Early Morning Garden Walk With Dundee

I know....I know.....it's been ages since I've posted.  I didn't realize how long it had been until I was going through some photos taken in August!!  And here it is - already October!! Yikes!!  Anyway, hope you enjoy these. I have to admit I was nicely surprised by several of them!! 

Smooth bark of the Crepe Myrtle

Reminded me of a lacey flower; it's a mushroom though!

 

 

 Wait a minute! Where did he come from?

 

 Fungus on an old tree trunk

 An Althea blossom (AKA: Rose of Sharon)

 

 Dundee - Man About Town

 

 Moss on a tree trunk

 

 Atlas Cedar Branch



 Dundee - Taking life easy!!

 

 Chrysanthemum

 

 Wild Rose

 Crepe Myrtle blossoms

 Blueberries! We had a huge crop of them this year!!

 

Stunning, isn't it? It's a mushroom of some kind.

 Made me think of a flower from another planet!!

 

 Cucumber! First one I've personally grown!

 Green bell pepper - another first grown by Yours Truly!

Well, that's it for now.  Hope you enjoyed them.  And who knows? With any luck, I may be posting about All Hallows Eve before much longer!! Would you believe it - I've actually promised to host a Halloween Party for my granddaughter Isabel's Girl Scout Troop. That's eleven screaming 10-year-olds!! I must be NUTS!!

May God Bless, Jan

Santo Lucia

A Santo (which comes from the Spanish word meaning "saint") is a traditional New Mexican religious sculpture.  Santos are carvings, either in wood or ivory, that depict saints, angels, or other religious figures.

I remember the first picture I saw of one, some three or four years ago, in a decorator magazine.  I was immediately smitten and hoped one day I'd have one of my own.  A few weeks ago, my time arrived!  And here she is - the way I found her and the way I brought her beauty out.

Let me introduce you to my Santo Lucia- - - - - -

She's a modern reproduction of a Santo Angel, with detachable metal

wings, on a wood base.   

Lucia stands 33" tall and wears a vintage 1950-1960 Relic Rosary

 from Fatima - Terra Fatma. 

With artistic license, I decided she needed something prettier to wear. Here you

see her in her white under slip (painted on gesso).  It was quite tedious for her,

 holding her arms outstretched for me as I gave her two fresh coats, but she was quite

 sweet about the whole thing and didn't complain even once. Quite natural, when you

consider she is a Saint as well as an Angel.

Initially I painted the wings only with gesso, but knowing well that an angel's wings

 are special (and therefore must look the part), I painted them in a low-gloss cream color.

Ever patient she stood, as I slowly applied my favorite shade of turquoise.

Although  I must confess my photography shows it as a blue, the end result

 (with two coats) did not disappoint!

You can see for yourself how happy Lucia is with her new finery!

And here she is, her lovely new dress complete while she

 awaits her wings to dry.

In all her glory!

Santa Lucia

May God Bless! Jan