Herbs of Provence

A friend sent my husband Herbs de Provence for Christmas.  It was a thoughtful gift that is a daily use as chicken dishes, eggs, and fish all benefit from a dash of this lovely mixture.  The crock contains finely ground thyme, rosemary, basil, savory and marjoram, and a small hit of lavender in the concoction. (Thank you, Dorothay!)

Coq au vin and this recipe with a whole chicken perched atop a beer can is one of the husband's specialties (he sometimes uses Herbs of Provence inside the chicken):

Currently in my little corner of the world we are growing:

• mint (LOADS of it)
• rosemary
• chives
• tarragon (the tag says "Texas Tarragon")
• parsley
• oregano
• sage
• cilantro
• garlic
• basil (hopefully the tiny seeds will provide the base for many containers of pesto)

Every time I try to grow thyme, it seems to fade in the heat.  Guess it needs a different spot.

Garden stakes with herb names imprinted on the front have faded over the years, so this is what I purchased from Amazon:

The ceramic labels have not yet arrived, so I went ahead over last weekend and planted some herbs with the old garden markers stuck in the soil.

Here are some recylcled window herb garden containers that perked up with Spray Paint refashioned by Centsational Girl:

Good idea, as I have several containers that could use a good slathering of paint to give them fresh faces.

Childhood Home in Watercolor

Just dusted off a watercolor I painted of my childhood home in Mereta, Texas.  We lived there during the drought in the mid 1950's.

Please visit my art blog that I updated with my better works (it's subjective, I know) on the sidebar.  HERE IS THE BLOGSITE.

And leave a comment if you are so inspired so that I know at least someone went to the Floral Art Blog.  Thanks!

Photography Tips for Crafters

This site gives seven excellent tips for taking photographs of projects.  These are two of most important techniques that I need to use:

Tip1 - Always, always, always use natural light. Unless you've got a tungsten balanced professional light kit or box, shoot your photos in natural light. It will keep your colors true, and add a certain warmth that you just can't get from an artificial light source. It is best if the light isn't too direct, as that can cause harsh funky shadows, and/or a washed out look. An overcast day is great, or late afternoon or early morning when the sun isn't directly over head. If you can't go outside, shoot your photos in a light filled room near a sunny window.

Tip2 - Never, never, never use your flash. It just looks bad. It changes the colors and causes weird glares, reflections, and hot spots. Do yourself a favor and turn the flash off.

This picture was taken inside, using a flash, (the project is the Drop Leaf Scarf, free download page here):

This picture was taken outside, without a flash, on an overcast day:

Can you tell the difference in the clarity of the picture using natural light?

Even after reading through the techniques suggested in the article, I'll likely just grab the camera, shoot a picture, and be thoroughly relieved that it downloaded to the computer.  No one is paying me for doing this, after all. :o)