AppleApricot: Magpie-Wen

Hello dears, a warm welcome to Simply Neutrals #36!

We went to the Utrechtse Heuvelrug again this weekend, but a different part than last time. We now chose only the woodland part for wandering, collecting, and taking photos.

Inspired by this beautiful land I created a little woodlandish collage. I used wallpaper samplers, music sheet paper, pieces of two antique French postcards that I scanned (one of which you can find as a freebie HERE - the other one I will share another time), a piece of old packaging tape that was torn of a box (the brown paperish thingie), a small piece of a little digital scrapbook paper I created some years ago (the green text on green - which you can find as a freebie HERE), vintage images of an owl and a nest that I found on pinterest, some distress inks, and a bit of machine stitching.

Owl and Nest collage by AppleApricot (detail)

Of course I couldn't help myself and took pieces of the woods back home with me. Little things that spoke to me. I think I'm a Magpie.

On my worktable a collection of things I found in the woods this time:

pine cones
moss
branches
fern (I think it is?)
holly
stones
leaves
pottery...

... Yes, pottery!
Well, pieces of tiles mostly.
On some of the bigger lanes you can find them :)

*****

Features of last week

This week I was in the mood for sharing the many beautiful photos and pieces of art you all shared in the party last week. So here are two photo collages with descriptions of which photo/creation belongs to who.

features for Simply Neutrals #35 at AppleApricot

Thank you so much dear friends for gathering here and joining the party with your beautiful photos and art work! I really appreciate the time and effort you put into this and the love that is shared.

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.