"Fair Weather Friends" & Hummingbird Visitors

Early this week I completed "Fair Weather Friends" and this painting is now sitting on my diningroom table having dried thoroughly and is awaiting a trip to the basement for it's protective spray coating.  At the moment it looks like another birdhouse painting is in the works but I'm still figuring out exactly what size it will be, the colors, the house iteself, bird/birds or even, will there be a bird.  Decisions, decisions.......  For now though, thrilled to be finished with this large piece, it is available on ETSY -  www.artfulcreations.etsy.com  .

I tried an experiment yesterday with the hummingbirds to see if I could get even better photos then I did last time (see my post from a few weeks ago) by trying to stand outside this time, rather then in the kitchen and having to shoot through the kitchen door.

I went outside on the back porch and stood very still, as close to the feeder as I thought I could dare go and to my surprise, the sweet little female I call the "percher" came right over, to spite my presence so near the feeder.

She was the first of the hummingbirds to arrive this season and the first to feel at home enough to perch while she drank.  She didn't seem to mind me being outside at all so I was able to take quite a few nice photos of her and it really did make a difference not having to deal with trying to shoot through the screen door.

She still comes by on a constant basis each day and at least once a day, stops by with her mate or her girlfriend and they sit on the feeder and have a drink together.  Hopefully one of these times I'll be able to capture the birds feeding together with the camera , I'll keep my eyes out anyway, you never know.  (click to make any of the photos larger)

Back Porch Hummingbirds

I got a really wonderful gift last Christmas from my Mother-In-Law, a hummingbird feeder that is now hanging on my back porch, right inbetween my flower pots.

This will turn out to be one of those "greatest gifts of all time" kind of things.  I had forgotten about it this spring until Chris reminded me of it and I read the directions, filled it up with sugar water (nectar as I call it) and hung it outside.

For about a week all was quiet and then hummingbirds started coming for a regular drink.  I'm starting to feel like the neighborhood bar but in a good way.  Everyone seems to be coming by for their daily, no, make that every 5 minute nectar fix. 

We seem to get a variety of  visitors but have two "regulars" as I call them that pretty much are here constantly.  As the weeks have gone by they are more comfortable and at home by the feeder.  They have become used to the kitchen door opening and closing, me standing with a camera to photograph them and just the regular noises of the kitchen, running of the sink etc.  The guy above (I'm sure he is a boy since he is so colorful) we call him "red neck".  He seemed very uneasy in the beginning but now actually perches when he is drinking.

I believe he might be the mate to this little hummingbird, we've taken to calling her "the percher" (I know, you are blown clear away by these super creative names I've thought up) because she is the first hummer that actually sat down and made herself comfortable at the feeder.  She perches constantly and drinks for long minutes as you can see in the photos below. 

These two are seen together all the time, which is the reason I think they might be mates.  Just the other day she was at the feeder and he flew by, came back around again and hovered near the feeder...then flew off to sit in the big tree in the backyard.  She watched him fly away and then immediately followed him.  Sometimes they visit the feeder together and both sit down on opposite ends to have a drink.

So this definately goes down as one of the best gifts I have received because I've been spending lots of time, with my camera, at the back door enjoying every minute of the hummingbird visits.  I plan to spend more time this summer getting some different shots of these sweet little birds.  If you want to see a more up close view of the hummingbirds, click each photo to make it larger and you'll be able to get a better look.

 

All this activity is not lost on Dudley and little Orchid who have been a bit ticked off that I've been spending so much time by the back door.  At first Orchid thought company way coming and she would bark as I was standing there with my camera.  I quickly shushed her so she wouldn't scare the birds away from the feeder.  They are a bit annoyed that so much attention is being given to the birds rather then to them.  After all, they are adorable, have beautiful hair, give mom lots of love and kisses (with the occasional bad behavior thrown in for good measure) and assure me they would drink sugar water if I bothered to make it for them so why they wonder, am I not just taking photos of them instead of spending all my time at the back door with the birds.  This photo shows them coming in to keep watch with me as I take my photos.  As I pointed out to them, they get plenty of photos taken and are not exactly lacking in love and attention.   If they weren't so short and had better eyesight, they could enjoy the back porch visitors with me.

"Essence" Acrylic Hummingbird Painting

The newest piece to come off my easel is "Essence" a hummingbird painting inspired by the sweet little visitors I've been seeing in my back garden. Each year I plant cascade geraniums in my hanging pots out back I always look forward to the hummingbirds they attract. I was just in the kitchen last night, cleaning up after dinner and was getting ready to close the blinds when I saw a little hummer visiting all 3 of my geraniums. Right before dark, this little guy was a real treat to watch as I was finishing up my day.

I had lots of fun with the background on this one and in fact, liked the effect so much, I will definately be creating more paintings with this abstract and fanciful style to them. The painting measures 24" x 30" on 1 1/2" deep gallery wrap canvas.

At least I get to enjoy this little hummingbird for a few weeks before he ends up flying out of my house. I hope you are inspired each day by the creatures in nature that come to visit in your own garden. www.artfulcreations.etsy.com

Spring & Summer Dreams....

What motivates and inspires you on a daily basis?? You know, the thing that gets your juices flowing and brings happiness to your days simply because it exists...... I know it is a different thing or concept for everyone but for me, it is my spring and summer garden. As spring seems to be inching closer each day now, I wanted to take a walk through my favorite garden photos, starting from spring and moving through summer. I look forward to each May because that is the month my beautiful Bearded Iris collection blooms....I have a lot of them and seeing them each day and cutting some for a vase in the house, always makes me happy.

Before my Bearded Irises bloom though, I have the pleasure of seeing my English Irises pop their cheerful heads up and surprise me with lovely blooms.

Each spring I look forward to the arrival of my Clematis. I have pink, deep purple and white!

Clematis buds bursting into life.....

A lovely example of some deep purple.....which just happens to be my favorite color in the world.

Around the front of my house, I'll start to plant my annuals as the fear of frost diminishes.

You might remember the wooden planters that my husband salvaged from a fence of ours that fell down a few years back. I had him keep the wood until I could think of what to do with it. I thought making planters from these wooden planks would be really cool, so that is what I had him do. The annuals have just been planted as well as the 3 flower carpet roses. The mosaic birdhouse is from the very talented artist Michelle Legler www.mosaicqueen.typepad.com .

In June I have my Lilies to look forward to. I enjoy them outside as well as cutting them to bring into house.

My backyard perennial garden.....you can see along the right hand side that my Hydrangeas are starting to form their buds, they will be thinking about blooming soon. The Flower Carpet Roses down in the front are full of color and the Lilies in the back row are just starting to bloom.

Some time has passed and now my Hydrangeas are in full bloom.

Pots hang from my back porch and go down each step of my back stairs leading to my garden and driveway area. If you think I might be laying on the ground to get this shot, you would be right. From this angle I can see the Coreopsis, Yarrow and Coneflowers in bloom.

From this photo I see my garden in the height of summer, in full bloom. The Carpet Roses up front are cascading over the curb...sometimes I have to trim them back as they can run pretty wild, but I love wild.....in the garden anyway. The Black Eyed Susans are in full bloom and the Lilies that looked so pretty a couple of months before have been ecliped by my tall perennial Hibiscus you can see all the way in the back. One of my favorites in the garden.....

A pink Hibiscus in full bloom.....

Last but not least, this sweet hummingbird that likes to visit my back porch. He and his friends love my Cascading Geraniums and no matter what I'm doing when they visit, I find myself dropping it and racing for the camera.

I hope you've enjoyed the walk through my spring and summer.....they will be here before we know it.

Duck Egg Collection

I had some egg orders to paint last week and as it turns out, it is easier to paint multiples of a design, rather then one at a time.

These are all duck eggs with the exception of the Hummingbird pin with the ribbon, that is a goose egg shell. It happened to be lots of fun taking photos of them in a grouping as well, as you would see them if they were in a collection.

The Little Spring Blue Bird has been very popular on pins and turkey eggs so I thought he deserved a duck egg of his own so he could really go on desplay.

Likewise for the Hummingbird, I was doing a custom order for a pin so I thought I might as well paint him on a duck egg as well.

Just last week I got in an order of these great acrylic stands. They hold the duck egg beautifully and altogether, make a beautiful display.

I also painted a couple of rose eggs as they have been popular on pins and duck eggs alike. This way I will have a couple in stock. I'm slowing getting them all listed on my ETSY shop today.

Next post I'll be showing a watercolor that I started months ago and had put down for awhile. You've probably long forgotten about it by now. I finished it just yesterday though and I'm pleased with the way it turned out.

Purple Clematis & Hummingbird

I shipped out my last mailbox of the year a few weeks ago. Even though right now, I'm taking time off from this kind of work to concentrate on some other painting projects, I really did like the subject as it reminds me of kinder months weather wise.

The customer wanted deep purple Clematis as this is the flower that grows by her mailbox post. She said they always attract a good bunch of red throated hummers each year as well , so she wanted to combine these themes for her new mailbox. I hope that the purple Clematis and Hummingbird will bring a bit of warm weather spirit to your winter.

Back To The Garden Center & Painting A Hummingbird

Today I went back to the nursery I love to shop at, actually, I visited 2 garden centers that I love. Chris and I made an afternoon of it, he went with me and we had lunch, dessert and yes, my extra hot vanilla chai latte with spices as well. Then we went shopping for some more flowers for my summer pots.

I bought some more Geraniums as well as Potato Vines to put in my hanging and large standing pots. I think the Potato Vines I bought last time, that I've already potted, have been growing longer and longer. They look very pretty potted with the Geraniums. I also bought Dahlias this year and I'm very excited about adding those to my potted collection. After talking last year with a lady up the street who loves her Dahlias, I decided to get some for myself. It was a tough decision let me tell you because there was a whole huge greenhouse filled with nothing but all different color and varieties of Dahlias. In the end, I settled on 3 I really liked, a red, a pink and a pinky/peach with yellow. They were all so beautiful, it was hard to decide.

Well, aside from buying plants, I have been painting as well. I painted the above miniature the other day after I saw a hummingbird right outside my kitchen window, he was flying around by my hanging Geranium pots. I was so inspired by this little guy, I got busy painting right away and the above is my own version. Now that planting season is here, I'll be mixing art and flowers a lot more in my posts. They are both interconnected for me anyway so I'll be able to show a lot of inspiration pieces.

The Dahlia is a flower that I haven't painted yet so, I hope to take care of that this summer by creating my first watercolor Dahlias.

Hummingbird Mailbox

Mailboxes are popular home decor items for me. This is one of my most favorite and fun designs, my Hummingbird mailbox. I had painted them in the wallmount style before but this one was my first order for a rural style with this design. If I get caught up on everything I need too, I'll be listing this photo on my website this week.