Tag Archives: bouquet

February “Bouquet Garni”

"Gerbera Daisies in Under 40 Minutes", digitial image by Kerry McFall

Bouquet Garni is usually a bundle of herbs used to flavor a soup or stew, I know.  But on Friday I needed something to fill out a bunch of leggy Gerbera Daisies that I picked up at the grocery store (funny how you get them home and there don’t seem to be nearly as many blossoms once you take that wrapper off), so I ventured out into the bog in my backyard in search of greenery.  I found several stems of slug-chewed mint, one twig of rosemary long enough to hold its own, and some glorious purple-veined Swiss chard… not too bad for the gloomy depths of February.

I spent the next 40 minutes breathing in the herbs and splashing on a watercolor base, then filling in with colored pencil.  It was bright and colorful, and after an additional 10 minutes in Photoshop I pronounced it “done”.  Anybody need cheering up?  Here ya go!

Happy May Day!

sketch of bouquet

Flowers on Your Virtual Front Porch

 Spring still seems like a vague possibility out here in Oregon, so much so that finding May Day flowers to sketch was quite a challenge.  The neighbors “donated” a trio of tulips from the side yard, I found a handful of wild hyacinth that didn’t get mangled when the new front steps were poured, and last summer’s herb pots yielded two stems of mint.  The weather guessers have promised us a true spring day for May 1st, so enjoy your virtual flower delivery while Griff and I head off to Findley Wildlife Refuge to see if we can spot some baby geese!