More backyard...

This is an Asiatic Dayflower, according to my Wildflowers of North America field guide. It is one of the very few really blue flowers - not a shade of violet, but blue. These dayflowers are rather small, about an inch in width and each flower only last for a day.

I have several small patches of these around my yard. They may be weeds, but how can you call them weeds when they have this truly blue flower.

This drawing is in my sketchbook and was done with prismacolor colored pencils.

look in your own backyard

I spotted this brush footed butterfly in a backyard flowerbeds this morning. I was fortunate to get a quick photo before it fluttered off. I was able to identify it using the Butterflies and Moths of North America website. I think it's a Pearl Crescent, but I could be wrong. Lots of butterflies look similar.

Some things I noticed: this insect has black and white striped antenna with orange-red tips; the body was actually furry looking and this is not a large insect, about 3/4 to 1 inch long in the body with maybe a 1 1/2 or 2 inch wingspan.

This was a quick piece in colored pencil.

Artists just see things differently?

Do you think that artist just see things differently? I've often thought so. I know I can remember the color of something much better than my husband, or even most of my friends, even to the point of being able to match the color while shopping.

A study done by two Norwegian professors suggest that in fact, artists do see the world differently. We look at all of the details.

Remembering Molly

Molly passed on early this morning. She was the happiest dog I've ever known. She had been with us about 6 years.

She had been abandon at a gas station close to my house. She barely weighed 50 lbs and she was not a small dog. I brought her home and with some food and love, she regained her health. She loved to run. She would rather run than eat. She chased squirrels and was a better mole catcher than the cats. If you were going for a walk or run, Molly went with you. She knew a few commands - she could sit and give you five. She loved the water too. I'm not sure what breed she was, but probably had some Chow or Newfoundland in her.

I don't know exactly how old she was, but probably around 10 or 12. I'm glad we were able to give her a good home for some of her life.

Be happy and run free Molly.

Mixed Media

This is a mixed media piece that I have finished (I think!). It is the windows at 28 Rue St-Jacques, Paris. I love the wrought iron at the windows.

This is mostly a pen and ink type of piece, but I added some colored pencil highlights.

I want to branch out from doing just colored pencil works. I used to do oils and acrylics, so there will be more mixed media pieces.

I'm thinking of doing more window pieces from other cities in the world.

Independence Showcase

I am happy to report that "Past Prime" has been accepted into an online show, the Independence Showcase.

The showcase is being put together by Tony Moffitt. He is inviting over 100 gallery owners from around the world to view the showcase. If gallery owner sees something that interest them, the owner will contact the artist directly.

A round of applause goes to Mr. Moffitt for helping artists in this downturn in the economy.

"Past Prime" can be seen in my previous blog post.

Cat-a-tonic

We are "cat-a-tonic" these days. My husband's cousin died in April and left several cats without a home. We have taken Mickey, shown here and Bronson.

Mickey may not have been Mike's cat, but he was at the house, hungry and had been in a couple of fights. He is such an elegant boy - long legged and very Siamese like. He may be an Oriental or something along those lines.

We took Mickey to the vet after he and Bronson had an argument and Bronson got the best of Mickey by biting his tail! Somebody had taken care of Mick at some time - he was neutered and showed signs of having had minor surgery in the past. The vet thinks he might be between 4 and 6 years old.

He has such a handsome face.





This is Bronson. An instigator and proud of it! When he was at Mikes, he was the low cat in the pecking order. But at our house, he's trying to be in the middle at least. He's already realized that he's not going to be the top cat. Bronson is very playful.

What a clown he is!

We weren't sure that we would keep both of them. We didn't know if they could learn to get along with each other. Plus we lost our 15 year old cat, Ziggy in February. We just were not sure we wanted another cat so soon.


But Mickey and Bronson have moved in now. Cat-a-tonic, that's for sure!