Light Up "The Far Woods" for New Year's!

This wonderful poster of night-blooming flowers was done by the very creative sisters, Sonya and Nina Montenegro.

You can visit them on Etsy if you would like to add a little extra moonlight

to your New Year's celebration.

I count their creative contributions as part of the fellowship of people

working to, as I heard on an obit of a 104-yr-old woman today:

to pump good energy into the world

instead of sucking it out.

We humans contain both intense light & darkness.

I hope my actions have almost always been and will continue to be guided

by contributing to the light.

The waxing moon will be a lamp into the New Year

And shed light onto the wildness of our psyches
Free to roam
In Sonya's and Nina's "The Far Woods." 

Happy Healthy Holidays!

Between the Buddha's Hand and the Broccoli Christmas Tree, I thought this display at our local Whole Foods embodied a cultural range of holiday spirit.

Brightness on the Winter Solstice

 Since today is the day with the least light of the year, I am sending extra light. Above is an image of the recent full moon. I took it in downtown Chicago outside the Lyric's Civic Opera House where a friend took me to see/hear a performance. Simply being in such a glorious space is uplifting! Below is a shot of the golden ceiling.

By the time you get this tomorrow: the light will be lengthening...

Remember to visit Garfield Conservatory: Silver Linings

You must travel through the West side of Chicago...

...to arrive at Jensen's Jewel.

Be sure to see this fun show and breathe it in!

Channel the cloud with a Silver Lining: Gratitude.

You may even be able to time travel. This enduring place has worked its magic for people since 1908.

AND here's a question: don't the arches in the photo on the above link look like Louis Sullivan???

The Landscape of Felt

Since the flowers are dormant, I thought I'd show some beautiful colors and textures that I see coming and going from my office. These felt marvels are in the Evanston studio, Ausrine's Arts Room, of the wonderful artist, Ausrine Kerr.

The Landscape of Signs: Hope Springs Eternal!

Art Institute of Chicago: Interactive Art

Absolutely fabulous 43 years on. Worth the price of admission!
You can see it through March 15, 2015 at the Art Institute of Chicago 

Little Free Library Landscape

Recently, I was so delighted to run into a former client about whom I had written an earlier post. That post talked of her enthusiasm about her worm bin in the basement and how she shared it with other kids at her daughters' schools.

This time, she shared an addition to their garden which you can see above. I was thrilled to learn about Little Free Library. Hope you are too!

Cheery Images on a Rainy Autumn Day

We sure need the rain!!!

(Photos by Julie unless credited to others...)

Rainbow from Metra train headed to Chicago.

 Tree lights outside French Market, downtown Chicago.

Chihuily sculpture at Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix.

(Photo by Susan Florsheim)

Recent Harvest Moonrise over Lake Michigan, Evanston.
Note: speck of a sailboat.

Chicago Botanic Gardens, Glencoe.

(Photo by Bernie Ruckdaeschel)

Ezra Siegel: "Best of Show" Evanston Big Fork Art Festival Sept. 27-28, 2014

A big sister must brag...

I selected the shots that show Ezra's paintings in his booth. To see a much more thorough representation of his work go to his website.

Blame me for making him pose under this hat painting. I prefer the abstract works but I believe his hanging this literal piece amidst them brings out their abstraction.

What Is A Weed

Is all about expectation and perception.

As Summer's Blooms Fade, Fall Fun Begins

Sedum 'Autumn Joy' and Hibiscus 'Pink Elephant'

Franklin Tree

Catalpa seed pods

Staghorn Sumac berries

Chicago Botanic Garden on a Lovely August Afternoon

 High Maintenance Art

 Insect Damage

 Intimate English View

 Branches and Leaves

The Best!

Multiples

Spots & Lines

Bows & Stripes

Cherries & Dots

Red Admiral Butterfly and Buttonbush

So delighted to see these Red Admiral butterflies (males apparently) feeding on the native shrub,  Buttonbush (Cephalanthus occidentalis) at a client's recently. The plant likes wet soil and full sun. With all the rain we have gotten (drought last summer, flash floods this summer), this shrub is thriving!

Wedding Containers

It's so rare to have photos of our planting installations with people in them. So I was delighted when I attended a wedding last weekend hosted by a long-term, special client.

We landscaped the front yard and every year we have a blast planting annuals front, back and on this rooftop right in the middle of this very urban Chicago neighborhood.

Summer Fruits & Veggies

Important to buy these organic...

A Good Spring for Pig Squeak

Bergenia cordifolia

Spring Perspective

Our Spring was so late this year, that once work began, it's been full-speed ahead. So, I thought I'd post these photos taken from the 73rd floor of downtown Chicago at dusk.