly tendrils that twist and dangle.....and grab onto anything within reach.

This first little tangle looks like my studio right now....lots of interesting things going on....but a bit of a mess! There is beauty....in imperfection.

Now that I think about it....it looks like how my brain feels sometimes! 

And this one somehow found its way to the tip of the leaf.  

Once I discovered them....I couldn't stop looking for more.

Chance to Chuckle

I had a little printing session this morning with fronds from my button fern....so I was up close and personal. I was surprised and delighted to see little white dots framing the tiny leaves. It's like someone had gone in with a white paint pen. That's something I would actually do....so it felt like Mother Nature and I had a little bonding moment.

Not all the fronds had them...but enough to know it's a thing. 

When I printed....I always used at least two layers. 

I arranged three fronds on the prepared paper...put the glass down and set it in the sun for about 45 seconds. Then I put a few more fronds down and a second piece of glass and let it sit for at least 10 more minutes. 

I just love the soft layered look and I think it will be lovely cropped up and stitched onto white watercolor paper. I made these small so the finished size would be 5 x 7 for framing.

Here I used a third layer.....and will certainly do this more often.  There are only two fronds on that third layer....I wasn't even sure they would show up...but they did! 

I have about six prints that turned out well today....and I have a few more that are fine...but have issues. It's not a perfect process.

I do need to be careful when I coat the paper with the solution...here there are a couple white lines. But it's a one of a kind handmade print....so there is bound to be flaws. And I'm good with that.

  

I love a good chuckle....and I'm pretty sure it's good for us!

Our art group's exchange is underway...and Becky set up the schedule of who sends to who....and who picks the theme. We'll make one card a week....and send it to someone in the group. Tracie picked "chuckle" as the first theme for what we're calling our Tiny Pages Art Exchange. We were charged with making"something that made us chuckle either while or after making it." 

I will admit that I was a little baffled at first. Laughter......and chuckling are pretty spontaneous. So making something on demand that might make me or the recipient chuckle was an interesting challenge. I had to mull this one over for several days.

I thought of an idea late one night...had to get out of bed to find the prop I needed and I put my first card in the mail to Becky a few days ago. It's very personal to Becky...so no one else might get it....but no one else has to.

I chuckled all the way through making it...and I hope it makes her chuckle too. Stay tuned....I love a little tease. Once Becky opens it...I can share how this tiny Tiny Art Page....gave me a chance to chuckle.

Share Your Joy!

The last time I was at Winslow farm I got talking with Sarah about my latest obsession with cyanotypes....and she was interested. Sarah and I have shared our love for flowers...hummingbirds...and shadows.

So when I stopped by today to pick up some veggies I took the pile of prints and cards I shared here on the blog a couple days ago. We had a wonderful conversation....and at one point her son and several of the employees got added to mix. 

I wished I had snapped a photo of the whole group....I was in heaven. Not just the farm girl in me being among all these amazing farmers...but also the crafter...who's starting to feel like artist.

Long story short....Sarah bought almost everything I had with me. I didn't even have my name on anything.  

So I headed home and made a quick little flyer to slip into the plastic sleeves....and when I went back there was already a little display on the counter. 

Pretty soon this counter will be covered in produce...but they have a spot for now...and Sarah said she'll find another spot when the time comes.  

Take the risk....share your joy....you just never know where it might lead. 

https://www.winslow-farm.com/

Falmouth, Maine

Goals

It's good to set goals....and it's even better when you actually meet one!

This is what 300 Christmas match boxes looks like. My goal was to get them done by the end of July....and was very satisfying to have reached my goal a full week early. 

And the best part is I got to take a little field trip downtown and wander around Folly 101 to make my delivery.

And to my surprise....Astrid wants 200 more in summer colors. There were just a handful of matchboxes sprinkled around the store in her various candle displays....can you I Spy them in the photos?  

So I've already gone to my paper stash (which keeps on giving) and I'll start cutting papers again...this time various blues, apple greens and little bit of yellow and red. 

BEAUTIFUL

I had to drop Paul and his bike off at Cyclemania this afternoon....and there was a BEAUTIFUL rainbow in the street!

 It was a "BLACK is BEAUTIFUL" rainbow....and it made me smile.

We got some much needed rain today....so I couldn't even be tempted to print. 

But I did assess my prints....and was surprised at how many I've done. I've been making a few cards...and have stitched a few pieces on watercolor paper ready to go into a frame. 

I'm quite fond of this little 4 x 4  patchwork....it fits nicely in this simple snap frame.

Yesterday I did another layered print...this time with sumac leaves. I'm always surprised by what tone of the blue I'm going to get.  Sometimes they lean to the warm side...and sometimes they lean cool.  This one certainly leans cool....more periwinkle blue than aqua blue. And the intensity of color is dependent on how long it sits in the sun....but it doesn't take long. 

There's a piece of this print in a card below.

I actually think these new layered prints are my favorite style...so that's what I'm going to focus on when I get another printing day. 

Here's what I've assembled so far....and I still have a big stack of prints to play with.... and...I haven't even begun using the fabrics yet. For some reason they seem more precious. 

Most of these are cards...but the pieces in the middle row are ready to frame.

I think blue and white is just beautiful together! I've always been drawn to it.

Summer

We've had a beautiful weather stretch....perfect for a colorful light summer dinner on the patio. (Pretty much like we do every day.)

My personal chef made avocado hummus with a cucumber and lime topping and homemade tortilla chips. I had seconds. 

OK....thirds actually. The plates were small.