A garden of flowers, travels and midnight strolls

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I can hardly believe Summer is almost over and September just around the corner! I've been so busy with exhibitions and art trails it passed  in the blink of an eye, but I did find time to enjoy some of the beautiful weather pottering in the garden. It's coming along beautifully now, it was so sad and neglected when we moved in last Spring.

I have loved bringing the garden back to life and it is so rewarding to hear the buzzing of the bees now there are lots of flowers for them to visit. Did you know that in Deeside,  the old name for bees was 'Foggie-toddlers - 'fog' being old Scots for moss or grass and 'toddling' meaning meandering with a gentle sound. Lovely!

Flowers have filled my studio with their perfume this Summer too, some from my garden and some gifted by a fellow artist, the very same lady who provided me with so many delicious cutting of plants last year so that I could stock our new garden. How  rewarding now  to see them growing and filling the beds. The wee posies of flowers below were another gift, left on our doorstep by the sweetest faerie girls who lived next door. They have now spread their wings and flow off with their family for adventures far afield and I will miss seeing their cheeky faces appearing over the fence.

Thinking of wee smiles, I got lots of those  from my wee Granddaughter a few weeks ago when myself and my two lovely daughters spent a week under the stars down South. Very posh camping as you can see! We spent every waking hour in the fresh air and when we weren't cuddling dwarf goats, blowing bubbles or exploring we were sitting up late into the night snuggled in our woollies and under blankets, playing scrabble, and watching the stars. Precious times.

I got a second weeks holiday after that too, when Mr O took me off exploring in Yorkshire. We stayed in an old inn built in 1613 and slept in what must be the comfiest bed I ever knew! We spent our days exploring places that caught our eye, like Hardcastle Crags, Gibson mill, and the lovely town of Hebden Bridge, stopping for cake and tea and mooching through second hand shops!

On our last day we visited the lovely  old village of Heptonstall, once a centre for hand looming. It's cobbled streets were discovered in 1980 when the paving was lifted.  Of course I had to have a peep at the ruins of it's original church, founded in 1260 and once dedicated to Thomas a Becket. All together we had a lovely few days away.

Whilst away Mr O and I remembered how much we love walking. When did our days get too busy to go walking regularly! So we are trying to do a walk every day again and are already feeling the benefit, feeling fitter and healthier for being outside more.

 I haven't shared with you before my 'In the gloaming' painting have I, I finished it earlier in the year and the original has already sold. The word 'gloaming' comes from the old English word for twilight 'glom' meaning to glow, what a perfect description for that magical time of day when the setting sun leaves gives it's last whisper of light to the evening. The painting is available as  limited edition prints in my Etsy shop here

 So I shall leave you with a taste of 'the gloaming' and some images that I caught on my full moon walk down the lane last week,  I love walking in the evening it is a magical time! Such lovely silhouettes to inspire new paintings I hope!

Autumn poetry, pictures & paintings

 The golden hues of Autumn have danced through the trees surrounding our wee cottage and trickled their way into my sketchbook. You perhaps already guessed that I love this time of year, it always fills me with the joy of being and ignites my creativity.

Walks in the ancient woodlands fill my pockets with treasures aplenty, each taken home and placed in pride of place on my studio 'seasons'  windowsill to bring me smiles through the darkening days.

 For me autumn feels like a comfortable ancient cloak wrapped about my shoulders, familiar & cosy an old friend to be greeted with joy after the longest of partings.

 Mr O tells says my hair is like "Autumn" and that as we walk in those quiet places I disappear into the surroundings, ha!  so it seems I am indeed an Autumn lass.

 I stop at every turn to take my photos, forever astounded by the hues and textures Mother Nature provides, inspiration for my paintings for years to come.

 Every once in a while I catch a glimpse of wee messages left by fae folk, hearts hidden here & there if you remember to stay still awhile and look for those secret places..

 Even the sunsets seem imbued with Autumnal colour.  It seems the perfect way to say goodbye to the day, to stand on our doorstep and watch the sun slowly sinking into the night leaving velvet darkness.

So I am away back to my paper and my paints to try and capture the essence of Autumn, I'm not sure yet who will appear on the page, but she does have glorious hair.  I shall leave you with some words from one of my favourite Autumn poems by Thomas Hood

"I saw old Autumn in the misty morn
Stand shadowless like Silence, listening
To silence, for no lonely bird would sing
Into his hollow ear from woods forlorn,
Nor lowly hedge nor solitary thorn;
Shaking his languid locks all dewy bright
With tangled gossamer that fell by night,
Pearling his coronet of golden corn."
			it can be read in full here

Nature's Treasures and a birthday giveaway . . . .

 On darkening Autumnal evenings as I have wandered lane & shore

I have come across some wondrous treasures, tiny hidden gifts waiting to be found.

Gloriously patterned stones, like some ancient artifact that fit snugly into the palm of my hand.

 Beautiful heart shaped slate, painted with many hues in the evening light

 a delicate blown thistle, perhaps a miniature faerie pompadour wig

A stem washed up on the shore, such an intricate piece of sculpture .

All gifts from Mother Nature to amaze and astound.

 

And speaking of gifts, well I have one right here.

It was my birthday very recently, such an Autumn girl am I.

 I felt it would be the perfect time to hold a giveaway. The prize is one of my new range of personalised A3 Blessing tree prints.  They are the perfect way to record special family events, make wonderful gifts and can be adapted to suit many occasions: births, christenings, weddings, birthdays, and anniversaries.

To enter, leave a comment below telling me which is your favourite season of the year and why.

I shall pull a name from the hat and announce a winner on Monday 29th September.

You can find the full range of blessing trees on my website 

www.ruthieredden.com

Summers Passing and a tale or two

 Summer slipped by this year in a flurry of doings as my feet carried me here & there and when I sat down to tell all I didn't quite know where to begin, so this is a tale of my too-ing & fro-ing, its a wee bit long and may well have to come in parts 1 and 2!
(You can click on the images to view larger)

 The beginnings of August saw the annual Kirkcudbright Art & Craft Trail and bought a river of wonderful folk, faces  familiar & new, through the door of our wee exhibition space.  I shared the room with my talented Mom Jean Redden and jewelry maker Eileen Wright and this year we also had the pleasure of live music provided by friends Jon & Jen.  It's so lovely to have a chance to chat to the folk who come to see our work and I want to say a big thank you to all who came a-visiting. 

Without time for a breath we whisked away, Mr O & I, on adventures to the Northern shores of Caithness & Sutherland where we filled our days exploring & relaxing amongst the quiet places there, on our first travels in our wee house on wheels. (I must share with you one day that tale too!)  One of my favourite things to do when we go away is to explore and discover the history of the people and the place and Caithness is certainly filled with history.

We explored the ancient ruins of medieval castle Sinclair Girnigoe, built on the cliff edge, with waves crashing on the rocks below. We got a glimpse through the mist of the stacks of Duncansby that rose majestically to tower 60ft above the sea and we stepped into Smoo cave to marvel at this place where it is said Vikings once hid their boats! There are many legends told of the cave here, my favourite ~ that it was once the abode of spirits who guarded this entrance into the underworld.

The grey cairns of Camster were a site worth seeing, Neolithic chambered cairns that sat low and timeless on the hill.  As I clambered inside I was in awe of the work of those folk from long ago who built such a place, the largest is 69 metres long! Then it was on to the Hill 'O Many Stanes, the site of about 200 wee stones all no higher than my waist. Why were they set there and by who? There is no sure answer to this only a perhaps that t'was a way of recording lunar movements.

 We came across museums overflowing with beautifully carved Celtic crosses, strange winged angels, beasts and symbols with long forgotten meanings.

(Clockwise from top left) We saw intricately carved bone combs found at a settlement in Freswick, read about the awful treatment of the Forfar witches and saw the horrific Forfar Branks, a metal device that was placed around the head of the accused with a metal spike that went into the mouth, last used near the end of the 17th C. We wondered at charm stones and carved stone balls, found a pair of the wooden clogs worn by the herring fishwives in ports such as Scrabster and Wick and came across a wonderful exhibition telling the stories of their hard lives and the sad demise of the once flourishing fishing industry, made more fascinating still as we are in the process of researching Mr O's ancestors and believe some of them came from Caithness!

I wondered at the quaint slate walls we saw dividing some of the fields and discovered the story of how the beautifully coloured slate was quarried at the Castelhill. We went hunting for fossils at Achanarras and found (bottom left and middle) a fern and a fish, such an awe inspiring feeling to hold in you hands and be the one to expose something after  thousands of years have passed.

A visit to Castle Mey  (one on the cosiest & homely castles I have ever come across) and the wonderful gardens left me filled with lots of ideas for our own garden.

 We walked under huge skies, listening to the call of the sea birds and the crashing of the waves, it was music to sooth our souls, unspoilt, peaceful and perfect.

 We caught an incredible sunset and stood mesmerised at the waters edge as the sun slowly sank into the sea casting ever changing myriad colours across the sand.

I felt the healing power of nature as the days passed, felt myself slowly unwinding and my mind filling with inspiration once again, and thinking how very lucky we were.

Birthday's & Birth Trees.

 I been "un-plugged" for a while to re~charge and rest and to refresh my muse, and have been finding inspiration in Mother Nature during a run of glorious summery days here in South West Scotland.

The flowers are blooming all about, in the garden, in the hedgerows and even down amongst the pebbles on the beach. Tiny rays of sunshine, such rich, glowing colour.  They tempt me outside when I ought to be working in the studio!

 We have traveled into the hills to find the wild places, and sat drinking tea by the bubbling steam whilst bees hummed past and golden beetles clambered onto our knees.  I found a tiny set of wings left beside the path, like minature pieces of stained glass reflecting the blue of skies above. I think I might just have to work them into a faerie design!

We have had precious family time; grandaughter cuddling, trips to the beach, the farm, museums, picnics, crazy go cart riding, sunny day walks, lots of laughter & catching up.  We celebrated my lasses 30th Birthday too, it seems only a wee while ago I held her in my arms for the very first time! 

This lass of mine just happens to be a wood turner and as you can see my eldest lass & I took on a challenge. We decided to tackle a feat of engineering & create a completely edible cake for our birthday girl. It took us a whole week to work out and make, we were rather proud of our efforts but it may be some time before we feel up to making another cake!I 'm so lucky to have such a lovely family & spending time with them makes my heart sing.

Thinking of Birthdays ~ I am fascinated by family trees and our personal stories and with this in mind I have designed the first of my new blessing trees range

"The Birth Announcement tree".

 The design can be personalised and makes a perfect gift for birth, christening or naming ceremonies. I also do cards and postcards of the design.

The design was inspired by the Apple tree which signifies health, happiness, youth & good fortune.

The Birth Trees are now available to order here my Etsy shop.

I have lots of exciting new happenings coming up, workshops and exhibitions, and will be back very soon to tell you all about them.

Spring and new things are sprouting . . .

"Sweet April showers do spring May flowers." ~ Thomas Tusser

 I love the sound of April rain pattering on my umbrella!

I know, it's April already, how did that happen?

 
All these different weather happenings reminded me of a wee poem from my childhood

Whether the weather be fine, Whether the weather be not,
Whether the weather be cold, Whether the weather be hot,
We'll weather the weather, Whatever the whether,
Whether we like it or not
~Author Unknown

I'm also loving my woodland walks & feeling Mother Nature really stirring now

everything is sprouting and i am endlessly fascinated by all the different greens,

they are inspiring ideas for a Spring painting too.

 We have a wonderful daffodil lane by the cottage, a row of brightest sunshine

and even on the cloudiest day, it always makes me happy.

 And of course I had been keeping my eye on the wild garlic, and soon had some picked. We used some of the young leaves to add lovely flavour to a salad & I'm going to make pesto too.  Here is a link to an easy recipe for ~ Wild Garlic Pesto

Things are sprouting and growing and Spring is most definitely here at last.

I have been sprouting things too,  exciting new ideas here in my studio!

They are not quite ready to share yet, but I can give you a hint  . . . 

I am putting together a whole series of "creative play" workshops!

Do you have any thoughts on what you would love to "play" with creatively?

Snowed in & story writing workshops

Hello from our snow surrounded cottage up here on the hill.

What an adventure we had last weekend, so much snow,

we woke to such a wonderland and were snowed in well & truly!

 We had to dig our way out & were snowbound for a few days.

Above you can glimpse the snow to the top of the hedgerows

Mr O is 6ft and it was taller than him, see the digger in the lane!

But oh it was a sight to behold, I spent an age wandering in the woods

and felt such deep peace & awe at the beauty of it all.

It bought a flurry of winged visitors to the garden too

and unveiled tracks of visiting creatures, normally unseen.

Of course i had to play for a while, pleasing my inner child!

My wee unicorn stood tall & proud most of the week.

This wintry weather has been perfect reference for my work

and the Nip Nebs book illustrations are coming along nicely.

A new venture for me this month was the "Daydream Believers" picture book creation workshops, set up with storyteller Susi Woodmass, where we work with children to help them develop words & pictures to create their very own wee books.  (Above~ some of the prompt cards i illustrated to inspire their storytelling)

Earlier this month i had the pleasure of working with Susi on our very first joint workshop at the local school. The imaginations of the children as they created their stories was inspiring indeed and watching them illustrate their work & bring it to life was a pure joy. I can't wait until next time.
 **

So if you  know a group who would love to do one of our workshops do get in touch, you can find more information over here at "The Wee Folk Storytellers" website.
*

ps: you can click on each image to view it larger.

Into the woods for holly & ivy

Oh for a wrapped up warm, wintry wander in the forest.

A favourite treat of ours during these shortest of days.

 

We loose ourselves in this place, filled with natures magic

amongst the silent & majestic bones of these ancient trees.

 And as we step deeper amongst the branches

the trees twist & turn & take on most mysterious shapes

 

We wander of the beaten tracks and explore

 glimpses of vivid lichens we spy tucked away here & there.

Yet these are not the things we quietly hunt

We are collecting bright prickly holly & starry leaved ivy

to carry back through the falling dusk, to our wee cottage

for there we "deck the halls" and bring the outside in
to celebrate the  coming of Christmas.
like our ancestors before us.

* Long ago holly was often planted near homes to protect against lightening strikes.
Nowadays scientists have discovered that the spiny parts of the leaf do indeed
conduct the lightening away from the holly bush & surrounding area!