Thursday, 24 August 2017

Almost Over

It is so hard to believe that summer is almost over: the time seemed to speed by while at the same time it seemed to be crawling. The heat, the smoke, the lack of visitors to my home gallery and to the Summer Art Market have all contributed to the strangeness I have felt all summer.

I have been spending what leisure time I have had doing some quilled paper and watercolour pieces. I find both aspects soothing and relaxing.
#1050 - Filigree Flier

#1051 - Filigree Rufous

#1052 - Filigree Fantasy
#1054 - Filigree Fantasy #2
I have been sticking with hummingbirds as my subjects because they suit the lacy looking I am going for and they sell very well - everyone loves hummers! I have, however, been taking some liberties with my colours - at least I have never seen a purple and orange hummer - lol.

I have been thinking about my plans for the Fall and trying to get things organized for a few Watercolour Painting Parties. I am also hoping that some of my students will be coming back to continue their lessons but I expect I will have to wait for the weather to get cold before that happens. I was pleasantly surprised last week by an email from Cheryl asking if I could fit in a lesson on the weekend. I did of course and we both managed to finish a pretty decent painting. Here is mine!
#1053 Deep Fuchsia - 5 x 7 watercolour
On a non-art note, a few weeks ago I got a new camera as my old favourite finally gave up the ghost. The new one is a Canon PowerShot SX420 15 and it is working great! Although I mostly use the camera to take photos of my art, it works super taking pictures through the windows of the critters that visit our yard.
baby turkeys

deer and fawn in my back yard

fawn
These are some of the joys of living in the country in the middle of a forest - life is good!

Thanks for stopping by and please leave a comment.


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15 comments:

  1. Sheila25 August 2017 at 00:22

    Love your fanciful hummers Val! You've been busy! The watercolors are wonderful as well, really love the light in your leaves :) Always enjoy seeing your visitors :)

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    1. Mellowood Gallery25 August 2017 at 09:07

      Thanks Sheila - gotta keep busy or you go crazy - lol

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  2. Nelvia25 August 2017 at 04:44

    Summer flew here as well and we are enjoying our real hummers, we are on the path this year and have many each day. Love yours both for being so lacy and I think the colors work. They are so fun and we always miss,them when we get the final stragglers in October. We only have ruby throats here. Finally caught a,break in the heat for a few days so enjoying being outside. Have the fires gotten under control?

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    1. Mellowood Gallery25 August 2017 at 09:26

      Hi Nelvia. Our real hummers have already left for the south and, yes they are so much fun to watch. We have 3 types here, Rufous, Calliope and Black Chinned but the Black chinned are so aggressive they chase the others away. We have had some cooler weather too but still no rain and the fires in our area still going strong but at least there don't seem to be any new ones. Thanks for commenting - have a great day!

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  3. Cathy H.25 August 2017 at 17:52

    Your hummingbird series is gorgeous! So special to see the critters in your yard.

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    1. Mellowood Gallery25 August 2017 at 18:00

      Thanks Cathy - glad you like the hummers and the critters

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  4. Joan Tavolott27 August 2017 at 06:09

    I love the quilled hummers!!! They are so colorful and the quilling just gives them a lightness. Your fuchsia painting is gorgeous. Sound like the summer up there was unusual...sorry it affected sales and visitors. Hopefully the fall will bring new/returning students for classes.

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    1. Mellowood Gallery27 August 2017 at 09:07

      Thanks for your comments Joan, I am glad you like the hummers and the fuchsia. I am keeping my fingers crossed that the fall will be more successful with sales, visitors and students - can't get much worse - lol.

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  5. Win Dinn, Artist28 August 2017 at 11:13

    I'm very much enjoying the combination of quilling and watercolour flowers, Val - it's a delightfully light combo!

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    1. Mellowood Gallery28 August 2017 at 14:16

      Thanks Win - and it is giving me lots of scope for strange colour combinations - lol.

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  6. Laurie Mueller2 September 2017 at 05:25

    Our backyard looks very similar, Val! And I love the hummingbirds. They are so full of graceful movement.!

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    1. Mellowood Gallery2 September 2017 at 08:59

      Hi Laurie. Glad you like the hummingbirds. Do you get lots of critters in your yard too?

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    2. Laurie Mueller3 September 2017 at 05:35

      Yes- LOTS of deer, does, bucks, and fawns. Hawks, Turkey Vulture, raccoons, and recently Coywolves (a hybrid of coyote and wolf). Scary. When they come, the deer go!

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    3. SharonKullberg3 September 2017 at 18:46

      In New York we have coyotes that are 80 pounds, because they've bred with the Canadian Wolf I've been told. Out west coyotes are only 30 pounds.

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    4. Mellowood Gallery3 September 2017 at 19:55

      Wow! I have only seen a coyote once but we do have cougars, moose and elk although not often in our yard. The bears come by in spring and late fall but as we don't have fruit trees they don't hang around. Country life is always interesting - lol.

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