Patricia Rust Art

Tag: gardening

  • March Picks from my Etsy Shop

    Spring is here! As the days stretch out and the temperatures start to rise, my thoughts turn to the garden, spring cleaning and and a list of birthdays!

    Painted Pebble Labyrinth

    My hand-painted little labyrinth pebbles are perfect for a moment of calm mindfulness in a busy day. Great as windowsill ornaments, house-plant decorations, paperweights and desk toys. Supplied in its own packaging, perfect for gifting.

    Eco-Friendly Kitchen Sink Set

    This is my most eco-friendly product yet! Using Re-Up yarn (100% recycled cotton), this little kitchen sink set will work for the smallest of kitchens. I have upcycled a glass ramekin-style jar to make a covered holder for the pan scrubber, great to store the wet brush in. The crochet cleaning cloth and cover are machine-washable cotton and the cloth has a loop for easy drying.
    Supplied with a bamboo dish and pan scrubbing brush. Made from high quality biodegradable natural palm, sisal and renewable bamboo.

    The Gardener’s Pocket

    This little set of pocket-sized goodies is suitable as a gift for any keen gardener. Add your personalised message and it’s ready to post direct! Click on the photos to go direct to my Etsy shop and find out more.

  • Gladioli from the Garden

    This weekend we had stormy weather which left some late blooming gladioli blown over in the garden and so I decided to pick a few for the house and use them for drawing practice this week.

    These late bloomers have all been this lovely white and red bicolour, making beautiful structural shapes and welcome flowers after a dry summer and early autumn.

    I started with a quick pencil sketch to loosen up and then a couple of studies in chalk pastels. I will probably use the pastel sketches as a base or inspiration for either cards or artwork.

    I thought I’d put a few handy tips if you’re thinking of using chalk pastels for the first time:

    Chalk pastels are crumbly and very easy to smudge, I recommend trying pastels in a pencil form if you want detailed, crisp lines as they are easy to sharpen to a point and create far less mess.

    Try keeping a clean piece of paper handy to cover areas you have already worked on in order not to smudge pastel as you move over your work.

    These white gladioli are much easier to pick out on a colour background than on white paper. So, if you can find a pad of pastel paper with various shades, you can pick a background to maximise the impact of your work.