Flamin' June? In My Dreams...

But the flowers are blooming...Plus the paid subscriber draw!

I type, listening to the staccato beat of rain on the conservatory roof. The calendar turns over to June on Saturday; silently I send a prayer for warm, sunny weather…

Don’t get me wrong, I love our changing seasons; I often wonder how I would cope without the rhythmical nature of the year, the transformations that occur.

But with the mid-point of the year approaching, a period of warm, sunny weather - more than the odd day here and there - would be appreciated!

"In the fields, she stopped and took a deep breath of the flower-scented air. It was dearer to her than her kin, better than a lover, wiser than a book. And for a moment she rediscovered the purpose of her life. She was here on earth to absorb its wild enchantment." Boris Pasternak

Studio work this week has been a continuation of the floral experiments. Here’s a quick tour to show you the paper mountain:

I’ve tempered my expectations of a ‘whole new series’. I’m still playing around with composition and background; as yet, I’ve still to find any that I love. But experimenting is fun!!

Other things that have been bringing me joy this week:

• My monthly Freddies Flowers delivery. My thoughtful OH knows that I love flowers, so treats me to a bouquet every month; this one is particularly gorgeous as the colour scheme is a favourite of mine! P.S. The net curtains will eventually go; I’m saving up for some shutters!

• Continuing the floral theme; I’ve recently discovered Margarida Maia and her garden on Instagram - it’s beautiful!! Not sure that we will be able to create anything like this in our small patch!

• I love working in concertina sketchbooks - the whole object is the artwork…

  so it was interesting to read this blog post about artists’ books through the centuries. (P.S. Above is my Coastal Tales Two Concertina Sketchbook, which I realised, when looking for some images, that I haven’t yet listed on my website - another thing to add to my to-do list!)

• “Green was the silence, wet was the light, the month of June trembled like a butterfly.” - Pablo Neruda This quote reminds me to appreciate the fleeting moments; the shimmering light, the delicate blooms, the fragile butterfly…

At the end of April I posted this video about an idea I’d had as a way of thanking my paid subscribers:

As this is the last post of May, and being a woman of my word, here is the small study that will be going to a paid subscriber.

And the winner is:

I will be emailing you shortly, so keep a look out in your inbox!

Oh what is more sweet than the month of June
When our senses thrill and our hearts keep tune
To the song of the birds and the rose in bloom?

Oh what is more joy than the early gray
Of the dewy morn and the sun’s first ray
That herald the dawn of a perfect day?

Oh what is more fair as the sun climbs high
Than the azure hue of the summer sky
And the snow-white clouds drifting idly by?

Oh what is more pure than the summer air
That wafts from the woodlands and gardens fair
A fragrance and perfume so rich and rare?

Oh what is more dear than the twilight hour
When the daylight fades and each nodding flower
Is kissed by the moonbeams’ mystic power?

O, Summer Queen! you are gone too soon
With your sunny days and your shining moon,
With your golden grain and your wealth of bloom.

And if we could hold in some magic way
To your trailing robes for a single day,
Dear month of June, we would bid you stay
June - Lottie Brown Allen

Until next time,