End of Summer Bittersweet

Change of seasons is always bittersweet for me. I absolutely love the summer – my seaglass walks, seeing family at the beach, harvesting tomatoes and basil from the gardens and cooking on the grill almost every night. Autumn is sneaking in now though and I am bidding farewell to to the heat and closed windows. I am opening the house to cool nights, cutting back the spent flowers and looking forward to fall foliage...so why not put up a wreath to welcome the season!

Bittersweet is an invasive vine that curls around just about everything. It is flexible and easily wound into a circle. With a little help from my friend Willie, we made quite a mess!

For the time, I left the leaves on the vines but they will eventually dry and drop off. To add some interest I looked for anything in my yard that would look autumnal to add some character to the circle of green now and as it becomes barren.

 Dried coneflower seed heads, dried black-eyed susan seed heads, deep purple and soft green hydrangea blossoms were intertwined between the layered bittersweet vines. There is no need for anything else to hold this wreath together as those "killer curly" vines are just like twine.

The new wreath with one from a past year.

The elements are so gorgeous up close and personal!

The completed wreath. 

I will add to this when the bittersweet leaves drop off with more pods, seed heads and anything else that feels right. It is all about going with the flow, using found materials and enjoying the process!

Happy Almost Autumn to all!

Autumn Colors

Aside from realizing my little point & shoot camera is partially broken down, I still see such change in the months between summer and winter and I appreciate the moments of COLOR that I have been able to capture. Here are some of my gardens and beyond.

The Burning Bush, the dried hydrangeas and the spent hostas are just as beautiful now as 3 months ago! Add in some mums and color is in abundance. Autumn is awesome.

The marsh turns from green to golden, the grasses follow and dry to perfection. Even the composted leaves have an identity of "mixed greens" but not green at all.

From one tree to the next, especially the Japanese or Chinese Maples the color is striking if you take the time to look.

The moss taken from inside my chimney (yes, it was growing there!!) was my last autumn awesomeness. Thankfully now my chimney and fireplace are clear and free of growth from neglect and we will be having a winter fire again. Bring it on.

Spider Surprises

I have been trying to capture a good spider web for the past couple of months. Sometimes an event sparks an idea for a blog entry and sometimes a visual. Sometimes, I get just a little obsessive and will not quit until I find what I am looking for!  This image has appeased the spider web quest for the moment.

“Oh what a tangled web we weave, When first we 

practice to deceive" Sir Walter Scott

 

 

The smallest but most perfect little web. I came upon this half round web this morning. It was foggy, humid, still dark & quiet...there on the side of a clothespin long rusted was my dew drop design.  I will continue my search but for now.....