The best part of summer...

There's a lot that's wonderful about summer, but having garden flowers available for these simple little arrangements is at the top of my list.

A cup

A (very vicarious) trip to France

My daughter is in France for the next five weeks learning about the cuisine of Gascony. She reports six hour lunches, a lot of duck entrees and appetizers, the freshest food she's ever tasted, dinners at 10 p.m., homemade aperitifs, and $6 bottles of excellent wine. She's fallen in love with it all. And I get to enjoy it vicariously via the internet and Skype (a clearer phone connection than I get locally.)

She's staying in this 18th century farmhouse:




Near the town of Nerac:



And enjoying food like this (cured foie gras stuffed duck breast):

A Mountain of boulders...

In preparation for building a rock retaining wall, a mountain of boulders were dumped in our driveway last week. I've sketched two of them.

(Pigma Micron/watercolor on Niggedden paper)

Ruined by plastic...

It's not my decision, but my preference? - Mow it, leave it in the sun to dry, bale it, load in a truck and store it in a big barn, without plastic covers.

And here's the version I want to paint...



UPDATE: What do I know...obviously nothing about farming. Thanks to Gwendolyn who provided a link in the comment section to Wikipedia and information about what's inside those plastic bags:
"For animals that eat silage, a Bale wrapper may be used to seal a round bale completely and trigger the fermentation process. It is a technique used as a money-saving process by producers who do not have access to a silo, and for producing silage that is transported to other locations. However, a silo is still a preferred method for making silage.[10] In very damp climates, it is a legitimate alternative to drying hay completely and when processed properly, the natural fermentation process prevents mold and rot. Round bale silage is also sometimes called "haylage," and is seen more commonly in Europe than in either the USA or Australia. However, hay stored in this fashion must remain completely sealed in plastic, as any holes or tears can stop the preservation properties of fermentation and lead to spoilage.[11]"

Mmmmmmmm....

There is something deeply satisfying about creating a journal. It's full of potential, almost a book...



I made this journal, with Japanese stab binding, in a class which ended yesterday. I didn't select my most beautiful paper for the first book, because I figured I would screw it up, but I'm pleased with the way the handmade Japanese paper looks.

On the inside, I used three different papers: a soft Italian printmaking paper called Magnani; Niggedden (Roz Stendahl's favorite paper) and 90 lb. Arches watercolor paper.

I've taken two book making classes in the past few months. In the first class I learned to make simple pamphlet and folding books, which I found equally satisfying.

A few hours very well spent...

Oil Studies

Here are a few of the studies I painted in my beginning oil painting class which ended last week. There are more, but they're not completely dry yet. I really like painting on gessoed mat board. It eliminates the pressure to produce something "worthwhile" that I experience when using a canvas.

Summer...

Summer doesn't officially arrive until June 21, but it's been quite hot in Oregon. Last weekend we drove to the nearby community of Oakland to explore the Mildred Kanipe Memorial Park. The 1,100 acre ranch, settled in the 1800s, was left to the county in a will and is now managed indefinitely as a park. The park is quite beautiful and the many peacocks wandering around were, too. But the crazy screeching of those birds made the surroundings a lot less restful.