News From The Nest

Where To Begin?

In the corner. 

Sunday, I went to Williamsburg to deliver a soap order to Knitting Sisters.  I met Pam (knitting fiend) in Waverly, VA and we crossed over on the ferry - knitting all the way!  After we lunched on Miss Melinda's  Special (Brunswick stew, Virginia ham on biscuits, fruit salad, homemade pie, tea or coffee) at Old Chickahominy House, we headed to Knitting Sisters. 

Last time I was at Knitting Sisters, I saw this eye-poppingly beautiful scarf (the Modern Quilt Wrap by Mags Kandis) and fell in love -- HARD!  I purchased the book (Folk Style by Mags Kandis) and the 9 skeins of Rowan's Kidsilk Haze that the pattern called for.  Well, just looking at the pattern made my head hurt and my eyes bulge.  So, after the soap was safely handed over, Kat generously gave me a tutorial. 

Where do you begin?  In the corner!  Here's my corner.  Love the lime green against the tangerine orange!

Aren't these colors gorgeous!?!?!? The pattern really is kind of addictive.  Pam put aside different colors for the same pattern.  It will be very interesting to see it work up in different colors. 

And, yes, I'm still working on the Argosy Wrap.  I'm on skein number 3 out of 8. 

Here's a good use for a back to a sweater from many many moons ago that was never finished.  Cables and everything.  Earl Gray thinks it makes a very nice napping place.  I washed all the sweater pieces in the washer - yep, the two fronts and the two sleeves - so I have 5 felted kitty napping spots. 

Saturday, I was raking leaves.  I was trying to get warm!  Our furnace and our heat pump broke Thursday night so I had NO heat ALL weekend.  The temperature was down in the 20's at night.  I slept in my socks, sweatpants, turtleneck, and my polar fleece hat!  Once I got in the bed, I was warm as toast!  It was sitting up trying to knit or work on the computer that wasn't very comfortable. 

Andy left early Friday morning for Indiana to see his family.  I called the emergency service Saturday and they wanted triple their normal rate for coming out on a weekend so I told the guy that I believed I would layer!  How did the heating systems know that this weekend was going to be the coldest so far this season?  And, that Andy was going to be out of town???  Isn't that always the way???!  Andy got home about 5:00 PM Sunday and the furnace was fixed by 7:00 PM.  Transformer went bad. 

Anyway - back to raking leaves - I wish you all could have seen George.  He was hysterical!  He would just lie in the leaves and I would rake piles over top of him and completely bury him!  Before long, his tail would start to twitch and the leaves would fall away and his tail would poke through.  Then, his nose would poke out.  Next, he'd crawl out and then we'd do it all again!!!  He is a VERY chill cat!  I don't know many cats that would just lie there and let you rake piles of leaves on top of them.  Too funny!  Wish I had had my camera!

Leaving Williamsburg and going back across the James on the ferry, Pam and I enjoyed this view from the ferry.  What a great day!   

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!  Hope this finds all of you full to the brim with turkey and stuffing.  We had a VERY quiet - too quiet - day.  Neither son came home and it felt very odd.  I've never suffered from empty nest but holidays are for family.  I missed the boys today.  Especially knowing they're within just a 2-3 hour drive away.  Oh well, maybe next holiday.

Today, I unmolded, cut, and boxed soap for Knitting Sisters in Williamsburg, VA.  They've ordered a bunch and I'll finish up the last batches tomorrow.  I'll have to do them early in the morning so I can unmold them tomorrow night.  Then, I'll need to cut them Saturday morning and then box them that night.  Sunday, I'll deliver them to the  store.  Pam and Emmy are going to meet me on the way and we're planning on getting lunch and then going to Knitting Sisters. 

I need to start mailing the soap.  I tend to spend all my profits when I deliver it!  Last time, I bought  the Kid Silk Haze to do this gorgeous log cabin scarf by Mags Kandis.  Well, looking at the directions raises my blood pressure even though Knitting Sisters told me that it is actually very easy to knit.  So, the plan is --- deliver the soap and get help starting the scarf. 

I had a good time watching the cats today.  The wind was blowing fiercely.  George was sooo funny!  He was chasing the leaves and was just trying to catch them ALL!  I interrupted Gracie while she was doing some holiday grooming.  And, Earl Gray, big ol' Earl, just sat on the toy.  Wonder if this toy comes in an extra-large?  He is such a chunk!  It's all that Kitten Chow!  I've switched the kittens to regular food now so hopefully, Earl will lose a few pounds.   

While walking around outside, I found a cluster of three pecans still in their hulls.  And, a nest lined with what looks like dryer lint.  (pictured above)

Andy and I went to Mom and Dad's in Danville, VA for a late afternoon eat.  Great food as usual!!  Mom is a phenomenal cook.  We had turkey, dressing, gravy, sweet potatoes, corn pudding, cranberry sauce, broccoli.  We were trying to do a healthier meal this year.  Anything is fine with me -- just don't mess with the dressing!  We had the following for dessert and they were YUMMY!!!!

Apple Crescent Dumplings

2 Granny Smith apples - peeled, cored, cut into eighths ; 2 cans Crescent Rolls ; 1 can Mountain Dew

Syrup: 2 sticks butter ; 1.5 cups sugar ; 1 tsp. vanilla extract ; 1 tsp. ground cinnamon -- Melt butter with sugar, extract, cinnamon.

Separate rolls.  Place 1/8 of the apple on the wide end of each roll.  Roll it up.  Pour butter mixture over rolls.  Then, pour can of Mountain Dew over the rolls.  A 10" x 14" pan holds 16 dumplings easily.  Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.  Good w/ vanilla ice cream.  Makes 16 servings.  I think a little drizzle of butterscotch or caramel sauce over the top of each dumpling would also be yummy!

I am continuing on the Argosy Wrap.  It's amazing to watch the "steps" appear.  It's also fun to watch the NORO Silk Garden change color.  I've just started skein #3 which will be a repeat of the first skein - the blue-green section at the lower corner.  I can't wait to knit in the third colorway to see what it looks like. 

If any of you dare to face the hordes of shoppers tomorrow - good luck on all those sales and be safe!!!

A Big To-Do

Today, there was a big to-do in our area.  Buffalo Springs, which was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998, had a highway marker and an interpretive trail dedicated today.  Our house (built in 1790) and property (adjoins the Springs), as well as, another structure where the water was stored were also included with the Springs in being placed on the Virgina and National Register of Historic Places in 1998. 

It was a nice ceremony followed by a hike through the woods to see the ruins.  A few former employees of the resort and bottling company were also on hand to answer questions.  I even met Lola and Sam Horne.  Sam's grandmother was born in our house! 

Seven springs make up Buffalo Springs.  The area was quite something in its prime.  In these pictures, you will see the following: the new highway marker, a picture of the gazebo and the walkway to one of the springs that still runs, one of the park rangers who presented the history of the Springs (he's holding up one of the Buffalo Lithia Springs water bottles -- funny that there's a modern version of bottled water in the foreground), a crate used to ship the water bottles in, two of the signs for the interpretive trail, the archeologist with the US Army Corps of Engineers leading us on a tour of the ruins, ice pits, cisterns, other springs, a drain that ran alongside the rows of cabins, etc. 

It is believed that the area was first visited (and the visit was recorded) by a survey group led by William Byrd, II in 1728.  In a book, Byrd poetically wrote that the water of Buffalo Springs was: "what Adam drank in Paradise...by the help of which we perceived our appetites to mend, our slumbers to sweeten, the stream of life to run cool and peaceably in our veins, and if ever we dreamt of women, they were kind."  He also sighted many signs of buffalo near the springs, hence the name Buffalo Springs. 

In 1817, a tavern that catered to the locals was established at Buffalo Springs and was operated, more or less, continuously by a succession of owners into the 1830's.  By 1839, Buffalo Springs had expanded into a small resort complete with a band providing summertime entertainment.  By this time, the perceived medicinal benefits of the spring water (said to be good for the liver, stomach, skin, and "female complaints") were known throughout the local region. 

Thomas Goode acquired the property in 1874 and actively promoted Buffalo Springs which led to its national prominence.  It was the water that made Buffalo Springs famous.  During the 1800's, it was believed that lithium (also called lithia) was effective in dissolving uric acid which was blamed for a lot of illnesses of the time.  A chemical analysis of Buffalo Springs, commissioned by Goode, determined that Spring No. 2 was unusally high in lithia.  The name was soon changed to Buffalo Lithia Springs.  By 1885, advertisements for the Spring were being placed in nationally circulated magazines and included glowing testimonials.  The water was bottled on-site and shipped out on the train.  At its peak, there were nearly 20,000 outlets (mainly pharmacies and grocers) selling Buffalo Lithia Water in North America and Europe. 

With all the success and fame came expansion.  The hotel was refurbished and "cabins" were built.  There was a tennis court, golf course, and bowling alley for visitors, horseback riding, nature walks, dancing to live music, and boat rides on a pond above the springs.  Buddy Ebsen's (aka Jed Clampett) grandfather was entertainment director at the resort and Buddy spent some of his summers there.  The dining room was said to have been able to seat 300 people.  There were quarters for bachelors to stay called Rowdy Row.  Supposedly the Springs included 5,000 "support" acres.  They grew what was served on the table and it is said that the kitchen had 8 industrial-sized cook stoves.  Click here to see an old picture of the Buffalo Springs Office Building.

Times were good for the Buffalo Lithia Springs resort and its medicinal lithia water into the early 20th century.  In 1906, Congress passed the Pure Food and Drug Act and this put a stop to most lithia water advertisements and sales (Buffalo Springs was the best known).  In 1914, the US Supreme Court of the District of Columbia ruled that Buffalo Springs could not use the word "lithia" to advertise or sell their spring water.  They dropped the "lithia" from the water's name and it became Buffalo Mineral Springs.  With dispute of the national reputation of the medicinal value of Buffalo Springs water, sales tumbled but continued on a smaller scale until 1949. 

In 1949, the US Army Corps of Engineers purchased the land around Buffalo Springs for the John H. Kerr Reservoir.  Most buildings and their contents were auctioned and hauled off.  Today, vegetation has overtaken most everything, except for a few buildings (on private property), some foundations, a renovated gazebo (pictured above) and the little tap from which the waters of Buffalo Springs flow (also pictured above).

On the knitty front -- I'm into skein two on the Argosy Wrap.  Skein two is a different color.  This project is fun to watch develop.  Pictures later!

Yummy!

I went to Richmond, VA today - for a work appointment, a staff meeting, and then I had a few errands to run.  I met Rita and Robin at Barnes & Noble after my errands.  I delivered some JaggerSpun on cones from Sarah's Yarns.  Robin, her husband, Ray, and I went to Panera's for supper before I hit the road for home.  Man!  I love that Fuji Apple Salad! 

On the way home, I stopped in at The Desserterie.  The TNK group had just circulated an article about The Desserterie.  I read it and was impressed with the idea and work behind this small business. 

I walked in and WOW!  What a great little place!  Everything was beautiful!  I looked around and could sense the pride in their workmanship.  There was free Wi-Fi, outdoor and indoor seating, and a coffee menu to go with all the wonderful sweets.  The front display case was full of gelato in a variety of flavors.  I had never had gelato so just had to try the mint chocolate chip.  The other case displayed cheesecakes, tortes, etc.  Please check out their web site - especially the cakes.  This one is my favorite cake.  Wonder if they've ever done a cake with a knitting theme?  And, check out these little petite pastries.  The confection pictured here made its way home with me.  A pumpkin torte with praline topping.  It's small - about the size of a saucer.  I wish I could have gotten something that would have kept until Thanksgiving. 

My Argosy Wrap is working up quickly.  I'm excited about this wrap.  I already know that I will get a lot of use out of it.  I have finished Section 1 and am ready to begin Section 2.  This Noro Silk Garden looks far better as a wrap than it did as a sweater!Section 2 will start another color.  If you remember, Anne and I both were knitting sweaters in the round with Silk Garden.  Well, Anne frogged hers, too, and used it to knit and large felted bag. 

Wool Festival at Taos

First off, my apologies to Jackie - friend, loyal blog reader, and, from time-to-time, my guest blogger.  She attended the Wool Festival at Taos and sent me this write-up with corresponding pictures.  Then, one thing after another got in the way of my posting it.  I apologize to Jackie and hope my delay in posting doesn't keep her from going a-field for me again!

The Wool Festival at Taos was held October 6th and 7th in Kit Carson Park in Taos, New Mexico.  Jackie and her Mom attended on the 6th.  OK, here we go!!!  Lead on, Jackie!

Well, the Chinook winds blew Mom and me into Taos for the 24th Anniversary Wool Festival and I really mean blew us in!  The weekend weather forecast was high winds with slight possibility of rain and SNOW! 

The drive down south was windy and the Fall colors were not as brilliant as we had hoped going through La Veta Pass, but we arrived in Taos in time for lunch at Bent Street Deli in the John Dunn Shop area, and it is always one of our favorite spots.  Delicious food and people watching at its best.  We both have great memories of seeing the famous and not so famous who eat at this popular spot.  The always colorful artist, R. C. Gorman, was one of our favorites and he is sorely missed. 

We made our way up the street to Kit Carson Park and even with the blowing wind and leaves flying, the festival was a visual treat.   With over 60 juried entries, there was something for everyone.  Wonderful fibers (no commercial fibers allowed) from so many sources and the colors.... every imaginable and some that were not!  Llamas, Navajo-Churro sheep, angora goats and rabbits, cashmere goats, alpacas, Pygora goats.... they were all there.  Seeing the process of Navajo-Churro wool to woven rugs in all those gorgeous natural colors was beautiful.

This year, I noticed that even more felted items were on display, especially hats.  Mom thought this was the best part of the festival, as she loves to try on hats.      

Another treat was seeing Kris and Valerie, from Table Rock Llamas in Col orado Springs.  Mom enjoyed watching Val spin and finally understood what I love about spinning.  She asked lots of questions while we visited the glas and was very impressed with table Rock's other grand venture, The Dyeworks.  I managed to pick up a few skeins of wonderful hand-dyed and handspun fibers as we visited all the booths and a wonderful Taos Wool Festival bag that was huge and held everything!  Check out their web site as they sell items all year 'round.  [From Robin - be sure to check these items out!  Great logo!]

Next, it was off to Arroyo Seco, about 10 miles north of Taos on the Ski Valley Road with beautiful Fall colors and images. 

Seco is probably my favorite spot in the Taos area.  It is home to funky shops and beautiful artist studios with pottery, artwork, fiber art and the famous Arroyo Seco Mercantile, filled with funky gifts, antiques, and jewelry. 

Francesca's is next door with wonderful clothing, shoes and jewelry.  Francesca, herself, is worth the visit to her store.  All these wonderful shops are along the main street whcih stretches for less than a quarter of a mile.

I must admit, the best part of Seco for me is Taos Sunflower.  We visited the shop twice during our stay and it is like fiber nirvana.  Martie Moreno and her wonderful staff welcome you with open arms as you enter this beautifully restored adobe territorial building. Colorful yarns are always hanging outside and color and fiber surround you when you step into the shop.  Luscious samples are everywhere to entice you.  But the fibers....OH, the FIBERS... well, you just have to visit for yourself!  The shop was also hosting Lexie Boeger of Pluckyfluff fame for her fabulous two-day spinning workshop...something I aspire to next year!

On our last day, we spent a little time visiting favorite places and spots.  Since the town was filled with wool festival, we drove down the road to Ranchos de Taos to our favorite church, San Francisco de Asis.  The church was made famous by Georgia O'Keefe (and here), among others.  There is just something about this starkly beautiful church that makes you want to sit and reflect for a bit and just admire the building, the colors and the peacefulness of this very beautiful church.  On our visit, it was filled inside and out with Fall foliage.   

Time always goes way too fast when you're having fun, but the drive home was a nice visual surprise as the aspens decided to make one grand stand for us to photograph.  Fall is always a color fix for us in the West.  It is not the same as the East Coast with its myriad of so many colors from so many types of trees and shrubs.  But the gold of the aspens, the crispness of the air, the smell of sage and pinion pine in the early morning, and the ability to look out to the east to see the magnificent mountains, and to the west to see the incredible mesas.........

Well, you just have to see it, feel it, and experience it firsthand!

Jackie, thanks so much for this visit to Taos!  I have never been and would love to see all the wonderful spots you mentioned.  For now, though, your wonderful write-up will have to suffice!

Virginia's own Stewart, from The Yarn Lounge in Richmond, also traveled to Taos.  You can read about her trip here.

Long Wait

I was at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, NC today for two appointments - one at 9:30 AM and the other at 1:45 PM.  I got done around 4:30 PM and finally headed home.  There was no time for breakfast this morning and no time for lunch in between appointments.  It was a long day with no breaks and lots of waiting. 

Good thing I packed everything I needed to start the Argosy Wrap.  I got 48 rows done while at Duke. 

Remember that NORO Silk Garden that I was knitting in the round for a sweater last fall??  Well, four skeins of that yarn are being born again as the Argosy Wrap.  Horizontal stripes were not my friends as a sweater and I'm sure I'll enjoy this wrap much more.  Four skeins of the sweater NORO plus four new skeins will become the Argosy Wrap.  I'm using four skeins of NORO Silk Garden 203 ( from the sweater), two skeins of 239, and two skeins of 230. 

Check out Knitting In A Happy Camper to see pictures of a new Argosy Scarf she's doing.  Also, check out this link for "All Things Argosy"!  What fun!

Visit tomorrow when I hope we'll be traveling to the Taos Wool Festival with Jackie.  Better late than never!

One place I forgot to mention from my travels last week was the Folk Pottery Museum of Northeast Georgia.  Imagine the building where I was having class last week out of the picture to the left.  They were building the facility in this picture when I attended my first watercolor workshop with Charles Reid in April 2006.  This is such a great use of an old school building - a rebirth.  The back area is the pottery museum and it is VERY nice.  The front houses a gallery / gift shop, dance studio, art studio, conference room, a theater, etc.  Just very nice!  In talking with several people from the area, they really seem to love it.  One man told me that the center was a deciding factor for he and his wife when picking the area to retire to.   

I called Schaefer Yarns today and spoke with Cheryl.  I told her about the yarn having so many knots and the two frayed places.  She was so nice.  She said that my hank was a quality control problem and was not typical of their yarns.  I told her I have a second hank of it and can see a knot in it without taking it apart.  She asked me to send the second hank to her and they will compensate me for both skeins.  I didn't expect that and think it was very nice of her to offer. 

I hid the tails in my shawl today.  The stitch pattern is just gorgeous!  I am so i mpressed and can hardly believe I knit something so intricate looking.  Hiding all those tails in such a small area made it thicker and bit more stiff than the other areas of the shawl but I didn't have any choice.  I will be the only one to know --- well, all of you will, too!  Don't tell, OK?

Just had to include two more pictures from the mountains of Georgia!  Oh, I miss waking up to those views!

TA DA!

I finished my Mystery Shawl 5!!!!!!  It is beautiful!  This is my first true lace project - fingering weight yarn and knitted from a chart.  I am truly impressed with the design.  The stitch pattern is so pretty! 

The pictures are of the shawl being blocked.  Thanks to the Knit Picks blocking rods and a very large piece of insulation board, the blocking task was not so bad. 

Knitting the shawl was so much fun.  The next one begins December 1st.  Check out this link for Goddess Knits and join us!

I used Schaefer Champagne - 75% Wool, 25% Silk in the Indira Ghandi colorway.  I posted before about the three knots I found in the yarn.  When I was winding the skein into a ball using the swift and ball winder, I found two knots pretty quickly -- I ended up with one tiny ball and another ball a little smaller than a tennis ball.  Next, I was knitting along and found a third knot.  Then, within the last ten rows of the shawl, I found a fourth knot and two places where the plies had frayed.  One place the yarn was just barely connected.  So, now I have EIGHT tails to hide.  Seven of these tails are all located within three inches on the same side of the shawl.  UGH!  Issy recommended that I crochet an edge to give me a wider area to hide the tails in.  I have emailed Schaefer but didn't hear back from them.  I'm going to call them.  I think it's ridiculous to pay the price for high-end yarns only to find the skein full of knots and weak spots. 

Remember the trivet that Andy made for the blacksmith's auction??  Someone bought it for $100.00!!  All proceeds were given to St. Jude's Children's Hospital.  Andy was so pleased that people liked it and that the trivet brought that kind of price. 

This was the view out the kitchen window on the west side of the house today.  The trees haven't given up yet! 

Speaking of views -- I forgot to show you all the water tower in Gaffney, SC.  It is a giant peach and it looked as if it has had a fresh coat of paint since my last trip past it.  From the right angle, it looks like a big butt!   

Now, what am I going to knit???  I need to finish my Clapotis.  I only have one clog knit and need to do the other one so I can felt them. 

Oh, how I want to start another lace project!  I have yarn for three projects --- the Candle Flame stole from Knit Picks, the Argosy Wrap, or the Hanami from Pink Lemon Twist. 

Decisions, decisions!

The Paint Has Dried In The Palette (or The Workshop Is Over)

Today was the last day of the watercolor workshop with Charles Reid.  It was a phenomenal week and I can hardly believe it's Friday already!  I missed a couple of days posting so let's back up and we can revisit the last several days.

Wednesday, Charles did another still life demonstration.  This time, he painted a fairly detailed background out the window. This painting had a much lighter key than the ones he did on Monday and Tuesday.  The flowers in this painting looked like Spring but there was fall foliage out the window.  Whatever!  It was beautiful! 

My painting on Wednesday was awful!  I made two attempts and YUCK!  It just didn't click!  So, I have nothing to show you for my Wednesday work. 

Wednesday afternoon, I got a little worried.  Thursday and Friday were supposed to be landscape time but Charles started arranging vintage portrait-type photos.  He asked us to choose two - one to paint on Thursday and one to paint on Friday.  I'm thinking, these don't look like landscapes!  Charles LOVES figures and I think since it was a little chilly outside, that he decided we would paint these inside.  I brought tons of landscape photos and REALLY wanted to learn to paint what I brought.  Oh well!  I believe you always learn something so it looked like I was going to learn something about figures - whether I wanted to or not!

That evening, Cynthia, workshop director, had planned a wine and cheese at Bernie's - Nacoochee Valley Guest House.  Wayne, a husband of one of the workshop participants, treated us with his original music entertainment on the guitar and harmonica.  Most, if not all of us, stayed for dinner with Bernie.   

Thursday morning's demonstration -- figures it was!  Watching Charles paint this picture of John Singer Sargent, to the left, was amazing!  Flesh colors - a yellow, a blue, and a red.  Can you believe it!?!??

That afternoon, we were left to do either figures or landscapes.  I few of us chose landscapes.  I attempted a beach scene but couldn't get the water like I wanted it and couldn't get the color I wanted for the sand so I switched and tried a small painting of the autumn view out the window.   It turned out OK -- a little light and stiff but I was relatively pleased - especially given the water and sand.

This morning, Charles critiqued the figure pictures from yesterday.  There were some very VERY nice paintings from yesterday.  Next, Wayne (the workshop participant's husband / musician)  had volunteered to be a live model for Charles to paint.  Charles had agreed so now there was no doubt - our still life and landscape class had officially changed to include figures!  As usual, it was fascinating to watch Charles attack his subject with first pencil then paint.  They made an instrument switch after I took the picture to the right - the silver section in the guitar was driving Charles nuts!

This afternoon, the wheater was absolutely beautiful!  Actually, the weather has been great all week -- it was just a tad warmer this afternoon.  So, Charles headed outside to paint a landscape! with me close at his heels.  For his subject, he chose the church across the road.  I got it sketched out and then packed my stuff up and sat and watched Charles paint.  It was terrific!  The scent of his pipe, the sunlight, etc. as the small group of us watched and took notes.

Cynthia and her family (husband Rany and daughter DuGue) for dinner at the Nacoochee Grill.  All the girls had butternut squash ravioli with scallops and Rany had the sirloin.  Very yummy!  It was nice to visit with Cynthia and DuGue outside of the workshop and hash out the week's fun.  Hopefully, I'll be able to return for a third time to attend another one of Cynthia's very well-run classes.  Having attended two of her workshops - both with Charles - the area and the people feel comfortable.  Who knows - she's already booked Charles for 2009!  The question is -- will I be able to wait that long????  Ah, it will be here before I know it! 

Charles's passion in painting is light.  You can plainly see this in all he paints.  This week with him was such a treat.  Not only did he cover still life and landscape painting but exposed us to figures, his true love, as well.  He and his wife, Judy, make us feel like old friends.  I look forward to taking from him again. 

Well, all good things must come to an end.  Everyone packed up and departed for home.  I joined

As I returned to the inn one afternoon this week, I slowed in the driveway to take a picture.  I was just starting to move forward when I looked to the left.  Something was watching me.  A deer.  She was so pretty and just stood there for the longest time looking at me as I talked to her.  Finally, she had heard enough and turned and walked away.  The inn has been a treat!  George, Lucille's husband and architect of the inn and adjoining spa, did a terrific job.  I will miss these fantabulous views!

The sunrises.

The sunsets. 

And, just the views in general. 

Absolutely breathtaking!

Heading back to Virginia tomorrow - Saturday. 

Watercolors With Charles Reid

I have been an admirer of Charles Reid's work for a long time.  His work is loose and watery.  So fresh!  His still life paintings look as if someone might have been sitting at the table having a cup of coffee and just gotten up to pour another cup.  He uses lots of items in his still life paintings - baskets, duck decoys, figurines, wine bottles, paint brushes, scissors, tubes of paint, fresh flowers, fruits, and vegetables, etc. 

Cynthia Whitney sponsors the week with Charles through Art Immersion Workshops.  Cynthia runs a   wonderful workshop.  Lunch is catered and is delicious!  For example, today we had salad, vegetable or meat lasagna, bread, and trifle.  The Sautee-Nacoochee Arts and Community Center  is a very comfortable facility for the class.  After class tomorrow, we will all go to the Nacoochee Valley Guest House for a wine and cheese hosted by Cynthia and then most of us will stay for dinner with Bernie.

This year's workshop started yesterday bright and early.  Charles and his wife, Judy, are such a delight!  Judy accompanies him and arranges the set-ups and the flowers on the tables.  She does a great job with the flowers. 

There are six tables and six groups of students - one group per table - and we rotate each day.  So, you have 3-5 students setting up their easels and gear around this table to paint the table display.  So, we may  tweak the arrangement so it's pleasing from all angles. 

Each morning, Charles begins with a demonstration.  We watch, take notes and pictures, ask questions, etc. and then go off to our assigned table for the day to draw and paint our set-up.  Charles also does a critique session each morning Tuesday - Friday pointing out specific things re: our painting and making suggestions as needed. 

Using contour drawing, Charles draws his set-up.  Then, he begins painting.  The pictures on the right show him painting on Monday.  You can see the table arrangement he is painting.  He picks, discards, etc. items in the arrangement until he gets something that is pleasing to him.  And, his finished painting!  Wow!  Then, there's my finished painting from Monday.  His critique - the drawing was very good but he suggested I punch up the color some.  I agree - it's too mid-tone. 

Today, Charles painted the picture shown here on the left.  he just makes it look so simple!  Effortless!  His drawing is amazing.  I think contour drawing is very difficult.  Watching him draw is just magical.  His pencil zooms along and then stops and then starts and before you know it -- there's the whole set-up drawn and ready to go!  Then, his painting technique -- not a stroking with the brush like most teach/paint but a press the brush and paint method. 

And, here's my picture from today.  Can't wait to see what he says about it tomorrow morning.  I like it -- feel that I really need to work on my sunflowers, though. 

We are supposed to switch gears from still life painting to landscapes on Thursday and Friday.  I can't wait!  I love landscapes!

Laura, one of the painters from Atlanta, GA who is also staying here at Lucille's, and I headed out after class.  She had not been to the shops and winery that I went to on Sunday.  So, we went the The Gourd Place, Habersham Winery, The Willows Pottery, and then to eat supper at the Nacoochee Grill . 

Tomorrow will be more painting and hopefully a Mystery Shawl 5 update!