Laughter.....

No dust in the girls' eyes. Another sign from a shop window.

So much fun.

I had to put this one in too. Their faces show their enjoyment so clearly.

Isn't she sweet?

Athena takes watching a ball very seriously. Her eyes stay on the ball as you move it up or down. You are not going to trick her, because she makes sure of that. She has this intense look and is ever ready to catch a round blob of plastic. While in Prescott I was sitting on a bench observing the people using the town square in different ways. One young man was walking vigorously around the square and on his fifth time passing we chatted a bit. He said that walking a dog would make it so much nicer. Spontaneously I handed him the leash and only as I saw Athena and the young man walking off did I feel a pang of concern. Just imagine if he didn't return with my four-footed companion, but of course he did. I just might not do that again, ever.

Prescott Arizona.

An impression of the area around Prescott Arizona.

After the rain.

After rain there is always that delicious freshness in nature.

Inevitable.

They finally collapsed laughing.

Long awaited rain.

As we drove through Salome to Aguila I saw two little girls celebrating the recent rains. They splashed through the deep puddles enjoying themselves tremendously.

Excellent measures.

Seen in a shop window in Prescott.

Monsoon in the desert.

A short respite from the heat was planned but it turned out that that particular weekend it would cool down in the low desert and that it would rain at higher elevations. We splashed through flooded roads and found it all very exciting. It was however the first time for me to see the desert drenched.

Under the Sea.

Seeing that I am making such good headway with finishing the mosaics on the fountain, I have already started planning my next project: the concrete bench outside. Tired of using just glass and ceramics I started looking if I could make something a little different. I found Tinker Tiles, an artist who makes tiles for others to use in their projects. I like humor in all aspects of life and so also in what I make. These fish have such personality and even have names. Betty being one of them. I think I will use smalti to create the ocean, so the next step is calculating how many I will need and in what colors. I will also make a composition with the fish on contact paper so that I have some idea if I have enough. I think I will commission a lobster and perhaps an octopus, or a mermaid. I am drawing these myself so that I can see if they will be a good fit with the rest.

Blueberry Jam

We're in the middle of monsoon season here, which means the humidity is high. It doesn't necessarily mean rain. Still it's better indoors than out, and so I have been in the kitchen quite a bit. This bubbling and sweet smelling pastime made 6 jars of blueberry jam. It's fruit, half the amount of sugar and some lemon rind and juice. Pure goodness. It gelled well without the use of pectin. The lemon does the work.

Sketch.

One more added to the family.

Sketch.

Another one finished. I first make sketches on paper, and take what I like and compose the finished sketch on tracing paper. This way if I make a mess, I can always easily replace the actual drawing.

Sketch

My second sketch for my present project.

Opo for dinner.

Here, where I live, we don't have much in the way of exotic food although things are getting better. Since last year or so (at least that was when I heard about it) we have a Vietnamese grocery store. There I can buy cream crackers, lemon grass, fresh baby bok choi and satay sauce. I usually make nasi every week and a big batch of peanut sauce every now and then, but since we have the Vietnamese store I can actually buy it canned.

This week I saw a large squash kind of vegetable, which I didn't recognize and I was told it was 'like okra', for which I don't particularly care, but I will try anything once and this was a success because after some googling it turned out to be calabaza, which made it considerably less exotic but easier to prepare. One chopped onion (golden brown), add very thinly sliced squash, (sort of) stir fry until glassy. (I let it cook for about 3 mins - then stir - 3 mins again and so on till it looks (under) cooked - you want it to have texture). Add fresh garlic; fresh tomatoes; a chili pepper (I took out the seeds because I didn't want it to be too spicy); a can of sweetcorn, pepper and salt and let it simmer for a while, being careful not to let the opo/calabaza/squash go mushy. When finished add fresh cheese and place under broiler till melted. This is a Mexican way of preparing squash. Great with Mexican rice and some chicken from the grill.

Someone who knows about vegetables told me that it's a bottle gourd and not part of the squash family. It's a lufa like the ridge gourd and snake gourd.

Cushion cover.

I have lately been able to work on my cushion cover again. This is a detail of the bold felt flowers on the green duck cloth. I bought beautiful yarn on Etsy that I machine stitched on the surface cloth first. I then drew flowers and cut them out of felt which I then either free-stitched by machine or by hand using silver thread or embroidery silk. I should be able to finish this project soon. After my long creative drought this was one of the first things I started.

Sketch.

A platespinner for sure, I never work on a single project at a time. I have sketches ready for a family from Swaziland and this is the youngest son. I will post more as I finish elements. Although I look forward to coloring this (7 cm) sketch, I am also a little hesitant because I haven't done anything like this for such a long time.

Missing Jasper.

My nephew Jasper from Holland spent part of the summer with me in the Southwest. Seems really quiet without him around and the house much too tidy.

Paper Cut.

My first paper cut. I made a drawing of an Acacia tree, then traced it and placed the tracing paper over dark brown Mulberry paper so that I didn't have any pencil marks on the final cut.

Bookbinding and Father's day.

Over the years I have learned many different techniques and one of them is bookbinding. This is the very first book I made and I even marbled the paper for the cover. I gave it to my father as a gift ,and he filled it with carefully drawn diagrams and technical notes which are a mystery to me except perhaps the ones about hydro culture. When he died, the book came back to me. It is nice to have something we shared, each because of our own interests.

Aquapac

The temperatures are rising and today was the perfect time for a dip in the pool. I also wanted to make some shots with the Aquapac that fits over my 'point-and-shoot' and it worked rather well. I set my camera on 'daylight' for white balance, kept the sun in my back and my model cooperated most of the time . I didn't do the 'bubble test' to see if my pack was absolutely sealed, so I didn't submerge the camera entirely. Tools: Canon S400, Aquapac, a Weimaraner and a purple ball. If you want to see larger pictures, click on the collage.

Kirigami

I like receiving a letter in the mail. The stamps and the handwritten address, the feel of the paper and most importantly the contents make it special to me. Since email has become so popular I seldom receive any personal letters anymore. People still send Thank you cards, and birthday cards though, so not all is lost. I enjoy writing a letter and even more enjoy decorating the envelope. Usually when I am on a longer trip I will collect what comes my way and decorate the stationary and the envelope with these findings. My mother is usually the recipient of these letters. I will draw, glue and include little surprises like the dried grasshoppers I bought in Oaxaca, Mexico to share my experiences with her.

Fleur and I keep up a correspondence, thanks to Marianne, as Fleur is only 5. Fleur will draw something bright and beautiful and pen letters on the sides and little hearts, because she has practiced hearts and they are really good now. I usually send a pretty card back to her and on the inside I draw her as Petite Neige with a feather in her hair. Petite Neige is her Indian name in her nature group: Little Snowflake, because her hair is so blond.

I hardly used to draw or sketch anymore, but recently have had a very good reason to take out my tools and brushes and tap into my creativity again. I find it hard to believe that I started out as a Graphic Designer.

The card in the picture is made from a pattern, folded and cut with an exacto knife. The technique is called Kirigami. I had a lot of fun making it and I know Fleur will enjoy receiving it.