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Tag: pen and wash

The small delight of the toxic hellebore

The small delight of the toxic hellebore

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We were recently given a present of a beautiful hellebore. At the moment we are enjoying it as a houseplant, but it will really be happier outdoors, and we’ll plant it outside as soon as the cold snap finishes. 

Meanwhile I’m enjoying having it indoors, and having the chance to draw it without getting cold! I love its thick, creamy petals, and seeing the seed heads develop.

Hellebores are lovely to have in the garden.  Their flowers, unusually, do not drop, but gradually fade to pale green and eventually dry, thus seeming to flower for months, from winter to spring.

The French know the hellebore as Rose de noёl (Christmas rose) or Rose d’hiver (Winter rose). We in the UK also tend to call it the Christmas rose, or sometimes the Lenten rose. Hellebores are not related to the rose family, but the similarity of shape with the wild rose is clear. 

Although beautiful, all parts of the plant are toxic. According to Wikipedia, the ancient Greeks reportedly used hellebore to poison the water supply during the siege of Kirrha (585BC) leaving the occupants of the city too weak to defend it.

A carpet of cyclamen

A carpet of cyclamen

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I find it impossible to keep cyclamen as a houseplant. But to my delight in this garden we have a carpet of cyclamen under the trees and bushes; a wash of pinks from almost white to lilac. 

For some reason I found these pretty little flowers difficult to draw.  They look delicate, but have strong shapes to the petals.  In fact they remind me of the old-fashioned nun’s wimples – the ones with the ‘wings’. From a distance they could be a mass of tiny butterflies.

The cyclamen reminds me again of how some of our most delicate-looking flowers are actually the most hardy, flowering through the winter and coping with frost and snow. 

The magic of marbles

The magic of marbles

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I hadn’t thought about marbles for many years, until these turned up in my Christmas cracker. I put them in a bowl where they have been ever since. 

Marbles always fascinate.  I love how they catch the light as I turn them in my hand and roll them around my palm.  How does the colour get inside? There are some fascinating videos on YouTube of the hand made process, and some beautiful, highly decorative marbles. But even my cracker present, mass-produced marbles are a thing of wonder- and a challenge to draw.

Taking pleasure in a favourite possession.

Taking pleasure in a favourite possession.

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I spent a few moments considering this small bowl. Inexpensive, simple glazed earthenware, but a favourite object.  There is something about the way the light hits the milky surface, and the generous interior, waiting to be filled with nuts or olives – and perhaps accompanied by a glass of something white and cold.

Daffodils, Jonquils, Daffodowndillies

Daffodils, Jonquils, Daffodowndillies

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Whatever we call them, the daffodils seemed to start early and gladden the heart for longer than usual this year. If I close my eyes, I can leave the confines of lockdown and summon up the reputed 10,000 daffodils around the walls of York, and the swathes of small wild daffodils of Farndale, North Yorkshire.