AppleApricot: Cornwall

Cornwall rockpool shells by AppleApricot

Hello dears, welcome to Simply Neutrals! It's so wonderful to see new people joining SNT. A very warm welcome to you :) I hope you enjoy the gathering with us.

I'm busy decluttering at home (actually it's my third big round of decluttering, it's a process of years already), and while doing so I found some shells that I had brought home from a trip to Cornwall. Which brought me back to the Cornish beaches and rockpools. The long hours we spent there, enjoying the scenery, taking photos, watching the shells and rocks, the birds, the waves coming in and going out. Peaceful happiness.

Thousands and thousands of shell-creatures, clinging on to the rocks, waiting for the waves to come in and the water to rise again after low tide. Waves smashing against the rocks.

It's a miracle, how these tiny creatures can hold on to the rocks with such powerful waves crashing on them, again and again, hour after hour, day after day.

I'd love to go back to Cornwall.
I think I really wouldn't mind to live there!

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FEATURE OF LAST WEEK

Like I said, it's wonderful to see new people joining us at Simply Neutrals, and one of them is Jo from Let's Art Journal. I am completely in love with the beautiful collage she made and shared with us last week.

So many beautiful details to see...
Thank you for sharing and linking your gorgeous work, Jo!

Cornwall had been on my wish list for a long time before we made it there. I grew up in a coastal town myself and really longed to visit the south west end of the UK. And I was not disappointed. Now I really long to go back there again and again.

It's that's feeling of really being on vacation, that I also always have when we drive to our local coast and pass the sand dunes. On these coasts the trees are lower than inland. There's more bushes than trees, really. You hear the seagulls and smell the salt of the sea in the refreshing breeze. And of course there's the sea. The waves splashing on the beach over and over again.

It's the hours spent beachcombing.

Finding treasures in shells, stones, sea glass and pottery pieces.

textile art embroidery coast study by AppleApricot Wen

It's a place so inspiring, I take loads and loads of photos to bring back home some of the beauty and memories. At home I wish to capture it all, studying in threads, fabrics, paints, and so on.

And I don't mind the weather on coasts like this.

I want to stay outdoors for as long as possible. You really have to drag me home then.

The hills and cliffs, the beaches and sea, they inspired me to experiment with crochet. I used a version of the so called wave stitch, and varied with working in back loop, front loop and both loops, to add some depth to the piece. I also started adding some tiny flowers in embroidery. Where this will lead me, I have no idea, but I'm having a whole lot of fun anyway :)

painting and crochet by AppleApricot Wen

And the colours also inspired me to get some paint going as well, as you can see.

I love paintings worked in detail and abstracts equally. It's just like nature. Nature paints in wild landscapes, flora and fauna, magical small worlds in details, and abstracts and patterns.

Here's an abstract painting by nature:

Cornwall coast textures by AppleApricot Wen

Isn't it just gorgeous? Plant life holding on to ancient coastal rocks, washed by the tidal waves.

Waves that bring little treasures to the coast: sea glasses, pottery, shells.

beachcombing pottery sea glass and shells by AppleApricot Wen

Found in rock pools and harbours.

Here the ocean has withdrawn. But only for a little while. You have plenty of time to do some beachcombing, but make sure to keep an eye on the tide and go back to dry land in time. I didn't, and got wet feet. Luckily I was close enough to the beach. Others had gone a little further and had to swim back. They had fun though, and got back safely.