I have been taking a lot walks to find plants to make more ink. This time of year there are so may things to choose from. In July I decided on wild bergamot, Queen Anne’s lace and a few day lilies I still had growing in my garden. I use wild bergamot to make infused vinagar (btw it’s really delicious) it causes the vinagar to … Continue reading Ink Making 8.18.20
I finally dove in and made ink for the first time. It is as gratifying as any creative project I have ever done with the added bonus of making my own medium that is one of a kind. I finally got the supplies I had been waiting weeks for the day before I planned another visit to Pa to see mom, so I decided to … Continue reading First Ink
clover bud tea for ink Continue reading Clover
For my next natural dye/ink experiment I decided to see what happens with dandelions. When I picked them there was a really beautiful yellow stain on my fingers, so I hoped that that would be the color I got after the steep. I steeped the flowers for 10 hrs by pouring boiling water on them and putting the lid on. The tea came out more … Continue reading Dandelions
8 weeks into self quarantine upstate and I just had to get out and go visit my mother in Pa. for Mother’s Day. Armed with a mask and a spray bottle of sanitizer, I was ready for a week of family from a social distance. The best part of my days were the walks I took with both my sisters who live in area. We … Continue reading Spring in Pa.
Last week my sister Carol who lives in Reading, Pa. posted pictures of some jelly and simple syrup she had made from violets she had foraged. I was intrigued by the idea of making the jelly so I asked her for the recipe. Although we are a few weeks behind PA in the season I knew we would soon have a lot of violets in … Continue reading Violets and the beginning of an artistic journey into natural color.
This weekend Dan and I went to get another couple of buckets of ramps before the season is over and they flower. After the rain last week and along with the couple of warm sunny days I couldn’t wait to see what else was coming up. I was thrilled to see all the bits of color peeking out, the violets were opened in full force … Continue reading The Woods in Spring #3
April 20, 2010 This beauty is called a Fairy Spud. It’s so tiny but actually very visible in the woods right now, the dead leaves are a perfect backdrop that enables the eye to catch the color from above. A good lesson to remember for when I am painting, “it doesn’t take much”. There were some new things that popped up in the past few … Continue reading More notes from the woods.
Dan and I went for a hike up into the woods where he forages for ramps every year. I really wanted to see what else was popping up along with the ramps. Here’s what we found. I can identify a few of them but I am not quite sure if the small white one in the 6th pic is an Anemone. I really love the … Continue reading Finding Spring Treasures in the Woods
Yesterday I went to a seminar held at The Surrogate Courthouse in downtown NYC. I have never been in this particular building, I arrived like most ny’ers rushing in and having to put my heavy coat, bags and cellphone in the bins to go through security. I rushed to the elevator and went to the second floor to get to the meeting. It was a … Continue reading Secret treasures behind the revolving door.
Leah's Notes and Art Blog 