The artistic and creative musings of Gillian Olson who sells cards and prints through her PS Whimsy website and displays art on Gillian Olson Art website. The weekly "Whimsy Wednesday" Behind the Brush post will feature photographs, sketches and paintings, and give you a peek into what is happening in her studio.
The fields in the park are full of flowers this time of year. Daisies, buttercups, wild roses, lupins and many more. Perfume fills the air, I am thankful that I don't have pollen allergies because the air is laden at this time of year.
laburnum
horse chestnut
daisies
wild rose (deep pink, pink and white)
irises growing at the edge of the pond
roses, lupins and buttercups in the meadow behind the pond
lupins
buttercups
No birds this week so far, I thought you would enjoy this video, "Starlings of Otmoor":
Something completely different this week in the painting department. It is a watercolour (14" X 20") of an old truck that I saw on Gabriola Island, I call it "Out to Pasture":
I am not completely sure it is finished, I might add some sheep in the pasture in the distance, or then again maybe not.
Thanks for stopping by, happy Whimsy Wednesday, until next time,
Well perhaps predominately purple perennials. There are so many beautiful perennials in bloom at this time of year. Lilac (below) is one of my favorites and this dark purple one with white edges was the personification of perfumed perfection.
Rhododendrons and irises are also prominent in purple, plum and puce tones.
Spiderwort (below) with pointed purple petals has a fluffy centre and yellow heart shaped anthers.
Columbines have always reminded me of English country gardens with their beautiful perennial borders.
Pretty purple petals
Lupins pop up in profusion in parks and private and public gardens, another perennial favorite of mine!
I am pleased but perplexed by this next flower, it reminds me a little of bee balm and also laitrus but I don't think it is either, perhaps I can a-peal to a plant person to provide this one with a proper name.
Thanks to Carol, the above identified as Hyssop.
Cornflowers above and below; pointy, playful pastel colours.
Cransbill Geranium:
This pinstriped purple and yellow iris is stunning against a poppy.
This poppy is just left with its purple hat and scarf, after its petals have fallen.
The look of Columbine but?
Deadnettle?
A rose, or is it?
Pretty, petite but alas unknown to me.
At first I thought this feeder visitor was a Purple Finch to finish off my purple post, but I think he is more likely a House Finch.
Perched
posing,
prize,
pigging out
please
pretty
I hope you have enjoyed my alliterative purple posy post, just a portion of the purple petals I photographed.
New from my studio this week is a pink not purple offering that I have named "Triple Crown":
I used a new (to me) colour in this one called Opera - pinky mauve perfection.
Well I finally got some painting done, I am a bit slow getting back to it after holidays, but here is a watercolour that I have just finished. It is titled "Celebration". It is a little late for Canada Day and Bastille Day but still a good fireworks show is always welcome:
I remember as a Brownie and Girl Guide singing a song about a Kookaburra that laughed. Now I had forgotten about this until recently when "Seeing Each Day" posted some pictures of a kookaburra. I decided to investigate the birds call and here is what I found.
Now that is a really good hearty laugh and it had me chuckling.
Here are the gardens I promised, this time two private gardens, first Mary's garden in England and then Steve and Chantel's garden in France.
Mary's garden reminds me of my mothers' garden when I was a child, filled with roses, peonies, phlox, delphiniums and columbines. I was transported back by the beautiful columbines and probably took too many pictures so I have made some of the pictures into mosaics.
This one has attracted a bumble bee:
One last one .....
There were also irises, lilies, clematis, flowering horsechestnut, gladiola, and many more I haven't been able to name.
A beautiful garden, thank you Mary for sharing your garden with me.
"To be overcome by the frangrance of flowers is a delectable form of defeat." Beverly Nichols
Here are some pictures of the flowers in Steve and Chantel's garden in southern France. Clematis, honeysuckle, wisteria, and Virginia creeper covered decks and pathways offering glorious shade and filling the air with perfume.
Roses, pansies, hibiscus, daisies, geraniums and many more flowers, bushes and grasses created a beautiful and private retreat. Pots, hanging baskets, whimsical garden ornaments.
Steve and Chantel spend the time to water (by hand), weed and trim so the garden thrives.
"A garden requires patient labor and attention. Plants do not grow
merely to satisfy ambitions or to fulfill good intentions. They thrive because
someone expended effort on them." Liberty Hyde Bailey
And the lavender bloomed in the second week of our stay and filled the air with its heady scent.
"Everyone can identify with a fragrant garden, with beauty of sunset,
with the quiet of nature, with a warm and cozy cottage." Thomas
Kincade
Warning: If you don't like bugs, you might want to skip over the next few rather quickly.
There were some interesting bugs too, I spotted this little fellow on a rose. Some of the bugs were much larger than I am used to.
This iridescent June beetle loved the honeysuckle. It was at least an inch long.
This large moth came for a visit one evening, I have seen similar ones before but never one this large, it was over 4 inches long. It made quite a racket banging against the ceiling, and was still inside in the morning so we carefully put it outside.
I think these next two are grasshoppers or crickets, both were in the 3 to 4 inch long range. The first one was out in the garden but the second one (black) was on the ledge outside our kitchen window. We closed the window just in case it had any intention of coming inside and I bravely took its picture through the window.
Enough bugs, everyone that tuned out can come back now.
A couple of weeks ago Jeremy (Jeremy Inglis Photography) shared some wonderful Puffins pictures on his blog, and allowed me to use some of those pictures to do a painting. I have always been fascinated by these beautiful and brightly coloured birds.
So my painting is below, it is a watercolour and is quite large (13" X 19"). The painting is not quite finished yet, it is unsigned and without a name, but I wanted to share what I have done . Thank you Jeremy, hope you like the result.
That's it for this week, thank you for dropping by, Happy Whimsy Wednesday, until next time .....
