Draped in Loofah

An interesting question I ran into in the process of making this picture was that of what to make the Spanish moss out of. It seemed natural, being a plant presser, to use Spanish moss to illustrate Spanish moss. But I found that real Spanish moss looked out of proportion on this tree. Its lines were thicker than what I wanted. So I ended up going with loofah sponge. Some people think loofahs come from the sea, but they actually grow on vines, making them fit very happily into my medium. So here I have a live oak draped with loofah sponge. Also of note: the tree is comprised of lots of small strips of different colored leaves, some of which are live oak leaves off of trees from St. Simons Island.

This picture is made of: delphinium, parsley, dill, orange peel, black maple, live oak, fall leaves and loofah.

Dog Picture (trying to think of a more creative title)

Our first dog, a springer spaniel named Solomon, used to chase squirrels. I'm not sure he would have known what to do if he had caught one, but he did seem to enjoy chasing them. We've gotten two dogs since Solomon died, Esther and Melody. Neither seems particularly fascinated with squirrels.

This picture is made of: corn husks, fall leaves, skeletonized leaves, hydrangea, gray poplar, cockscomb, black maple, bark, cattail, moss and poppy seed.

Tea Time, Again

My 3- year old sister recently received her first tea set. If things were her way we would probably have tea parties several times a day, but Mom says one per day is enough. I used to have lots of tea parties with my friends. I particularly remember having them with Kristen. She and I would have what we refer to as "non-breathing tea parties." Those were the tea parties where we couldn't stop laughing because one thing after another kept happening to start us off again. Tea time suffered a decline for years in our house, but now the tea parties are back!

This picture is made of: hydrangea (flowers and bark), dill, hollyhock, bougainvillea, baby's breath, gray poplar, cockscomb, golden rod, nandina, forget-me-not, alyssum, Queen Anne's lace.

2010 World Wide Pressed Flower Guild Gathering

In June I attended the World Wide Pressed Flower Guild gathering in Shipshewana, Indiana. Classes included dyeing techniques, tips for competing, several make and take projects etc. One of the best parts about these events is simply asking questions and talking to the artists. It was also neat being in Amish country. We saw horses and buggies along the road and people working in their gardens. The hotel was nice. The food was good. People were friendly. Thank you to everyone who worked so hard to put this event together!! I look forward to next year!