Orchids in Bloom!!

Hooray!!  It's definitely Spring here in Florida when the orchids bloom.

These are three in my yard.  Sorry I don't have botanical names for any of them for you aficionados of orchid culture.

The bright orange is called a ground orchid because it likes to grow in real dirt instead of in sphagnum moss.

                                                          Please click to enlarge

And here are the other two beauties.  Both plants are loaded with buds, and, as each blossom lasts for quite a long time I'll have them too enjoy for several weeks to come.

 Click to enlarge

Click to enlarge

Liberate Your Art # 5

Hooray!!  All five cards have found their way to my house ;-}

Here is Debbie's from the UK.  I'm a fan of funky collages and layering, so this one is perfect for my taste.

                                                      (please click to enlarge image)

One more card to go - that will be the one Kat makes and sends out to each the participants.  Keep checking and I'll post again when all of us have received our cards.  Kat is also going to prepare a slide show and create an online "blog hop."  Looking forward to both of those myself, so stay tuned!!

Liberate Your Art #4

Kris from Texas took this wonderful photo for the LYA swap.  I'm a country girl at heart and lived on a farm in Oklahoma for several years, so this rusted pipe with it's spider webs brought back some nice memories!!  I really like the soft colors in the shot and the way the grasses are all misty while the pipe is sharp and in total focus.

In the swap instructions, it was suggested that we photograph the cards we receive in a home setting so folks can see where their cards landed.  The first post about the cards shows the card with one of my cats, but you can barely see the card.  I'm preferring to just take a photo of the cards themselves so everyone can see them.

Scroll on past the photo of Kris' card to see a photo of "home" in Florida.

                               (Please click to enlarge so you don't miss the beautiful spider webs!)

and "home"..... where the LYA cards have ended up ;-)

Two more cards to go - one from the swap itself (remember we shared five) and one from the hosts, Kat Sloma.  And don't miss the slideshow in a couple of weeks as well as a clever blog hop.  Hope everyone participates!

Art Liberated # 3 !

Here's another interesting photo in the Liberate Your Art series I'm receiving from the swap described in previous posts.

This one is from Laura in Portland, Oregon.  The scene is of a geyser in Iceland where she visited about this time last year.

Thanks Laura for this stunning view of a world few of us get the chance to see!

                                                         (please click for a larger view)

ART LIBERATED # 2

Hooray!  A second "liberate your art" post card made it to my mailbox yesterday.  All the way from David in Delaware - Thanks to Kat for hosting the swap and to everyone who is participating ;-)

                                             
                                                          (please click on photo to enlarge)

Art Liberated!!!

Several weeks ago, I participated in a special online postcard swap.  You can read about it here!!

http://kateyestudio.com/liberate-your-art-postcard-swap

The mailings have begun and postcards have started arriving mailboxes all over the world.....

I received this gorgeous Valentine-themed card from Susan in Kneeland, California, yesterday.
Woo-hoo!!!

(please click to enlarge)

                                                                

And, just a few  minutes ago, I received an email from Louise in France saying that she had received a card from me!

If the postcards are sturdy and the mail systems are efficient, we will receive a total of six cards.  We mailed five and should get five back from different people plus one from our fearless hostess.

Watch these posts for further messages about the swap......... And you can bet I'll be watching my mailbox for the remaining five cards ;-)

THE Blue Duck!

And here s/he is!!!!!

In my first post I told you that I had seen the ceramic duck in an antique/collectibles shop.  What I didn't say is that the shop is an hour's drive from home.  I regretted not buying the duck when I saw it, and a couple of days later called every shop I thought I'd been to asking if they had it in their stock.  NO LUCK!!  And then I got that pesky bronchitis so a trip to check for myself was out of the question for about three weeks.

Several days ago, however, I awoke feeling fine and the weather cooperated to give me a lovely country drive over to Arcadia, Florida, home to quite a few antique and collectibles shops.  Actually, the entire old downtown is a haven for those who like to poke around looking at ceramics, coins, old tools, vintage clothing and costume jewelry, and so much more.  I began to retrace the steps I thought I'd taken, looking in each shop for the blue duck.  NO LUCK.... ;-(  Several shop owners remembered that I had called (and I think they thought I am a little crazy to be so obsessive about this duck, but we'll let that pass...) but none had seen a blue ceramic duck.  Hmmmm.... one more shop..... and I turned a corner past a display of truly wonderful old ladies' hankies (all tatted, and lacy of course) and  finally, before my eyes, the object of my search!

Now, this duck is from an outfit in Canada called Blue Mountain Pottery.  You can read about it HERE.

I remembered when I saw it that the price was pretty steep, so maybe that's why I didn't buy it to begin with.  In true shopper fashion I asked if the stated price was the "best they could do" and the fellow gave me a little discount - Hooray!!!

So now you know.  I put 157 miles on the car (doing some additional sightseeing while in the vicinity of Arcadia) getting this silly duck!  But isn't she beautiful?  And is it a 'she'? No name springs to mind....... Will keep you posted ;-)

If you're ever in SW Florida between Sarasota and Lake Placid, do stop in Arcadia.  It's the closest thing to Old Florida that is still in existence.  Sure there's some newer business on the east side of town, and I saw a couple of chain restaurants, but over all, it's a sleepy haven.  The citrus industry was big here once and indeed, I saw a couple of small orange groves.  There's a gorgeous old courthouse and in one part of town are beautiful restored Florida Cracker-style homes and even a painted lady or two.  Definitely worth a look.......

And how about you?  Have you had any Blue Duck Days lately?