The Little Nuthatch

A cold front came through on Friday and it's been such a beautiful weekend! What does this mean? A search for mushrooms! I love mushrooms, they are so darling, especially these with the bits of dirt on the sides (or top!) from popping out of the ground. Here is what I found today. Bee update: the bees have been removed from our walls- what didn't leave were smoked out. But it seems they will not need to remove the hive! I'm a little disappointed I won't get to see it.

New piece, "Mushroom Ring"... yes, I admit I didn't even try to think up a more creative name for it. Girl and mushrooms are painted with watercolors, the background is something different though. I used pastels, to be specific Prismacolor Nupastels, which are awesome. (I recently used these in the seagull piece as well.) I used to use them aaaall the time but I haven't really in the last five years. Lately I've been interested in playing with some new art supplies. I have some that I've never even tried!

There is a bee colony in the walls! First, we saw a few bees in the house so we went outside and looked around. We found them on the wall outside getting in through the gutter. One morning I woke up to hear them buzzing so loudly I could not sleep. That was when I started putting my ear up against the wall and they were EVERYWHERE IN THERE! You could actually feel the wall vibrating. That same day they started getting inside the house in record numbers. Through outlets, window frames, who knows... even after I taped everything off...

My little white crowned sparrow is finished. These birds nest near or on the ground... although maybe not in a flower bush, but why not? I love all these little paper flowers that I picked up in the clearance at Michaels. I'm feeling some autumn pieces next. We had our first cold front today and it is AMAZING! Although it's still in the  80s, it's a hint at fall weather and very exciting!

That is my seagull friend that I painted after going to the beach. I used pastels for the background and both acrylics and watercolor for the bird, then put in the seaweed and shells. Here is my current work in progress. Bird nest with a white crowned sparrow. I'd be working on it right now but I am waiting for the first bit of glue to dry!