Hemlock Haven

What an amazing place to visit AND paint - with the surf serenading me as I worked! The sound of a surf is one of my favorite sounds to relax and restore by, be it oceans or Great Lakes.  The soothing rhythm of Lake Michigan lulls me into another world where I can create, without thought, and become one with the landscape.  What a perfect place this is to create and unwind.  It's so good to be back in Door County. Painting number 3857 in 3857 days.  

Garden Sprite

In the front garden of the home we staying in on Washington Island, is this beautiful art deco Sprite, surrounded by lush foliage and blooms.  Each day, she has caught my eye, begging to be painted.  So today, I captured her in ink and watercolor.  It is so peaceful to immerse myself in the garden, with the distant surf softly playing in the back yard.  It is truly art therapy at it's best.  Just my paint and ink, translating the beauty of the garden to paper, as I thoroughly enjoy the process.  Painting number 3856 in 3856 days. 

Redstone Inn

It's lovely to return to Dubuque, and stay in the historic Redstone Bed and Breakfast.  I have admired this historic place each time I've been in town painting during the Bluffstrokes plein air event, but have not painted it.  So, it is extra special to stay here overnight after celebrating my new wine labels at the L.May Eatery. This is a gorgeous mansion inside and out, and a delicious breakfast was just icing on the cake! Actually, it was icing on a really decadent cinnamon roll - served warm!  Painting number 3855 in 3855 days. 

L.May Eatery Wine Labels!!

Hooray!!  Mom and I stopped in to L.May Eatery to enjoy a bottle of wine with MY PAINTING ON THE LABEL!!  We enjoyed a lovely meal along with this wonderful Pinot Grigio - and celebrated a new first!  As a wine lover, I have always dreamed of my artwork on a label someday, and now that dream has come true.  Many thanks to L.May Eatery for reaching out to me - I couldn't be more thrilled! Painting number 3854 in 3854 days. 

Lavender Field

Oh, how I love the heady aroma of lavender - in full bloom!  So much of the lavender on Washington Island is at peak right now - and it is a sight to behold.  It has been 4 years since I've been here for the lavender bloom, and a few things have changed. Another farm that was just down the road is no longer in business, but the plants still grow in the fields, intended and vigorous.  They were so welcoming to me as an artist last time, opening their farm to us all.  The other farm has kicked it up a notch, bigger, with more offerings, and we joined them for a Tuesday Wine Night, which was lovely.  Again, I am inspired to plant my own lavender, just three rows that I could grow and harvest, and paint for all the years to come.  Painting number 3853 in 3853 days. 

Queen Anne's Lace

On this rainy day, I found some amazing blooms to paint! I've loved Queen Anne's Lace since I was a little girl, and on Washington Island they are now in full bloom!  Back in Missouri, they are glorious in May, and have long since faded away.  So, this was a perfect chance to paint them fresh, from shelter in the rain.  Their lacey caps are delicate, and always a great study in how to describe something loosely with paint.  It is so easy to try to render each tiny petal, but alas, not my mission.  Afterward, Mom and I were treated to a jam session at an Irish pub, by a friend of the Faheys. It's been so fun immersing ourselves in the island life up here! Painting number 3852 in 3852 days. 

Jackson Harbor

We had an amazing dinner in this spot last night - and I had to paint the view!  Jackson Harbor Soup was open for dinner and I had the best French onion soup I've ever had! Jackson Harbor is full of historic charm, and the water is so clear one can see deep into it from the dock.  Washington Island is full of beautiful treasures to paint, and I'm happy to have gotten the chance to do so! Painting number 

Lake Michigan View

 I could hardly believe my eyes when I saw the view out the back door of the place we're staying in on Washington Island.  Lake Michigan in all her glory, caning to me to paint!  Setting up on the ragged edge of the bluff - to get the best view -i set my easel up on one rock, and stood in another.  No backing up to check my painting, because I didn't want to fall off the bluff!  The surf kept me company, with it's lapping and splashing, and the painting practically fell off the brush.  What a peaceful way to spend the afternoon!  Painting number 3850 in 3850 days. 

Bandstand at Lakeside

It is so fun to paint this iconic bandstand along the path, listening to the waves crash along the coast of Lakeside!  The winding path rambles through Lakeside near the water, to the town, and right back to this bandstand.  Lush and green, the lawn and gardens are beautiful, adding to the romance is this painting.  I'm so happy to get to paint this! Painting number 3849 in 3949 days. 

Pavilion Garden

I'm so thankful for the shelter of the pavilion during the rain! I had a wonderful vantage of the garden to paint from a perch that juts out from the main part.  Oils are my medium of choice in inclement weather, as long as my panel is first covered with paint, it will resist the rain.  If some of the panel gets wet first, it will resist the oil!  So, it's important to get paint on that surface, and then I can begin to work the masses.  I do love painting a garden, even in the rain!  Painting number 3848 in 3848 days. 

Oak Harbor Bed and Breakfast

I love exploring special places to stay when traveling - and then I paint them! I've driven by this place many times when visiting the area, as it's located right on the main thoroughfare.  I have a real fondness for vintage places full of charm, and love to see their interiors!  The layout and woodwork are beautiful, with plenty of light from those gorgeous windows.  She may be showing her age a little, but I can feel her glory of bygone days.  It's a joy to paint a place like this, and get to spend a little time with her.  It's been a lovely place to land after days filled with fun with Mom. Painting number 3847 in 3847 days.

Lamp Post Garden

Even the rain couldn't keep me from painting this lovely lamp post garden!  Choosing oils for this rainy day, the shelter of the Lakeside Pavilion was the perfect spot to paint from.  As I worked, there was a mama red-winged blackbird that kept swooping down on unsuspecting people passing by that lamppost!  One after the other, she pecked their heads- especially targeting the men without hats!  She never bothered me, perhaps my wide brimmed hat didn't threaten her?  Who knew these sweet birds turned to dive bombers with little ones nearby?  Painting number 3845 in 3845 days. 

Pavilion Garden

I stayed late at the Pavilion to finish this painting - and it went home with a new collector, heading back from the beach!  I started sketching during the wet paint sale, but was so busy talking to people and writing up tickets, I didn't get very far.  So, I kept working while the band played, knowing Mom would want to hear their whole show.  I was still painting when Mom came over to sit, and was just finishing up when a new patron returned to find me still there!  She bought the painting and I walked back to our place - twice - to get it framed. I think I was meant to paint that painting for her all along!  Painting number 3844 in 3844 days. 

Yellow House Charm

 I love the historic homes along Maple Street!  This is the cottage Mom and I stayed in while in lovely Lakeside.  Painting in oil, the birds were singing and the sun was shining.  These peaceful moments are my reward for the days I paint in the rain and snow.  I'll remember this day when I'm fighting a hard wind, and hanging onto my easel!  It was so fun to see my painting hanging in the wall of this house.  Painting number 3843 in 3843 days. 

West Second Street

This street was calling my name two days ago, but the light was moving off the faces of the buildings, and I knew I needed to wait for morning.  Then yesterday was the non-stop rain day, so I painted in oil all day.  Ink and watercolor do not play well with falling rain!  After framing and getting all else ready for today's sale, I rushed down to this spot for one last painting!  It took me a little longer to finish, but I stayed until I did - even though I should have already been down by the wooden boats to paint!  I just HAD to paint this spot before leaving Lakeside, and I'm happy it now has a new home!  Painting number 3842 in 3842 days. 

Hotel Lakeside Garden

I love painting Hotel Lakeside along Lake Erie! This magical, historic place is just my cup of tea!  This rainy day saturated the colors of the landscape, making this garden irresistible.  Finding an empty tent for shelter, I had a dry place to paint, and I let the painting unfold.  In just an hour and a half, I was packing to go meet mom for another show at the Hoover Auditorium, and had this wonderful quiet time in the rain under my belt.  Come see this painting tomorrow on the lawn from 1:30 to 3:30 for the wet paint sale!  Painting number 3841 in 3841 days. 

Looking up Walnut

What a gorgeous day for painting the charming streets of Lakeside, Ohio!  This path leads to town from the beach of Lake Erie, and is another iconic part of Lakeside.  As I sketched in ink and painted in watercolor, many stopped to visit and young artists asked about my tools.  It was a lovely day of sharing art, followed by dinner and a show with Mom at Hoover Auditorium.  Painting number 3840 in 3840 days. 

Lakeside Pavilion

 

I love returning to Lakeside, enjoying those cool breezes off Lake Erie.  The Pavillion here is spectacular, steeped in history.  Mom and I arrived early enough to get some ice cream and sit along the coastline, and it even got quite chilly!  I wish I had brought my jacket down to the water, and u went forget it again.  It's certainly much cooler than the 90s we left behind in Missouri.  This starts three days of painting inside Lakeside Chautauqua, with a wet paint sale on the beach Sunday, during the Wood Bottom Boat Show. Come enjoy this beautiful place and see all my work from 1:30 to 3:30 on Sunday!  Painting number 3839 in 3839 days. 

Phlox!

 

Hooray!  The garden phlox are blooming again! When I look at these, I think of Grandma Bessie, and the time we spent in her garden on Olive St!  I helped her weed her flower beds, as she taught me about her flowers.  I wanted to know their names and all about them.  She would give me starts, telling me not to thank her, because they wouldn't grow if I did!  I have shared these beauties many times through the years, and they are a perennial favorite of mine.  Their fragrance rivals lilac, but lasts far longer than the fleeting spring blooms. I'm happy to have painted this before the heavy rains expected tonight!  Painting number 3839 in 3839 days. 

Zinnia!

Once again, night falls before I get my painting done.  I've been so busy multi-tasking, that it's dark before i know it.  I plant seeds that I collect each year, and this red zinnia has evaded the voles to burst in bloom!  I have two colors - red and yellow, and the long, twisty petals are unlike any I've ever grown!  So, as I tend my gardens - forgetting to move sprinklers twice - I am also sketching this beauty in miniature, as a cool breeze stirs the hot summer air. I love painting to the music of crickets, and the first notes of the frogs!  Great way to center and collect my thoughts, surrounded by my garden. Painting number 3838 in 3838 days. 

Taylor Swift Eras Tour

I just HAD to commemorate the magical night we had at the Taylor Swift Eras concert with an ink and watercolor painting!  My lanyard is still flashing, so the party is still going!  Singing and dancing the whole night with my daughters, and some extended family was a blast, and I will never forget this night.  So happy to have been a part of it all!  Painting number 3836 in 3836 days. 

Trees!

Time spent with pen and ink in the woods is time well spent!  Sketching may have been my first real love among my mediums. I still remember the feel of a ballpoint ink pen as it slid along the surface of rough paper. I was very young, sitting at a tiny child's desk in front of a north window in my grandmother's kitchen.  I didn't get to use ink pens yet at home, but here I had an old check box filled with pens, pencils - even a red one and a white one, and an old dark metal pair of small scissors, which were very heavy in my small hand.  I was not yet in kindergarten, and yet these memories are so vivid.  I even remember the cedar smell of those pencils, and the rich, waxy smell of a small collection of crayons.  The paper at Grandma's house was a yellowed Big Chief tablet, with a deep red cover picturing the profile of a Chief and headdress.  I thought that was very cool, studying the lines of that image, unlike anything I had seen before.  I remember those lines in black, like an ink drawing, without additional color.  Abs the paper smelled like the antique desk it was kept in!  It's funny what one remembers from those early years. Painting number 3833 in 3833 days. 

Morning at the Barn

How could I possibly resist painting such an amazing old barn with a vista view behind it?  Complete with a sweet horse, this place was a "must paint" as soon as i saw it!  Down a long, winding, narrow road, this place was definitely worth the almost a mile back-up drive I had to make when i came head on to a large rv in that single lane drive!  Thank goodness for my vast back up experience - because those ditches were too steep to pull in to.  One never knows what may be at the end of such roads, and this scene was my reward!  Love these Missouri backroads! Painting number 3832 in 3832 days. 

Rapp Farmhouse

 

I just can't resist painting a rambling old farmhouse - and this one is amazing!  Plenty of historic charm here on Solar Acres Farm, and pen and ink was the perfect medium to capture the lines and angles of this place.  A family farm, passed down through generations, this place is a treasure in St. James, Missouri.  It is so fun to step into a place for a day, and paint three different slices of it's character, in three different mediums. I love this artist life so much!  Happy Independence Day!  Painting number 3831 in 3831 days. ❤️🇺🇲

Fishing in the Meramec

 

I love painting along a river, to the music of birdsong!  It is such a peaceful place for reflection. The water babbles gently, and as I sketch, a fisherman enters the river from the bank.  As he walks and casts, I sketch him in to my painting.  Just a moment in time, captured by chance, and a lovely memory of the day.  Painting number 3830 in 3830 days. 

Wendy and John's Place

I love getting to paint the special places I stay at, when hosted during plein air events.  Wendy and John were so welcoming, this truly was a home away from home.  Steelville is full of wonderful people and places, and I'm so lucky I found this place!  Painting number 3829 in 3829 days. 

Old Blue at the Shed

I LOVE finding these vintage tractors to paint!  Each one has a story to tell, and this one already hangs on a wall to tell it.  This tractor called to me from the first time I saw it, tucked beside an old shed.  Resting in the yard at my host home in Steelville, I saw this beauty early morning and night, until I finally had an opportunity to paint it.  It was lightly raining, so the shelter of a covered porch protected my ink and watercolor from running.  I really like the square format for this.  I've only used this format a few times, and I really like when it suits the scene so well.  Painting number 3828 in 3828 days.