They Are Back!!

Early this morning, I slowly made my way over to the living room window to peer out, with high hopes that this would be the day I would see the deer back in our yard. And lo and behold, there they were, in all their glory! Five of them as a matter of fact, standing right there in the front yard, mere feet from the window! I was thrilled to say the least, and called out to Wes saying “They’re here!” He carefully came and stood there watching them with me. It was obviously the first time they have seen the landscaping improvements I’ve made to the front yard, as they slowly circled the one section, carefully sniffing each rock and plant added to the setting. They seemed content with the additions, so I’m guessing they approve. After a short while, they walked across the driveway and into the woods on the other side, slowly making their way up the hillside and eventually onto the trail, which they followed up into the woods.

We’ve made more progress on projects around the house the past couple of weeks. One of the hardest was safely moving the concrete pizza oven from inside the garage out to the stone base. We had been concerned, especially since it was down on the garage floor and clearly weighed more than we had expected. Fortunately, Wes’s brother and his wife had stopped by to visit last week and Tony was able to help Wes get it up off the floor and on to a table. From there, it was still not an easy task at all, but after it was safely loaded onto the wheelbarrow, we began the arduous task of carefully rolling it around to the backyard. Using pieces of 2X4’s we moved it onto the base and slowly maneuvered it into place. What a relief it was indeed, to finally have it in place! Now to add another layer of concrete and a few more rocks, and it will be completed. 

With spring finally here, we finished one of the raised rock garden beds by the patio and I’ve started planting a few herbs in it. 

another great project was the DIY composter which Wes designed and built using the old dryer tub, some pieces of old plywood and wheels we had laying around. To use it, you simply undo the latch, open the door and toss your kitchen scraps in, then you spin it once, it’s that easy. The base is constructed of logs from a downed tree on the property, that he peeled off all the bark. It’s very sturdy and should last a very long time, and even better, it matches the log cabin and was free! 

Another fun woodworking project was redoing this picnic table which the former owner had left for us. It’s actually made with an old table base from a McDonald’s, with two of the twisting seat attachments that still worked. So we made seats for those two from wood we had, whilst reusing and refinishing the original boards that were on there already. It works great and makes me feel like a kid again while twisting back and forth on the seat!

Our favorite “restaurants” here are outside! There are several parks nearby that we love eating take-out picnics at when we’re in town running errands. I thought this was a particularly beautiful location and the view couldn’t be beat, and of course the brilliant blue skies and abundant sunshine made it even better!

IN THE STUDIO

While I’m continuing to paint on a pet commission that I’ll be sharing with you later on, Wes has been busily at work framing our miniature paintings for upcoming shows. Downsizing our studio and framing area after our recent move, brought along with it several challenges. Nonetheless, Wes has figured out how to adapt within the space, to make it work. All I can say, is thank goodness we paint miniatures!

SEE OUR PAINTINGS IN PERSON

Our touring exhibition Exquisite Miniatures is currently at The Evelyn Burrow Museum, located in Hanceville, AL, where you can see it now through April 21st, 2022. So if you’re in the area, plan a visit to the museum, grab a magnifying glass and be “Wowed” in person!

Society of Animal Artists 2021 Exhibition
Remaining Tour Venue:
February 5 – May 5, 2022: The Sternberg Museum of Natural History, Hays, KS

To see our available miniature paintings as well as some upcoming shows, please

visit our WEBSITE  artofwildlife.com     Email us

Thanks for following me 🙂

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Until Next Time ~ Rachelle

Oh…What A Difference A Day Makes

WOW . . . What a difference a day makes indeed! Friday evening we were sitting out on the back porch eating supper, enjoying the sunshine and relative warmth. Night came, we went to bed and woke up the next morning to 3 inches of snow covering the ground! Whilst sleeping later that night, a strange noise woke me up and at first I wasn’t quite sure what it was, but soon realized it was the sound of sleet and crunchy snow pelting the side of our cabin! Of course we knew it was heading our way, but even so I just wasn’t prepared for winter to return with such vengeance. 

It was beautiful, but very cold, with highs in the low 20s accompanied by very strong winds, which added insult to injury. Knowing they would need extra food, we spread a lavish buffet of seeds, nuts and mealworms for the birds, and they descended on our yard in great numbers. 

Before long they had consumed nearly everything, so I suited up in my dozen or so layers to keep me warm and refilled the buffet spread. I had taken the camera out with me, found a nice sunny spot to sit nearby, and happily sat watching my numerous feathered visitors all around, whilst taking photos of them.

After awhile I headed to the back patio to see if there was a sunny spot out of the wind. I found one on the stone steps which had somehow managed to absorb and hold a wee bit of warmth from the abundant sunshine. So I plopped down there and commenced watching the many birds again. At times the wind gusts were so intense that they whipped up piles of snow, forming snow dirt devils which twisted and turned following along the tree line in the backyard, before suddenly falling to the ground. It was actually quite amazing to watch, as I had never seen a snow devil before! 

Even our gorgeous plump doves were fluffed up trying to stay warm. This couple sitting right by the fire pit appeared to be waiting for us to come out and light a fire for them to warm themselves by. 

There were so many birds in the yard, that I could hardly resist going from window to window, once back in the house. At one point Wes exclaimed “Oh, there’s a Fox Sparrow!” So I quickly ran to the window to see this beautiful large rusty red-colored sparrow, which we have only seen twice before. I managed to get several nice photos of it through the living room window.

Even though we aren’t finished completely with the pizza oven yet, the stone covered base got christened with snow and icicles during this past winter storm, and It was quite lovely sporting its frozen accessories! 

This past week, Wes carefully removed the foam mould from inside the pizza oven, and it turned out great! He lit a couple of candles and let them burn inside to help finish drying out the concrete.  

I thought it was so neat looking inside, I had to take a photo for you! It looks like the inside of an old crypt or something, don’t you think? 

We’ll probably try and carefully move it outside and sit it atop the stone base this next week. Once in place one more layer of concrete will be added, and then it has to sit and cure for a couple of weeks, before we can actually use it, and I just know it’s gonna make delicious pizza! It has been an interesting process indeed, and I look forward to being able to share photos of it completely finished.

IN THE STUDIO

Here’s my finished pet portrait commission of a beautiful black cat named “Jett”. I’ve started on my next pet portrait and am having great fun with it! I’ll be able to share it with you later. Wes and I both will also be painting on miniatures to submit to upcoming shows, and I’ll have to wait until the jury process is completed before sharing those. I’m also working on my time-lapse video of the truck painting and should have it on YouTube sometime very soon!

“Jett”

SEE OUR PAINTINGS IN PERSON

Our touring exhibition Exquisite Miniatures is currently at The Evelyn Burrow Museum, located in Hanceville, AL, where you can see it now through April 21st, 2022. So if you’re in the area, plan a visit to the museum, grab a magnifying glass and be “Wowed” in person!

Society of Animal Artists 2021 Exhibition
Remaining Tour Venue:
February 5 – May 5, 2022: The Sternberg Museum of Natural History, Hays, KS

To see our available miniature paintings as well as some upcoming shows, please

visit our WEBSITE  artofwildlife.com     Email us

Thanks for following me 🙂

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Until Next Time ~ Rachelle

The Big Snow Globe

Wow . . . the weather here has been all over the place the past couple of weeks! Only a little over a week ago, it was sunny and almost 70 degrees outside! Then it was time for things to change, and it felt like we were living in a snow globe that had just been furiously shaken, as the snow started falling, turning the world white. It was beautiful and I couldn’t wait to suit up in multiple layers and head out for a peaceful walk in the woods! Since the ground wasn’t frozen, by mid-afternoon the snow on the gravel drive and paths was already melting, and there wasn’t enough snow to cover the gravel driveway to make it suitable for snow tubing, but maybe next time. Nonetheless, I had so much fun, dressed like a marshmallow and sitting in a front row seat near the bird feeders.

With camera in hand, I quietly sat in the winter wonderland setting, whilst watching and photographing the numerous birds coming to the different feeders. It was truly amazing and so serene, with the only sounds filling the air being the tweets and trills of all the birds, especially the beautiful Slate-colored Juncos, who seem to vocalize frequently, with their sweet little “choo-choo” calls. I decided that was a delightful way to capture reference photos for future miniature paintings!

There were Tufted Titmice, doves, goldfinches, juncos, chipping sparrows, several woodpecker species, Purple Finches and even a beautiful male cardinal visited for the first time! I may have forgotten a few others, as there have been so many! 

At times sections of the yard were filled with birds scampering along the ground, searching and obviously finding tasty little seeds and bugs to eat, making it appear as if the ground is alive and moving! 

Watching the birds wasn’t the only joy with the recent snowfall, but also taking walks along the trails. It was truly beautiful and felt like I was walking through a winter wonderland. Here are several photos so you too can enjoy a virtual walk with me through the snow covered woods.

I love mushrooms and thought this clump particularly lovely, with a dusting of snow and our cabin in the background. 

Another fun part of walking in the woods when the ground is covered in snow, is seeing all the critter tracks! Of course there were lots and lots of squirrel tracks, like the wee ones in the photo below, as well as deer and bird tracks. Another track I found looked to be that of a bobcat, but I’ll have to check into it more to be sure. 

The old wooden barn in the photo below, is located in the meadow behind our property and I thought it looked like a Christmas postcard with the snow framing the lovely setting.

Of course no matter the amount of times I have built a snowman, I just can’t resist building one yet again when it snows. So alas, I had to build a snowgirl complete with a lovely leaf bonnet. Sadly her eyes soon fell out, but with arms raised, she still appeared to be happy to feel the sun!

Now as I write this blog post, the rain is pouring by the bucket fulls outside and has pounded the last of the snow into oblivion. However, the snow in a big long stretch of the backyard as well as the shady sections of the trails lasted until the rain, so I’m thinking who knows, it may be fun to find an old pair of skis and take up cross country skiing when we have snow! For now, I’ll be anxious to see what the ever-changing weather brings us tomorrow! 

See our miniatures in person this week

Society of Animal Artists 2021 Exhibition
The Hiram Blauvelt Art Museum, located in Oradell, NJ, until January 16th, 2022

Society of Animal Artists The Kingdom Show
The Midland Center for the Arts, located in Midland, MI, until January 16th, 2022 

To see our available miniature paintings, visit our WEBSITE here: artofwildlife.com

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Until Next Time ~ Rachelle