This month I'm celebrating the iris! They symbolize wisdom, hope, faith, valor, and their colors further extend the messages they send. Their history is rich with legends, cultural significance, literary reference, medicinal and cosmetic uses. There are many reasons to celebrate the iris!

I've never given much thought to dragons. However, the last few days they have captured my attention, from the quote above to literary references, and art work. 

Yesterday I spent some time exploring stories of dragons. I reread the stories of  Beowulf fighting the dragon, the red and white dragons fighting under Camelot during the time of King Arthur, and that led me to Glaurung and Smaug in Tolkien's tales. 

​So  today, when my daughter gave me this gorgeous  pen, I became even more delighted and entranced! The dragon featured is Chinese so I'll be exploring dragons all over the globe. 

This pen symbolizes love, growth, explorations and new directions. Thank you  Mycenea!

A friend invited me to the Artisan Guitar Show and it never occurred to me that I'd find tulips. If you follow my blog, you know that I am featuring the tulip this month, so I was delighted to meet Victor Paredes, the proud owner of an exquisite guitar created by Bill Collings from Philadelphia, PA. Collings guitars are extraordinary from an auditory as well as visual perspective. I'm not accomplished enough to make the  auditory determination, but I have been assured by the experts that these instruments raise the barre.  From a visual perspective, this guitar is museum quality. 

I was captivated by the detail on the 'tulip' guitar when it's owner came over and introduced himself. He told me the story of how his guitar was created, over a period of six years, and he shared personal stories and perspectives on the instrument he clearly loves. 

As our conversation continued, Victor told me that he has to sell his guitar because of some personal concerns. If you are interested, please let me know and I will send you his phone number. It is a treasure and he's hoping it will find a new home where it will be loved. 

I'm having so much fun playing in my kitchen! I've been tea staining, coffee staining, and baking papers to give them a vintage look! I'm working on making journals and I want them to have an aged feel. I've made a lot of mistakes because I jumped in before I read suggestions from people who know how to do this, and some of the results are delightful - well, at least to me!

In February a dear friend's mother died. I created a comfort journal to help her process her loss and give her comfort while remembering her loved one. Since then I have made several more but this is my favorite - probably because her mother's favorite flower was the rose.  The comfort journal provides quotes, writing prompts, and a list of ideas for self care. I asked her a few questions about her mother so I could customize it - her favorite color, flower, song, etc. If you have a loved one who has lost someone dear to them and likes to journal, you might want to make a comfort journal for them. 

This month I'm concentrating on tulips. I'll be painting or sketching at least one a day and creating  a list about tulips from my research - Tulips from A - Z. 
There is a comforting poem - below - about tulips and loved ones who are no longer with us. 
Many of my friends have lost loved ones and I hope this will provide comfort. 

Yesterday I had an unexpected and kind comment from someone who visited my gallery. This came during a time when I've been considering attempting another gallery show. It's been awhile, and I've never done one in Baltimore where I imagine the competition is considerable. I don't think people realize how much their comments can motivate and inspire. So if you happen to stop by again, thank you Laura!

The pumpkinseed sunfish started my series of stone paintings. I was stunned at the brilliance of his colors. I expect the vivid palettes in salt water fish, but seeing them in a fresh water fish took my breath away. 

I painted 8 different types of fish from the Yellow Breeches, as well as dragonflies, luna moths, kingfishers, great blue herons and more. 

My next series will probably focus on insects, using some of the new techniques I've been learning.