{Posted from} Home

The ordinary arts we practice every day at home are of more importance to the soul than their simplicity might suggest ~ Sir Thomas Moore ~


hOMe is where the heART is …


Thursday, September 26, 2019

Thankful Thursday {things I love} ...

So many hummingbirds visited our garden this Summer ... one afternoon while having tea on the deck, i looked up and spotted 6!

The trumpet vine growing along our fence is always a favourite stop over for the hummers, but normally we see 1 or 2 at a time.
I wanted to remember the moment in a painting ... thinking about the hummers and the bees and birds in our Sparrows Garden .
It changed directions many times. The story written in pencil ever so lightly ... then a layer of watercolour paints, followed by watercolour pencils, then a bit of acrylic paint, some white ink, a bit of stamping ... and finally, marker making everything pop.
Each time I walked into Sparrows Studio, I picked up a different medium... a little bit of everything ... just like our garden!
the words intertwined with the paint...
***
I watched you in the garden
as you went about your way
with fierce determination
on a sunny day in May

You knew just what you wanted
the moment you arrived
and I had planted many offerings
so you'd never feel deprived

And even though I knew you wouldn't stay for long
and that this moment wouldn't last
It will always be the sweetest thing
of a Summer past


we were having dinner the other night when out of the corner of my eye I spotted something ...
it was the sweetest little hummer spending a few moments on the red geranium I have next to the kitchen window … and then in a flash, she was on her way
a fresh block of suet has been a favourite spot for not only the hummers
but the two Jays we have had in our garden this summer
The Blues Brothers as we refer to them :-D
as well as the Cardinals
thankfully, the squirrels haven't bothered with it so there's been lots for the birds
found feathers
I save my jam jars (large and small)
hello sweet visitor
this is what the cosmos look like in the garden today
but they are still attracting monarchs, bees and birds
saved two butterflies at the beach a few days ago ...
gathered them on a long piece of found driftwood and took them over to a nearby bush
and then the next day, while walking with Archer a monarch landed on my hand :-D … pure magic!
gathering leaves & twisting them as I walk into leaf roses
dragon flies have been circling me for the past few years ...
I've been looking for a dragon fly necklace or earrings to honour them 
"We should certainly count our blessings,
but we should also 
make our blessings count"
~Neala Maxwell~

Wednesday, September 18, 2019

life is your art ...what are you creating today?

I love badgers ... everything about them fascinates me ... I also love painting badgers ...
I painted this little badger face a while ago & it has sat in Sparrow Studio on a shelf just waiting to be finished. I fell in love with this particular piece (when you are smiling the entire time you are painting, it's always a good sign) ;-) 
life is your art
what are you creating today?
***
I wanted to do something different and tossed about a few ideas … should I embellish with ribbons and trinkets? perhaps a miniature weaving with twigs and dried reeds from my garden? 
and then yesterday, while walking through the woods with Archer, I was thinking about this piece and the idea of a miniature macramé hanging came to me. Some twine to hang a piece of Lake Ontario driftwood completed the hanging which I really love x
Creativity is experimenting
growing
taking risks 
breaking rules
making mistakes
&
having fun
~Mary Lou Cook~

Monday, September 9, 2019

be a bumblebee...

Hello September... 
Autumn splendor ... my favourite season 
Every time I head into the garden with the intention of doing a big end of season tidy up, I  see the bees who are still tucking in and enjoying the flowers... so for now, I've just cleared out the spent and left the rest.
After such a hot summer, it's been wonderful to enjoy cooler mid 70 temps
August seemed to pass in a flash
Soon the pond will be closed,
all the garden statuary washed and put away for another season
Yesterday, I picked up 2 gorgeous pots of Chrysanthemums
while grocery shopping {a sure sign of Autumn}
I've been collecting acorns found in the woods on morning walks with Archer
and noticing the leaves changing colours 
bumblebees are not physically designed to fly.
their body is too heavy for its light wings, 
wings that shouldn't be able to keep it up in the air.
bumblebees refuse to accept their limitations.
they fly in spite of what it's been told it cannot do.
it knows its strength.
be a bumblebee.
~unknown~
9.9.'19