Celebrate Three

Hello from Florida,

I know, this doesn't look like a painting of Florida does it?  You would be right!  I painted this in Northern Wisconsin on a painting trip in late October.  I was with two great outdoor painting buddies, Lynn Rix and Lori Beringer.  It was cool and breezy but the day was warmed by our friendship and love of painting.  So today I am celebrating painting the beauty of autumn with dear friends.

Green with Envy

This weeks Daily Paint Works Challenge is to paint an emotion.  Wow!  I have never painted an emotion before and was excited to get started.  Except what emotion would I paint?  How would I paint it once I decided on my choice?  Many choices came to mind but were quickly dismissed.  Then I looked in my kitchen for a snack to fuel my tired brain and there was my subject, my just picked garden tomatoes. (While I was out of town, Jane, my neighbor had saved them from the frost, by picking every tomato still on my plants. - Thank you, Jane.)   A few of the tomatoes were ripe, red and perfect.  Most of the tomatoes were green, blemished and pretty un-tomato looking.  These green tomatoes looked like they were envious of the red tomatoes maturity, ripeness and beauty to me.  So I set up my tomato still life and painted the emotion 'envy' thanks to these tomatoes.
PS  To all those green tomatoes out there - you can ripen up if you are put in a paper bag with a few green friends and placed on top of the refrigerator for a few days.  Or you can be turned into fried green tomatoes!

I love the sound of waterfalls.  Their water song cadence changes as their headwaters increase or decrease.  This summer day waterfall music was like a waltz and was very peaceful.  As summer turns into fall and a busier time for all of us, I hope you can find a waterfall to sit by and find a little peaceful tune.

Tractor Break

We need rain in most of our counties here in Wisconsin. The grass is 'crunchy' under our feet.  Ozaukee County, where this painting was painted really needs rain.  With irrigation most of the crops are growing well, but rain is still needed.  My garden here at home is being watered today from our trusty Simer water pump that is in our lake, for irrigating my neighbors and my gardens.  We are so lucky to have this water source and the pump!  Since we have a well for our drinking water we wouldn't be able to irrigate the garden from the well without fear of lowering our water table. 

Embroidered Cloth

Generations before Martha Stewart, women were enhancing their homes and families lives with beauty.  I love to go to garage, estate and flea market sales where I search for these women's creations of years ago.  I am drawn to the tables heaped with the needlework of women.  They used their rare leisure time to embroider, tat, needlepoint, quilt, knit and crochet their visions.  After buying this little cloth embroidered with violets and daisies (with a finishing touch of crochet on the edges  :-)  ), I was excited to place it on my table with daffodils in a tea cup.  This unsigned lovely needlework cloth now enhances the beauty of my painting and my home. 

Sunset Memory

Painting in plein air is so exciting!  You don't know if a storm will catch you in the middle of a field, a bull might charge you from afar, or a nest of irate fire ants will decide to attack while you are setting up your gear.  The most memorable outdoor painting adventure has none of the above, but instead includes a fellow painter to share the outdoor painting experience.  This painting 'Sunset Memory' included oil painter, Lori.  (www.loriberinger.com)  We painted together for one wonderful week in beautiful Central Florida on the banks of the St. John's River.