A spooky forest and windswept birds

Hi everybody!

We had another stormy day here, hope you all stayed safe!

Our little town was even emptier than usual, not even the market tempted people to go out in the rain!

I have made another spooky, drippy piece. The background was once again a brush wipe page, which I sprayed with blue and purple, and let the colours run and drip again. Then I had fun outlining the strange figures which had crept onto the page. The golden figures were added with perfect pearls and TH stamps. Some of the blobs turned into houses, and others into spooky trees and toadstools,  so here we have midnight deep in the Fright Forest. I am linking to Art Journal Journey, deep in the forest, Simon Monday Challenge, and Paint Party Friday, hosted as always by Eva and Kristin.

These poor pigeons looked as though they had been battling against the storm:

The cormorants were out fishing

And this one was perhaps dancing for the ducks.

All the benches were deserted again:

And sensible people evidently stayed home!

Have a great day, whatever you are up to!

Take care,

and thanks a lot for coming by!

Nice weather for the ducks....

Hi everybody!

It was a cold, wet and windy day here, I would not have got far without my beloved wellies! The night will be stormy too, so hope that it will quieten down a bit tomorrow.

This is a mixed media painting I made last week, where I tried some new techniques, and where everything went wrong. And to add insult to injury, I had to cut off the bottom part of the picture where the table should be as I poured coffee on it. Not much, but enough to make a nasty mess! The background was made with various old papers, glued on with mod podge, and then given a thin coat of gesso. I painted the suares with thinned down acrylics. The vase and the tulips were drawn with pastel chalks, which I then tried to paint over with water colours to see if it would get better. It didn't. Anyway, I made it for Conny's Mix it monthly, 'still-life', so here it is!

And I am linking to Simon Says Monday Challenge, anything goes and Moo Mania and more, bright and cheerful.

This morning was wet, but I enjoyed my walk along the deserted Rhine, and even the ducks were trying to keep their feet dry!

This afternoon it was really wet, this is not a stream, it is the footpath.

I love my wellies!

Have a nice day, whatever the weather, take care,

and thanks a lot for coming by!

Tag Tuesday and Happy Mail

Hi Everybody!

The lovely weather has disappeared for a few days, so we're back to cold, wet and windy! Variety is the spice of life!

At Tag Tuesday our new theme is 'Poetry'.

I was busy preparing lots of other projects today, so time was a bit short for my tag. I used a piece of hand-painted paper, which was stamped with crackle and swirl stamps while wet. I make BG papers as much as I can with leftover paints, so there is always something handy when I need it. At least if I manage to find it!

I wrote my poetry onto it with my white pen, and mounted it onto black scrap card, and added a little tassel as embellishment - finished!

Here you can see the patterning in the background.

A couple of weeks back Debbie had a birthday giveaway, and I received this beautiful card and one of her coloured art-card sketches, so beautiful. And it is especially dear to me as it as a duck.... Thanks a lot Debbie, it will hang in my arty kitchen.

Yesterday I was pleased to see that the statue of St Swidbert has evidently been cleaned, or freshly painted, as he was gleaming in the sun:

I took this photo from a bench on one of the fortification-walls where I often sit, looking across the meadows to the Rhine, and shaded by the beautiful trees when it is hot:

The hay is almost all gone:

And I enjoy taking photos of the fungi, although all the squatting to get a good pic is not always good for my knees.

These ink-caps are evidently edible before they start to discolour, but I don't think I want to try them.

The Kittlebach, the stream that flows near our house and ends in the Rhine:

Have a great day you all, take care,

ad thanks a lot for coming by! 

Deep in the forest again....

Hi everybody!

We had another wonderful and sunny October Sunday here, and I spent a lot of time outside, making the best of it. Hope your weekend was good, too. We have a storm front on the way bringing wind, cooler temperatures and rain for a few days, but we have to take it as it comes, and cherish the good days!

I was pleased to see that I was chosen for the spotlight again at Simon Says Monday Challenge Autumn.

Today I have another page for Art Journal Journey, deep in the forest.

I used the larger version of the CWS stencil which was used in yesterday's journal page. This page has been made in my A3 journal. I painted the background with grey acrylic, and then stenciled the trees over it in white. The idea for the little verse about the fairy queen came to me a few days ago, and I wrote it down, and collaged bits and bobs to my journal page to fit to it.

I am also linking to Craftroom challenge, make your own background.

At Schloss Kalkum the ducks were enjoying being fed:

I enjoyed the shadow play of the leaves:

This is the crest over the main entrance:

And as usual, the combination of the old walls, trees and the beautiful reflections are very pleasing to look at.

Afterwards I walked to visit the brown cattle, who were once again dozing in the sun. That's my shadow falling into the picture.

The skies were once again magical:

In the afternoon the darker clouds rolled through:

Have a good start in the week you all, take care,

and thanks a lot for coming by!