the front porch

my front porch gets morning sun and draws me out there like a magnet

and believe it or not, sunshine is abundant here once summer arrives

I added this sun catcher yesterday

I made it using some of the beach glass from my "jackpot" beach glass day

it's tied with fishing line and is in a protected enough spot that it won't crash around

(it is glass after all)

and catches the sun beautifully

*

don't worry, I'll show you more pictures of the curiosities I have on my porch

(I'm saving it for another post)

a cool class

Are you familiar with River Garden Studio?

Artist: Roxanne Evans Stout?

Will you be in the Puget Sound area?

Near Camano Island?

On July 20-21?

she's an amazing artist from Oregon and will be up this way teaching a class:

The Thread That Weaves

at Earthtone Studios

Camano Island Washington

"... we will explore the art of design, composition and layering with Roxanne's cache of papers, metal bits and ephemera.  We will connect, stitch, wire, collage, tie, wrap, hang, dangle, construct and weave all in your own Artist Book.  Please join Roxanne on this artistic journey of creativity while we immerse ourselves in the process of making a book that is filled with art that reflects each of you, your memory, your life and your dreams."

Sadly, I cannot go

:(

How I would love to meet Roxanne 

- if you know and follow her blog, you will know what a privilege this is - 

a truly rare opportunity

wishing you

a happy and safe fourth of july!

no-sun tea

I'm making sun tea on a cloudy day

it's another Numi flowering tea

(today's is Dragon Lily)

sun tea is a perfect way to brew the green and white teas

they tend to get bitter in hot water

- so making it as sun tea is gentle way to bring out the tea flavor without the bitterness -

but today is a no-sun day

nevermind

it works anyhow

:)

summer begins here the day after the fourth of July

that's what people say

and this year it is oh so true

wishing you a happy fourth - I'm sure it's summer where you are - I've seen the weather map

the jackpot

I'm always on the hunt for beach glass

and while on a family outing today we found a bonanza of it

(it helps to have extra eyes on the lookout)

bonanza 

noun 

1. a source, usually sudden and unexpected, of luck or wealth 

2. (Mining & Quarrying) US and Canadian a mine or vein rich in ore 

[from Spanish, literally: calm sea, hence, good luck, from Medieval Latin bonacia, from Latin bonus good+malacia dead calm, from Greek malakia softness] 

beach glass and pottery shards

about a pound of it

wow!

cities on the water have old dump sites where the glass and pottery is plentiful

years of tumbling among the stones wear them down

and this fella could have cared less

:)

he's just happy to have a sunny day

lavender

I used some of my dried lavender today for something a little different

using a 3 inch square piece of a book cover

(heavy tagboard would work)

I glued down the buds .... going round and round .... adding more and more

It needed a focal point, so I added a piece of beach glass to the center

at first I used hot glued, but it quickly fell off

wire wrapping the glass and threading it through the book cover did the trick

 I added lavender stems as a border

(about 3 stems wide)

it's awfully small - I may use it in a larger art piece

or perhaps small is good

something to think on before moving ahead ....

flower tea

a friend sent me some flowering teas

this is what they look like before steeping:

in the package is an assortment of four flowering teas from Numi Tea

dragon lily

flower jewel

emerald sun

&

midnight peony

the one I chose for today is "flower jewel"

it's a White Tea scented with jasmine and amaranth flower

I'm drinking it now - and it's really quite delicious

very grassy like a green tea - but flowery too - it's nice

I thought you might like to see some more flowers

... flowers of the garden variety

:)

it's beginning to feel like summer around here

I really felt it when I said, "not until you've had your breakfast, made your bed and gotten dressed."

Summertime,
And the livin' is easy
Fish are jumpin'
And the cotton is high

Oh, Your daddy's rich
And your mamma's good lookin'
So hush little baby
Don't you cry
[ Lyrics from: http://www.lyricsmode.com/lyrics/g/george_gershwin/summertime.html ]
One of these mornings
You're going to rise up singing
Then you'll spread your wings
And you'll take to the sky

But until that morning
There's a'nothing can harm you
With your daddy and mammy standing by

- George Gershwin