Of Trees and Bees and Art Journaling...

Hello my faithful art friends!  I'm so sorry I haven't been able to post or get around to all your blogs like I would normally do.  Life just got a little out of hand for me...

I really stretched myself physically with the tree project and have been suffering for it.  It is suffering for a good cause tho!  I was blessed with four strong boys on Monday who came to help finish the job of the privacy screen.  I have temporarily re potted the three Douglas fir trees, the leiland cypress and my Granny Smith apple tree to be planted at the end of this month after I harvest the 14 little apples on it.  I planted the blue spruce to the right of my studio window and can't wait for it to grow up enough to see it whilst I art.

I have been spreading the left over soil from the job on my front lawn to fill in all the holes and low spots.  I will sprinkle some seed and weed control and just wait to see what happens.  It's the best I am able to do on my own.

I have not had time to art much so I don't have any photos of finished art to share.  Just a shot of my journal spread I started yesterday and the trees for the privacy screen...

 Just background layers in my art journal...

 My worker bees...

Finished privacy screen...

This privacy screen was necessary for my sanity due to the fact that the owner of the house next door allowed a family of five to move into a tent in her backyard.  The guy walks around with no shirt and a huge butt crack hanging out and they spend allot of their time disciplining the kids with a belt.  I just needed some relief from the crazy loud working class element there.  They have quieted down a bit now that the dad is back to work and school has started.  I (and the neighborhood) can't wait until they move into a place of their own!!!  Yikes!  What a summer this has been!

I've been spending as much time away from home as I have been able to.  My Dad's condition is progressing, of course, so I'm spending more time there with Mom and Dad.  I can't wait to settle into fall and take time exploring the countryside with fall color.  My art studio is also screaming for my attention.  "Soon!", I shout back...

Forever in art,

Jessi

 

Forest Murmurings...

Hellooo from my studiooo...!  I hope this post finds you all doing well and arting to your hearts content.  

This is the latest painting I've done -

Forest Faerie

Forest Murmurings

Who softly treads these forest floors

And casts her charms to gentle wind,

Cause rustle of the turning leaves

When stretching velvet mossy wing,

By deadwood tree in quiet grove

A single bird begins to sing,

Of faerie tale by evening's light,

The moon's full glow in silver bring,

Enchanting visions fade to mist...

The forest sighs in echos ring.

                               -Jessica Watson

The painting is mixed media on 12 x 16 canvas in mostly acrylic. I built the layers with decorative papers, antique book pages and vintage maps. Below her I've included the poem I wrote that inspired this work... 

I've been spending allot of time out of doors and wanted to share a bit of my art it inspired.  I hope you've enjoyed the little bit of fantasy I've brought to this blog post.
 
Additionally this post is dedicated to all the huge old trees that gave their lives up this week at the whim of misguided townsfolk and changed our beautiful vistas forever...from glorious green to desolate bleakness.
 
In response to such nonsense,  I've just purchased 9 new trees and will be transplanting 5 smaller ones ready for life in the solid earth.  My mom also gave me a tiny giant redwood volunteer from the huge one in her yard.  It will need another season of life in a pot and in the spring it will be ready to soar!  How's that for a one, two punch?!

Forever in art,
Jessi

Goodbye Summer of Color

Hello lovely blog friends!  This year we have had so many dragonflies in the garden - I love watching them hover and flit about.  I have also been tickled to see little bright green tree frogs in my hydrangeas! They always disappear when I go to get my camera though!  So with that inspiration I put together one last girlie in an attempt at compiling a folder for the color of summer.  I have to say I am pooped so this is my last contribution -  a redo of green week so I will have a green girlie for my collection...

 

Summer Days

The iridescence on the dragonfly does not show well but is pretty in person.  I have not added the lettering yet but I wanted to share her with you first.

Thank you to all my new blog friends and followers who I've met through Summer of Color and Willowing (see sidebar).  And of course, thanks to Kristin of Twinkle, Twinkle who developed and presented this gorgeous challenge for the summer!

Oh, the weather is dryer, the sun is out and I can feel the strength coming back to my muscles!  It's out to the garden for me!  I hope I am feeling more myself soon and can present a blog post that's a little more creative and uplifting next time!  Thank you all for hanging in here with me!!!

Forever in Art,

Jessi xox[

Tangerine Dreams - Summer of Color

It's our last color week of Summer of Color and that color is orange!  Not an easy color for me.  The only way I have ever been able to work with orange is to marry it with pink and maybe a little aqua and yellow. So I've done my girlie in hot pink to balance out the orange.

Tangerine Dreams



This has been a colorful journey and I'm glad I've been able to stick with it in it's entirety.  I've decided to do another girlie for green week even though I had done a different project for that week and I still need to do a brown girlie for the brown week I missed with my Dad's illness.

My plans are to make a Summer of Color art portfolio with all my girls in them.  These new girlies and the portfolio will be revealed within the next three weeks.  Kristin at Twinkle, Twinkle will be instructing us on how we are to present our projects.  Oh, and have I mentioned how fabulous she is?

I hope you are all enjoying the summer.  We've finally got our hot weather and some sun! Yay!  A couple of false starts but I'm hoping it's here for a good long stay.

You know what I like to say - keep the pens, pencils, crayons and paints flying and have a wonderfully artful week!

Forever in art,

Jessi xox