Tag Archives: featured

Red Moon

September 28, 2015 Andree Fredette

Last evening, I took a tripod and a new camera to East Point, on Saturna, to see if I could get the hang of night photography.

I still have lots to learn about exposure, timing, focusing, and operating my new camera in the dark… (Hello, what was I thinking?)

Above, the early part of the show, once the moon rose above the haze/fog of Bellingham, on the West Coast. It was 7:51 p.m. local time.

After about 15 minutes, the moon’s orange and gold brilliance became more intense. I apologize for the fuzziness of this photo, taken at 8:04 p.m. I will need to check out and set up the remote shutter app, so I don’t have to touch the camera (and make it vibrate) to activate the shutter – especially at night.

And 10 minutes later, at 8:15 pm, the moon was already losing its orange tinge.

And at the same time, a Holland America cruise ship – the Oosterdam – leaving Vancouver on its way to San Diego, was coming through. It was following Boundary Pass, the international line that separates the Canadian and American islands…

As you can see, I had issues with speed settings. The moon was fairly stationary, but not the cruise ship! Here is the Oosterdam, in all its glory, full speed ahead, and all its lights blazing. And more than a bit fuzzy…

Viewed from a distance, a cruise ship produces an impressive “light waterfall” on the water.

And across the pass, the towers of Orcas Island leave a red trail in the waters of Boundary Pass.

Blog, Inspiration, Photo Wednesday, Photography, Wanderings

Fall Equinox – Photo Wednesday

September 23, 2015 Andree Fredette

First day of fall. Getting used to the idea that summer is over.

Although I have to stay on flat terrain and paths, I am happy to report that I am walking again, without the giant plastic boot, cane or crutches. What a relief!

On this first day of fall, the weather has certainly changed, and so has the forest. The first rains have greened the forest floor. Moss really responds to moisture very quickly. It doesn’t look as discouraged as before…

Above, the leaves are showing stress. The drought was hard on vegetation, even in the shady areas.

Above, a tree stump in which a creative logger for Parks Canada left a tic-tac-toe of chainsaw cuts…

Above, the lace-like veins of a leaf, offering a hint, a reminder of what once was and is on the way out. Still, elegant…

Above, bracken fern (Pteridium), an elegant plant with very interesting texture, up close and personal.

And speaking of up close and personal, my latest discovery:

Yellow-Ladle liverwort (Scapania bolanderi)… Tiny, tiny liverwort. I did not really know what was on the photo before I looked at full resolution, on my computer screen… The “sticks” on that photo are fir needles, to give you an idea of the scale. I will return with a tripod to take a sharper set of pictures of this little treasure. And maybe correct the ID of this one. And speaking of identifying the things I discover on my walks, I have a reference shelf…

Here is a well-used book in our house:

Can’t recommend this book enough! Everything from trees to lichens, for this region. Very useful and informative.

Go have a walk outside!

Blog, Photo Wednesday

Late Bloomers in the September Garden – Photo Wednesday

September 16, 2015 Andree Fredette

Here we are, mid-September, and the garden has cooled considerably. A few days of rain about a week ago interrupted a three-month drought in the Southern Gulf Islands. The soil is still not moist enough, but mosses are reviving.

Meantime, in my garden and on the deck, a few plants are joyfully blooming… a last hurrah.

Above, the bougainvillea that “pouted” all summer long, after a serious clipping back, is now in full glory. That is a close-up of the blooms (the little white flowers) and bracts (the flashy fuchsia/purple “wings”). This plant livens up a corner of the deck… but should come back into the greenhouse in a couple of weeks or so.

This is one of my succulents’ bloom. It is an Echeveria, I am not sure which one, though. After a summer on the deck, it is finally blooming. It also will have to return indoors in a couple of weeks, because it doesn’t like really wet soil.

True blue, that is my name for this Salvia “Blue Angel”. That shade of blue is very noticeable as you walk to the front door. Took all summer, but is finally blooming its little heart out!

And above, a hardy Cyclamen. The previous owners of this house planted some bulbs 30+ years ago, and I never saw these little flowers until we installed a deer fence three years ago. Now, I spot these little angel wings all over the front yard! Very elegant little flowers.

Here is a close-up:

Blog, Wanderings

Birds on Holbox

September 5, 2015 Andree Fredette

I posted the photo of a heron last Wednesday, and that got me started on organizing my pics of our winged friends into a “Birds” folder. That folder is quickly growing. I have a theme!

So, here is a set from from a week spent on Holbox Island, in the Yucatan. The header image above shows the powdery white beach, with an egret taking flight and pelicans in the background. Thank you, Jackie, for showing me this beautiful place (we went to snorkel with whale sharks – it’s fun! – but it’s also a fantastic place to see birds). Here’s proof:

First, the setting. Holbox is a very flat sand bar of an island, off the coast of Yucatan. A tiny “downtown” of sand streets lined with hotels, restaurants, souvenir shops… the usual. And a great long beach to walk, practically by yourself… you and the birds, basically. And let’s not forget a very big sky.

Big birds, and little birds, they leave their tracks on the sand.

Above, two herons. I am going to make a guess as to identification: left, a Tricolored heron (Egretta tricolor) and right, a grumpy-looking Great blue heron (Ardea herodias), in the shallows, looking for goodies.

At the end of the island, where the beach was definitely quieter, there stood a lonely tree, fully decorated with Magnificent frigate birds (Fregata magnificens). Just hangin’ out…

While overhead, an Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) was cruising, looking for lunch.

Later, a walk to the other end of the island revealed an osprey – maybe not the same one, but its cousin – perched on a tree with a snack.

Above: in the meantime, seagulls get comfortable (or is that a meeting chaired by the pelican?), waiting for the fishing boats to return in the late afternoon…

As the sun was setting, the pelicans got busy with a final squadron flight, and wild dives for careless fish…

…and then, it was happy hour…

And to close this post, a manipulated photo of an egret, taking off on a backdrop of shimmering water.

Go watch birds, it’s good for the soul.

About Art, Blog, Textile work

Quilt and Stitch … Some ideas, Part 8

August 29, 2015 Andree Fredette

Continuing with the series (my previous Quilt and Stitch posts: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six and Seven).

Here is a look at Jungle, a quilt I made two years ago. I like to think of my motifs as “graffiti” quilting, because they flow out of my brain without too much thought and planning. I don’t do a lot of marking ahead of time. If any.

It is obvious that I get my ideas from the green world out there, and the bubbles are a form of cells. Above, I began by outlining the bubbles with a first go-round. Then – as shown on the featured photo at the top of this post – I “really put some thread into it”, to make the blue fabric bubbles really stand out from all the contrasting stitching.

Putting a lot of thread work in some bits, next to loosely quilted areas, can create issues. The piece will not lie flat. Since I consider my work to be two-dimensional, I have to solve that problem. Above, one solution is to create a “dart”. Breathe deeply and… cut. Then sew again, and re-stitch the affected area. Works like a charm. It is just a bit scary the first time you attempt it…

This is an exuberant quilt, with wild colours. So is nature, by the way… Below, an example from my deck, a succulent (forgot the name) that spends the summer outside, in the sun. In winter, this plant is green, mostly. But right now, it is very happy in the sun:

Back to the quilting. Deciding on a texturing approach for different areas of the quilt is tricky. Sometimes, I go with straight lines, sometimes, curvy-curly. Here are two “neighbourhoods” with contrasting solutions:

And as an afterthought, I added some thick and exxagerated stitching lines on the right, to echo the pieced ridges on the left.

Another quilting idea comes from “pointy bits”, a tree I noticed at the Butchart Gardens. Here is a close-up photo:

Pointy Bits served as inspiration for the pointy quilting lines below. As usual, I did not try to concoct an exact representation of that leaf pattern. That pattern was just a starting point for me.

Continuing with other areas of the piece, there were more leaf areas to texture, so I chose the obvious, wavy lines that evoke leaf veins…

There are soooo many ways to interpret leaf lines. As many as there are leaves, really. Here is a manipulated photo of hostas, in their full glory:

Aren’t they just luscious? Summer’s late afternoon sunshine, reaching for these shade-loving plants. They are basking in the light. Those lines are lovely…

And here, in another section of the same quilt, a motif that has been following me around for at least a decade: the leaf, shield, whatever it suggests to you… Surrounded by repeat lines, and straight ones that wander.

And as a finish, here is close-up photo of crocosmia blooms, with a touch of digital manipulation. I just wanted to finish on a note of orange…

Andrée Fredette