Speaking of being on the trails, another one of my favorite things to do is make a field trip to the botanical gardens. There are so many wonderful nooks and crannies to investigate.
There are always so many unique and unusual plants and flowers to see.
I’ve decided to make this a regular field trip by going every few weeks to see what’s new as the seasons change.
Terri
I went on a field trip recently to see the butterfly exhibit at our botanical gardens.
I took some pictures of the specimens they had on display before going into the exhibit. (Don’t freak out over all these butterflies pinned down inside these cases. I don’t think they were killed for display in these specimen cases. That’s what I’m telling myself anyway 😉
It’s amazing how many butterfly species there are in this world!
It was such a thrill to see these beautiful, fascinating, delicate creatures up close!
Butterflies can be so hard to photograph because it seems like they never land.
It helps to have just the right plants to attract them.
And they are so good at hiding under leaves.
I was inspired by all the different shapes, sizes, and colors, and came home with lots of new ideas and fresh inspiration.
Thanks for stopping by!
I am happy to report that I had a better week than last week!
As you know, I have been thinking a lot about coffee lately. I’m working on a logo design for my Illustrator class that has to do with coffee. And I have a fun coffee clutch of fellow students and teachers I get together with everyday in between classes. We talk a lot about coffee and food and other silly things. I look forward to hanging out with them every afternoon, so I thought it would be fun to capture those moments.
I painted the background with my favorite watercolor crayons, doodled coffee words all over the background, cut out the cafe logo from the coffee cup sleeve, and added some white glitter paint over the cup for the creme (which looks green in that photo!).
On Saturday, Dave and I went to the botanical gardens for a shot of green plant life.
The conservatory is a glass pyramid filled with tropical paradise plants, flowers, a rushing waterfall, orchids and free-flying birds. The temperature was 65 and 80 degrees Fahrenheit (between 18 and 26 degrees Celsius) with 60 percent humidity. It was just the shot we both needed! (I plan to share more photos this week.) The conservatory had a special exhibit about coffee, so it seems fitting that I make a card to reflect the day.
Again, I used my watercolor crayons to create a lush green background. I brushed a slightly wet brush in an upward stroke to create a stem or stalk direction. Then I drew the giant palm leaf with a marker, which I ended up going over with acrylic paint for a more dimensional effect, since some markers don’t adhere too well on these crayon-covered backgrounds. I framed the words to symbolize what we are longing for when we look through our windows – green plants!
Don’t forget to stop our Flickr group to see what Michelle and Sandra have been doing on their art cards.
Terri's Notebook 