Please Don't Eat the Daisies

Sounds like a TV reality show, doesn’t it?

The whole idea of having a garden is the serenity of the experience, right?

Communing with nature, soaking in the colors of all the wonderful flowers, sipping wine as you enjoy the soothing rhythm of your garden swing. And then . . .

You discover the havoc that has been wrought all around you.

A ground squirrel comes over the wall, thinking you can’t see him, and starts chewing on the Snapdragons, the Mexican Heather, and even the Marigolds - which are usually planted to repel critters.

The bunnies get through the Coyote fence and chow down the Petunias and every new green shoot they can spot.

Mice are midnight snacking on the Straw Flowers and Lantana and Geraniums!

They all know this is a No-Kill garden (tell that to the plants!) so there is little fear of being caught. They do get cussed out. But my side of the conflict has to be more clever than that.

I sprinkle everything with fine black pepper…

This works until rain or watering rinse it away.

I cover them with wire waste baskets large and small. I use little umbrellas that look like Ladybugs to protect them from critters AND hail - which seems to be a component of most of our rainstorms now days.

Something new this year - I bought collapsible mesh laundry bags to set over plants because they are taller than the waste baskets I have been using.

We tried hanging baskets on Shepherd’s Hooks, but some of the critters are great climbers.

And we even purchased a wild critter feeder to put outside the fence to maybe fill the squirrels up on appetizers before they get into the garden.

Please don’t offer any anti-critter advice that hurts them. Can’t happen around here, and brings tears when I hear about it. I brushed my teeth at the utility sink this morning because there was a baby spider in the bathroom basin and I couldn’t coax him out.

All of this would be funny if it weren’t so frustrating! But it is interesting enough for a spread in my daily sketchbook, so I have been working on that.

I am showing it to you in an unfinished state because it demonstrates how I go about making a sketchbook spread, and many folks are interested in that.

I rough everything out - even the text - especially the text - where mistakes abound in spacing, spelling, etc.

I draw a rough outline of the images. If the image will be a photo, I make a box the approx size the photo will fit, to guide me when printing it.

I work back and forth at finishing the images. If I am pretty sure of something, I take it to completion like the pot with umbrella.

I was printing things for another project, so I found package pics online for the corn cobs and critter food we bought - and the mesh laundry bag. I went ahead and added them with double stick adhesive.

I love working this way because the unfinished spread is a project that is easy to come back to in any spare minute. Just pick it up and do a little!

I will post the finished spread next time.

I am redoing my website. There will soon be gallery pages for Glass, Painting, Sketchbooks, and my $20 Art School.

I will be exanding my shop and going back to selling unique things for artists on a limited basis. I have a great handmade sketchbook coming up.

I will also begin marketing digital assets. What’s that? Digital files of clip art, Procreate Brush Stamps and anything downloadable that I come up with.

This brings a question and I would so appreciate your comments in response.

I have a pretty terrific line of greeting cards featuring my illustrations and miscellaneous thoughts (some humor, of course). I know my cards are terrific because they have been such great sellers in the physical gallery environment (both my own stores and the one I recently left in the neighborhood.

I can sell physical cards online, but buying just a card or two does not usually justify the cost of shipping. So I was thinking about this idea . . .

They would be sold as letter size PDF files with 2 cards on a page. The customer would print the sheet, cut in half crosswise, and then fold the two pieces in half.

You would be able to print as many as you need for personal use. The price for the downloadable file would probably be the same as for one printed card with envelope ($5).

This would give you two cards to send in the most popular A2 size. You would have to add an envelope, but A2 envelopes are readily available and very affordable on Amazon.

You are my people - so your opinion is important to my planning.

What do you think?

Because it is such a popular subject, I made a video about my three favorite sketchbooks and how they perform. I think you will enjoy it because it is also part sketchbook tour and contains a LOT of tips along the way.

Until next time, be well and happy.

jessica