These Orchids are just showing off!

My Mom knows I love orchids and gave me this one while I was in the hospital two weeks ago.  It's just blooming it's heart out, showing off like nobody's business.  I popped them out on the porch rail to photograph and managed to catch my two border collies in the photo.  I guess they were keeping watch on the golf course, looking for something/someone to bark at.  I'm winding up my little medical vacation.  I feel good, I just keep being reminded that I'm not back to full strength yet.  But time heals, so I'll try to be patient.  I'm featured artist at the Oasis Gallery in Harrisonburg for May and June, so I really need to be getting my work together for that.  I haven't done a one woman show for some time, it's not that I don't have the inventory.  It's more about putting things out there that are representative of me now, rather than things I've done ages ago.  And some of the projects I've worked on in the last year or so are ones I don't want to sell... so there is no point in putting that work out if the goal is to make it count financially.  Ha ha, we'll see what happens.  I have fabrics pulled out for a new small quilt, it will be good to get back to work on Monday.  Until then I will continue to be a slacker!  =)

Happy Creating with a big dose of floral inspiration,
-Carmen Rose

A Walk in the Woods

It was a beautiful morning for a walk in the woods.
There are some yellow lady slippers in this shot, not easy to see unless you have someone beside you pointing them out. There are about six orchids in this shot that I can pick out.
This is another wild orchid, I should look these up the book so I can give you the names because I don't remember them.
Beautiful orchid country, don't know what that haze was about but I don't mind it so much.
The Orchid Man, an excellent tour guide and friend. See his website here.

Oh yes, it's really THAT beautiful!
A little lavender wildflower, but mostly the foilage is what I find striking about this one.
We came up on a HUGE display of these, even made the orchid man say "WOW!"
Again with the haze, what's up with that?! There are three pink lady slipper orchids in this photograph, see if you can find all of them.
Another lady slipper, we even saw a white one which is rare.
The graceful ones, love how this turned out. Most of the photos I took turned out horribly. But it was a lovely walk, a welcome change of pace.
We stood near an underground spring and in the stillness the sound of running water could be heard. I had to stand and listen to that mysterious sound in the stillness for a while, it was a beautiful moment. I’m well aware that I don’t do this often enough, that is, take the time away to charge my batteries with something completely unrelated to the life I lead. It was good.