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A bit of doodling.
I've been rereading The Little Prince
(thank you Liz for suggesting it!).
Towards the beginning of the book Antoine de Saint Exupery writes about being lost in the dark and that it can be useful to know geography. I've been thinking of different kinds of darkness and it made me wonder what I would want if I were the one lost in the dark?
I kind of thing it would be a song or a poem...
Happy Solstice.
Brick pigment. Middle row has charcoal added and the bottom iron/oak gall.
I am practicing using a dip pen for fine lines and lettering.
Getting better...
Plan B:
I knew there was a reason I was keeping those beads...
I will need more wire though.
Hopefully with nothing dangling they will leave it alone.
Charcoal ink, ochre, and mullein (I think).
Playing with flowers again today.
I also set up my Christmas tree.
I tried hanging an ornament that the cats couldn't destroy.
It only managed to stay on the tree for about 5 seconds.
The ornament is fine though and I have a "plan b."
Lots of playing today.
The top black is iron oxide/oak gall and the bottom charcoal.
I did some sewing today on my Peace and Plenty quilt.
A magic feather inspired by Jude, for hope.
"Hope is the thing with feathers-
That perches in the Soul-"
I like the backside too. The contrast makes a difference, but also the sketchiness of it.
I've tried looking for the meteor shower a couple times but I think we just get too much light or there's been clouds at the wrong times or it's just the wrong time.
Another poem that I've shared before and love so much...
"Crepuscular midnight stands by the road,
Where the stars have spilled from it's purse.
You cannot go over the road past the fence
Without trampling the universe.
When did the stars ever grow so low
And midnight fall to the feather-grassed ground..."
Boris Pasternak
This morning I realized a butterfly made with a piece of paper I had doodled on had lines that resembled a topographical map on the underside.
It made me think of migration and how that is tied to seasons.
The book in the background is Winter Solstice, An Essay by Nina Maclaughlin. I want to read more by her.
Tonight's sunset.
And, dots of course:
Rose hip, Willow, and rose petals.
The first two are sunset colors.
This morning I noticed a dot on the paper I made this summer and thought, interesting.
Just the way it fell...
I also strained the rose hips that were soaking in alcohol. The dot on the top is a sample of that "ink." Not great color but it smells fabulous and I am considering making another batch as a tincture.
The middle dot is rose hip ink made last year by simmering the rose hips in water, and the bottom rose hip ink made last year by simmering mashed rose hips in water.
The water based rose hip inks seem much more colorful, especially the third sample. Maybe the result of heat? I will be making more soon.
I didn't alter this photo and I am not sure why the leaf is so pink, it's the same one I shared a few days ago. Maybe sunrise? I remember thinking it was beautiful this morning but not if I actually perceived it as this color when I took the picture.
Today's lunch: the last of the red lentil/squash soup I made over the weekend with pot stickers (from the store) and crispy kale.
I have some time off over the next few weeks and am trying to do some cleaning, organizing and finishing of projects.
Today I tackled the front porch.
I was about to compost the garlic leaves when I realized they would make terrific twine.
Today's dot landed in one of my sketchbooks. This is the sketchbook that I randomly dropped lots of alcohol ink dots into and then have been adding to on occasion.
I might glue this dot down...
Last Sunday's newsletter from "Poetry Unbound" quotes a letter from Emily Dickinson. The phrase that caught me, "and so I sing as the Boy does by the Burying Ground-because I am afraid-"
So many different reasons to sing.
And...something I shared on Instagram in response to the prompt "unexpected." Something I've been meaning to share here, especially after Nancy wrote about the bridge and not having her camera.
It was amazing.