The Time of Trilliums

The Time of Trilliums has come and nearly gone, with the last few blooms shining deep in the shadows of the forest.

Soon the only ones that will remain are the two I have embroidered in glass beads. The beads are sewn onto a dark wool fabric I dyed in a tea and vinegar solution.

-Bree

Flowers for Spring and An Alphabet Ring

Trillium

The age-old cycle of Spring has come and the world feels new again.

Our Pear Tree

Flowering Quince (a local favorite of hummingbirds)



How fitting it is, then, that I find myself practicing an art form that is new to me, yet very old. Sewing tiny glass beads onto leather or wool in my own designs.

A brief historical note: the glass beads are considered modern, but the art itself is ancient. Before they had glass beads, the people of North America used dyed porcupine quills and sometimes shells sewn onto leather. So far I have made a small bag, flowers, feathers, and medallions.

Today I can begin to share a project I have been working on for some time . . . an alphabet book!

Each watercolor is 5" x 7"

This seemed a natural progression after making my own font several years ago. There is still much to be done, but I can promise there will be Imps and Ogres, Rhymes and Stories, Adventure and Fun, and a Surprise or Two!

-Bree

The Late Bloomers

In my heart I keep a place for the Late Bloomers. When everything else outside (and in) has come and gone, they are there to cheer us all. The blooms above are from the yucca near my front step . . .
. . . the orchid cactus in my home . . .
. . . hops in my garden . . .

. . . orchid in my studio . . .

-Bree

Spring House for an Imp

Tired of Winter and living in a Person's house just to be warm, the industrious imp gathered House-Building Materials. With them she fashioned a lovely home, complete with mossy roof, rolled spring-leaf walls, a window to let in light during summer's long days, a door at which to greet welcome guests, and plenty of soft sheep's-wool for a yard. The daffodils simply could not help themselves and reached through the woolen yard to cheer things up.

-Bree

The Blossoming Pear Tree

The pear tree is blossoming . . . the tulips are tuliping . . . the azaleas flowering . . . as is the apple tree . . . with the cherry tree to follow . . .

-Bree

The Dancing Rose Bush

Rose Bush watercolor/graphite on paper 11"x14"

There is a rose bush in my garden. If you walk onto my porch, through my house, out the back door, past the fire pit, and beyond the wild garden, you will find it next to the wood shed. It dances when it blossoms, its huge thorny stems bobbing and weaving in the air, the heavy fragrant blooms dipping and leaping. Such a thing simply must have (at least) rhymes written about it, perhaps even poems and music.

Now see a glimpse of my Dancing Rose Bush painting as it is partially completed, with plate palettes and tubes of paint strewn about . . .

-Bree

To remind us of summer . . . as we lie deep in the fog and rain of a northwest winter . . . while others are knee-deep or more in snow . . . here is a faery house I made this past June in a large leaf maple tree that lives in a horse pasture . . . a roof of maple leaf, siding of lichen, floor of snapped twig . . . with a brilliant buttercup in mossy hair . . . lush and fragrant are my dreams in winter.