Roadtrip and Art

It's been a couple of weeks since I last posted. Life has been a little busy with family visiting and then taking a road trip to Franklin and Nashville, Tennessee for our niece's wedding.

I had never been to Nashville and had so much fun! It is THE place to visit for country music fans, but even if you aren't (which I am not for the most part), there is so much to see and do.

One of the places we visited was Leiper's Fork, a small art community that is still quite rural and very beautiful.

And then there was the wedding, which was just beautiful and so happy! We loved being there for it!

Back home I haven't done a lot of art. Somehow I got out of the rhythm and haven't quite found it again. But I will! I did play some more with charcoal and gesso and refined this drawing a little more. I'm glad I didn't stop where it was in my last blog post.

This below was a quick 30-minute drawing. I love the mood of it.

And then with this drawing below I covered the paper with oil bar and then drew on it with charcoal. It gives it a very different look. I also used some gesso for the highlights.

All of this black and white drawing reminded me of this amazing moth I found on our front steps a couple of weeks ago. It was big! And I found out it's called the giant leopard moth. I've never seen one before. What a beauty!

And, of course, there has to be color in my life. Lots of it! I finally finished this little cow painting a couple of days ago and it's already on the way to it's new home in California. Apparently the grass is greener there... :)

Speaking of color, I'm loving my new crochet project. It makes me happy!

Our weather has been gorgeous and our garden is exploding with color. I might have to do a blog post just with garden photos. In our climate, things bloom pretty much all year round, but never as beautifully and lusciously as in the spring.

Linking this to the fabulous creativity of Paint Party Friday. Go visit for more amazing art!!

Warm wishes for a sunny week for you!

❧ Silke

Fun, fun, fun!!

Dear Friends,

Just a quick hello to let you know that all is well. I appreciate all your comments on my last posts and as I have time, I will reply to you via e-mail.

Right now, my days are filled with fun, fun, fun with my sister and her family who are visiting from Germany. My nephews are here of the very first time and I am soaking up every minute with them.

Can you tell they love the beach?!?

Sending lots of love your way!

❧ Silke

Blossoming Changes

As spring is exploding here and everything is starting to blossom, I am feeling some changes budding in myself. It always seems to happen after very busy times. And often in the spring - after hibernating through the winter.

At first I only have a vague sense of something shifting and something new emerging. Ideas and suggestions by others (often Daniel) have taken root and are starting to emerge. And then, suddenly there is more clarity. Does that happen to you? 

This morning I woke up and decided to take a very beginning drawing class at SCAD, an idea Daniel and even my dad and sister had mentioned to me a while ago. Back then I wasn't ready. Now I am. I'll sign up on Monday and if I get in will start on the 28th. I'll keep you updated.

I also decided that I want to pay more attention to myself, including my appearance. That may sound shallow, but it isn't. I feel like I have really developed creatively and suddenly it seems that my outside doesn't match the inside anymore. I've become much more playful in my inner life and somehow my outer self hasn't caught up.

I tend to not put much thought into what I wear and how I wear things. I find some things that are comfortable and I wear those. I have many things in my closet I never wear anymore because they take a little effort to put together with the right kinds of accessories. I tend to wear the same earrings, the same necklaces, the same scarves. So....I want to take my closet and look at it with artist eyes and start making full use of it. Even though that means that I might actually have to iron more (not my favorite activity). I'll let you know how it goes. 

As part of that whole change (and I don't know how that fits in), I want to pay more attention to all the beautiful things that are out there, especially on blogs and Etsy. I want to spend more time delving into this creative community, being immersed in it and sharing what I find. Exactly how I am going to do this, I don't know yet.

My aunt, uncle and cousin who were visiting are all on their way and enjoying warmer climates for now (Florida and Mexico). The visit with them was great fun and we enjoyed every minute of it!

On the bird front, the bluebirds have started flying into the bird house with nesting materials (I'll have to put out a few of my yarn scraps for them to use). How exciting!! This morning I saw the cowbirds sticking very close to them, though, and I hope they won't lay an egg into the bluebird nest. I did read that the bluebird house openings are usually too small for the cowbirds and I hope that's true.

Wishing you a most wonderful weekend! I'm looking forward to catching up with some of your blogs today and tomorrow!!

Checking in and a Thank You!

We've been having a great time sightseeing with my family here in Savannah. The weather has sort of cooperated although it's been much cooler than we thought it would be. 

It's been a whirlwind trip for them. My aunt and uncle are heading out and south along the coast toward Florida today, but my cousin, Britta, is staying until Friday. Daniel and Britta went kayaking on Saturday. If you want to see pictures, click here to go to my cousin's blog. 

Tomorrow, construction is starting on our back deck, which will add another element of excitement at our house... It'll be nice to have it done. I'll have to be sure to take before and after pictures. 

And last, but definitely not least, a big THANK YOU to Theresa for this amazing package I received after winning one of her OWOH giveaways. What I won were the gorgeous heart-shaped earrings, but what arrived was so much more!! 

Plus, she also generously included my egret print in this beautiful "Just Because..." treasury sporting some of my most favorite colors. Click here to see it larger and maybe even leave a comment!

Thank you so much Theresa! You are wonderful!! 

I am sure you already know about this talented artist, but if you by chance haven't visited Theresa's blog, Faerie Moon Creations, do so by clicking here! You'll be amazed!!

I hope you've all been doing well. I haven't had much computer time at all, but am looking forward to checking in with you again soon. It's amazing to me how much I miss you all and my blog during these times, especially since two years ago I didn't even know what a blog was... 

Wishing you a joyous Fat Tuesday!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Yesterday, Daniel had gotten some beautiful branches at the river to put in our pretty hanging vase by the front door. When he took the old flowers out of it, he found not just one,

or even two,

but three frogs who had made their home in that little space (can you see the third one way down in the vase in the picture below?). AND a lizard, who was too fast for me to snap a picture.

Everyone was given new homes for the time being and the resulting arrangement turned out beautiful!

With that I wish my American friends and family a Happy Thanksgiving and am signing off for the next two weeks while I enjoy family and travel! I wish you all a most wonderful couple of weeks and will see you when we get back!!

Visit to Germany, Part 3

Aside from spending time with my sister and her family and traveling a good bit through Germany, and the wedding, my dad and I had fun visiting Münster and doing a little sightseeing in the area. Although, we both agreed that there wasn't nearly enough time to do everything we had wanted to do.

Plus, the fact that I developed a slight cold toward the end of my stay and we were both tired from so much activity, forced us to build in some R&R time and enjoy my dad and his wife, Ingrid's, backyard and their wonderful little dog, a German Pinscher. Of course, I totally forgot to take pictures of those relaxed times...

But here a few pics of me seeing a newly developed part of town for the first time (they did a great job with it!),

visiting the bi-weekly market (only one short visit!),

eating with my dad at one of my very favorite restaurants, Vapiano (it's already in several big cities in the US and coming to even more, just not anywhere near Savannah... sigh!),

- don't you just love that big olive tree in the middle of the table? - ,

drinking a cappuccino,

and another with a couple of yummy little pastries,

and visiting an old mansion right around where my dad and Ingrid live, but that we had never explored.

Isn't it something?

I love those bright colors!

It houses a museum at the moment.

Can you imagine living in a huge mansion like that? And washing all those windows?!?

It was a fantastic visit!

Danke, Papa!!

Tomorrow, I'll have some nature pictures I took over in Germany of all the different things we saw in the woods while going on some wonderful little hikes. After that, a couple of odds and ends, one art related. And then some knitting updates ... I've been VERY busy since I got back!

Thank you all for your great comments and visits! I hope to visit all of your blogs this weekend!!

Visit to Germany, Part 2

An especially enjoyable part of my trip was staying with my sister and her great family for a few days and getting to enjoy their company and play with my nephews. Oh, what fun it was!!

There was much climbing,

running,

launching of ships with important cargo (sadly, the ship took off down the river without a proper photo),

examining of bugs,

jumping for joy,

more climbing,

vital scientific experiments with the common dandelion,

driving lessons,

for for those future race drivers,

and merry-go-rounds for the young,

and the young-at-heart.

Of course, having such a good time can be quite exhausting and called for plenty of good food 

and rest in the sun! 

I had a most wonderful time! Danke, Caroline und Familie!!!

P.S. For those of you who asked about the custom of the bride and groom sawing the log in front of the church, I wrote about it in the comments of the last post. Speaking of which, thank you for all the heartfelt comments since I've been back!!