snakes and birds

yesterday was a pretty wild day! it ended with my son Travis finding a young red rat snake on the front porch. it was very docile and let him hold it for a few minutes.

but let me go back to the beginning. the day began with me going outside...in the back yard, where i saw a yellow rat snake climbing up an old, half-dead oak tree. i've seen lots of snakes...but have never watched one climb straight up a tree before. 

this tree has lots of woodpecker holes...and this snake seemed to be on a mission! he climbed up one side of the tree...then crossed to the other side on a small branch...to get to where all the holes are.

he came up behind one of the holes from that back side...and went in...

two flying squirrels came tumbling out and ran up different trees! 

we had also seen a couple of adult woodpeckers during the past week flying in and out of one of those holes up there. it looked like they were feeding their young...flying to the edge of the hole and bobbing their heads in and out...then flying away again.  shortly after the snake went in the hole, 2 (red-bellied) woodpeckers started flying frantically around the top of the tree...one even got brave enough to peer right into the hole!

i waited...and waited...kept checking to see if i could spot the snake leaving...FAT from his mid day meal. but i never saw him sneak away. 

BUT i did get a couple of good shots of a red shouldered hawk...

eventually the woodpeckers stopped flying around their nest. i hope they didn't get eaten along with their babies! maybe they moved on to another tree. 

it seemed as though all the birds and squirrels were talking to each other while that snake was up the tree...sending out a warning...

well...it's nice to not have to leave home to be a part of nature.

today's Memorial Day. no work.  i feel like wandering...looking for bones...or native plants...in the field across the way. sounds like a plan.  = )

shelter from the storm!

yesterday...i was on the front porch...and saw some movement out of the corner of my eye...one of my potted begonias had the tiniest grasshoppers all over the leaves...seeking shelter from the storm...on to higher ground!

YouTube - Rain wmv AS

this is so cool : worth the watch again even if you've already seen/heard it : a thunderstorm/hands only concert! enjoy! :)

YouTube - Rain wmv AS

BONE-afide

this past sunday...while unloading the boat off the boat trailer...i had to climb up on the trailer to push the boat farther off. well...i jumped off...sunk into the muck...it seemed a much farther drop down, then when i climbed up there. lost my balance, fell backwards into the water. then i notgice all these little leeches in the water...and what can be worse than leeches swimming nearby?...i realized my camera was strapped to my waist! ((damnit!!))  AND  i pulled my calf muscles in left leg and my knee is making these weird creaking sounds!  ANYWAY, it's not as bad today as it was sunday night!  the camera is another story...dead...no more...passed over to the other side...  :(

as much as i hate to use my credit card...i NEED a camera!! today i got a canon power shot! MUCH better camera than the one i had.  so, breaking it in...i ran around the yard snapping pic's of skulls (Bone-afide...real cow skulls!) in the flower gardens, and the table outside with some of my newly collected  bones...awaiting cleaning.

and take a look at this dragonfly i zoomed in on...from about 15 feet away...COOL!!

anyway...having fun with the new camera...and also working on another decorated (found) vintage bottle...with butterfly wing and pressed flowers. will post it when finished! :)

some of my 'older' art

i went through some of my art...some old pic's of my art...that i 'created' and sold in a small shop in High Springs, FL...about 2 yrs ago.  i thought i'd post them here. they reminded me how much i like to do the artwork/design and stencil cutting...for the sandblasted glass and mirrors!  at that time i was also trying to do a little wood burning. i think the mix of paint & wood burning looks pretty cool. maybe i'll try that again too...

wood burn outline & paint ^^

this was a practice sandblasting! on clear pane of glass

                                                    sandblasted flower on wood plaque      

                                   wood burned outline and filled with acrylic paint on wood plaque

   ^^ a couple of experiments with pressed flowers and wood burning... ^^

sandblasted on purple glass...it was actually a candle stand from the dollar store...

                                                                                                           

   these mirrors and glass pieces pictured above were my first sandblast pieces...i was experimenting. well...both my husband Sam and i were teaching ourselves.  i did the artwork & stencil cutting, he did the actual blasting.  THEN i tried my hand at wood burning...some of the same or similar designs i did for the sandblasted pieces. i started to incorporate the pressed flowers...and VOILA!! then came the recycled-upcycled-thrift shop bought champagne glass tea-light holders. after i saw how BEAUTY-FUL the flowers look on glass, i started to decorate bottles.  THEN i got the bright idea to use the pressed flowers to decorate BONES!!  what a nice Homage to Mother Nature!!  

anyway...that's all i have time for right now...we're getting ready to go fishing...  :)  Happy Day!!

something a little different

Planet Beenderen Series. What does BEENDEREN mean?? >>it's Dutch for Bone!>> why a Planet?? hmmm...why not? a planet where everything is made of bones...the flowers...sun...moons. These are done on small 4"X4" wood plaques...painted...decorated...sealed with glaze finish.
ok...i was in the mood to do another wooden plaque...another "Scene from Planet Beenderen". BUT i wanted to do something a little different...add a butterfly?? would there be butterflies on Planet Beenderen?? ((well, since i discovered this planet...i'd be the only one to know this, right? so, if i say there are butterflies there...who could argue??!!)) WELL, they're there...i saw them!!  the one big difference...is that the butterflies from Beenderen...have BONE bodies! HERE's a PIC of my WORK SPACE after just starting this new CREATION...

I painted the plaque...repainted...and repainted again...until i finally liked it!  that 'spongey mottled' look...brown beveled border. i added jute...unevenly bordered. the butterfly's body is a painted tooth. the flowers are teeth. and then there's the deer vertebrae disc/pad floating up in the sky!!

so now...i just need to let all the glue set...then i'm HOPING when it comes time to spray the entire SCENE with acrylic glaze...that the butterfly will still look just as beauty-ful!  

then i'll add it to my etsy shop!!   http://www.etsy.com/shop/ForestWalkArt

~~Have a happy day~~

Tips for New Bloggers

this is all kinda new to me...blogging...the link below is to another blog that has lots of useful info...thought i'd pass it along...

Tips for New Bloggers

easily inspired

i'm easily inspired.  it doesn't take much. walking...hiking...in the woods or at the beach...i see rocks, driftwood, shells...and all i want to do is take them home and make something out of them!!  i don't spend $$ on many things like jewelry...art for my walls at home...i prefer to make my own!


looking through magazines...seeing the sunset...sunrise...going to a craft fair...seeing the morning dew clinging to a spiderweb...watching the small bud open into a flower...finding bones...snake skins...ALL this inspires me. makes me want to sit for hours on end...creating...but i can't. i do have other obligations! damn!
there's just not enough hours in the day to get all i want to do...done...


 i get so excited when i find something that begins to morph in my head...but unfortunately...just like songs that sound so good in my head and then like fingernails on a chalkboard when i open my mouth...what i create doesn't always turn out how i had envisioned it  in my mind! but that's ok...i'll just let it sit on the sidelines...stew for a while.


anyway, i thought i'd post a few pic's here...photos i've taken. and the same holds true for photos as it does for my singing...the picture doesn't always turn out how i saw it in my mind...but it'll do.  ~enjoy!

bloomin' collage

a flower & butterfly collage from our flower gardens...last year's!!  pretty soon i'll make one of this years blooms! enjoy! :)

bone, teeth & butterfly wings

a few posts ago i mentioned that i was working on another Bone Garden wood plaque. i'm almost finished!! tomorrow i'll spray coat with acrylic. as i mentioned before, all the Bone Garden pieces are 'from the Planet Beenderen' (Beenderen = plural for Bone in Dutch).  this one i may call 'Molar Mountain' or something silly like that...thanks to my son Travis for coming up with that one!! we're brainstorming...weird...catchy...silly names. sam came up with 'Orthodontic Plains'. Molar Mountain on Planet Beenderen has a colorful background with deer teeth and the little pad between the vertebrae make up the sun...wire flowers coming out of deer molars and wire moons...complete this 'scene from Planet Beenderen'

...and here are a couple of  pendants "butterfly wings under glass" and "bits & pieces of magical butterfly wings" in a vial necklace!!


Have a happy day! :) laura

saw Avatar last night...

what a fantastic movie!!  enchanting!  so  creative!  beautifully done! ...sad...and happy...a must see!!  if seeing Avatar wasn't enough...and you want MORE...check out this site...all you want to know about Pandora and the Na'vi...http://james-camerons-avatar.wikia.com/wiki/Na'vi

a RanDoM QuoTe

“I like nonsense, it wakes up the brain cells. Fantasy is a necessary ingredient in living, It's a way of looking at life through the wrong end of a telescope. Which is what I do, And that enables you to laugh at life's realities.”
Dr. Seuss,

working on a few new things

i have a couple of things going on at the same time...i bought these glass pendants...2" round and also rectangular shaped. i tried putting butterfly wings on them...hmmm, i think i posted pic's earlier...WELL, when i sealed them on there, the colors in the wings VANISHED!!  which is really kinda weird...because i use butterfly wings on my bottle art...and window hangers too!  anyway, i put snake skin (from 'monty' my ball python's shedding) on a couple of the glass pendants...but i'm not sure yet what i will add to these...so they sit on my work table until that light bulb goes off in my head!!
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i'm also working on a new BONE GARDEN from Planet Beenderen...on small 4' X 4" wood plaque. i painted it...with the idea of doing a meteor shower...then add bone flowers, etc...but i didn't like the way it looked. so i repainted it >> cut up a sponge...made a tiny square piece and sponged the dk blue paint over the already painted wood...so you can see glints of color underneath!!  i'll add some deer molars...and other teeth...also the little pads between the deer vertebrae...to make flowers and a moon...i'll post a picture when i'm finished.  here's the wood so far...painted...

here's my work table with the painted wood plaque and some teeth...

well...have to go get ready for my afternoon app't...only ONE massage today. sometimes that's not a bad thing, although i wish i was a little busier...it gives me time to work on my art. >>OH, this morning a friend of mine, Irma, came over and we trekked through the field across the street looking for...finding...and digging up some native florida plants! she also took some samples/leaves of plants so she can ID them...i'll have to post some pic's of my gardens here at home...maybe next time...have a happy day!! (please let me know what u think if u stop by and read this!!)  :)

our jasmine is blooming!

...take a deep breath!!  the jasmine by the front porch is blooming...i love that scent!!