New Orchid

I received a lovely new orchid as a gift. I really like the splotches just like watercolour paint dropped on to paper.

It's nice to have another orchid. I threw out my last two orchids a while ago as they had an infestation of mealy mugs.  I tried to get rid of the bugs but finally got tired of the ongoing battle. This one has two blooming stems and, right now, has lots of blossoms. The great thing about orchids is they keep their flowers for such a long time.

I've started some basil.  "Why start seeds in December?" you ask.  Well, because they are such a symbol of hope. The seedlings bright green perky leaves are cheerful and promise of good things( or tasty leaves in this case) in the future. I like to be reminded of the miracle of little black bits turning into big green plants. How does that happen? For all our science, we still really don't know. So I plant seeds even in the dead of winter. I've also planted some Greek oregano. They are tiny little plants and I am not convinced that I will be able to get them to full size but then the challenge is interesting. Damping off is the main threat right now so I am trying to be very careful with the watering. Can't let them dry out though as they would shrivel in no time.
 

Merry Christmas

 The Light of the World

Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light. John 3:19 NIV

It's All Up From Here

 

The shortest day of the year. My favourite and least favourite day of the year.  At last the days will be getting longer. Just a couple of weeks from now,  the sun will shine in our south facing windows and, with the light reflecting off the snow, the house will be  full of light. This is also the season for tasty oranges - full of colour, and sweet juice. If I was younger, I would say it is the season to build a snowman but now I will just remember the fun we had as children and with our children.

Tonight is also the night when Saturn and Jupiter will be in alignment. I believe this hasn't happened since 1226 or thereabouts. Our skies are cloudy so I guess I won't see it in person but I'm sure there will be photos on the internet tomorrow.

Take care everybody.

And Happy Shortest Day of the Year.

Christmas Greenery

 

I went to the grocery store intent on buying a poinsettia and was inspired by the greenery baskets at the store. I wasn't going to put up a Christmas tree but when I got home, I went out  and cut some greenery - some pine, balsam and hemlock. When I get close to the arrangement, I can get a faint whiff of the lovely balsam scent.

I did buy a poinsettia. I'm not very good at keeping them going but I will try to be a little more diligent this year.

I couldn't miss seeing all the other potted plants for sale near the poinsettias and I decided a dark pink cyclamen would brighten up the living room during the dull days of December and January.

And finally, I saw this little Christmas cactus.  I haven't had a Christmas cactus in a long time. It's a plant that is pretty easy to keep alive so hopefully it will be blooming for me next year, too.

So no lights or sparkles, but I like the idea of brightening up the house with a few new plants.

Keep well. 

 

Knitting with Leftover Yarn

I decided I should use up some of my leftover yarn. This pink in the shawl is acrylic, the beige and old rose stripes are a mohair blend.  The shawl is 200 st. across at the top using 4.5mm needles. I decreased one stitch each end every 4 rows at first and, after about 18", I switched to decreasing every 2 rows. It's a nice lightweight shawl that I will enjoy wearing on a chilly day when I sit at my computer.

I knit this afghan a little while ago.  The off-white yarn is acrylic, the cranberry is an alpaca blend, and the strips between the squares is a mohair blend.  The pattern was determined by how many squares of each colour I could knit from the available yarn. I did have a different arrangement in mind but I accidentally sewed two rows of the off-white consecutively and I didn't feel like undoing it so this is the end result. The alpaca and mohair yarns give it extra warmth without bulk.

Next project? Probably socks.

I'm not surprised that people have taken up knitting during the pandemic. A creative project with a defined beginning and end makes the days feel more structured. I have to say though that when I first starting knitting years ago, it made me tense. Now I have enough muscle memory that it's relaxing.

Keep well. Spring is coming.

 

Friday Flash Fiction Christmas Contest

This photo of a heucherella has nothing to do with today's topic. It's just a bit of greenery to remind us all the spring is not so far away.

The topic for this post is the Friday Flash Fiction Christmas Contest which runs from December 1st to December 18th. "What is this?" you ask.  This contest is for 100 word stories. Yup, a story in 100 words.  It's actually really fun to try to write one of these ultra short stories. Check out the Friday Flash Fiction website, and you will see a really wide variety of topics and styles. If the dull December days are getting you down, I challenge you to write a story. For the contest, you are allowed to submit three stories.

After the contest, I may post mine here.

Keep well and start planning your garden!

Air Plant Care

I received these air plants last February as a gift. Three of them are now making pups.  From what I read, they make pups after they have bloomed. As long as I have had them the two multi-leaved ones that have pups haven't bloomed but perhaps they had already bloomed. Anyway, they are now making pups.

During the summer, I had them on the kitchen windowsill but I felt that would be too cold for the winter months so I moved them to a bright spot further away from a window. I had been soaking them for an hour each week in distilled water with a little bit of orchid fertilizer added to the water, but I found that with the drier air of the colder season that they looked too dry. What to do? I didn't want to soak them more often and risk rotting out their base. I thought I would try putting them upside down in a shallow bowl for about half an hour a day.  This way the leaves get wet but the base stays more or less dry.

I really like the shape of this one. It was blooming when I got it. It had little purple flowers and the seed stalk has remained. The shoot on the left started growing in the summer.

I hope everyone is staying well and finding ways to stay busy while distancing.
 

Starry Night Watercolour

 Watercolour based on Youtube tutorial by Sharon Cullen Art.

THE HEAVENS  DECLARE THE GLORY OF GOD.  Psalm 19:1 NIV

Keep Calm

 This is a photo I snapped when we were in London UK several years ago. It seems relevant today as the cases of Covid 19 keep going up. I know we are going in to winter so it's not exactly the best time for ice cream, but you could substitute your favourite comfort food - chocolate cake, ginger cookies, etc.

Take care.

November Scenes

I thought I'd better get some November pictures before the snow comes.  The past several days have been lovely and warm, but cold weather is on the way.

Some of the weeds make puffy seeds.

Roots wrapped around rocks by the side of the road.

The weeds are almost shimmering in the low sun.

The white poplar tree stems contrast nicely with the cedars.

A mullein highlights a rough patch.

More puffy seeds.

A stand of skinny poplars.

Take care. Stay well.

Sunrise Watercolour Sketch

 I'm still watching various watercolour tutorials on Youtube. This little painting (4" x6") is based on an acrylic painting by Jay Lee who teaches on Youtube. He has watercolour tutorials as well as other media.

Other people I am following right now:

The Mind of Watercolour - mostly landscapes - likes to experiment

In the Studio of Michelle Weber - lots of techniques  Some videos on mistakes to avoid

Emily Olson Art - animals - super accomplished artist who can paint anything!  She has lots of suggestions for painting fur and feathers.

Louise de Masi -birds and animals. Lovely fresh style. Excellent at drawing.

In Canada, for reasonably priced art supplies visit www.paintspot.ca  This site is run by a group of artists, and they have a great selection of good quality paints and paper and accessories.

For a smile, watch mrandrewcotter on Youtube with his dogs Olive and Mabel. 

Also check out videos about Chaser, a super smart Border collie. There are a few videos with her - look for titles that include "1000 words" because she apparently knows 1,000 words.  So interesting to see the contrast between Olive and Mabel who are Labradors and Chaser who is a Border collie. Totally different personalities.

Keep well and keep looking up.

Rainbow Carrots

 We are having frosty weather so I decided to pull carrots from a pot outside. These are a variety called Rainbow Carrots which I bought from Halifax Seeds. I would imagine other companies carry this kind of assortment as well. The white carrot at the top is 8" long to the kink in the root so it is a good size, and the yellow one is a substantial size, too. I don't know why there is such variation in growth pattern as they were all in the same pot. In other locations, I found the red carrots grew better than even the orange carrots. Gardening- full of mysteries. I find the flavour of the red, orange and yellow carrots pretty similar, but the white carrots have a hint of parsnip taste. I like having the different colours as they brighten up any dish you add them to.

Late October Colours

I've been delaying doing a post as I am still uncomfortable working with the photos and getting them up on the blog with my new computer.  I have found a system for now but there may be a less round about way.  I'll keep watching Youtube videos for help. 

The leaves have all fallen off the trees and the days are dull. November, my least favourite month, is just around the corner.  With outings curtailed because of Covid, I knew I would need some projects to keep me going.

I signed up for a grammar course which is proving to be fun and helpful. You may see fewer grammar mistakes going forward.
 

I went through my left-over yarn and found three varieties that I thought would go well for an afghan. It will be off-white, old rose pink and cranberry. Maybe I'll post a photo when it's finished.

I also have been adding to the zazzle store I mentioned in the last post. Their interface is super easy to use and it's been fun to make latte mugs, and magnets, and coasters and spiral notebooks and wall pictures as well as a few other items. It gets to be a bit addictive because it is so easy to make a store. I see that every week they have some kind of sale. I'll keep putting up my store address in case anyone wants to look at it. It's not likely you would remember the name if it only appeared in one post. 

www.zazzle.ca/store/purpleasterdesigns .

I hope you are all finding ways to enjoy your time at home.

The pandemic won't last forever. Keep looking up.

New Ventures

 I have been in technological purgatory for the last few days and I am thrilled to pieces that I was able to upload this photo to Blogger. I am switching from my old, dying PC to a new Mac and there has been much hair pulling, a couple of calls to tech support, and LOTS of googling for solutions. Thank you, Youtubers.

This is a photo of Bella, my neighbours' dog.  She often accompanies me on my walks. She is very sweet but rarely wants any pats. She is a dog on a mission on our walks checking out all the driveways and making other dogs, who are responsibly penned up, go crazy when she pokes her nose at them through the fence.

Some maples are still colourful but we are passed the peak of the colour. 

I have started a new venture.  I have opened a store on zazzle.ca. I have been toying with the idea of an online shop for a while and finally settled on zazzle because they do all the backend stuff. I don't need to make any money from this which is a good thing as the profit margins are pretty slim, but it is something to help keep me busy over the darker months. I have some coffee mugs with garden and wildflower designs, some magnets with beach themes, and some blank cards with various photos. There are some other miscellaneous items as well. If you want to check out the shop, the address is www.zazzle.ca/store/purpleasterdesigns .    The name of the shop is PurpleAsterDesigns. The easiest way to get there is to go to the zazzle address. Zazzle has something on sale every week so sometimes coffee mugs or cards or whatever are 40% off. I'll post it if there is a relevant sale.

I hope you are all keeping well in every way. Take care.

Fall Scenes

I saw some nice colour on my walk today.  Always good to get a good shot of colour before the dark days of fall.

 Keep safe.

A Day Out

 

We had a lovely day out spending the afternoon visiting with family. We were about 2 1/2 hours drive west of home at a park on the St. Lawrence in the area known as the Thousand Islands.  The grandkids and their dad went for a one hour boat tour around some of the islands on the tour boat in the photo.

The sky and water were incredibly blue.  You can see the clouds reflected in the water. Click on photo for full screen.

The highlights of the clouds were so brilliant. Click on photo for full screen.

This little guy kept hanging around our picnic table hoping for a hand-out but we didn't have any food with us as this is yellow-jacket wasp season and none of us like being bothered by wasps.

A little miniature lighthouse to add to the nautical theme.

Lots of boats of various shapes and sizes at the marina.  We saw quite a few motor boats on the water but no sailboats. It was quite chilly down by the water but we even saw an intrepid man in t-shirt and shorts zooming around on his sea-doo.

The park had a nice playground for the children to amuse themselves in while the adults had a chat.

We may not see the grandkids until next spring if things continue the way they are with Covid so we were very thankful to get in a visit.

September Days

 

The nighttime temperatures are close to the freezing point and the trees and perennials are changing colour.

A colourful maple nestled in among the other trees.

Josephine Honore Japanese Anemone.

A funny angle of old Pepper who is now 23 years old. He earns his keep trimming the grass in the backyard. Silly old boy. I have owned him for 17 years now.

Jewelweed, Physostegia and Fungi

 

I was going to have the jewelweed photos at the top but I was having trouble rearranging the photos which for some reason went up in a backwards order.  Anyway, here are the fungi growing on some poplar logs.

We were without the internet for four days as our modem died. The thing I missed the most was the Weather Network and being able to check the radar map!  The news was same old, same old.

Some physostegia. They are a very pale pink which I find rather disappointing but the bees like them anyway.

They have taken over an area that used to have pale purple asters.  I guess that area is destined to be pale. I'm surprised the wild asters didn't put up more of a fight. There are a few plants left but a fraction compared with last year.

This area    also used to be full of asters and now it is primarily jewelweed and goldenrod. Never know what a year will bring.

The jewelweed (impatiens capensis) is quite pretty and the bees also like it.

Interesting shape - almost looks like it has a gill slit.

Lots of lovely spots and streaks. It is native to our area and pops up all over my gardens.. It is an annual and very easy to pull out. I don't really mind it. I have dealt with poison ivy, thistle, stinging nettles in my yard so pretty jewelweed is fine.