What's Flowering in the Garden and ICAD Roundup

Hello Friends

Spring and meteorological Summer are still teasing us, with good weather, then back to bad, so we plod on.  There's not much we can do about it, except complain or get on with it, or both.

Here's a few blooms that survived that nasty, salt laden, burning wind a week or so ago.

Oriental Poppy Royal Wedding

Forget me Nots

Cranesbill Geranium

Oriental Poppy Coral Sea

Alchemilla Mollis with Evening Primrose leaf photo bomb

Not sure! If anyone knows, please say!  I also have a blue flowering one, not yet open.

Edit: An extensive Google search reveals it is a Dwarf Yellow Iris Sisyrinchium.  I also have a pale blue one.

Rosa Rugosa

Arum Lilies {looking better from a distance, as something is nibbling away the edges}

The last bit of No Mow May around the rabbit family

It's so heartening to see so much colour as things survived those battering winds and rain.   Nature truly is miraculous.  Thankfully, many buds were still tightly closed so the delicate poppies and roses remained protected.

ICAD 2021

If you aren't interested in ICAD, then look away now, but I do hope you'll stay and see my work.

As some of you may remember, most summers now I take part in the annual Daisy Yellow Art event ICAD.  You can find out more here. 

I'm not following the 61 daily prompts, I'm just going to do my own thing.  With a break from previous years, I am going to keep my cards more simple than in the past, in an effort to try and focus on my drawing.  I have set myself some ground rules, which are:

1.  No using stamps or stencils, I must draw everything myself

2.  No use of gesso

3.  No collage or gluing things

4.  Set a 30 minute time limit per card so as not to spend all day on it {easily done}

The first two are drawn freehand using Spectrum Noir colouring pencils.  

1/61 Lavender spikes

2/61  Osteospermum

3/61  Stylised Allium 

For this one I drew a loose pencil circle for guidance {later erased}, then did mark making using Marvy Le Plume ink pens.

4/61  Stylised Sunflower

I inked the background to a flat colour with a broad tip alcohol pen, and then coloured in everything with more alcohol pens.  

5/61  Forget me Nots {in remembrance of my mother who had Alzheimer's} 

Freehand using a variety of marking pens, and graphite pencil detailing

I do so enjoy puttering, and even though I'm not good at it, it brings me so much joy and pleasure in our stormy world.

Until next time

Stay Safe, Stay Well