The Muse Took a Turn

 I was happily carving away on my speedy cut stamps making all manner of pods and seeds for printing on tea bags and handmade paper with the hopes it could become a book.  I was going to call it Seeds, Pods and Papavers. Actually I did call it that. It was almost to completetion when the muse ran through the studio giggling and laughing with excitement.  She excitedly showed me how to use the printer to put my photographs on my very own handmade paper as previously decribed in the last blog. Well, she totally twitterpaited me. See what more came of it:

The wood round on handmade paper is unbelievable to the touch.

What will become of these I have no idea,

but what I do know is... the Muse...

she totally bumped me off my carved stamp track.

Now, Seeds, Pods and Papavers, poor thing, waits for final approval.

It seems to need a little something more.

I loved carving the stamps, and printing them on the tea bags giving me that

luscious brown I love - especially as autumn draws near.

I was pleased that adding Golden Gel Medium over the back

didn't make it sticky like Modge Podge would have.

But there's just something about the light colored

 handmade paper printed sheets inside

that makes me pause.

And there's something about the back too

that needs a little more - hummm... but what?

And where is the Muse?

She's not helping at all!

She is off  printing more of my photographs on more handmade paper. 

This time the paper has cattail fluff in it. (Gorgeous, even if I do say so myself!) 

I have added some more tea bag pieces to the white areas on the back and cover since these pictures... mostly I am still waiting for the muse to return.

She will return, right?

If I am patient, right?

Handmade paper meets photographs

I got brave. I put a tiny amount of rubber cement on the edges of my handmade paper and placed them onto  a sheet of card stock. Then with hands folded in prayer ran the whole works through the printer. It worked!!! Soon pages of my photographs on HANDMADE PAPER were forming up on my work table.

I could hardly contain myself. I couldn't stop there! I had to create a book.

It is due in part to Velma Bolyard of Wake Robin blog.

She came out from New York to give a lecture

and workshop for the Puget Sound Books Artists in Tacoma. 

I so clearly remember the excitement with which she shared her joy

at being able to make every aspect of her books -

the dying, the paper making, the shifu spinning, the weaving, the binding.

She shared her knowledge and joy with others and they in turn shared later

all the beautiful papers and projects they had

made in and as a result of the workshop. 

May the ripple continue to travel outward.

Seaweed Messages

Mother Nature left me a message on the beach. Help me figure it out.

I think I get the happy note,

but what do you think the rest means?

Maybe it's some sort of ancient calligraphy?

To think she did this without any hands...simply by pushing water around.

Isn't Mother Nature amazing!

Hearts For Me!

I see hearts

in places where it seems impossible.

There's hardly anything there.

It usually starts with scruffy ones...

or ones that require you to use your imagination.

Some of the hearts have had a rough time.

Poor little heart - someone took a bite out of you!

Once you start noticing ... hearts start popping up right out of the sand.

Little hearts, big hearts, sometimes the hearts are made of wood.

I strongly believe they are messages from Mother Nature 

left here and there for me to find.

She speaks to us in such interesting ways.

Next blog I will share what she wrote to me on her sand tablet.

Sand between my toes

“I have always loved the beach. The smell of the salty water, the wind in my face, the gentle roar of the waves all combine to create a sense of peace and calm.”
                                                                                                                                              --Anonymous

 When shared with a kindred spirit... who doesn't seem to mind me

stopping to photograph every

pile of sticks and stones or heap of bones.

But do you find it as peculiar as I do to see a bird shadow

 reflected off the bird bones?

 It is almost as strange as the ocean spelling out the number 4.

Maybe I should go buy a lottery ticket? 

Gifts for the Mowing Goddess

After a very, very long week without, the goddess was once again astride her mowing machine. She wasted no time in restoring order. It was hard to imagine that in such a short time how the edges could become blurred and the wildness take over. Some noticed her absence and had gifts for her to find as they knew it would be a long and challenging task.

She discovered the first gift as she raked the mole hill down. (No longer can she 'afford' to just race over them in the interest of time.) The delicate pattern caught her eye, made her heart sing. A gift from the earth!

The second gift was from the sky. So delicate and fine, sitting on top of the greenery. The breeze moving each little wisp in unison. Is it an owl feather?  See the delicate coloration and banding. If not an owl, what else could it be?

The last gift was from the maple tree who was obviously grateful the goddess was reducing the visual competition. Those nasty weeds had grown so tall even she, mature maple, looked smaller by comparison. It was obvious at first glance this was no ordinary robins nest that had been laid at maple's feet so gently. 

The cup stood above the straw making it very easy to see the details on the edge. Looks braided to me. And one could not miss the hole in the bottom.

I do know it is Native American tradition to put a hole in the basket or pot when the maker has died. This lead me to believe that perhaps there was more to this gifting than first thought.  Humm... pottery shard, feather of an owl (symbol of death), and weaver of clay and straw. Could this be a message concerning someone I know? It is best to be aware. And yet, each gift a lovely thing to behold. So the mowing goddess is grateful because she is and probably always will be a "collector." 

What is red and round and runs down your arm?

Sweet and juicy pie cherries!

2 cups makes a cherry cobbler.

Normally the pie cherries ripen around the 4th of July.

We've waited and waited...

to see this classic cherry image.

I was going to take a picture of the baked cherry cobbler, but

we got so excited we sat right down and ate it.