Happy June!

 It's so wonderful to see the flowers blooming again, to hear the wrens trilling in the early morning, and to get out and enjoy the warm sunshine! Of course it's not all wonderful, with the black flies buzzing around one's head in the garden, and the woodchucks popping by to nibble the perennials, but overall it's still glorious after a cold winter and rainy spring. We finally had to put away all the bird feeders after a few nocturnal visits from a bear. We're still hanging up a suet feeder during the day, and bringing it in at night, as there is constant activity from catbirds, nuthatches, a variety of woodpeckers, blue jays, sparrows, and mockingbirds. Also the hummingbirds are back after their incredible journey from the southern hemisphere. It's hard to imagine those tiny birds migrating great distances!

Inspired by all the irises in bloom, I made a small 5" x 7" block print last week.

The first layer was pale purple, and the second layer a bit darker.

There was one more layer of darker purple, then a layer of green.

The final carved layer.

The finished image of an edition of 16. I used a Soft-Kut block, Akua inks, and BFK paper.

Have a great week!

New Projects

Printmaking class has started up again, so I'm working on a few new projects.

The sunset landscape is from a picture I took recently while out walking around town. The sky was so dramatic-looking with all the silhouettes of the trees, cemetery monuments, and hills. I'm going to be printing on black paper so I'm cutting out all the black areas now. 

I'm also working on a print of an iris. They bloom in my yard in early summer, and I love the colors. I'd like to do a few more flower prints and cards as spring approaches. I'm tired of the snow and freezing temperatures we've been having this winter, so in anticipation of warmer days, I'm going to focus on the blooms to come.