Inspired by Nature

My husband grew up near Philadelphia, where rhododendrons (named for the Greek words for rose and tree) grow wild and flower luxuriantly. He's on a mission to convince me that we should plant the shrubs around the edge of our yard. I'm not a fan of the plant's dark green, leathery leaves, or of its sometimes scraggly branches. But we took a tour this weekend of the botanical gardens, where the rhododendrons are in full and glorious bloom.

I was enchanted by the amazing variety of colors of the rhododendron blossoms--from white to the most shocking hot pinks. The blossoms grow in huge clusters, called trusses.

I think I may be a rhododendron convert.

We also took a walk through the rest of the botanical garden and hiked through the wildflower garden. I was happy to see many of the flowers that are growing wild in our yard and learn their names.

This one is called Dame's Rocket, and the mix of white, pink, and purple blossoms look beautiful clustered in our yard.

Everyone in the family took turns with the camera, and my daughter captured this lovely image of a hosta whose huge leaves cradled a drop of water.

And of course I was on the lookout for silhouetted images to use for paper cutouts.

I left the gardens feeling so invigorated and inspired, and the paper cutouts below are the result of our Sunday morning garden inspiration. Both are for the Artist Trading Card swap with Snippety Gibbet.

The cutout below, of course, is more indirectly inspired by nature. Snippety Gibbet is an avid cyclist, and I included a quote on the back from Frances E. Willard, a 19th-century social reformer, who learned to ride the newly popular bicycle in 1893 when she was in her 50s: "She who succeeds in gaining the mastery of the bicycle will gain the mastery of life."

Swappin' and Barterin'

Late Thursday night I returned from my vacation after a LONG day of traveling feeling tired, cranky, and in need of a shower. But the crankiness immediately dissipated when I opened the mailbox and found not one, but TWO, packages of artsy-craftsy goodness. What a double treat!

Snippety Gibbet sent an Artist Trading Card (ATC) with one of her delicate and whimsical paper cutouts. It's gorgeous, and I love how the water pours from the watering can onto the flower. I would love to find out how she achieved such graceful cutting lines and exquisite details on such a tiny card (2.5" x 3.5").

Thank you, Snippety Gibbet, for the card and the inspiration!

A few weeks ago, Resurrection Fern proposed a "swap shop" on her gorgeous blog. She suggested sending some of her overflowing stash of vintage textiles and trim in exchange for whatever the reader thought she might like.




If you follow her blog--and you should--you'll know that Resurrection Fern is an avid collector of vintage loveliness in all its forms, and she has a fantastic eye for overlooked treasures.




Well, not surprisingly, the package she sent did not disappoint! The fabrics, trims, and buttons were thoughtfully coordinated in blues and oranges.


The bundle of goodies was tied together by this perfect blue and orange fish trim, a treat in itself.
These pieces of barkcloth have scenes of Rapunzel and Little Red Riding Hood.


The beautiful blue palette of goodies included buttons and a piece of a lovely, soft patchwork quilt top.

And Resurrection Fern must know of my affinity for orange, because the orange duck tea towel and the orange clown bib piece are just the right shade and vintage designs. (My daughter confirms that the clown is "not one of the scary ones.")

And this gorgeous, silky piece of fabric combines both blue and orange.



Thank you, Resurrection Fern, for the thoughtful and inspiring treasures! I can't wait to start creating with them.

How to Make a Memory Quilt

Piece by piece, a mosaic of fabric assembles into a single block.

This single block joins to others to form a row.

One row joins to others to form a quilt.

This quilt shows a life pieced together over the years.

A life of caring for the earth . . .

. . . and its creatures.

Of creating a family . . .

And sharing a wealth of talent.

This quilt--this life--is sewn with a complex pattern of threads and bound together with love.

Happy birthday, Donna.

Goslings and other Signs of Spring

I am taking a week-long blogging vacation but will leave you with some photos of the woods in spring. I tried to incorporate BlueMountainsMary's photo tips when taking these shots (see the bottom of the page).

Wild boar in the woods

Obligatory mushroom photo

Wolffia and tree reflection

Lone trillium

Canada goose family heads to the pond


The male keeps watch . . .

. . . while the female and the goslings take a dip.




Recumbent luna moth

Fairy parasols, or mayapple leaves

Mayapple flower

Pinecones that look like crimson roses

Vintage Illustrations

I was thrilled to pick up an unusual treasure of a book today from a fellow freecycler, and I couldn't wait to share the vintage illustrations from it. The book--the Juvenile Music volume of the Music Education Series by Thaddeus P. Giddings, Will Earhart, Ralph L. Baldwin, and Elbridge W. Newton--was published by Ginn and Company in 1923.

According to James Denning Price, who reviewed the books in the Music Supervisors' Journal (Vol. 11, No. 3, February 1925), the series includes six books and was intended to be used for elementary through junior-high school music classes. Juvenile Music includes songs for third and fourth grade aspiring choristers.

Price praised the series as "a great achievement":

The first impression which the reviewer had was that he had before him an excellent set of books. This impression is borne out by a careful examination, for they are first of all beautiful books, and every experienced supervisor knows that this feature is of no little importance. Examination further discloses the fact that the size of the books, the binding, and typography are of that degree of excellence which has made the publishers' name a synonym for conscientious work wherever text books are used. The enrichment of the first three books by the use of a few appropriate illustrations, charmingly adapted, is worth special comment."

Katherine G. Healey created seven illustrations for this volume. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any information about her. Although some of the hairstyles and patterns on the little girls' dresses recall the Roaring '20s, the overall mood of the illustrations evokes an earlier era.

The illustration below, which accompanies the song "To Sleepy Town," includes a silhouetted background image of Puss 'n Boots and other fairy tale characters.

The images of children at play in Healey's illustrations are dynamic and full of life. Can't you just imagine a bored music student getting lost in these illustrations instead of singing? (That's probably why the publisher didn't include more illustrations!)

I admire how the limited color palette--black, gray, red, pink--effectively conveys the childlike mood, and I would love to learn more about how the drawings were created and printed.