I'm not sure where last week went, but I finally feel like a human being now. It took a whole week of napping and catching up on household chores, along with business matters that needed attention. I also got to spend some time with the grandkids with a few visits.
Well, while gone during my last trip away, the weeds did grow. No hail, but more rain and the growing conditions were right for flowers and weeds alike.
The first Photos show some of what my gardens still look like even after being home for a while. Too many gardens to get it all done. I just do a little each day, and have discovered some good size patches of buried plants and flowers.
The great thing about taking photos is that I can shoot the flowers and ignore most of the weeds. I did leave the weedy Oxalis that was in bloom with these Impatiens flowers- some weeds can be pretty.
Here are a few more of my flowers taken with the blue sky as the background. The plumbago on the left are really a sky blue color, and just about blend in.
I did even get some painting done one great day last week- a few larger pieces of various shades of my favorite blue, pink, green combo. I even tried another full yard sunprint (on left), but it didn't work as well as the last one. I guess I didn't keep things wet enough, and then the wind picked up- not good for printing when things decide to leave the fabric before it is dry. I will find a use for it sometime. The smaller vertically striped piece is what it looks like- a piece of a blouse that I cut out, but never stitched together- now it's usable stash! There was another yard still drying on the paint table when this was taken- just more colors. And Yes, that is a piece of black in the weird shape- I'm working on a piece to be only black and white with grays. It is a chunk of an old linen-look table cloth- it was gray, now black.
As you can see in the above photo, the hail smashed planters are now blooming nicely. Very handy to the painting area- I always plant things to use for sunprints so they're easy to grab. The flowers print best when fresh, so having them grow right near is perfect. The Phlox in the nearby garden are perfect for using now, too.
My cherry tomatoes are finally ripening in the planter on my deck. I didn't put in much garden this year, just some yellow and orange watermelons, squash, cucumbers, and 2 other tomato plants. Too much time at the greenhouses at planting time.
This was my office for today, I am finally learning my new laptop. (I had to splurge on the color- coordinates great with my $2 tablecloth) It is great to be able to work on the deck. This place is "wired" thanks to my geek sons, so I can go almost anywhere. I may need to move one of the routers if I want to use the web from the backyard, but this is great. I had 3 lazy cats draped in various places, sleeping around me. I will have to work on those weeds in the flower beds that I can see from here, though.
I can't quite see all of this view from my deck, but most of it- this photo was taken during a walk through the fields above our trailer. There is a series of quilts in these views of the mountains somewhere.
I am a former textile artist and new pattern designer with a degree in horticulture, wishing to share my love of nature, flowers and gardens with everyone through my photos, sunprinted fabrics, and now pattern designs. Chronic Lyme Disease has caused major changes to the direction my life. I have to limit the amount of time spent digging in my gardens, and quilting has become more difficult. I discovered pattern design as a way to get art back into my life. I now use my gardens and photos to inspire designs that can be used on fabrics and print on demand items.
WoW, what beautiful pictures. I love pictures of scenery.