Linen Hearts, Snowdrops and Birds In Trees

Back from my little blog leave. I think there is the tiniest hint of spring in the air. We will certainly welcome it after the very cold winter we have had. Now they are threatening us with another very hot summer (remember the hot summer we were supposed to have last year). If they say the same thing every year, they will eventually get a hit!

This is my fifth in the series of The Woman Who Planted Trees. I have gone for a bit of colour co-ordination this time.


This is a pen and ink drawing with digital colour. I think these birds are planning on roosting in these trees. We are still having an abundance of birds feeding in the garden, particularly today when there was a light covering of snow. We seem to have a regular Song Thrush too. Thrushes used to be very common when I was a child but you rarely see any around these days. I just hope it remains safe from the prowling kitties.

I found the lovely card below in a local interiors and design shop. I like to go there to check out the cards and just experience being in a wonderfully old building with lots of old wooden beams and uneven floors. I think it probably dates to at least the 1500s but may be earlier. They often stock cards that are a bit out of the ordinary. The publishers are called Flytrappublishing and you can find them here. They are a family firm and some of the designs they use date back to the 1920s but they are all created by different generations of the same family. Being a great fan of printmaking, I particularly like the designs of Sarah and Tony Venus.

Felix and Moppy

Early snowdrops I photographed in a local churchyard a few years ago. I use this image as my desktop at the moment.

Lots of lovely spring flowers around now. These are some tulips I bought the other day

and a pot of hyacinths I treated myself to.

I was very tempted by these gorgeous, tiny linen hearts made by Etsy seller Adantine and I finally had to give in to temptation and purchase them. They are so pretty and beautifully made and she put two extra ones in as well which aren't pictured here. She has some beautiful items in her Etsy shop including the lovely fox and angel below which had already been sold. I haven't decided what to do with them yet but I think some of them will probably adorn a needlepoint. You can pop over to her shop and have a look here.

I found the book below at one of my favourite charity shops. I bought it for a fraction of its original price and was very pleased with my find. It is jam-packed full of the most beautiful botanical drawings, illustrations and paintings. I have posted a few below. I find botanical art quite amazing for its exquisite detail. Every imperfection of the plant or seed is faithfully recorded. Far better than a photograph. These works must have taken the artists hundreds of hours of work.

A Passion For Plants book by Shirley Sherwood

Dragon Arum - Camilla Speight - This is a small view of the complete picture in order to see the lovely pen and ink pointillism used. There is a very amusing story about this drawing which you can read here entitled "A Stink On The 10.30 From Paddington".

This is the complete version of the above

Bergamot And Cherimoya - Margaret Ann Eden

Hydrangea - Brigid Edwards

Amanda Popham is very well known for her lovely narrative and quirky ceramics. (You can see I am into quirky today!) I first saw her work years ago when the gorgeous Liberty of London had a whole section devoted to British art and craft. How I loved that part of the shop. It is gone now sadly but not forgotten, by me anyway. Amanda's work can be found in many galleries throughout the country and also on these websites: Marine House at Beer here and Imagine Gallery here.

Various Ceramics

But Hid My Fond Heart Jug

I found wonderful Scottish artist Ailsa Black quite by chance whilst browsing for another artist. I am really taken by her gorgeous contemporary artworks. Ailsa is based in Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland - one of my favourite areas. I particularly love her detailed pen and ink birds and her whimsical and very quirky paintings. Lots of birds sitting on animals and people can never be bad...lol. She has lots of other artworks on her website here.

Self Portrait

Lapwing With Brimstone Butterfly

Fox With Black Headed Gull

Black Grouse With Common Blue