Link as Avatar the Last Airbender. What a cat!
—Cheri
Monthly Archives: September 2011
Daily Squiggle
I used a complementary color scheme of red and green. I used the lighter tones of pink and light green and it makes for a nice contrast. The drawing uses only color pencils, not markers this time.
This little girl squiggle has so much energy and her clothes flap in the breeze of her twirling rope.
-Lynne
Everest or Bust! What a Cat!
Cats don’t need sherpas to climb! What a cat!
—Cheri
Bizarre Finds — Garter Hooks
Cheri: Sometimes it can be very difficult for me to pick out the most bizarre item that I picked up at a garage sale. I don’t automatically pick up an item thinking, “this is bizarre”. I am actually thinking about what I can do with what I picked up. It may be what I may feel that I can make from the item, or maybe even what I think someone else can make from it. And then again, I pick up some items because I just think they are really cool and I want to have that item. I like to think that it adds to the cohesiveness of what I collect. That being said, my bizarre item for this week is a bunch of garter hooks. When I first saw the bundle of hooks, I was shocked. For one thing they looked brand new, and for another there were so many of them. I have a tendency to buy items that I can find a lot of. This way I have several to work with if I should choose to and I can make a few different items. When I picked them up an idea flashed in my brain, these would make awesome curtain hooks for a bedroom. I could not get the image out of my head, so, I bought them. Will I use them in my bedroom as curtain hooks for some slinky fabric curtains? Maybe, maybe not. You just never know.
*Please note: Unable to locate the hooks as I have placed them in a place “I will remember”, unfortunately, I have not “remembered“ yet. Trust me, they really are cool.
Parking Violation—What a Cat!
Ma’am, that is a no parking zone! What a cat!
—Cheri
Notes from the Farm on the Prairie
Lynne: Have you ever watched Little House on the Prairie and wondered what it was like to be Laura Ingalls running through the tall prairie grass? Well, the farm has an area of prairie grass and at this time of year it is turning the most fantastic shades of purple and gold.
I cannot describe properly the look and feel of the prairie. The wind moves in waves over the grass and the smell is like hay but less dry and the feel is people-less. Just me and the wind, the grass and the sky. I have tried to get the colors and the feel captured in these photos, but at every angle the light is different. I’ve played with Photoshop to give an approximate vision of what I see with bare eyes, but of course it is not the same. We need more than sight to see something properly.
I wondered about the prevalence and history of prairie in this area and came across this book on google, The History of Cass County, Volume 1, edited by Jehu Powell. There are numerous references made about prairies and prairie fires in Cass County. Isn’t it a marvel that I can yearn for the days of vast plains and yet rejoice at the ability to read and search a rare book with ease.
Jehu Powell relates the troubles the pioneers had with prairie fires and I suspect that every acre of grass turned into farmland made them feel safer. I cannot imagine the tremendous heat and roar of a prairie fire, but the grass needs fire to reseed itself and to keep thickets and trees from taking over. One third of the prairie here at the farm is set on fire every year. Careful attention is paid to weather conditions, proper fire breaks and there are firefighters on standby.
Mackie, my black labrador, loves the prairie grass. He bounds up and down through it like a deer. You can just see the top of his head and his ears flapping for a split second and down he goes again. His tongue hangs out and he has what looks like a huge grin on his face. Sometimes, watching him, I wish that I were young enough to run with him. I remember running through pastures barefoot and wondering why running meant fewer cuts on your feet than walking. However, I am satisfied watching him from the Mule and dreaming of past times.
Daily Squiggle
I did this squiggle of the elephant using only red, blue and yellow color pencils. This was before I used black to bring out some depth and I can see how that would help. I do like the way though that not all of the color is blended. This does add some depth and lots of texture.
The mouse and the butterfly are a combination of marker and pencil. They are there because the elephant was lonely.
Notes from the Farm on Goldenrod
Lynne: This afternoon at the farm, I looked to the north at the fields of wild grasses and was surprised by a mass of yellow. The goldenrod is in bloom. When goldenrod blooms all the insects know that frost is not far behind and all the bees and butterflies and insects can be found with their snouts buried in the pollen.
Since all those creatures were busy with the goldenrod, I thought it would be a good time to get some of those interesting closeup photographs of tiny creatures. I rode out in the Mule (machine type Kawasaki not 4 legged type animal) and stopped near the edge and put my finger to the shutter release. There were so many insects on the goldenrod that I wanted a picture of them all, but these two pictures with the bees show the rich heavy pollen and the bees’ determination to gather it even with a nosey photographer and her camera too close for comfort.
I sneezed for a while afterwards and I blamed the goldenrod, but I found this website, The Great Plains Nature Center, and learned a great deal of information about the flora and fauana of prairies. Goldenrod is not the culprit of fall allergies. Its pollen is thick and sticky to attach itself to the insects that pollinate it. Ragweed is the culprit because it pollinates with the wind by releasing millions of grains of pollen into the air and into your nose. Ragweed is green and fades into the late summer foilage, but goldenrod stands proud and yellow. Guess who gets the blame for allergies.
Next time you see a field of blooming goldenrod, take the time to thank the land owner who is willing to allow weeds to grow. Weeds are only plants that humans have not found a way to make money from, but to the insects and birds those same weeds are their super Walmart and discount shopping mall all rolled into one.
Daily Squiggle
This is an experiment in the uses of blue and yellow to make green. I used yellow as the first layer as I have found that yellow under another color shows more than yellow over a color. I then used a light blue to make the lightest green. I used a dark green and a dark blue for the shadows and then added some black in the darkest places. I added the red tongue as a complement accent to the green.
-Lynne
Notes From the Farm on Hummingbirds
Hummingbirds seem like such sweet birds. After all, they live on sweet nectar and sugar water, but…they are vicious little buzzers screeching and shoving each other with sweetness only on their beaks and never in their hearts.
The farm is a great place to watch hummers. I have counted as many as 75 of them at a time among the flowers and feeders. The air is loud with the hum of their wings and their shrieks of fury as one of them occupies the space another wishes were his. There is little peace where hummers gather, but then peaceful is not nearly as amusing.
the crafty sisters 