Poppy Love

Over 30 years ago, my husband and I bought a house from a woman

 who had beautiful gardens of perennials, including some striking poppies.

As we cleaned our garage this past weekend, Bill came across

 this pen, ink and pastel picture I had done back then, carefully wrapped in paper.

It brought to mind my trip to Tuscany nearly 4 years ago,

where I saw amazing fields of poppies, growing wild.

And recently, I took a paper poppy class from the wonderful AnnMarie Gallivan,

where we manipulated and shaped ordinary red card stock into stunning blossoms.

Who can resist the richness of this beautiful flower?

My next post will be my last before taking a blogging break.

Home renovations coming soon!!

Have a wonderful week!

Mother's Day Greetings!

Just stopping by to say...

Happy Mother's Day!

Hope your day has been a lovely one!!

Flowers Everywhere

This week, I visited my sister Carol 

and brought her a Mother's Day bouquet.

She loves every kind of flower - this is one of her orchids,

and this beautiful tree outside her back door is just about to bloom.

                           

During the ride home I noticed so many versions of my favorite tree, 

the beautiful dogwood.

Yesterday I received a beautiful Mothers Day bouquet

in my favorite color

from my sweet husband.

The weather seems to be getting warmer and I can't wait to buy some

potted plants for outside our front door.

Hope your world is blooming

and that you've had a wonderful week!

Enjoying May

"The world's favorite season is the spring.

All things seem possible in May."

                                    Edwin Way Teale

Yesterday Bill and I went walking by the lake. We have lived in this town for more than ten years and it's only recently that we've discovered the pleasure of walking along the lake on a beautiful afternoon.

A lovely place for families to stroll...

                           

and plenty of benches on which to sit and chat.

Today is overcast, and a good day to get things done!

I have a list of practical projects to attend to - home dec, decluttering and artwork.

I hope to share the results with you soon!

Hope you have a terrific Monday!!

Signs of Spring

It's the last day of April, but certainly not the last day of spring!

It is gloriously sunny and cool, and I am happily sitting on my porch.

enjoying the sounds of birdsong, lawnmowers and neighbors working in their yards.

My lovely friend Elaine sent me a sweet springtime picture, which I'll share with you.

As a child, wouldn't you have loved to read a book illustrated by Elaine?

I love her drawings and they way she depicts the innocence of childhood.

As a child, one of my favorite things was discovering wild violets in the grass

before the first lawn mowing of the season.

Yesterday, I saw a flash of purple in the lawn in front of our house, and there they were!

Of course, I had to bring some in and put them in my new little vase!

They remind me of a fused fabric piece I made many years ago...

and also of these painted and stitched African violets.

It's been fun capturing the first signs of spring this month. 

Thanks to my friend Andrea for the idea!

The process has made me want to carry my camera around all the time 

and notice things I otherwise would have missed.

A good habit to keep practicing.

I hope everyone has enjoyed this monthlong theme,

as I have. I'll be up to something new in the month of May!

Enjoy every sign of spring you encounter!

Signs of Spring - A Beautiful Weekend

We could not have asked for a more beautiful weekend here in New England!

Trees are finally showing off their brand new spring green leaves!

Tulips are popping up,

and flowering trees are flaunting their finery!

On Saturday, I went to a lovely quilt show - (unfortunately my photos did not come out well),

then on to a local arts festival.

I immediately looked for my friend, Pam Perras, 

who was exhibiting her beautiful oil paintings.

If you go to her website, you'll see better images of her exquisite work.

There were many, many painters and photographers,

but my eye was drawn to the work of fiber artist, Sue Colozzi.

Sue does scenes of Boston, Cape Cod and landscapes in fabric and thread.

You can get a better look at her work here!

                             

And I visited another fiber artist, Beverly Hinckley, whose work is largely abstract.

It was fun to find out that she is a new member of our town's Arts Collaborative.

It was a real pleasure to enjoy the nice weather with my husband
and, I would have to say, it was a great weekend!

Hope your week is off to a good start;
May is right around the corner!

Signs of Spring - Colors!

 Today I began the job of reorganizing and sorting my embroidery threads.

It's long overdue since much of my stash looks like this and I can never find anything!

I stretched out the skeins on scrap pieces of mat board, and the boards fit nicely in a drawer. 

Some threads in my collection come from my mom, who did beautiful embroidery

such as this stitched dining room tablecloth she gave me years ago. This is not the greatest 

photo - in reality, the stems and leaves are much greener.

I'm getting a bit antsy about getting back to my own creative work,

which I'm planning to do next week. Meanwhile I'll be looking for more signs of spring!

Hope you've had a wonderful week!