The Spirits of Trees

Hello for the second time today!  If you're looking for my Country View Crafts Nautical make,just click the link, but now it's time for the September challenge theme at Our Creative Corner, and my inspiration offering for you.

The brilliant Claudia (die amelie) is offering us a beautiful photo grid of inspiration, and my team-mates have created the usual array of amazing work to get your Mojo flowing.

Do hop over and take a look, and you'll find all the challenge details and rules too.  Do read them carefully to qualify for the prize from our sponsor this month, Tando Creative.





The first thing that caught my eye was the fabulous glowing translucence of those leaves in the centre.

The attempt to capture something of that effect was the starting point for my little hanging.











My leaves are made from leftover packaging acetate which I tinted with a combination of alcohol ink and translucent acrylic paints.

Frescos and DecoArt paints were involved - I forget exactly what colours now...











Then I stamped one of Tim Holtz's Falling Leaves in Forest Green Staz-On several times, and cut them out.  Heating the acetate means you can shape and curl the leaves for extra interest.

The foundation for the hanging is some pieces of driftwood, courtesy of Calico Crafts.  They're picking up on the gnarly bark in the photo grid.

I gave all of them a wash of white paint to highlight some of the textures in my somewhat smoother wood.











The glossy blue-black berries also caught my attention.  I didn't have any dark berries, so I raided my jar of Christmas berries and gave some red ones a makeover.













As well as Little Black Dress, Eggplant and Pea Coat (the old translucent version) Frescos, I added a coat of Gloss Glaze to get a good shine on them.













I also loved the twisty twirly stems in the top left of the grid, so I used leftover flower stems to twine my hanging together.









I almost always use just the flower heads, so I have an envelope full of the green wired stems ready for their moment.

And that moment finally arrived...  The twirly wires not only hold the hanging up; they also curl in and out of the berry clusters.

The words are from another favourite e.e. cummings poem (you can see it in full below - and catch more e.e. cummings with my Beachcombing Printers Tray!).

That light in the leaves and the energy of the curling stems and the gloss of the berries all seem to be full of the spirits of trees, so the line was going around my head as I was making this.

The glossy blue-green cogs are actually stolen from a dismantled past creation.  They were made with lots of Distress Paint and have a thick coat of Gloss Glaze on them.

I guess it was that glossiness which made me think they'd be a good addition here - catching the light as the berries and leaves do.





So that's my little hanging for you.  Do hop over to see what Claudia's fabulous photo grid inspired the rest of the team to create, and we hope you'll be inspired to play too.

Don't forget there's also my Nautical Box for the new Country View Challenges theme to check out, and if you missed my Calico Woodcuts it would be lovely if you had a moment for them too!  Happy September Crafting everyone!

i thank You God for most this amazing
day:for the leaping greenly spirits of trees
and a blue true dream of sky; and for everything
which is natural which is infinite which is yes

(i who have died am alive again today,
and this is the sun’s birthday; this is the birth
day of life and of love and wings: and of the gay
great happening illimitably earth)

how should tasting touching hearing seeing
breathing any–lifted from the no
of all nothing–human merely being
doubt unimaginable You?

(now the ears of my ears awake and
now the eyes of my eyes are opened)

e.e. cummings (all punctuation and spacing, or non-punctuation and non-spacing, is intentional)