Well, OK, that’s not exactly how the riddle goes. Anyway, here is a blue companion to my earlier black grid with tinted Azalea. A red one is in the works. They’ll look great hung side-by-side. When I have all three ready, I’ll group them as a set in my Etsy shop.
Archives for posts with tag: botanical art
Let’s face it, most gardening is a war against chaos. Maybe that’s why I sometimes have fun creating virtual files as the support for my botanical art. For this one I created colorful compartments for Azaleas (on the left) which I enhanced with a touch of turquoise, ferns at the bottom with a ‘button’ of variegated Euonymus, Parlor Palm as the centerpiece and some inner leaves of Euonymus at the top. If only it would all line up so obediently in my garden.
Like most of what I post here, it will pop up matted and framed in my Etsy shop soon.
A pair of pastel-dappled azalea leaves bring this message home.
While I’m in the mood to organize I’ve lined up some of my winter azalea leaves. I love their little apostrophe shapes. For a little extra interest I’ve added just a touch of pastel color at the stem end of each leaf. While I’m busy de-constructing my plants, buds are forming and my azalea will be in full vibrant bloom in just a couple of months. I’m already working on a companion piece for this one which I’ll put in my shop as soon as it’s ready.
With a fresh batch of dill ready it seemed like a good time to re-visit the world beneath the sea. Who are we to say we’ve seen it all? My fish are, once again azalea and euonymus — both so easy to work with. I wish I could say the same for the dill although I’m becoming an expert with tweezers and I find the non-business end of a paintbrush works as a great tamper without getting in trouble with the adhesive. This one will join two others in my shop. See them framed there. Actually, until the frame goes on you never know — something new could pop up.
After creating the simple graphic for this uber-formal flower, I added a few touches of color to the ‘petals’ of yellow archangel to pull it all together. See more in my Etsy Shop, also called My Stonington Garden
I enjoyed the process of designing yesterday’s Mexican Feather Grass collage so much that I thought it was worthy of a series. Two down and probably two more to go. A grouping of four would be nice. The possible color combinations are endless. Unfortunately, the supply of pressed grass — at least for the moment — is not.
While this beautiful grass with its ethereal feel lends itself to simple presentations, mounting it can be tricky. For most botanicals, I use an acid free, diluted white glue which I apply with a brush. Not possible with Mexican feather grass — Nassella tenuissima. The threadlike strands that hold the slightly heavier seed pods easily become tangled and bunched-up if disturbed. As a result, I must use a spray adhesive while holding the stem aloft and then mount it in one try. Careful work with tweezers allows for minor adjustments, then — voila — success or back to the drawing board with fresh graphics and fresh grass. This one cooperated sweetly.
If you’d like to see more, I have a different series of these listed at my Etsy shop at http://alturl.com/mk23o
At first glimpse, this is a simple and classic botanical — pastel-tinted yellow archangel on a subtle heart-shaped background. On closer inspection, however, the graphics that surround the heart carry a special message: “I love you! Will you marry me?” Never underestimate the value of packaging the message!
Although I usually initial and date my pieces in a corner of the image, this one is signed verso for obvious reasons. See it properly matted and framed in my Etsy shop – My Stonington Garden.
Right now my gardens are covered by two feet of snow from the “Blizzard of 2013” How optimistic of the media to assume the worst is over in that way. The only casualty in my garden was my beautiful and very old Euonymous fortunei. It’s lying in its side pinned to the earth by heavy snow. We are holding out just a little hope that we can right it when the snow melts, but I see my garden through rose-colored glasses sometimes.
All I can do right now is make the best of it. The little flower bud clusters may or may not press well, but with the buds removed, the flower drupes make great little “trees” to support other types of leaves. Meanwhile, the Andromeda is evergreen so the little leaf rosettes which resemble Schefflera may just be candidates for pressing as well. Time will tell.
My Stonington Garden 
