This is my mama Bonnie holding me when I was 5 weeks old. My mama and me, we go way back.
If you share about moms and how hard they work, my mama did all that. Six of us to care for on a regular basis (plus the extras who showed up), in addition to an always odd and crowded collection of pets, animals, and plants. Canning, sewing, crocheting, cleaning, cooking, shopping; repeat. But also loving, guiding, correcting, teaching, caring (and dare I say, on occasion, threatening us with “you better behave or else,” we were afraid of the “or else”).
Sending Mother’s Day wishes, hugs, and love to everyone who has a mother. (I hope you all raised your hands.) And to all the moms who have children, have lost children, who have children going through tough times, who have furry children, who have grandchildren-all the loves to you!
“I thank my God every time I remember you.” -Philippians 1:3 NIV
Here is what happened in round 2 of flower hammering. I tell you, pansies make great prints! I don’t have much else of substance blooming yet in the garden, but I’ll keep experimenting as the season goes along.
This is what the cover paper looks like after hammering.
I tried hammering this batch of flowers on paper I’d already added color to. It turned out very nice by the end, and the flower prints give great texture. But I was a bit disappointed that the prints did not turn out as well as I had hoped. At least the yellow/orange ones did not. You can barely see the stem I tried, and darker bits where I added leaves.
The poor smashed flowers.
Here is try number 2. You can see where the prints on the previous page soaked through, which is cool. There is some beneath my arranged flowers as well. The bleed through is at least 2 pages worth. This page is all white except for some bleed through. I crammed the flowers, leaves, and stem with the hope of getting plenty of color.
This is how the back of the cover sheet looks after hammering. Things tend to move around a bit. I start out with the cover paper straight, but by the end, it’s all twisted. It’s hard to hold it still and not hammer your fingers!
Oooooh, yes! This is where I’m getting results. Just look at those pretty pansy faces on the white background! You have to gently peel off the petals, or in some cases, just let them dry and rub them off. Bonus: The cover page also has wonderful colors! I’m saving that for another project.
I LOVE this! I haven’t done anything else with this flower hammering page, but the ideas are brewing. Growing? Smashing? ;0
I did go back to the green background page and finished that mixed media project. I LOVE how it turned out! This is one of my favorites so far. The smashed flowers really add texture and the greens tie in so nicely. I saw another creator (several actually) who added circles to their art. So I played with some gold glitter acrylic paint. Wow! Perfect touch. You can see the other materials I used on this page.
Et voila! Stamp pads, rubber stamps, hammered flowers, chalks, washi tape, acrylic paint, colored pencils. Plus a stick for painting and an empty tape-dispenser plastic disc for the circles.
Have you tried flower hammering? Or creating of any kind? What is your favorite trick?
It’s Earth Day 4 22 24! Earth Day with a palindrome!
Here are some pictures of a day trip we took yesterday to see Palouse Falls. These gorgeous falls are located in southwestern Washington state. Plenty of people had the same idea, but it did not feel crowded. The remote roads were not busy, the parking lot had room, and it was easy to wander off by yourself.
It was slightly windy, but that kept it from feeling too hot. Because the sun was on full blaze. The 2-mile dirt road drive from the paved road was dusty and had sections of solid washboard, but other than that, perfect conditions.
I recommend a spring trip. We loved seeing the green hillsides (soon to be brown, dry, and filled with wildfire potential) and wildflowers as we drove.
How many marmots can you see? There is quite a colony! See below for the answer. They are quite unafraid of people, and apparently used to being given treats. If you go, watch the bottom of the fence (to keep you from falling off) to see little entrances they’ve dug to access the grass of the picnic areas and the people. We did not feed them, but a few approached to see if we reached out their way. When we didn’t, they toddled back under the fence to their edge of the cliffs.
We also enjoyed watching the swifts who flew all about the waterfall, grabbing bugs and chattering to each other.
Sadly, we were unable to take the trail down to the bottom of the waterfalls. Due to multiple tragic accidents, those trails are blocked off. That fall is a long way down!
What a beautiful way to celebrate the amazing earth our God made! I am in awe.
If you go, know that this is remote desert rattlesnake country. Several warnings are on display reminding people to be careful (and advising them that the nearest hospital is quite far). Be prepared for dry desert conditions and follow the rules to stay safe! This is a day use state park. Not too far to the east is Lyons Ferry State Park where you can access the river. There is also camping nearby.
Love, Laughter, and Life 