Pastoral Dreams

An Angel to Watch Over Us

2011-12-06T16:11:00.003-05:00

Last year's Christmas Fireplace Mantel....This year ???

Busy cleaning, decorating and shopping.
Will be posting some decorating pics and ideas.
Just so much to do during this time of year : )

The Blue's Cure

2011-11-26T15:55:00.002-05:00

Hope you are enjoying the music down memory lane. Always a perfect Blue's Cure.... at least it works for me. I'll be returning shortly with many pieces of art work I have been working on in the past few months. Music and Art are always my constant companions when battling the blues...... : )

Hopefully they will give me the incentive to carry forward with what I had previously wanted to do in the month of October. A party with a few very special original prizes to give away...... ; )

N.B. photo belongs to Possum Prints

I smile to think of what they used

To help us kids survive,

But I am "going on" 69

And very much alive.

My sorest throats were eased, and I

Still hold no bit of rancour

To think of sucking sugar lumps

With a drop or two of camphor.

And camphor mixed with goose grease for
A winter chest congestion:

Baking soda cleaned my teeth

And helped my indigestion.

Because of Mother's tender heart I hereby sing a Gloria!

She never gave me castor oil,

Just Syrupy Castoria.

Salt for all mosquito bites,

Cobwebs on the scratches,

The sickroom fumigated with

Our sulphur kitchen matches.

Somehow there's quite a bunch of us

That never had a shot,

But here we are still kicking

And enjoying it a lot.

~ Author Unknown

Where Poppies Grow

2011-11-11T09:51:00.005-05:00

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

from "For the Fallen " Laurence Binyon , 1914

War had many casualties and among them were the animals that served the forces or were owned by the families that left the war torn villages behind in seeking refuge. Soldiers found some solace in the company of orphaned pets such as dogs and cats , even our famous John McCrae had a war pet , a dog named Bonneau.

And did you know that a Lt. Harry Colebourn from Winnipeg had a bear called Winnie; yes the same bear that inspired the story for A.A. Milne's Winnie - the - Pooh.You can read about it here : WINNIE

Doctor Harry Colebourn with Winnie

NB: If you'd like a good read about World War One do check out this book by Linda Granfield

" Where Poppies Grow "

Halloween Music Vid - "Trick Or Treat"(Version 2)

2011-10-27T07:13:00.001-04:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY M ~^..^~

LOVE MOM DAD AND TY XXXOOO

Relighting the Peace Tower ~ John Lennon

2011-10-09T13:12:00.006-04:00

Join Yoko in the relighting of the Peace Tower

in Iceland

today at 4: pm our time

Isle of Golden Dreams ~ Paint Party Friday Week 29

2011-09-30T10:22:00.001-04:00

Doing just that , dreaming up art work for Paint Part Friday, art work for my Halloween Blog Party this coming month of October and everything-else in between during our home renovations.
I really wanted to be a part of this week's PAINT PARTY FRIDAY so I thought I share with you a gorgeous vintage painting I bought some time ago for my daughter Emma.

ISLE OF GOLDEN DREAMS

She has always dreamed of travelling abroad, especially to Hawaii, Australia and New Zealand and most recently Ireland. When I discovered this print I knew it was very old but after researching it on line I found out that it was done during the thirties ; a little older than I had thought.
If any of you have more information on this print I would love to hear about it.

So this painting is for all us Dreamers and Painters who dream of enchanting magical places and are truly inspired by the many artists of before and of now.

"Isle of Golden Dreams" a beautiful painted treasure I uncovered one day at the Sally Ann.....Hope you like it......especially you Kristin ; )

P.S. Would luv to see you all at my Halloween Blog Party October / 2011.

Will be giving away a software program and an art piece done by me : )

Again Thanks to Eva and Kristin for hosting the weekly Paint Party Friday : ) Do visit all the participating artists....Always an Inspiration ; )

Impressions of Life ~ WIP ~ Paint Party Friday Week 28

2011-09-23T11:35:00.005-04:00

Here is an image that I extracted by doing a charcoal rubbing of a relief surface feature belonging to.......You Decide : )

Can you see something?

Yes, it's a face.....

A simple way to create gorgeous artwork is by simply rubbing a charcoal pencil on paper of which has been positioned over the chosen design. Usually when the right materials are used what should happen when you are rubbing the charcoal pencil over the image is that the charcoal will only pick up " the protrusions and edges; depressions will remain un-pigmented since the pliable paper moves away from the rendering materials" but since I did a quick rubbing of this image I just used what I had on hand.
I discovered that the hard charcoal pencil worked best as the soft and medium pencils seemed to not work as well.
If any of you have some pointers on this technique I would luv to receive any information that may be of some help to me in continuing this work.

So for now, I leave you with the impressions, imprints and patterns of some secret object I've tried to capture on paper ; it is a part of my WIP for Paint Party Friday as well as an item that I will be creating for the Halloween Blog Party on October 8th and will be part of my give away gifts.
A Software program worth $50.00 and an art work by me will be part of the prizes .

So please do remember and mark the date on your calendars ~ October 8th/2011 to attend the Halloween Party.
All you have to do is just leave me a comment on October 8th to participate and be eligible to win.

And now for a little something extra......This week's TREASURE FINDS from thrift stores in the Ottawa Valley area.....one of my incurable passions and a couple of Whimsical chairs I've been working on.

The Old Woman that Lived in a Shoe ! Copper Piggy Bank

Chinese Vase, not sure if it's chinese or Japanese but it is truly lovely.

I adore the beautiful gold design.

My Church Gresely Carafe ~ Jug ~ Pitcher....just luv it's spout and handle and ivy design.

And of course I couldn't walk out the store without this tape of a very, beautiful dog
movie I simply adore.... "Fluke".

And here is my latest art work in a different medium other than paint

Charlotte's Chair ~ made from an old petrified wood piece and an iron rod found on the train tracks.

And a Faerie's Tree Branch Chair

So here is the clue of where I took my impression....Can you spot it?????

Yes, it's the old furnace plate ( don't really know what it is, just liked it )

The little cherub's face is what I rubbed.

It's amazing how many relief items I have lying around the house....I am one that really loves to collect objects with some kind of base relief and so now they have even more of a desirable reason for their collection.

Some of my Treasure finds find a nook to sit in and beautifully embellish our home and other Treasures are used in my art work. Now you know why I have such a passion for thrifting....always very inspiring for me and affordable, the magic word : )

Hope you enjoyed this week's Paint Party Post....Please make sure to go visit everyone that is participating in Kristin and Eva's Paint Party Friday....always a treat.

" Still Life " Paint Party Friday Week 27th

2011-09-16T10:13:00.005-04:00

The hearth's terracotta tiles bask in the glow of the crackling fire....cold brisk nights have arrived.
Pussycat and dog curled up beside me as I read my new book, couldn't ask for more for this is probably one of their favourite times to enjoy with the coming of Fall.
Silence is golden , literally, for the glow of the setting sun hits the living-room windows and casts it's warmth and shadows on the newly painted white walls of the room. Suddenly the silence breaks, an owl's hooting is over heard the popping hot ambers of the fire.

With Fall and Halloween fast approaching I was inspired to do this wood-burning / painting of an owl sitting on a branch of a very, very old tree, half living half fallen , looking out into the slowly disappearing warm setting sun.
The burl wood piece I bought at a thrift store which had been painted on previously of which I sanded off the image.
After examining the wood I decided it looked so much like a tree from the back side and that it would accommodate perfectly the limbs and roots of a tree. Not only that, but it also reminded me of how a tree in nature, sometimes in it's splendid remnants of decaying grandeur tells a story of a storm, disease or simply old age embracing it's life.
Even though a part of this tree's life has departed a living part remains and flourishes.....Life is eternal?

Visit the artists partaking in Paint Party Friday, hosted by Eva and Kristin and Please do remember to come back for my giveaway blog party this coming October. I will be giving away a software program worth $80 along with a little something I created.

Here is a little Owl video from youtube I discovered.....Beautiful....Adore Owls!

Love Your Pet ~ Paint Party Friday Week 26th

2011-09-09T09:51:00.013-04:00

" Gloria taught me something I'd never known. That is, that you don't just have to have a dog around as a pet or a watchdog. You and the dog can become friends". ~ Jimmy Stewart

In the Latter part of the summer months we were busily renovating, juggling all the little orbs of life that it threw at us and basically eliminating much of our treasures free time which one relishes to enjoy, especially in the warm days of summer. Fortunately there was some time allotted for reading and watching a few films at night and of course I took in a few flicks of Jimmy Stewart's.

I have always adored Jimmy Stewart and aside from Clint Eastwood being my favourite actor Jimmy was right there beside him only that I could relate to Mr. Stewart on a more normal everyday way; just really didn't know why. He was liked so much so even President Truman thought so when he said "If Bess and I has a son, we'd want him to be just like Jimmy Stewart". As usual, like most of us, I wandered down a path that in someway had connected with me and I began reading about Jimmy Stewart.Not surprisingly I discovered why I loved him so.Not only was he an incredible actor but it turns out he was quite a guy off screen.A gentleman who was "gracious and warm to both strangers and those who were barely familiar to him" for he always was in good humour especially so when out walking his dog Beau.Mr. Stewart always had a smile and hello according to Craig who lived around the corner from him.

The more I read about him the more I fell head over heels on Jimmy Stewart all over again. And then I came across a clip of a Late Night Show appearance he did with Johnny Carson and spoke about his dog named "Beau", I was touched by his deep appreciation of his love for his pet. This was just another trait of Mr. Stewart that I could relate to not to mention he had also written a poem for his beloved dog named Beau. Myself and my family know very well what he spoke about in his poem and I quickly ordered his book from the library and had fun reading his poetry once again enjoying the poem he wrote for his pet.

I mentioned a while back on Paint Party Friday I was painting some characters for a children's book I was writing and although it is a very huge task for me for I am neither a writer or artist I do know I am lucky to realize that I possess some tools to achieving my goal,
one being a very important, f not the key element to my success....."You can anything you want , if you want it desperately enough ". I'm not sure who wrote the quote although I remember reading a quote of Jim Carrey's saying something similar but essentially conveying same message and I have to agree that the desire has to be tremendous of which I know I truly own. Sadly, during our renovations we lost our beloved pet Bandit (Our vampire love bird ). I wouldn't go into the details of his death for it will be in my book but what I can say is how much his passing was a mirror image of a human's departure from this earth.

Bandit RIP 2011

And so I leave you this week with a few art renderings my daughter M did in digital paint for our pet cat, our fat house cat Elliot ~ Elly Angel. I will also include a few pics I want to submit to Costco for their photography contest they are having this month and hope to get some feed back from all of you of which ones you think would be good submissions.

Ranger the therapy cat whose owner Marc Lacourciere graciously agreed to let me enter him in the contest. I'm not sure how many I can enter but I know it is more than one so feel free to point out a few possible entries, thanks.

AND ONE MORE THING , I WILL BE HAVING A GIVEAWAY THIS COMING MONTH SATURDAY OCTOBER 1st FOR SOME VERY SPECIAL COMPUTER IMAGING SOFTWARE VALUED AT $80 WITH AN ADDITIONAL WORK OF ART DONE BY ME INCLUDED IN THE PRIZE, SO PLEASE DO COME BACK EACH WEEK FOR THE UPDATES : )

Rip*** Elly 2001~2008

Ranger the Maine Coon Therapy Cat ~ owner Marc Lacourciere

Grace our golden angel

Elly playing Grandma ~ Flickr admirer tagged him that name....I think it fits puurfecatly...lol

Carson the Vampire Church Cat

A Lovely furry bunch

Carson sick to his stomach after his bath

And once again Grace our golden mermaid who adores water! Would really appreciate some thoughts from everyone who visits.....thanks a bunch! So now here is Jimmy's poem about his beloved dog named Beau

***** "Beau" ***** by Jimmy Stewart

He never came to me when I would call
Unless I had a tennis ball,
Or he felt like it,
But mostly he didn’t come at all.

When he was young
He never learned to heel
Or sit or stay,
He did things his way.

Discipline was not his bag
But when you were with him things sure didn’t drag.
He’d dig up a rosebush just to spite me,
And when I’d grab him, he’d turn and bite me.

He bit lots of folks from day to day,
The delivery boy was his favorite prey.
The gas man wouldn’t read our meter,
He said we owned a real man-eater.

He set the house on fire
But the story’s long to tell.
Suffice it to say that he survived
And the house survived as well.

On the evening walks, and Gloria took him,
He was always first out the door.
The Old One and I brought up the rear
Because our bones were sore.

He would charge up the street with Mom hanging on,
What a beautiful pair they were!
And if it was still light and the tourists were out,
They created a bit of a stir.

But every once in a while, he would stop in his tracks
And with a frown on his face look around.
It was just to make sure that the Old One was there
And would follow him where he was bound.

We are early-to-bedders at our house–
I guess I’m the first to retire.
And as I’d leave the room he’d look at me
And get up from his place by the fire.

He knew where the tennis balls were upstairs,
And I’d give him one for a while.
He would push it under the bed with his nose
And I’d fish it out with a smile.

And before very long
He’d tire of the ball
And be asleep in his corner
In no time at all.

And there were nights when I’d feel him
Climb upon our bed
And lie between us,
And I’d pat his head.

And there were nights when I’d feel this stareAnd I’d wake up and he’d be sitting there
And I reach out my hand and stroke his hair.
And sometimes I’d feel him sigh
and I think I know the reason why.

He would wake up at night
And he would have this fear
Of the dark, of life, of lots of things,
And he’d be glad to have me near.

And now he’s dead.
And there are nights when I think I feel him
Climb upon our bed and lie between us,
And I pat his head.

And there are nights when I think
I feel that stare
And I reach out my hand to stroke his hair,
But he’s not there.

Oh, how I wish that wasn’t so,
I’ll always love a dog named Beau.

THIS POEM WAS PUBLISHED IN JIMMY STEWART AND HIS POEMS" BY JIMMY STEWART, A SHORT COLLECTION OF POEMS BY CROWN PUBLISHERS, INC. RELEASED IN 1989.

PLEASE VISIT EVERYONE ON PAINT PARTY FRIDAY HOSTED BY KRISTIN AND EVA

MIDNIGHT MARGARITAS ~ PAINT PARTY FRIDAY ~ Week 21

2011-08-05T10:35:00.002-04:00

Completely forgot about PPF ; been busy with the house and getting ready for the move.

So I thought better than nothing and missing out on the party that I share with you all a digital design I did last year for Halloween. I really miss working in this medium; especially incorporating actual paintings of mine with collaged images and then photoshop them together, truly a great art form. Love It!!!

Thank you Kristin ......your Margarita reminded me : )

Click on image to view larger....you will see more detail and maybe something you missed the first time around.

As you can see Jimmy is enjoying a Margarita .....the eyes ..?.. : )

Please visit all the participants at Paint Party Friday .... lots to see, admire and learn.

"Adalian ~ The Ghost CAt " PAINT PARTY FRIDAY

2011-07-29T11:41:00.003-04:00

It has been quite a while since I last participated in Paint Party Friday and my last submission was a "Patch of Blue"; a night landscape of a crescent moon with a straggly tree on a knoll.

I tried to place a sleeping critter beneath it but along the way, while we were off to Manitoba the painting changed direction and Adalian appeared; must have had something to do with the locality of where we took comfort for the few days we were there.

PineWood Lodge in the WhiteShell Provincial Park was a most satisfying escape and I would recommend it whole heartedly to anyone who wishes to find a secluded place for some tranquility and relaxation. Renting a cottage on the gorgeous serene Dorthy Lake with the occasional family of geese visiting does wonders for the mind and body and I suppose this is how Adalian came to be; in any case I am very content with the end result.

Meet Adalian the ghost cat, my third instalment of characters for the little children's book I'm writing.

My reason for the lengthy absence from blog land.....we are moving! Will explain at a later date.

Please visit the other participants of Paint Party Friday......

Hunting for Treasures

2011-06-05T18:01:00.016-04:00

What Treasures do You Hunt for???

A Florentine art work of a miniature book on a green velvet mat beautifully framed in a most lovely gilded gold picture frame.

A MASTER'S TOUCH

Two Portraits from Florence Italy in gilded gold frames.

The one on the left is Hand of Man by Andrea Del Sarto

and the one to your right is Head of Woman by Leonardo Da Vinci

Treasures to Me......Much of what I collect is to use in my art work especially old vintage jewellery

and the old frames for spiders and webs; although some of these portraits and landscapes will be purely for admiring and inspiring.

A lovely collection of vintage art and some not so very old like the girl in the wood miniature print on canvas "The Serenity of Solitude" by Cliff Sanderson printed in Italy. Unfortunately the canvas is a bit too big for the lovely gilded gold bird frame that I photographed it in. The silver paste heart I think is a scarf pin but I'm not so sure....any thoughts?

My Eye was Fooled

At first glance this photograph of an old farm house in an elaborate frame evokes a feeling of a by- gone era that survived many years, yet on a closer look the truth unfolds and exposes the reproduction.

I will be using this picture for another spider and web....it will be a great new home for Aunt Nancy.

A diamond paper weight from Winners bought at a yard sale, an amethyst from a thrift store, and very old bottles found at a fundraiser for kid's camp.....Loving the aqua blue bottle.

Another Fool the Eye...Satin Glass or Velvet Glass

This glass will fool you every time if viewed out of the light....It will look black in colour,

but once it is placed in the light the true colour will be revealed....the beautiful colour purple.

Next time I remember I will post some glass in the sunlight.

Madonna on a Blue Velvet Mat

The clear bottle has Paris and a bouquet of roses embossed in the glass. I may do a sculpture with this one but not a shell, something different.

Spider Jewels

This vintage brooch will become Aunt Nancy the Spider ...Lots of pretty crystals , tole rose and gorgeous pearls. I'll be busy creating much with this lot!

I can already visualize Aunt Nancy the Spider on that Old Farm House Photograph.....Come to think of it, I have much to complete and continue visiting PPF posts....

I have always wanted this beautiful romantic Nymph and whimsical crocheted miniature umbrella.
The Nymph I found a while ago and this umbrella a few weeks ago. The black kitty-cat vase was found in Bishops Mills. The lady who was having the sale is a member of the Red Hat Society and it just so happened that she had a box full of vintage hats and one of them was a tiny red velvet hat she apparently decided earlier on before the start of the sale that she wasn't going to sell it but rather wear it herself; a great decision on her part for it really and truly looked lovely on her , not anything like Princess Beatrice's Royal wedding hat....wow, I hated that hat; anyway, back to the kitty I found. It just seemed to be waiting for me for I walked by it a few times and didn't notice what it was since it was face down in the grass by the sales table but on my last walk through I decided to pick it up and discovered it was a heavy kitty cat vase and since it had a chipped ear the lovely Red Hat Society gal gave it to me for free. I now use it for my tiny paint brushes and pussy cat purrfectly charms my table while holding my paint brushes ~^..^~ .... little things make me smile!

I did find a white hat with velvet forget-me-nots in the box but forgot to take a picture of it and I also forgot to take a picture of two framed art pieces , one an embroidery of an Airedale and the other of a terrier with a cute and sentimental poem written beside him....... Next show and tell {: )

A Beautiful Treasure Find !

A Little Black Purse to match my Little Black Dress that doesn't fit any more .... {: (

Well , Im guilty of eating too many sweets, carrot cake with cream cheese icing and butter tarts....need to stop and get back on track!
Luckily this purse is perfect for holding lots of silver and some treats but they wouldn't be sharing the space this time....need all the money I can get to go hunting for Treasures in Pinawa, Manitoba come Monday. I'll be gone for five days and on my return Friday I will be heading out later in the evening to " Hey Day" a fabulous Treasure Sale run by the Kemptville Hospital Auxiliary....Great place to find just that perfect Gem!

So I wouldn't be checking in on PPF Posts till the following day on Saturday although I hope to have something done by then to post for week13...my lucky #....I better have something!

I hope you've enjoyed my Show and Tell of Found Treasures..... I have so much more to show!

Until next time, DO WHAT YOU LOVE! Annabelle {: )

Dancing in a Fairy's Ring Paint Party Friday Week 12

2011-06-03T19:13:00.000-04:00

A little late in posting this but I had a few errands to run before my daughter and I accompany hubby on his trip to Winnipeg next week. It will be M's first time on an airplane. Of course hubby got stop overs so she could experience the take offs and landings....my worse part of flying, I guess he forgot.
I wanted to stay behind and let my son go but it didn't work out, so this time around it will just be the girls while hubby goes to work for the week; hopefully we will find plenty to do while we're there :)

So I didn't get a chance to finish "A Patch of Blue"...kind of stuck on what I wanted to put in that patch, I thought I did last week but then I changed my mind after looking at it for some time.The good news is I have finally figured it out but didn't have enough time to implement it so instead of missing this week's Paint Party Friday I elected to show case a few of M's illustrations. I also threw in there a little Artist Conk that I played around with a few weeks ago when I ran out of large Conks.....how sad ): ....Actually it could pass off as an aceo, after all it is miniature measuring approximately 2" across x 1 1/2 inches in height x 1 1/2 inches in depth...not the size of an actual aceo but otherwise similar in it's small canvas space.

So here are the three illustrations M did......years ago.....maybe I might entice her to bring them along on the trip for her to paint.

A Crown M saw on the internet and decided to give it a try

A Baby Whale with Its Mom

And a Seahorse

All these illustrations were done when she was in grade six.....a long time ago....time to PAINT them I say!

And here is the make shift ACEO...An Artist Conk 2 x11/2 x 11/2

Dancing in the Fairy's Ring

Dancing in the Rockets

These lovelies are one of my favourite Wild Flowers...Dames Rocket ~ Sweet Rocket

The Sweet Scent of Dames Rocket lures the Sphinx Moth to our garden

Sphinx Moth Image Wikipedia

A garden shouldn't be without them! Give them a try.

Kristin , tomorrow I will be posting a lot of the Treasures I found recently on my hunts....Promise!!!

Until next Paint Party Friday.....Happy Painting and whatever makes you HAPPY!

Annabelle :)

CHECK OUT ALL THE PAINT PARTY FRIDAY PARTICIPANTS HERE.....*^..^*

Oooh my Creative Process?....I never know until I get an idea , only then do I make a special note on paper of all the essentials required to make the vision come into being. Nature, Music, Poetry, Writing, art, life...... all that surrounds us is Inspiration to me.

Return of Happiness

2011-06-02T19:41:00.003-04:00

The Lilly of the Valley...Return of Happiness

" This was one of my prayers: for a parcel of land not so very large, which should have a garden and a spring of ever-flowing water near the house, and a bit of woodland as well as these. " ~ Horace

Like Horace the Roman poet I too long for the same , only I may be a touch more demanding.

My garden of Dreams lies out in the open air , somewhere between an ocean and a wood, secluded in a pastoral rural landscape far from the maddening crowd that is steadily coming my way. Since the arrival of Spring I've been awakened by the sweet scent of the lilly I found near my door ; It summons my hidden affairs of the heart knowing quite well that I'll never escape from the want of the remote pastoral landscape that I lovingly long for.

Don't get me wrong for I do have a house and a yard, roughly a 1/2 acre which of course I'm very lucky to own but it isn't the garden I dream of...for many reasons....and it will never be, although someday it will be for the next occupant of this home. Soon we will be looking for a secluded place far from the city in a beautiful remote area where I can dream and create to my heart's content ....there my garden will grow.

Until then, these are a few of the products of which makes one Happy, makes us Happy...makes me Happy....The Return of Happiness......

Happy is *** Family Group Photo of the Whimsical Wish Flower The Dandelion ***

Found this Sonnet on the net....I like Cheeky Missy's writing, must do some further reading on that site for I am known to be partial to the ancient mariners; never really explore the modern day poets....maybe I should....Enjoy!

Sonnet #xcv Lilly of the Valley

On dainty fragile stalks white waxy bells
No music play; whilst melodies surround,
Demurely silent hang their heads; whilst round
Them rise the other greens whose height excels,
Whose damsels' colour palettes o'er their swells
In lavenders and lemons, reds abound;
Yet in their brilliant rainbow ne'er is found
So rich a scent as yet as have these belles
Who fill, infuse the breeze, on wafting airs
Entice and tease. As maidens modest, sweet,
Ne'er boldly e'er parade nor voice they raise,
Yet play upon the senses softly; theirs
The love that's pure and clean; in white they greet,
As brides their heads now bent to hear love's praise.

by ~ Cheeky Missy
from 21st Century Poets.com

Always keep a keen eye on those country drives, you never know what will greet you around the bend....

Happy Chance meeting these whimsical purple coneflowers-daisies growing up along a weathered wall of a barn.These lovelies happily make a good substitute to the real mccoy; especially great with Ottawa's water ban in place.....No Water Needed! Discovered on route to Merrickville one Saturday morning.

So HAPPY in finding this lovely Black Velvet petunia at Richmond Nursery.

Happy to see these lovelies ( Miniature Iris ) return each year more beautiful than before and so easy to care for.... my only compliant....too short lived.

Another Happy Meet...Petunias were my grandma's ( on my dad's side) favourite. I hated these flowers when I was young, never could understand why so many gardeners loved them...now I know....ease , beauty , variety, their scent and attraction to wildlife.

A Happy day for the Bumble Bee.......

and his companion

Happy being near "Pretty in Pink "

sO Happy I discovered this Fairy's Tree...not sure what it is but if any of you know its secret name I would luv to know....on my list for my dream garden

May Apple Flower ....Happiness is sitting in a cool meadow of ethereal white and green.

Happiness is finding a tiny Karner Blue Butterfly sitting long enough to capture with my camera .

Happiness finding that Dark Red Calliope Geranium I enjoyed last year!

Happiness is having your Art Hearted......this Little Hobbit - Faerie's House was sent to a new home yesterday....Hope you like it Mary!

Happiness is a painted Daffodil..a symbol of Hope..and Hobbit's favourite colours of yellow and green.

A Heart and a spiral window....simple things make me Happy.

Happiness is a twinkling door ...every time a different colour, purple....and then green

Happiness receiving a gift from a far away land over the sea....

More surprises from inside the package to come later.....Thanks a bunch cRAFT aTTACK.

Happy in contentment at being home with the family , both human and furry.....

Happiness will always be there, you only need a keen eye.....

Don't Worry be Happy!!!....Just had to say it...haha!

Until tomorrow see you at PaintPartyFriday..will most definitely show you some of my found treasures Kristin....haven't forgotten. Good Night!
Annabelle

"A PATCH OF BLUE" ~ PAINT PARTY FRIDAY WEEK 11

2011-05-27T10:12:00.009-04:00

I'll begin by sending out my apologies to everyone for not visiting last Friday's submissions. Unfortunately matters in the family have become more serious and a strain therefore I was obligated to set aside my art and deal with the pressing situation and by Wednesday night I was able to get a break.
I sat down and watched "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" with M and painted ......for therapy; needless to say, not enough time to complete it and messed up the little pooch I had painted. So for now this is a WIP and hopefully by this time next week there should be a little critter in the landscape. Again, I'm posting this painting this morning and then I'm off with more errands to run for the day. Will be visiting later this evening and throughout the weekend. .... most definitely!

Out of the complete weekend and week I was able to get in a Saturday morning jaunt to the Annual Bishop's Mills Community garage sale and this is the Treasure I found!!!!!!!

Meet " Ranger the Therapy Cat "....Isn't he a handsome fellow? His owner was kind enough to let me photograph him and Ranger was quite patient in letting me take ample photos in making sure I captured his best assets...I think I did!

Ranger who happens to be a Maine Coon Cat ; one of my favourite breed of cats , seems to adore his stroller, even my kids didn't stay in theirs so contently....I see why he is such a lovely soul for therapy!

Quite a patient cat...thanks for letting me take your pic Ranger.

And this has to be my favourite! Wow, seriously need to learn my camera....just luv when some pics turn out so good...I feel I'm improving with my photo skills.....although I still don't know how the buttons work....haha!

A drive in the country with a camera on hand just in case and hunting for lost treasures works wonders for me, great therapy. Discovering Ranger was a welcome surprise and even better I was lucky enough to capture the moment because I wasn't too lazy to bring the camera along.

What is good Therapy?

#1 Time spent with family, human and furry or feathered or whatever
#2 Driving in the country and meeting interesting folks
#3 Enjoying a healthy outdoor snack
#4 A Camera for capturing Treasures beyond our immediate reach
#5 Enjoying all the elements of Spring....Life

.....These are just a few of the things that make me happy....the secret to a well lived life.

So here is this week's submission.......

"A Patch Of Blue " Inks and Acrylics on canvas.

Serendipity

A Little Heart

I'm sure you've guessed where the name came from..my boo -boo ...haha!

Until next week Happy Painting..... Annabelle

If you are just visiting here, do think about dropping in at Paint Party Friday; I'm sure you'll linger a while and maybe participate....good therapy, I promise!

PAINT PARTY FRIDAY WITH KRISTIN AND EVA

p.s. I guess I forgot to show my recent discoveries at the local yard sales....will post them soon.

" Past Curfew " Completed Paint Party Friday Week 10

2011-05-20T15:50:00.003-04:00

"The Woods are Lovely Dark and Deep"...... and I'm afraid a Little Too Spooky for Me!

Last week Ronda from Roban asked if I would take a few pics of the Artist Conk next time I would be out and about in the wood collecting some specimens for my art. Well, Since it's been raining forever and ever now the idea of taking a hike on the trails of the local forests seems to be a far away dream. Not only was there the initial fear of confronting bears and fishers but now another few obstacles have popped up; the trails I usually frequent suddenly have morphed into tiny canals reminding me of my Venetian family roots, only not as pleasant for the visual beauty and serenity of the walk for undoubtedly they will be mischievously tempered with by none other then the nasty annoying pests themselves, the little vampire beasts .....yes....mosquitos.
And as I write this post, just outside my door, they are hovering over the sides and top of the frame looking for any tiny opening they can squeeze through, waiting to take their first juicy bite of the season! So, I have opted to wait for a while before I venture into the Wild Wood for the time being and force myself to work on a regular canvas for the following week's PPF. So this Artist Conk painting is it for the time being. I kind of like it . I will miss the wood burning. I have come accustomed to enjoying the mushroomy smell of the conk.

Paint Party Friday Week 10

" Past Curfew " Just finished painting it this afternoon..........Water colour, inks and acrylics

I will be visiting everyone later tonight and throughout the weekend......
Until next time.....HAPPY PAINTING...TREASURE HUNTING AND ENJOY OUR BEAUTIFUL WORLD.....NATURE IS THE TRUE ARTIST!

NOTE BENE.....If you aren't part of Paint Party Friday group, maybe you should think about joining us and if you are enjoy all of the participant's recent and past submissions....truly inspiering! Thanks to Kristin and Eva for hosting this fabulous community of lovely artists.....for sure ,lots of fun to be had !
Check it out! Paint Party Friday

Annabelle >^..^<

A Church Sale and a Lesson Learned

2011-05-14T15:02:00.003-04:00

Well, every time I go Hunting for Treasures there is ultimately a story to tell.....A while back , hubby and daughter accompanied me to a community sale in Merrickville and while I was totally submersed in finding my Treasures hubby and daughter were finding their little piece of vanity fair observing the bargain hunters; some totally oblivious to their surroundings;such was a lady blissfully happy with her Treasure finds, unknowing to her immediate calamitous predicament.

This is where the first garage sale poem was born....." The Spider and the Shed " or " Spider's Moving Day " , one of my hubby's notorious funny quaky, quirky poems.

I would have never guessed in a million years that he possessed this poetic talent if it were not for these funny occurrences the two keenly observed within the radius of the common market I visited that day and was only made aware of this gift he possessed upon our return back home.

Ahhh, aren't they sweet angels....or are they ????

The famous shed where hubby and daughter witnessed the Spider's Moving Day....Lucky spider never anticipated getting a free mover that day and the unsuspecting Treasure Hunter had a good day herself, hubby and daughter found a way to find fun without costing them a cent and I got more than I had bargained for ; a keeper poem to remember the lovely day the family had at the Annual Merrickville Community Garage Sale!

These poems are meant to be taken lightly and no real names were used to protect the guilty....haha!!!! All in good fun and like my daughter simply puts it "Boredom of the Jedi"....that's another story, her own. So here is the one that started it all, followed by the one he just wrote today . Hopefully I'll have another for next weekends Garage and Church Sales. So here you are.....Hope you like them.

Enjoy !!!

The Spider and the Shed

Out at yard sales on a rainy day
In the entrance to a shed
We watched as a spider dandled down
Looking to be fed

We stood outside in the pouring rain
Just me and Emma Peel
She looked my way and said to me
I’m not a spider meal

It was raining hard, we were getting wet
There were treasures inside for sure
I would check for bargains once inside
But only after her

Then suddenly without a word
We stood and did not care
As the woman that had just walked out
Had the spider in her hair

The way was clear, it was alright now
We could find our deals inside
We could have told the lady who cleared the way
But to hell with foolish pride

She knew that she was on her own
She knew the price to pay
It’s everybody for themselves
For this was garage sale day

~ Stan Belanger

At this mornings church sale my husband and daughter decided to take a break but there was no need for them to be present to hear about my disappointment in missing out on some Treasures.....nothing lost, actually much more was gained from the experience...... a funny poem and a lesson learned......"don't fuss and fiddle with tiny jewellery bags , just horde them in your stash , pay and move on to the next treasure chest....haha...I'm afraid I'm a little too giving to take the whole loot , I like to share and give others some fun in the hunt as well! So here is Stan's version of what transpired at an early church sale in the country. Enjoy!!!

Church Sale Pig Lady

Entered the church sale
Like time and again
Spotted some jewelry
And suddenly when

A pig lady appeared
That followed no rules

Pig lady, pig lady
Just like a fool

Gathered up everything
Looked like a witch
Hoarded all the jewelry
Lord what a bitch

I tried to grab something
She said’ “everything’s mine”
A little embarrassed

I said ok, fine

If you like a good church sale
I’ve learnt one thing for certain
You have to be rude
Or leave there a hurtin

The next time I go there
No one is safe
Wheel chairs and walkers
Get out of my way

~ Stan Belanger

So now when I go to these sales I do come away hoping for something more, not only in material treasures but more importantly, something to share, get a little chuckle out of and a little souvenir to remember of a time well spent together as a family.

Will share some of my finds tomorrow......

Until next time enjoy the Spring Sales and Treasure Hunts ~

Annabelle

Paint Party Friday Week 9 ~ " Past Curfew "

2011-05-13T14:47:00.004-04:00

Not sure what is going on this week , maybe blogger issues I don't think Kristin and Eva cancelled the party, anyway I'll go ahead and post; hopefully it isn't .

This week's Paint Party Friday Submission....." Past Curfew "

Friday the 13th............Weeps once again is alone in the Dark

WIP.....Just finished " Weeps " yesterday and when I tried to post him this morning blogger was down......Hmmmm...... anything to do with it being Friday the 13th? I for one keep the number 13 as a lucky charm but probably not for all so it seems.........

Step #1 ~ Harvest Conk

Step #2 ~ Dry the Shelf Mushroom for a couple of months, but not required

Step #3 ~ Gesso prep

Step #4 ~ Sketch design, again not required if you can draw...hehe...not like me

Step #5 ~ Wood burn using wood burning tool...again not required

Step #6 ~ Paint, again not required

Step #7 ~ Seal with shellac if desired

This artist Conk doesn't sit well so once I complete "Weeps" I will be making a base for the Shelf Mushroom art

A small little door to a fairy's home. Looks like Weeps isn't really all alone as he thought.

Another little door isn't too far from Weeps.

M named this work and thought of adding the lily flower lantern .Will be working on him for this week in-between gardening, treasure hunting for old relics of the natural kind and manmade. Hope you all have yourself a great weekend and enjoy the Spring weather.

p.s. I will try to post a few of the great Treasures I was fortunate to come across in the last few weeks.

Maybe they may give you an incentive to frequent a few yard and church sales of your own.....maybe you'll find your artistic inspiration in a lost and forgotten gem.....

Have fun Treasure Hunting and Creating

Annabelle

Sir Eldrick Sim ~ The Whimsical Spider ~ Hush Sweet Charlotte

2011-05-09T14:04:00.002-04:00

Sir Eldrick Sim ~ The Whimsical Spider .........Sim sure has lovely eyes, don't you think?

I have a small collection of antique vintage jewels I collected since I was a teenager and a few recent acquisitions from estate and church sales. They aren't the easiest to acquire for it seems everybody has the similar ailment I possess that of an incurable addiction and affection for all things sparkly and very, very old.And even though these out of time pieces with their lovely worn and tattered patina usually come with missing stones their charm is never lost and somehow make them more endearing to our heart.

I present to you Sir Eldrick Sim, Sim for short though he is far from it with those dandy long legs of his...hehe! Sir Sim is my most recent Spider creation....Oooak.

An antique Aquamarine vintage brooch melded with a vintage clear rhinestone brooch make up the alluring physique of this long legged arachnid . I sculpted his very long legs from heavy gauge copper wire and then added a finishing touch of antique patina to give him that old world look of a well travelled seasoned gentleman Spider , perhaps a renaissance gentle arachnid man. A welcome companion in any household who adores a bit of whimsy, a fairytale or two and the story of Charlotte's Web for a life filled with magic and a love for all God's creatures great and small, creepy and scary, and all fun to observe and adore.

Sir Sim adores climbing high along castle walls, especially those constructed of ancient crystal fossils..... a very complimentary background for having his picture taken.

On sunny days you'll find Sir Sim sunbathing in the bird bath, happens to be his fav spot surrounded by all the ancient crystal fossils.

Another day at the Bath....never enough of these days....too beautiful to miss.

That Orbed Maiden Paint Party Friday Week 8

2011-05-06T08:07:00.001-04:00

This week's submission to Paint Party Friday......Digital Painting of the moon I did sometime ago.

The moon was first sketched on paper and then I applied the background layers, colours and text in Dreamweaver.

Click on banner to visit other participating artists in Paint Party Friday Hosted by Kristin and Eva

Until next Friday,

Happy Painting and a Very Lovely Mothers Day to all

Annabelle ~^..^~

Whimsical Wednesday Hosted by Danimal Week 24 (May 4 - May 10 )

2011-05-04T11:38:00.001-04:00

Okay I think I will be submitting quite a few whimsical pieces of my art that I have done in the past so for my regular visitors....sorry for the repeats, for the new visitors, well here is week 24 submission for Whimsical Wednesday Week 24 ( May4 - May 10 ).

Click the Web of Whimsy to take you to Whimsical Wednesday hosted by Dan

My infamous moon I painted and then made a Flickr collage incorporating some of the most lovely photographs of other Flickr Members. I loved creating this Magical Whimsical Piece....magic, fantasy, the Mysterious Romantic Moon and a secret road to a fairytale land....enjoy!

Magic of the Night ~ A Study in Blue

1/ Moon and Poe www.flickr.com/photos/83323987@N00/
2,5/ Tree's memory www.flickr.com/photos/macallen/
3,4 ,11,12 / nocturne a stroll www.flickr.com/photos/madsofa/
6,7/ Scary Sky www.flickr.com/photos/amitsphotos/
8,9/ The Bubble Magician www.flickr.com/photos/tjt195/
10,13/ Blue-Tree www.flickr.com/photos/ghostbones/

Listen to the Music of the Night at pastoraldreams.blogspot.com/

Whimsical Wednesday Hosted by Danimal

2011-05-01T20:59:00.003-04:00

Okay, I must say I am a big kid at heart! I adore treasure hunts; the kind of treasures that are of a natural kind, like hunting for the mesmerizing swirling crystal fossils I adore discovering in the wild Canadian wood and incorporating into my whimsical art work; I must be some sort of bird because I adore glittery things. Treasure hunting for old things specifically very very old books and illustrations, church sales and garage sales and flea markets anything that has a link to the ancient past. Fairytales and Legends, Religions and Mythology and Halloween. Romantic Stories and Murder mysteries, Sherlock Holmes and Mackenzie King, Fairies and Spooky Ghost Stories. Spiders and webs , Owls and glass. The ocean and its lovely treasures and stories of pirates, the deep dark forests lined in their mossy velvet greens; the secret world of the Little Folk. A fragrant midnight garden filled with magical fireflies twinkling on a delicate black canvas ; they are the tiny helpers guiding the fairies in the darkly night . The iridescent light of the magnificent Moonflower twining up an old oak reaching high up its tallest branch to a hollow knot where my fav bird , the wise old owl lives. The snugly warmth of a chair by the fire on a cool night enjoying a glass of Grand Marnier and an old book while your best friend sits comfortably near by. A lot of very old movies, gorgeous pre-Raphelite art, beautiful Victorian , British Poetry, castles and old stone churches and homes. The British Isles and Wales, Italy and Canada, the gorgeous mysterious moon and the stars; as a matter of fact the whole entire Earth and universe.....life is beautiful even in the darkest corners.
Yes, I am a big kid and I think it is one of the secrets to enjoying life. Dan has invited me to join his group Whimsical Wednesday and I think its about time we all take a little break and look for our fairytale heart and play the game. Thanks for the invite Dan.

Click the Weedy SeaDragon to enter the Whimsical Realm

This is my submission for this week's Whimsical Wednesday.......Annabel Lee a whimsical self-portrait caricature

I created this whimsical self portrait ....I guess I kind of looked a bit like this when I was very young or thought i did...haha! I did have gorgeous eyes when I did them up Egyptian style..lots of eye liner..haha!

I sketched Annabel Lee and then created the rest in Dreamweaver. I always adored butterflies, an obsession of mine since I was 11 years old when I first watched "The Collector". I loved the story, the acting and directing, England and the Ancient Roman catacomb belonging to the tudor home. I loved the feel of serenity and peace in the open country space the main character bought with his winnings and always dreamed of owning such a gorgeous forgotten solitary place....a lovely sanctuary. And the music....Maurice Jarre.......Doctor Zhivago......simply entrancing!
I was born under the Pisces sign and of course everything to do with the sea is in my heart. Flowers, fragrant flowers, birds and old lace and Poe's poem all have much to do with who I am .....an incurable romantic....and loving it....reason for the crown..... Queen of Romance! The name of the portrait is Annabel Lee because my birth name happens to be Anna and hubby nicked named me Annabelle when I first met him ; he knew how much I adored Edgar Allen Poe's poem of the same name....slightly different in spelling. So here it is...a bit of Whimsy.

Annabel Lee

FAIRY'S Home In the Woods Paint Party Friday Week 7

2011-04-29T12:46:00.003-04:00

This week's Paint Party Friday Week 7 submission is of a Fairy Door and Home done on

Shelf Mushroom ~ Artist Conk in wood- burning ( Pyrography ) and paint.

Lost the hydro last night.....Boy are we spoilt!!! My daughter was bored and decided to have a bit of fun playing with wax....Encaustic wax could be her calling...lol. Anyway, needless to say I was unable to complete the painting but needed some advise so it all worked out in the end.

Candle in the Night ....Romantic and mesmerizing, a beauty all their own

A Spider Web Window for a Fairy's Home in the Wood

Steps not sure how to give them more depth......? I also was thinking of adding a few bricks here and there to give the walls to the home some character and dimension..... maybe a little kitty sleeping by the doorstep would be a cute touch. Any suggestions are welcomed.

Love Lives Here

A Tree Knot Home for a Little Feathered Friend

My take on a Birch Tree Trunk

Fairy's Home in the Woods

Until next week Happy Painting

Update.....completed Fairy Home " WildWood "

Annabelle >^..^<

Whooo's...... Afraid of the Dark? Paint Party Friday Week 6

2011-04-22T13:06:00.000-04:00

First I must announce the demise of Deep Dark Sea......I just couldn't continue on it.....so many layers and where I wanted to go from there wouldn't have allowed me to do so, so I ditched it in the garbage on thursday with my daughter's blessing. I will try my vision another time. So on to the new painting project..........

I had this Florentine Gothic gold leaf frame for some time now and thought about using it for a religious theme but guess what, I changed my mind.

I once again used my wood burning tool to sketch the design out on the old wooden frame and then painted in Weeps the owl under a full moon with water colour paints, acrylic and ink. Since the frame had some damage I needed to touch up some places where the gold leaf had worn down;luckily I had some gold leaf stored away just waiting to be used. I guess it waited far too long for when I went to open the jar it wouldn't budge. I ended up having my husband drill holes into the top so I could use it. I have three more similar jars of varying leaf colours with the same problem. Oh well, I did say last week not to purge art supplies or leave them too long unattended so this was bound to happen. Good thing they are still good to use, very surprised.

So , here is my submission for this week's Paint Party Friday Week 6 .....

" Weeps .....is Afraid of the Dark "

Until next Paint Party Friday..... Happy Easter and have a great weekend.

Oh and many thanks to all who left me all the lovely comments last week....I did read them : )

Annabelle

The Hobbit Inspired Home ~ Paint Part Friday Week 5 ~ April 15th 2011

2011-04-13T09:48:00.005-04:00

I'm submitting this Artist Conk illustration for this week's Paint Party Friday Meet ~ Week 5.
This art piece was an ideal piece to work with while sitting by the living room window pondering on the days that had unfolded. Unfortunately April 11/2011 will be one date I will always remember as a dark and dreary day that woke me in the early morning hours foreboding me something bad was to come . My mom had to admit her partner of 16 years in hospital, his cancer vengefully returned.The prognosis.....not very much time.

To continue on the the Dark Sea was out of the question; I just couldn't and so I decided to work on something I had more control over, actually any sort of art or blogging and such was quite difficult this week. Today my hubby goes in for eye surgery and then maybe we as a family might get a chance for some quite time and enjoy the Spring weather. So for now this is it....Hope you like it.

These are a few of my three dimensional natural canvas artist tree conks or shelf mushrooms I gathered in the wood some time ago for use in painting, pyrography, etching and sculpting fairy homes.

Usually when these are harvested you must give them a drying period of a minimum of two months.These have been dried for some years now. Then I applied gesso and sketched my design in pencil before using the wood burning tool.

Last week I decided I wanted to try my hand at creating a fairy's door on the natural canvas using a wood burning gun ( pyrography) .

As I was designing the door my daughter said it reminded her of Bilbo Baggin's home in the Shire

from "Lord of the Rings". After viewing some pics I realized she was right but my windows were not complete circles , the door's knob wasn't in the middle of the door and I had placed a spiral rhinestone window at the top of the door with a tiny silver heart beneath it; either way I think it could pass for both a Fae's or Hobbit's home....what do you think?

I placed a daffodil in a pot by the door; Hobbit's are partial to green and yellow and to us humans Daffodils are a symbol of Spring and Hope.

I'm not sure if I'll paint the illustration; I'll leave that decision to the end of the week and get some feed back from the Paint Party Friday participants. If I do paint it, I think I'll use pen and inks.

All I have left to do now is add a lantern to the top left of the door where there is a natural hole.Then I will seal the work with a matte varnish in front and a gloss on the back. This particular Artist Conk stays erect naturally so I don't have to support it in any way. Looks quite magical on a book shelf or mantel.
The more I ponder on weather or not to paint it the more I prefer the way it is...natural like found in a wood???

Like trees the rings on the shelf mushroom tells their age.

Just remembered as I was writing this post that I had gathered a entire box full of these mushrooms but hubby cleaned up the garage and got tried of seeing them lying around so out to the compost they went, now I would like to gather a few more....lesson learned......should never purge art supplies and get to them in a fair amount of time....years are not acceptable....haha!!

p.s. Other visitors are also welcome to give their feed back on weather or not to paint the mushroom.

Check this article out....A really gorgeous Hobbit home:)

http://www.home-designing.com/2009/09/house-that-looks-like-hobbits-home-from-lotr

Until next time try this religion.....Kindness :)

Annabelle

Deep Dark Sea Paint Party Friday ~ Week 4

2011-04-08T21:22:00.002-04:00

Somewhere lost in a deep dark sea......surrounded only by the glimmer of the moon's beams washing upon the peaks of the turning waves.

I would like to take this opportunity to excuse myself for not being in attendance last Paint Party Friday....sometimes the nasty beasts of life need to be confronted and cast away and all our energies are called upon to help in the battle. Even looking for some refuge from the storm with some art therapy does not always work, especially so when one such as I lack all of the required knowledge in creating a painting.

Well, I' not going to keep this a secret, I failed miserably!!!
Maybe my subject wasn't an easy one although at the time I thought it was....the sea, yes, the sea.
It tricked me into thinking I could create a beautiful seascape....no such luck!
I'm embarresed to say I must of tried painting the sea 30 some times and right after each perfect wave I would mess up and back to the sink to wash away my mistakes and try again only to waste more paint ; luckily, I used cheap brands. Yes and the color changed drastically.....talk about looking into my soul these past few weeks....eek.....very down.

Anyway..... on the bright side of things,

The good that came out of this experience is that I discovered many techniques such as using alcohol, salt and feathers on wet paint and that I must do some reading on the art form, practice some more and be more patient and maybe not be so stressed before tackling the Deep Dark Sea.....or should I say the Deep Blue Sea?

So here is where I am at the moment............hehe .....same as before kind of.....lol!

And my shimmering waves.....Seriously need help!

Until next Paint Party Friday.....Happy Painting , I'll be in the lab.

Annabelle :(

p.s. Will be checking in on all the participating painters in the morning...picking up my mom from the airport tonight.

Romancing The Stone - Eddy Grant (HQ Audio)

2011-04-05T21:33:00.000-04:00

Romancing the Stone

2011-04-05T21:32:00.001-04:00

Romancing the Stone

A Treasure Chest , a Stone Heart ~ keeper of love notes, a tiny Crystal Fossil heart in hand and Iron Man's Heart surrounded by precious crystal fossil stones.

: ) : ) : ) TREASURE HUNTING : ) : ) : )

ROMANCING THE STONE........SPRING HAS ARRIVED ALTHOUGH CHILLY AND WET THE SNOW HAS ALMOST VANISHED FOR ANOTHER FEW MONTHS...HAHA! I HOPE....

IT IS A TIME FOR GROWTH AND RENEWAL, A TIME FOR VENTURING OUTDOORS ENJOYING ALL THAT MOTHER NATURE HAS TO OFFER, AND FOR DISCOVERING TREASURES!

NOT TOO LONG AGO HUBBY AND THE KIDS BOUGHT ME TWO METAL DETECTORS FOR MY BIRTHDAY , MY LITTLE ASSISTANTS IN SEARCHING FOR TREASURE.

IN THE CANADIAN WILDWOOD, IN A WORLD BEYOND THE WOOD THERE LIES QUIET AND WAITING A ZILLION EARTHLY STARS TWINKLING BENEATH A WARM SPRING SUN SOAKING IN ITS RAYS, THEIR SWIRLY CRYSTAL PATTERNED DRESS MAGICALLY GLISTENING AND SPARKLING IN THE MOSSY GROUND THEY LAY.

WHEN I HAD FIRST DISCOVERED THE MOTHER LOAD A FEW YEARS BACK WHILE HIKING IN THE WOOD I WONDERED WHAT ON EARTH I WAS GOING TO DO WITH SUCH SMALL CRYSTAL TREASURES BUT THEN IT WASN'T LONG BEFORE MY MIND FILLED WITH IDEAS.

THEN ONE DAY I DISCOVERED A PERFECT ROCK WITH A BEAUTIFUL CRYSTAL FOSSIL INSIDE BUT IT WASN'T ANY ORDINARY FOSSIL THAT I HAD GATHERED BEFORE , THIS ONE WAS IN A SHAPE OF A HEART.

I WAS THRILLED AND MAGICALLY I WAS POSSESSED TO CREATE SOMETHING VERY UNIQUE ......WHY NOT CREATE A TREE, A SYMBOL OF LIFE AND PLACE THE ROOTS OF THE TREE OVER THE CRYSTAL HEART; IT WOULD CERTAINLY BE MOST MAGICAL AND WHERE MAGIC RESIDES FARIES ARE NEAR BY......IT WOULD BE A FAIRY'S TREE!

WELL, THERE COMES A TIME WHEN ONE MUST PART WITH SOMETHING THEY LOVE BUT KNOWING THEY WILL BE LOVED BY ANOTHER IS EVEN MORE SPECIAL ; I SURELY WILL MISS THE FAIRY'S TREE .

LAST WEEK "THE FOUNTAIN" FAIRY'S TREE FOUND A NEW FRIEND, AND NOW IS ON ITS WAY TO A FAR OFF LAND . I'M SURE ITS NEW HOME WILL BE MOST MAGICAL A PLACE TO CALL IT'S VERY OWN AND IT'S NEW COMPANION WILL BE ENTRANCED BY IT'S NATURAL BEAUTY HAS I HAVE BEEN THESE PAST YEARS.....WISHING YOU MANY FAIRY DREAMS SHEILA : )

SO WHAT DOES ONE DO WHEN THEY PART WITH AN OLD FRIEND , WELL THEY FIND MORE FRIENDS, NOT TO TAKE THEIR PLACE BUT TO FILL THE VOID IN THEIR HEART, FOR THE HEART IS KNOWN TO HAVE INFINITE ROOM.

THE TREASURES I SEEK ARE NOT GOLD AND SILVER AND PRECIOUS STONES , PERHAPS BURIED IN A CHEST IN A SECRET HIDING PLACE ALTHOUGH THAT WOULD VERY LOVELY AND HELP WITH MONEY MATTERS BUT THESE TREASURES ARE SOMETHING VERY DIFFERENT, SOMETHING QUIET UNIQUE ....... PREHISTORIC FOSSILS DATING BACK 443-490 MILLION YEARS ; BRYOZOANS FROM THE ORDOVICIAN PERIOD. NO THEY'RE NOT THE GORGEOUS GREEN EMERALD STONE OF "ROMANCING THE STONE" BUT NO MATTER THEIR MONETARY VALUE THEY ARE JUST THAT, A BEAUTIFUL PRECIOUS STONE.

WHEN I SOLD "THE FOUNTAIN" TO THE NEW OWNER AND SPOKE ABOUT SOME HEARTS I HAD FOUND ALONG MY HIKES I THOUGHT ABOUT MAKING A POST ABOUT HEART SHAPED ROCKS , FOSSIL STONES AND SUCH BUT THEN LATE LAST NIGHT MY DAUGHTER M WAS LISTENING TO EDDY GRANT'S SONG TO THE MOVIE "ROMANCING THE STONE" . I THEN REALIZED I HAVE BEEN ROMANCING THE STONE ......FOREVER .....FROM THAT VERY FIRST DAY I DISCOVERED IT IN THE CANADIAN WILDWOOD , NEVER TO RECOVER FROM IT'S TRANCE INDUCING DRUG; I MUST SAY, CONTENT TO BE IN IT'S HOLD!

I'm humbled by Nature's beauty...each and every creation an intricate work.

The magnificence of each unique pattern in a single rock.

The swirls always get me, surprising me every time with their eternal beauty

An Iron Angel's Wing I bought a few years back from an artist in Merrickville.....She said it brought her good karma, I suppose it has for me as well for I have since become obsessively enamoured by spiders and webs and fossil art and filled with ideas in ways of incorporating them into my work.

This is my infamous Treasure Chest I made with small tiny fossils with "I Love You" decoupaged on an inside wall and a decoupaged heart in a glass bubble within. On the outside a gold crucifix and crystals were encrusted, something I thought would spark a little thought of Pirate's Treasure.And last year while walking the railway tracks with Grace one early morning I discovered this Iron Heart, I call it "Iron Man's Heart". 'It's not often that I find hearts created by Nature, actually quite rare and this Iron Heart is manmade....by accident I believe. In a way I suppose it is created by nature for after all we are a part of it so I guess it counts.

Iron Man's Heart.....Imagine , I found this heart on a track going nowhere( it has been shut down).....Curious and so very, very strange ....Wonder how it got there and what it belonged to......Isn't Life Strange? This Heart if I were to sell it, which I'm not, is certainly an item that most appropriately suits my " Cabinet of Curiosities".

The Lid to the Treasure Chest held by Fossil Swirls always stays open for Love is never left out.

A Glass Bubble Holds a Red, Red Heart Within....Love is a Treasure!

A Closer look at the top of the Treasure Chest with the encrusted crucifix and crystals....Look closely and you will spot some Gold Doubloons....Pirate's Treasure....actually vintage buttons.

THE MERMAID'S GROTTO

And my Heart of Stone comprised of many crystal fossils with a touch here and there of crystal, a key and clip earrings which can hold if one wishes, secret love notes instead of ears....haha.

Amber and Rust and Clear Glass Crystals rest upon the Stone Heart, though once cold is now warm especially so under the sun's hot glow.

So these are my Treasures, Treasures Belonging to God , To Earth, To Us.

The art is only an imitation of Life.

Hope you liked this post.

I will be bringing you more of my adventures in the WildWood, in the World Beyond the Wood with more discoveries to unfold. Some of these pieces , like the Treasure Chest and Heart of Stone will shortly be available for purchase in my new Etsy store "Hush Sweet Charlotte".

Until next time , many magical twinkling crystal swirling dreams to you.

Annabelle ~^..^~

Bottles Full of Posies and Honey Bea's Seaside Cottage

2011-03-30T15:31:00.000-04:00

There has been so much going on in my life and so many things to complete and send along to friends and customers that I have been slightly falling behind; happy to state that I'm catching up.

A Secluded Place of Her Own

This is Honey Bea's Hive - Away Cottage by the Sea ~ her Summer Dream Rental

A little sandal hangs drying, it's tiny daisy catches the morning sun twinkling and drawing one near to see what secret treasures the watery glass keeps within.

Why it's a Honey Bee's little house and in every home there is a heart or two or three or many more.

Beautiful glittering white sand and blue ( color of the sea) hearts find refuge inside this tiny abode. As you can see Bea has quite a large place, many rooms to call her own; a perfect place for her and family.

Dawn,

Your lovely spider is in the mail with his little companion; please let me know when it arrives.

Blanca,

Your little guest is also in the mail, again would luv to know when it arrives in sunny California.

Oh, and do forgive me girls for leaving my little notes out of your parcels, a little forgetful these days.

Hope you like them when they arrive.

Sheila,

Your Fairy Tree "The Fountain" will be going out shortly and I'm presently working on your little something special to join the Enchanted Fairy Tree on it's journey to it's new home.

Hope it brings you much love and joy to your world.

Dzintra,

I know you've been waiting a while now and since I just finished making it this morning, I thought I would cut the suspense and show you what I made for you.

The soldered top unscrews if you wish to remove it but please DO NOT WASH THE DRAGONFLY....IT WILL DISINTEGRATE.....MADE OF CINNAMON DOUGH although it is quite solid.

I added rhinestones to the wings, tail and eyes, kinda of lost the eyes when I took the pictures ...haha...need to get better with the camera!

Magic Bubbles...luv how this occurs in the water, makes me think of the sea, I guess I kinda of mimicked them in my soldering.

So I hope you like it Dzintra and I will be sending it out to you tomorrow. Please let me know when it arrives.

So here is the group photo.....Bottles Full of Posies and Honey Bea's Hive ~Away Cottage by the Sea

Thank you all you lovely gals so very much for hearting my art.

Cabinet of Curiosities ~ A Different Locket

2011-03-27T17:35:00.005-04:00

Sea Captain's Keeper ~ External Memory Open Locket

with Visible Windows to the World

M designed this Open Locket recently and I tried to take a decent picture of it but failed miserably.

She graciously took some photos for me so I could post it on my Etsy shop to sell for her...personal gain...haha.

Aside from my joking she really had a great time creating this little masterpiece and I really like how it turned out. ... very impressed by her lovely design and work.

What is especially intriguing with this sort of locket is that it stays open but the way Emma has placed the soldered rings with the suede cording threaded through creates a natural enclosure and surprisingly enough keeps whatever you place within the two glass heart panes stays enclosed. I also love the idea that whatever is within the heart is no secret but visible to everyone.....both sides of the heart the glass is see through,so this is for the world to see....an open book of your thoughts sort to speak.

The necklace has a lovely circle and bar for clasp and wire wrapping two sections of the black suede cording.

She sculpted some ocean waves along side the heart in keeping with the theme of the sea.

One side of the heart has a clear water glass with texture and if you look closely it has tear shaped water drops melted within the glass.

On the other side of the heart she has used a sea blue glass.

Approximately length of necklace is 50 cm.The depth of the heart is 1cm and measures 3.5 cm across.

If interested in purchasing click this link.....

http://www.etsy.com/listing/70925312/cabinet-of-curiosities-a-different

So this to me goes into my cabinet of curiosities for it is a curious piece and one of novelty and uniqueness.

Well done M!

Hope you like what she has done.

Oh and a big thank you to my lovely models Karson and Grace...very patient indeed....much appreciated.

Until next time happy :) creating Annabelle >^..^<

Cabinet of Curiosities~ Our Delectable Assortment of Unusual Arts and Crafts

2011-03-25T21:22:00.003-04:00

Welcome to the Cabinet Of Curiosities; A Delectable Assortment of Unusual Arts and Crafts that my daughter and myself have created in the past week. Some finished and some in the middle of completion and others just at the beginning of their creation.

First off, I will grace this post page with my most recent painting in progress ( just at the beginning )for my submission for "Paint Party Friday".The image I had visualized early in the week was of a complete and so perfect in every detail winter scene but it takes time for someone like me who isn't a painter to transform a blank canvas into a visual retreat and I have done very little of this medium to feel comfortable and knowledgeable in applying the little tricks to recreating the picture I had vividly seen in my mind so unfortunately it has taken me a week to get this far. But like the song playing...."I have no fear " in trying to recreate my dream in an foreign medium.... eventually I'll climatize to it....I hope, I guess.....definitely will !!

...So Sorry for the delay, I have every intention to finish the landscape of my dreams , so here it is.

Recently I read a quote that I must keep forever in my heart ; it pretty much tells you the secret ingredients in achieving one's goal.

"If your mind can perceive it,
And your heart can believe it,
Then your hands can achieve it."

Thank you Victorian Rose Palette for those lovely words of wisdom.

Now with those powerful words in mind I'm sure I will reach my goal; may not be a Michelangelo but a whimsical naive painting by little old me I can most definitely guarantee will transpire in the coming weeks...haha! These things take time.....

And now for the other arts......

Sea Captain's Keeper ~ Eternal Memory a locket to keep notes, reminders of the day or week , pet pics or lover's pics whatever you like

My daughter M designed this heart when inspired by some roughly cut hearts she had seen in my stained glass stash. It is quite unique in that it is a locket which always stays open (on one side) with the suede black cording of the pendant keeping whatever note or photograph snugly enclosed within the two glasses.

You'll have to excuse my pictures and writing, I have been detained on some important matters today so running behind on stuff. I will post better photographs and more art work tomorrow.

Quite impressed by M's soldering and design abilities she has demonstrated in the past week. It was too late to take proper photographs of her locket (External Memory...haha ) Sea Captain's Keeper and her beautiful fairy creature she created in stained glass ; will post tomorrow, better in the natural light.

And let me introduce you to Her Royal Highness Princess Maxine Payne..A Black Widow Spider..MAXIMUM PAIN!!!.....literally...HAHA! Beware of Maxine she doesn't keep her suitors very long:(

When I was sculpting her just about everything went wrong , ultimately breaking one of her lovely Victorian glass eyes; luckily I had more. She was a Royal Pain to construct...Thanks M for giving me her name, next time think of a nicer name ...haha!

This is going to be Maxine's new home...I will be sculpting her a lovely web which I will adhere to the
back of this Hand Painted Victorian Matt with romantic violets.

Not sure where Maxine wants to sit but once her spidery bed is made I'm sure she'll know.

Until next Paint Party Friday......Have no fear :) Annabelle

Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders from Mars and Other Oddities ~ Inspiration Found in Glass and Wire

2011-03-19T12:14:00.000-04:00

Where are the Spiders ???

I have been busy soldering and doing some stained glass in the past week. As some of you may already know I have an infinite affection for Spiders and Their Webs. I intend to capture their lovely homes in my garden or else where with the coming of Spring; by then hopefully I wouldn't botch up the picture and know how to take a good one. Of course with the warmer weather there are other ventures that I am particularly anticipating on doing such as taking more pictures of the Giant Wild Carrot growing haphazardly on a country roadside, Queen Ann's Lace, Yarrow, Roses, Rock Walls and Steps, Moss, Fungus , Birds , and but of course not forgetting to go fossil hunting and using my new toy, the metal detector the family bought me, actually two of them so I will have some company along side me to keep me sane....haha! With this basket of scrumptious goodies I'm sure to have plenty of elements for future art endeavours. So I have much to keep me occupied and I better gather up some books from the library and online book stores for me to study.

Well here they are........ but there're not from Mars although they could very well be from looking at their appearance......that's if there is life on Mars...haha!

Daddy Long Legs or War of the Worlds...M named him that....can you guess why?

Vintage Crystal Spider Wire and Solder Art

A Pen/Pencil Holder with Spider Soldered on it's edge

Another wire soldered Spider....These are great on door screens or window screens as well as so many other places.

Then I got this vision of a web hanging on the edge of an old antique portrait frame ....what would it be like....well this is it! I adore how it turned out...I have another antique frame that I'm working on in a much larger size and it has the most lovely painted Victorian Violets....can't wait to finish it.

Then there was this little bottle looking to have something adorning it...well Spring brought the nest back out and a little blue feather from Bandit our Love bird.

Love how tiny the feather is.

I guess you can tell I'm thinking of Spring and summer weather...yup Damsel Flies, Dragonflies Sun-catchers, all in green..... should have posted them for Saint Patty' s Day.

This Dragonfly lost it's head , or should I say I did. I used an antique Victorian cut metal button, even has the back for hanging.

And this is a Victorian Heart Flower...a heart within a flower Sun-catcher sculpted the solder as well in this one piece.

For some of you visitors this is a pendant I made a few weeks back.I hope to get the "Catch the Fallin Star" done soon.

This is M's most recent Dream Catcher...two Dream Catchers in one....Sure to catch all the good dreams for sure!

This one is very special, she used a crystallized fossil we found on our fossil treks last summer for the centre of the circular Dream Catcher and then she created another dream catcher inside the antique key. It is magical and so very whimsical. She even dyed the feathers and string to match the key and ring colors....somewhat like an old relic. I will be posting all of this art work on my Etsy shop soon.

Until next time Happy Creating in all Art Forms.

PAINT PARTY FRIDAY ~ CATCH A FALLIN STAR

2011-03-18T09:58:00.003-04:00

Thanks Eva and Kristin for hosting Paint Friday Party!
Just what I needed to get moving on my painting ...Thanks a bunch and you too Victoria...

Click on the paint party friday logo on my side bar to visit all the participating artists, your sure to be inspired !

Okay, I wanted to join the Paint Friday Party because I have been working on some ideas unfortunately I have had some prior commitments to attend to this past week, errands of sorts and some art projects that I had in the mist of completing so alas I didn't get the chance to work on finishing my painting. The painting I'm talking about is of a beautiful serene moon on a winter's evening that I had seen driving home from the hospital one night; It was magical and I hope to capture it's essence on canvas, this one will be for a future Paint Friday Party.

So for now I will share with you this old painting I did years ago which I incorporated into my digital design. I painted the moon and stars and the rest was digitally collaged. Recently I had this image printed in various sizes for prints and pendants to sell in my etsy shop.

I have some sketches waiting to be painted and as usual some of them will be incorporate into my digital work.

I guess my work is naive, whimsical and fairytale like, the best I can paint I'm afraid but I hope through this alliance of painters to become better in time. Another idea I have is to also work with my paintings and use them in combinations with my photographic images and there again another area I want to excel in and better myself.

I hope you like what you see and that I have inspired you as well.

Charlotte's Web ~ A new soldered bottle for a new shop

2011-03-10T15:36:00.000-05:00

Quite often I pick up a certain book,an old dear friend of mine in spirit you might say and slowly commence to turn the pages one by one; each a revelation of life's simply beauty found in friendship and love.

He is a friend who sheds light on what is truly important in life,having family and friends and sharing one's earthly space with God's creatures great and small.He patiently explains what the important things in life are worthy of concern to us; that of compassion,loyalty and unconditional love are part of the woven fabric, the secret to a lifetime friendship cemented even in death.

Learning to let go and accepting loss isn't an easy thing to do but remembrance is our fortitude and solace.

And even growing old never meant to stop believing in the magic for what would life be if there wasn't any of that fairy dust ?

Charlotte's Web is a perfect whimsical story that brings magic to one's life upon their opening it's pages. It is a children's story that is meant for young and old alike for it transcends time and age. It is a Treasure Book and keeper of my dreams.

I suppose E.B. WHITE is my favourite author after all!

In remembrance to Charlotte's Web I envisioned a soldered bottle , etched with gorgeous victorian flowers with Charlotte's web adorning it. Of course a crystal grey silvery spider, the heroine of the story , climbing it's neck, much like Garth Williams' gorgeous drawing in the book.

This is a bottle which was long over due. I had always carried the idea in mind but never brought it to life until now.

I adore spider's webs but I must say I adore Charlotte's Web the story even more, makes it that much more Magical!

A sparkly web in silvery light with dew drops of crystal and a dangling thread of glittering drops for Charlotte to climb to her lovely home.

Charlotte is an old spider I made sometime ago but I refurbished her by giving her a new set of spidery legs.

Weaved within the filigree silver web I placed antique crystal beads for dew drops. These are just magical in the light.

And keeping with the theme "for beauty and purpose" I have left the silver stopper in the bottle unsoldered to place whatever secret notes one might like to place within Charlotte's enchanted glass home.I just might add a few of my own before Charlotte finds a new home.

P.S. If you haven't read the book, hard to believe although possible for many reasons, I strongly suggest you pick up a copy next chance you get at your nearest library or store….worth every penny, I promise !!!!

Oh and I have opened up an Etsy shop today,on my birthday "Hush Sweet Charlotte" , a combination name after the book and the gothic movie "Hush Hush Sweet Charlotte"; both loved stories. Charlotte's Web Soldered Bottle will be the first Item I will be listing there.

This shop will be my Magical Fairytale shop and I will keep Angelifioriblu "Tansy" for Digital Designs and eventually add photography when I get good enough..so many ideas not good enough yet...though I hope to be someday.....hehe!

Fairy Dust Bottle

2011-03-05T20:35:00.003-05:00

The Story of the Cottingley Fairies is one story that most of us who adore Fairies already know of and for those of you who don't know the story, I'm sure whether you are a believer of Fairies or an aficionado of photography you'll be inclined to read a bit about the journey of these two young English girls who lived in Cottingley, England during the early part of the 1900's .

Frances Griffiths and Elsie Wright loved Fairies , playing in the garden and just being typical little girls, in hindsight, not so average after all for they became world renown for their illusionary images of Fairies they had taken with their camera, confounding photographers and paranormal investigators around the globe.

Their pictures created a stir in Britain, causing many to prove their photographs to be ingenue and manipulated;to think they didn't even have photoshop then! Just as many wanted to disprove the pictures , many others wanted to believe including Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, author of the Sherlock Holmes Detective Mysteries.

Being an adamant believer of the Spirit world, he was definitely convinced the pictures were truly not fakes and eventually went on to publish "The Coming of the Fairies" in 1922.

Interest in this curious tale continues to this day, why?

Because we all love to believe in the FAIRIES!!!!

And so this brings me to this Art Bottle I just completed…..

Recently I purchased a light crystal with a Fairy riding a dragonfly for my daughter M.

It's utterly magical in its composition and prismatic light and I do believe it is probably an image of Arthur Rackham . Anyway, you know how it goes, our minds subconsciously retain information, visual and auditory in which at a later date presents it self to you like a revelation totally new but somehow at that moment upon questioning the inspiration you begin to recall past events that ultimately brought you to this point of creativity.

I suppose this bottle is one of those creations, only realizing now after it's evolution that somehow I was inspired by the crystal ;I'm glad I was!

Fairy Dust Bottle

AliStar the Dragonfly Guardian of the Fairies' Dust

The perfume bottle is a purchase of mine I bought about a month ago . I adore the way the glass reflects iridescent colors. It still retains the lid, although not so sure it belongs to it but it fits.

I had some of this very very old gold architectural moulding that I had stashed away for special projects and have only used it for the second time so far , so happily I still have more to play with for future art projects.

I filled the bottle with ultra fine sea sand and added a sprinkling of German silver glass glitter shards and tiny whimsical gold stars.

I wanted to create a bottle not only for beauty but for a purpose, so I didn't solder the lid, besides it is too beautiful to cover up. Whether a keeper of dreams , notes of love, tokens of affection, tiny treasures, AliStar the dragonfly will be their keeper and watch over them in this whimsical vintage perfume bottle.I will be posting it on Etsy soon.

p.s. Kiki I just had to photograph my amethyst crystals with this Fairy Dust Bottle, it just seemed appropriate and so very whimsical. After seeing your pictures I was inspired but your photographs and crystals are way better! Thanks!

Having Fun with Art

2011-03-03T19:44:00.001-05:00

These Little Fellas were having quite a time in the snow storm the other day and I was having fun as well .........................

...in creating this whimsical little birdie...........her name is Daisy.

Made from Art Glass ..embossed glass with a daisy pattern iridescent in colour.
I decoupaged one side with lace.The legs were done on a whim...I know the knees are backwards on birdies. I was trying to make her some booties....I think they turned out okay.
Daisy has a crystal for an eye and I gave her a tiny heart to hold on to with her beak.

Your Weather: Sam Loves the cold - The Weather Network

2011-03-02T14:10:00.000-05:00

Your Weather: Sam Loves the cold - The Weather Network

Posted by Michael Robert of Kanata Ontario

THIS FELLOW IS JUST PRECIOUS!!! Makes me feel bad that I haven't brought my Grace out for a walk today.

I'll have to nag one of the kids to give her a little outing.

As you can see Sam certainly loves the snow and he is one lucky puppy to have a good owner and friend.

Pastoral Bottles A Lovely Plume A TinFlower and An Old Forgotten Relic

2011-02-28T13:20:00.003-05:00

Well I have been quite busy in the last few weeks. I intend on accomplishing much more as long as my health allows me. After a lengthy downward spiral from last Fall I have every intention to keep positive and create....makes me sane and happy.Too much Melodrama in ones life isn't good for one's health , there must be some balance and that entails having positive energy surround us in whatever form it takes.
Art in all it's forms is my energy.

So whatever makes one happy I say go for it!

A Little Teddy Bear Love; he is my keeper of sorts. If you look closely he is wearing a crystal fossil pendent I discovered last summer. It will eventually adorn a bottle or possibly something else, I never know until the time comes. Here are the latest pieces I have completed. The Vintage TinFlower Pastoral Bottle and the Vintage Ostrich Feather Pastoral Bottle.Both bottles are very old , especially so for the TinFlower one which is an old perfume bottle in crackle amber glass. I luv using old pieces of stuff in my work because I always try to recreate something that one might think it old. In these art pieces I think I have accomplished the Vintage Old look I was working to perfect.

"Blowin in the Wind" Pastoral Vintage Bottle

A caged heart filled with clear crystals, a swirling poesy branch and an amber jewel makes this bottle very whimsical.

" The Lovely Plume " Pastoral Bottle with Vintage Black Ostrich Feather

I made this little bottle with a Vintage Black Ostrich Feather and added a little nest made of copper wire .

This is a pendant with a beautiful embroidery of Forget-Me-Nots . I forgot to take a picture of the back which also shows the flower, almost as nice. I added a few crystals to the Brooch ( could be turned into one but I have done it as a pendant for now ) . I will probably make some Brooches later on as well.

So there you are some of my Treasures I've done ....I will soon be adding these to my shop on Etsy .

Until next time Sweet Pastoral Dreams