Nature Journal

I am a firm believer of having a nature journal.  I don't get out often but when I do I take my little tablet and watercolor travel kit or colored pencils (whichever is easier).  When I see something intriguing or new to me, I draw it, ink the lines with a pen or marker and color it in the colors of nature or as natural as I can get it.  Then I like to pick the weed or flower or leaf or feather and paste it into the journal next to the drawing.  In this way I have the real thing and the drawing of the real thing.  Then I make notes: where I found it, when, the date, and what I thought the name of the plant might be.  I look them up later and try to find the real name of the weeds.  Then I can incorporated these journal drawings into a painting.  I call this painting "A Walk In The Woods With Tiffany" because it has things from my nature journal all around it.  Bugs, feathers, leaves, weeds, even a rock I thought was really cool.

One day I was walking along in the "woods" at Pacific Grove near Monterey and I came across a little weed with bright red and orange leaves.  It was beautiful.  I stopped and drew the weed, colored it in watercolor then reached down and picked it to paste into my journal.  Later I looked up the weed only to find I had picked poison ivy and pasted it into my book.  Somehow I lucked out and didn't break out into a rash.  Lesson learned.  Watch what you pick.  But it was so pretty!