Limelight Hydrandeas

Limelight Hydrandeas, a photo by ddhabicht on Flickr.

The property is filled with color and things are blooming all year long. Getting to the end of their blooming season these limelight hydrangeas are still so beautiful and last for weeks on arrangements. I also painted the billiant blue lace capped hydrangeas I will share tomorrow,my last day here!

Valley views

Valley views, a photo by ddhabicht on Flickr.

Looking out of the window from moms living room I painted the view she wakes up to every morning. Many days the fog from the ocean creeps in and lays in the bottom of the valley floor.

Anemones

Anemones, a photo by ddhabicht on Flickr.

In one of the shady flowerbeds sits several different colored anemone flowers. Some are white, some pink but all are very invasive and tend to spread really fast. What once was treasured for the wonder flowers and color is now considered a bit of a nuisance. One day you're in, the next you're out!

Hidden Gardens

Hidden Gardens, a photo by ddhabicht on Flickr.

My moms property is nestled on some foothills next to the redwood forest in Mendicino county. She has some of her "garden rooms" tucked under stands of redwoods, this is where this Buddah sits. Watching over this area of the garden surrounded by hydrangeas and anemones she sits on her ivy covered redwood stump.

Rose arbor

Rose arbor, a photo by ddhabicht on Flickr.

My mom made this 75' rose arbor that ends at a gazebo in hopes of having weddings here, overlooking the valley. When blooming the cover the pathway with multicolored petals. Perfectly placed to make any bride feel special, wish it was around when I got married.

Angel wing begonia in Chinese pot

Angel wing begonia in Chinese pot, a photo by ddhabicht on Flickr.

I am visiting my mom in wine country this week. Her 5 acre estate always amazes me. It will forever be a work in progress and filled with secret treasures. Always the interior/exterior designer her eye for beauty and detail has always allowed her to transform the worst into the best. Her deep love of gardening shows everywhere here, taking this overgrown piece of property and transforming it into a place to see in the Valley. At the base of her steps that lead up to the main floor sits this large antique pot that is filled with angel winged begonia.

September Sketching class

I teach a sketching class once a month for a wonderful group of women. Every month we learn something new, technique, paint application etc. This month we worked on how to create a page that shows distance for those distant vistas we all love to photograph when we are on vacation. I took some of my photos that I had actually taken while in Italy of the country mountainsides and printing a bunch of them up. After my demo I mixed up the photos and then had them pick from the stack face side down. This way I wanted to avoid the students making selections based on how hard or easy they thought it might be. It was wonderful to see their faces as they drew their photo!  They did an amazing job of capturing the scene, some did double page layouts some single page. I really enjoy seeing the end results and their sketchbooks are coming right along!

Plating with webbing

Plating with webbing, a photo by ddhabicht on Flickr.

I bought some webbing and sprayed this piece of watercolor paper and then just thought it was too much. So instead of throwing it away or putting it away I grabbed one of my Italy pictures and started throwing on color. I kind of like it! So I will continue playing with it to create textures. If you want to play with me you can purchase the webbing spray at Micheals. If you apply to wet paper the webbing swells and you get bigger lines. This was done on dry paper.

Painting fabric with Copic markers

I taught a class on copic markers and the students did some great pieces. This medium is tricky, like trying to control something uncontrollable. It produces watery, loose representative pieces that can be incorporated into quilts or pillows and are completely washable. It turned out to be a great day, experimenting with different techniques and visiting with friends!