~ October on Lake Superior ~

~ October on Lake Superior ~

~~~~~

Lake Superior is not only very beautiful but can be very dangerous

when storms create waves and swells 15 feet and higher.

Waves that have snapped in half and sunk many a ship the size of the oar boat in this image.

Thankfully on this day these white capped waves were small.

~~~~~~~~~~~ 

~ October Color ~

This year our fall season seemed to come and go as quick as this year's spring...in one week. 

Thankfully I was able to capture a few photos of the leaves on our small dirt road as they changed color one day,

and before they lay on the ground the next!

~ To the Mailbox ~

~ Fleeting Fall Color ~

~ Fall View on Turtle Hill ~

My husband named this Turtle Hill because every spring we find a Painted Turtle laying her eggs on the shoulder of the road between the birch tree on the left and the top of the hill. 

~~~~~

~ Wishing you a whimsically beautiful fall day! ~

:0)

~ Como's Pink Flamingos ~

~ Pink Flamingos ~

The Como Zoo is the smaller of the two zoos that are in Minnesota's Twin Cities area,

but what it lacks in size it makes up for in beauty.

 It is one of the most beautiful zoos I have been to!

These pink Flamingos are just some of the many animal residents Como has.

~~~~~ 

New ACEOs for August

Last Fall I worked on two 1 1/2" round wooden jewelry pendants, both images created with Prismacolor pencils. 

Last week I decided it would be fun to enlarge them into ACEO (2 1/2" x 3 1/2") size. Both have been created on Bristol 100 lb acid free paper and colored with Prismacolor pencil, graphite pencil, and " Star Gazing on Bunny Hill " also contains some Golden acrylics.

~ Star Gazing on Bunny Hill ~

~ Star Dusk Unicorn ~

~ Wishing you a wonderful whimsical day! ~

~ Snow Unicorn ~

~ Snow Unicorn ~

The snow is so deep this spring the Unicorns can hardly keep their head above snow!

~~~~~

It's been so long since I've built a snowman I just couldn't resist the sticky snow late yesterday afternoon. It had been a balmy 56 degrees F...an absolute beautiful early Spring day! A day so beautiful after the record breaking cold we had endured all winter, I wanted to spend a little more time outside before heading indoors for the evening.

I was only 10 steps from entering the front door when I turned to look at the enormous snowbank of wet sticky snow. Taking three steps back I bent over and scooped up a mitten full of snow. "Why not." I thought. "Let's have some fun and see what happens."

With no plans as to what to create, I scooped and patted...scooped and patted. Was it a snowman? No. Scoop and pat...scoop and pat. And then I saw the shape of a horse head. Scoop and pat...scoop and pat.

Shape an ear. Scoop and pat...then another ear.

Now the mittens were heavy and wet making them useless for the finer details. So off they came. Using bare hands to shape the horn, then create nostrils, and shave the snow to refine the shape.

 20 minutes later and some very cold hands this guy appeared on top of the huge snowbank just outside the big dining room window. :0)

It certainly isn't my best sculpting, and wouldn't win a snow sculpture contest

but it was an enjoyable time playing as a child in the snow and made me smile. 

Less than 24 hours later Snow Unicorn is disappearing as Unicorns do.

Warmth and rain is quickly making him only an early spring memory.

~~~~~

~ Wishing you beautiful whimsical memories! ~

~ Pegasus Stallion in Prismacolor ~

Oh my! It has been a VERY long time since I've last posted! But...even though it has been quiet on the 'Chronicles of Whimsy' site, we have not been idle.

During the summer it was decided that DH's blacksmith shop was beyond needing a facelift. So down came the old, and a new shop was designed and is being constructed.

We also took some time during last summer to venture out with art and craft, setting up a booth at three shows to display both ironwork and art. DH and I truly enjoy one on one interaction with customers as we display our newest creations.

I haven't been as productive with my art as in years past, but I have enjoyed creating a few new projects.

~ Pegasus Stallion in Prismacolor ~

"Pegasus Stallion in Prismacolor" is the the latest piece that has come off the drawing table. In ACEO

2 1/2" x 3 1/2" size. this illustration was done with both graphite and colored pencil on Bristol paper.

~ Unicorn Foal in Graphite and Prismacolor ~

"Unicorn Foal" was created a few months back. Not a piece that was in full color, but some was added to bring me back into color creating mode. This illustration was also created in ACEO size.

While working on the line drawing for "Pegasus Stallion in Prismacolor" I began work on 4 other designs. I hope to get back to the table again soon, but to pick which design to complete...hmmmmm.

~~~~~

~ Wishing you a wonderful whimsy day! ~

:0)

Time Again For Sailing Ships ~

This past weekend provided another opportunity to view,

closer this time,

those beautiful sailing ships from times past.

Duluth hosted once more a Tall Ships Festival.

Nine amazing tall masted ships sailed into Minnesota's Duluth harbor, 

attracting attention wherever their masts could be seen.

The first to arrive were the Pride of Baltimore II, a 157' two masted schooner, 

the Norwegian white SS Sorlandet, a fully rigged 210' three masted ship built in 1927,

and the Privateer Lynx, a 122' two masted schooner.

~ SS Sorlandet ~

This ship is the oldest fully rigged ship in the world still in operation.

Built as a training vessel, she helped represent Norway at the 1933 World's Fair in Chicago.

During World War II the ship became damaged, but was restored and read to sail again in 1948.

Her first engine was installed in 1958. 

~ U.S. Brig Niagara ~

198' two masted brig.

This ship is a reconstruction of the brig used by

Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry to win victory in the

1813 Battle of Lake Erie. 

~ The two masted 79' Schooner Hindu shares the water with boats and ships from a more modern era. ~

Trying to capture images of sailing ships only was not easy in the Duluth harbor

busy with ore ships, cruise ships, and various boats large and small.

~~~~~