painting: gray horse portrait

shimmer 12″x16″

If you look closely, you can see I used an underpainting of acrylic gold paint which peeks through here and there. I tried to create an intense contrast between blue shadow and rich sunlight. 12″x16″ oil on cradled wood board. Available in my Etsy shop. 🙂 SOLD, THANK YOU! I painted from a photo shared by Deborah Coker.

endless Sunday afternoon

Do the days seem like they go on and on lately? I wonder if it’s the time change. . .and not having caught up yet. It’s nice when I am working on a project and could use more time–but on the other hand, it seems like what should be a quick project takes forever.

That’s neither here nor there, though. Just an observation.

Speaking of observations, I opened the curtains this morning and caught sight of a doe much too close to the house. I have all the flowers that are not deer-delights planted out farther, and anything that a deer might want to sample planted close to the house. I’ve noticed my most farthest away (but still close) roses have the bud tipped cropped off. You’d think with all the wild food out there, deer would be content to stay safely at a distance. Nope.

She’s literally 40 feet from the house. I took the photo through a window, so she’s a little blurry and dusty.

Earlier this summer, I ordered two “Chinese Tree Peony” plants. I’m pretty sure one has succumbed to the vagaries of transplanting, but the other one is still hanging on. I was excited at the prospect of a ten-foot hardwood tree blooming with peonies all summer long, with a life expectancy of 200 years. Really? Sign me up!

The actual arrival was a little underwhelming, but, you know. . .good things start small.

Since one plant has already traveled to the Great Beyond (although I will wait until spring to make sure my disappointment is not misplaced), I want to baby the heck out of this little guy. What if we have another cold winter like last year? I’m not taking any chances.

Luckily, while thrifting this summer I found this glass cloche. I didn’t know exactly what I was going to do with it, but for $2 I know a good thing when I see it and will take my chances it will be put to good use.

If you would like to purchase a tree peony (and who wouldn’t?), I found mine at eburgess.com. Shipping was very slow (they said it was covid), so this year I will order in December for spring.

sewing: Halloween pennants

I made this bunting earlier this year. I try to do something a little different with these every time I make one, but there’s only so much you can do. Spooky buttons, and torn cloth strips add a decrepit feel. Over time, the strips will become more raggedy, fingers crossed.

I’ve been collecting fabrics to make a Halloween quilt, but haven’t collected enough. I’m trying to avoid the cutesy images but retain the spooky feel.

That said, none of the above fabrics will be in the quilt. I love the absinthe green. These are all Walmart prints this year.

I bought three fat quarters. Each fat quarter makes four pennants. The placement works great for non-directional prints, but if one has a very clear direction–like the assorted spooky characters above–then one of your pennants will have to be upside down, and another one will be slightly sideways.

I don’t think anyone stands around studying the design once it’s hanging up, so I am not a perfectionist about having every pennant perfect. If I were selling these, then yes, I would make sure every one were perfect. For me–I’m okay with not having to buy extra fabric.

😀