Baptism Day

Simple. Elegant. Delicious.

My daughter made this for the twin's baptism day. Naturally, I had to take pictures of it. It was exceptionally delicious. The trick it to make sure the fondant is not too thick. This was just right. The berry filling was tart, which was a nice compliment to the sweet fondant.

Favorite Garden Flowers zone 5-6

Bleeding Heart (pink or white flowers)

Perhaps one of the things I enjoy most about my yard is that it is a constantly changing environment. We have planted a variety of perennials that will bloom at various times throughout the growing season in order to maintain a fresh appearance. For instance, we have tulip bulbs growing under the hydrangea. Long before any leaves pop out on the hydrangea bush, the tulips are in full regalia. By the time the tulip leaves are looking nasty, the hydrangea leaves are filling out. The bleeding heart (dicentra) is planted between tall phlox and rudbeckia. Both those plants will take a long time to spread out and fill the void that is created when the early blooming dicentra fades.

Lily of the Valley

Another springtime favorite is the fragrant lily of the valley. I love these prolific growers. I plant them under my lilacs and other shrubs. The leaves provide a nice ground cover when the flowers are gone. Yes, every few years I do have to dig up a clump or two that has started to head in a direction I don't want it to grow...but I always find someone who is happy to take them off my hands. These are great for woodland area's.

Lamium 'Orchid Frost'

Lamium 'Orchid Frost' is an amazing ground cover that is one of the first to bloom in early spring and one of the last blooms left in late fall. It likes to be ignored. I like a plant that doesn't beg for attention. It is simply happy sitting in the shade or part shade minding it's own business. It spreads nicely, but not voraciously. It fills in the voids left behind by spring blooming bulbs or the shady space under trees. In late summer it takes a breather from blooming and still looks great because of it's pale bluish green foliage. By the time cooler temps begin in early September it starts to bloom again till frost!

Impatiens, Begonia 'Escargot' and Lamium 'Orchid Frost' all grow nicely in shady spaces.

Tree frog on Daylily

Daylilies

When it comes to low maintance, Daylilies are tough to beat. They are incredibly durable and come in a vast array of colors. The only drawback is that once they are done blooming, they are not at all attractive. Therefore, I plant Coneflower and Rudbeckia between the daylilies to get continuous color all season long.

By the time the daylilies fade, long-blooming coneflower and Rudbeckia are just getting started!

Bee on Purple Coneflower

As you can see, I love taking pictures of our garden. Being able to see the beauty in every little aspect of nature is a gift I embrace with gratitude. Below, the image of the Chamomile reflected in the water droplets is  like looking at the flowers through a magnifying glass. Chamomile is another prolific, low maintance plant that is also long blooming AND you can make tea with it! It does like to spread from seed so each year I will have to dig up the little clumps that are taking root outside the garden bed. I put them in small pots and give them away to my gardening buddies at work. It's a gift that keeps on giving.

Chamomile

Hosta

What can I say? It doesn't get any easier than Hosta. So many varieties to choose from! I throw in a few other leaf colors and styles (Japanese maple, astilbe, lilies) and WOW....all summer long. This part of the garden is a total no-brainer with the exception of putting crushed egg shells down in the crowns of the hosta in early spring. This is to keep the slugs at bay. Sad, but true....they crawl across the egg shells and it, well...let's just say those eggs shells are very sharp. If you didn't save your eggshells all winter, put it on the list for next year and buy some 'sluggeta' slug pellets to protect your hosta this summer. Slugs eat holes in hosta so if your hosta leaves look like they went through a hail storm, you've got slugs.

Hydrangea

By the time summer comes to an end I am savoring every moment in the garden. Mentally preparing for the long, cold winter is easier when I recall how pretty the faded hydrangea looks against the stark winter background. But, before those days come along, I get to watch my favorite Hydrangea 'Limelight' change from lime green to white to lime green with a rosy glow. I will cut some of the super long stems and bring them in the house to dry. The rest will stay on the shrub to remind me all winter long of summer days and nights in the garden.

All photos were taken by The Skillful Bee in her backyard.

Favorite POND plants and features zone 5-6

 Most people think a pond is a lot of work. Not so....at least not our pond! It is 30 x 70 and about 2-3 feet deep. It has a rubber liner. We have a waterfall pump but we do not have a filter. Here's how we keep our pond low maintance. In short, we let nature do all the work.

We stock it with a couple hundred 'feeder fish' goldfish (10 for a dollar). Those durable little goldfish make it through our harsh winters with no problems. However, the visiting cranes and herons do like to dine on them occasionally, which is why we have goldfish and not the more costly Koi. The fish will eat alot of stuff we don't want growing in the pond. We have about 10-15 aquatic plants (in flow-thru pots) that drink up a lot of nutrients that would otherwise be fuel for algae. We have a submerged pump that provides water circulation (important) and a lovely fountain spray. Finally, we have lots of 'floater' plants, (water hyacinth and water lettuce) that provide oxygen while absorbing nutrients. You can see the circles of floater plants encompassed in hoops (just like hoola hoops) in the picture below. These fast-growing floaters are NOT winter hardy, so they will not become a burden by crowding out the pond. Unlike the aquatic plants in pots, these floaters must be replaced every year.

Our favorite potted plants for the pond include yellow and purple IRIS. We have 3 large clumps that were originally in large pots (with flow-thru holes) but they have long since outgrown the pots and continue to proliferate at a depth of about 12-18 inches. We also like MARSH MARIGOLD, ZEBRA RUSH and mini CATTAILS.

'Floaters' are plants that float on the surface. Must-have floaters include WATER HYACINTH and WATER LETTUCE.

Favorite Garden Trees and Shrubs Zone 5-6

Our zone 5-6 backyard is loaded with a variety of trees, shrubs and perennials. Despite having only 3/4 acre, we have a diverse environment that lends itself well to experimenting with plants. We have a  wide narrow lot with a 30 x 70 pond and a narrow strip of existing woodline along the perimeter. We have sun and shade, and mostly sandy soil, except where we have amended with compost. Visitors are always captivated by the private, park-like setting we have created in the midst of a typical suburban subdivision. Our backyard is secluded because we have created detached 'layers' of landscape beds that provide screening around the entire perimeter of the yard instead of a typical, rigid wall of screening plants.

We consider our yard as much a 'research lab' as we do a place for relaxation and fun. Because we are in the business of horticulture, we have access to varieties that are new on the market as well as the tried and true varieties. We have planted and UN planted hundred of varieties to create our suburban oasis. Keep in mind, this is our idea of 'fun'. We realize most people don't have the time or inclination to play in the yard as we do, so I hope this list of 'Favorite Trees and Shrubs' for zone 5-6 will help you fast-forward to the yard of your dreams.

Finally, I want to add that not all of our trees and shrubs are planted intentionally. Our years of experience has also shown us that the indigenous plants can play a big role is providing low-maintanance options. 'Playing' in the garden can become 'working' in the garden if we have to apply chemicals, excessive fertilizers, or do too much physical maintance. We want to keep it simple. We definately do not like to use any chemicals of any kind, so varieties that have insect or disease problems will go on the 'UNplant list' rather than spraying or jumping through any hoops to keep the plant happy. We want plants that are happy on their own, without too much meddling on our part. Due to that philosophy it is only natural that we have kept many of the plants that were already here before we built the house.  Although they may not be the most attractive, the cherry, box elder and willow that have grabbed a foothold in our yard are essential features that we have come to appreciate with each passing year. 

The picture above shows the front 'layer' planting bed. Our street is about 30 feet in front of this bed. On the backside of this bed (picture below)we have a strip of lawn and then another 'layer' of plantings that shields the pond and provides plenty of privacy. The front layer was planted with WHITE PINE that grew rapidly and provide year-long screening. We also included some flowering deciduous shrubs to add color during the growing season.  The VIBURNUM have proven to be excellent choices for providing beauty and durability with fragrant white blooms in spring or summer and great fall color. There are many varieties of Viburnum. Choose the size and shape that fits your environment.

 In the picture below you can see a smallish, stand-alone tree. It is a PARROTTIA and it is fabulous. We have three of them in our yard. Since my pictures don't do the tree justice, search the internet to find images of this amazing tree. It has everything we want....durable, awesome leaf texture and color, popular 'average' size won't get too overpowering and great fall color. This may be my favorite landscape tree. 

 

 Favorite trees and shrubs pondside include the indigenous SUMAC because of it's fantastic fall color and the WILLOW TREES because of the ease of growing and tiny leaves that don't pile up in the fall. You can see on smallish willow that looks like a lollipop near the center of this picture. It had grown too tall so in February,we cut it down to about 8 foot. That spring it rapidly produced a new sprouting of branches at the cut line.

Another pond-side favorite is definately the KOUSA DOGWOOD. Beautiful white flowers stay on this tree for over a month. In the fall, the tree is covered with bright red 'berries' which eventually fall to the ground and disappear quickly as the wildlife gobble them up. 

TAXODIUM (bald cypress) is a must have. You can barely see it in the pic below (left of white flowering hydrangea), but it makes a powerful statement. It is large now, it will be a giant someday. Unique branching habit, soft evergreen-like foliage, although it is deciduous.

 HYDRANGEA 'LIMELIGHT' is my favorite hydrangea of all time. It's very low maintance, grows rapidly and produces a prolific abundance of giant conical flowers. They are lime green at first and change to white, then rosy, green as cool weather approaches in the fall. Great winter interest in an otherwise stark environment.

WEEPING CYPRESS. Love it. It's like a giant with arms open wide waiting to give you a big hug.

LILACS. An old fashioned favorite. If pruned each year after flowering it will keep a full shape. Don't ignore these shrubs as they can get 'bare bottoms' if allowed to get overgrown. If your's are already overgrown, prune them heavily.

Best choices for fall color...the old standby's continue to top our list of favorites. BURNING BUSH(Euonymous Alata) and MAPLE. Too many maples to mention. Choose a variety that is known for excellent color and you won't be dissatisfied come October.

Favorite ART projects in the classroom

It has been a pleasure to share the joy of art with my high school students. I am blessed with the good fortune of being able to admire beautiful works of art created by my talented students. Student art is to my eyes what chocolate is to my taste buds. Very satisfying, indeed. Sometimes intricately complex, sometimes blissfully simple. Leaves me wanting more. Time to share.....

Students in Introductory to Advanced Art love to paint with acrylics. We use DickBlick acrylic paints and canvas boards. I don't dictate what the subject matter is supposed to be, but I am a stickler about addressing the use of color and a planned color scheme. I find that if I don't get them to commit to a palette before they begin the project they end up with one of two palettes: 'Muddy Mix' or 'Rainbow Brite'! Students devise a color scheme using paint chips or color scraps cut from magazines and then they custom mix the colors to match. These are examples of a few of my favorite color palettes created by students:

Students in the introductory art class work on an abstract painting using a pre-collage method I learned about from a U of M art professor. They really enjoy creating this painting as they focus on color mixing, composition, and color schemes.

To learn more about the abstract project below, click here.

 

 

 

 

JIM DINE, American Pop artist, was able to make a simple tool (hammer, pliers, etc.) look really fabulous. After studying his work, my students were inspired to create these

lovely charcoal drawings:

Oh my...what to do about digital art. We want to do it, we just don't have enough computer labs at my school. We can get the lab signed out for a few days, but not weeks. So, we create drawings in class and scan them for use in our digital collage. This student enjoyed creating anime-type drawings which lent themselves well to the collage process.

 

 

What can I say? This lobster is definately the largest ceramic item anyone has made in my class. It was complex and meticulous. Great job. Loved it! So glad it didn't break!

 

Ceramic Tripod Mugs

First, check out this fantabulous video describing the process tripod mug tutorial

 Let your students imagination soar as they decide what type of impression they will make on their mug. Lace, buttons, leaves or even clay stamps they made themselves. I give students a paper template measuring 5" by 11" to cut out the rectangle. They make the impression BEFORE they cut out the rectangle. Biggest problems to look for...lobsided shape caused by pushing down on the mug, thus compressing/bending one of the 'legs', legs not evenly spaced (put 3 evenly spaced marks on bottom edge), seam gets distorted/thin due to too much pressure, handle falls off due to poor score and slip). For lots of image examples of mugs check out my pinterest boardhttps://www.pinterest.com/debbibee/7bceramic-vasesmugsvessels/

 

 

 

Totem Poles-Ceramic 

Start ceramics class off with a small project that allows students to learn a variety of processes without wasting too much clay and glaze on those inevitable and highly educational FAILS. Fails happen more often in ceramics class than other one I teach. I've learned to love the little failures because they save us lots of time and money making big failures. Students make a HAT, NECK, and FACE. We all use the same size dowel for the hole. They are painted with acrylic, then a thin layer of black wash or white wash is applied which provides a sense of unity when the various pieces are mix-n-matched on the poles. Holes are drilled in a painted wood base and dowel is glued in. Most of them are pole-worthy...some aren't, but that's okay because THIS is a learning experience!

Glass marbles are glued in as eyes on this red creature. E-6000 is my glue of choice for hard surfaces.

 

 

Shapes were cut from 1/2 thick slab and placed inside a bowl lined with paper towel. The clay can remain in the bowl until it is dry. Students really enjoyed coming up with pattern ideas. However, breakage is frequent in the greenware stage unless great attention is paid to scoring and slipping!

 

 

 

 

 

 

We HAD an ugly pillar outside our media center. It's been covered with lovely 4 x 4 tiles now. Looks great. Good advertising banner for my ceramics class too. This was one of my favorite tiles.

 

 

 

This is our final project of the year....when I have excess clay leftover. These largish bowls are fast and fun! Students enjoy going outside to gather leaves in spring. They roll out a slab, lay the leaves on the clay, use medium/hard pressure with a rolling pin, cut out a circle (using a template) and place the circle on top of a plaster mold. We set the mold outside in the sun so it will stiffen up within 30-40 minutes. At the end of the hour they take the bowl off the mold. After bisque firing, they apply one coat of underglaze, wipe it off with a sponge (glaze remains in the impressions) and apply 2 coats of clear glaze. For detailed instructions and photos visit this page.

 

 

 

 

Another favorite tile....this student made this tile from a mold. There are no words or item in the hands in the mold, just the character and ground. The student would customize those two features for each tile. He would also change the facial expression to match the mood of the message. Brilliant!

 

I encourage students to turn their ceramics projects into 'mixed media' projects. All that is needed is a little pre-planning as the adornments will be added AFTER firing. These simply need holes to put the metal leaf stems in. Students love to add marbles, wire, lace or string woven through open holes. I use E-6000 glue (a tube is about $5) for ceramic, glass and metal. Works GREAT.

Ceramic students and 2D students were involved in a community service project that raised funds to help support our downtown holiday light show. Students made ornaments for a tree that was auctioned (along with many other trees donated by local groups) to the public. A local business was the highest bidder for our tree and displayed it in their office. The ornaments depicted each student's favorite local establishment, event or location such as a bakery, restaurant or park. Students inserted high temp. wire loops into the clay while it was still soft. The backside of the ornament has the name of the business or location.

 

2D students drew their image on shrink plastic (aka Shrinky Dink) with prismacolor colored pencils. They made a frame from cardboard which was custom-sized and painted. Some students drew a design on the cardboard with Elmers glue before painting to create a raised design effect.

 

My Intro Art students get the little 3x4 easy-cut printmaking blocks from DickBlick. They have to make an image that connects to itself to make a repeating pattern. We do this project in early December. Many of them make holiday designs and print the image many times on a large sheet of paper ( cut from an inexpensive roll of paper) to make their own giftwrap. Just imagine how pleased mom is to get that gift.

Level 2 and 3 students get larger print plates.

Ahhhhh, collage. It may be the most fun project of all. It is probably the cheapest one too. Newspaper, magazine scraps, matboard scraps, broken pastels, lefotver paints, etc.. A virtual smorgasbord of creative idea's are brought to life. Looks easier than it is. Lots of problems to be solved. But that's okay...just cover up the mistakes and start over! We use a mixture of matte Modpodge and Elmer's glue to put it all together. We topcoat with Modpodge when we're done.

 

THIS is a great pastel project for Introductory students. Get some flags (garage sales) and dip them in 'stiffy stuff' or whatever type of starchy, stiff glue mixture you come up with. Drape them over a gallon paint jug to dry. Set them on the table and turn down the lights. Have students squint to see values. Use a view finder to get the right composition. I use 12 x 18 Strathmore 'Art Paper' pads from DickBlick. Great price, great paper with tooth.  Students have to use THREE values for each of the three colors of the flag (ex. pink, red and burgundy for the red stripes). Oil Pastels are easy to blend. This is a winner every time!

They all have digital camera's...err, phones, right? We all know the alphabet, right? Let's go exploring, shall we? What do you want to spell?

Now THIS portrait drawing using a grid project is really exciting because the students get to participate in making a difference in the lives of others through their art. I urge you to check out the website http://www.memoryproject.org/
There you will find instructions on how your students can participate. In short, students draw a portrait of an orphaned child and make a small donation to the cause. The portraits are delivered (a video is taken of the delivery event and you can access it online to see the child receive the portrait!) and EVERYONE is happy. Win. win. win.   I have my students use the grid method to get an accurate likeness. We don't want any distorted portraits getting delivered to the little ones!

Abstract Design. I shall never tire of the endlessly creative designs my students invent. In any medium, abstract design is always one of my favorites.

For this Paper Cutout Project we make our own papers. My favorite theme is BIRDS. We are inspired by the work of Charley Harper and Rex Ray for this project. A pre-planned color scheme is a must. I want to turn these into notecards. Who wouldn't want a dozen of these sweet things?

Text Portraits utilize the students ability to render value through the application of the written word. Students love this project not only because it's FUN, but because they get to infuse their thoughts and ambitions into the piece. I usually assign this as a self-portrait and the text should relate to the artist. However, students have drawn other people and inanimate objects using this method. We begin by taking high contrast photos with rich shadows and highlights. We put the image into Photoshop and use the cutout filter to help us identify the simplified areas of value. We use both the original and cutout prints as our guide as we draw the portraits (by sight or using the grid method) on bristol board. Some students like to begin with pencil, which they erase after they have applied the fine point permanant marker. Other students feel more confident about going straight for the ink pen. By practicing with some simple shapes, such as sphere's or fabric folds first, the students gain experience with this technique. The same size pen is used throughout the portrait. Darker areas contain text that is compact while lighter areas have text that is wide and airy.

 Text portraits are simply a modified version of a pointillism project. If you have a student who isn't quite ready for the text project, have them use tiny dots to create light and dark values. Students can print their resource image in black and white to help them distinguish values.

 

 

 

An excellent springtime Fundraiser is the Birdhouse Bling project. We began by taking a field trip to see The Heidelburg Project in downtown Detroit. This is a FASCINATING story about how one artist changed the direction of urban decay and advanced community awareness and appreciation for the value of art. We mimicked this artists concept by turning simple wooden birdhouses (very inexpensive, purchased from Joann's or Michaels craft store) into colorful and creative works of art. First, we had students vote for their favorite by putting spare change in a cup next to the birdhouses on display in the lunch room. Then we put them on display in a silent auction in our staff lunch room. Gosh, I love my coworkers! They were very supportive in providing the art dept. with a few extra bucks to stock up on supplies.
You can learn all about Heidelburg by visiting these websites:

Heiedelburg Project official website has links for educators  http://www.heidelberg.org/
Youtube Video direct link to fantastic 4 minute video http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=E6w6WGokjTU

PINTEREST

 I use my Pinterest boards almost daily in the classroom to show examples of projects, connect to helpful tutorials or provide organized images for students looking for ideas. If a student is absent on a demo day or doesn't quite grasp a concept, I can easily direct them to a tutorial. I number the boards to make them easy to reference in class. Need ideas for your ceramic coffee mug? Check out board 7b! I also have a collaborative 'secret board' I share with my AP Art students to use as a space to share images and provide feedback and critiques as well as updated news about assignments, contests, etc. Feel free to use my boards in your classroom or simply follow me on Pinterest.

https://www.pinterest.com/debbibee/

 

 

 

 

For a fun, collaborative classroom project idea click here http://theskillfulbee.blogspot.com/2013/06/collaborative-art-project-puzzle-piece.html