Jessie Lilac Blog

It's not too long since we had the big celebration of my brother's wedding and today, it's the turn of Youngest Daughter turning 19! As you can see from the photos above, we planted an acorn when she was born and as it's continued to grow throughout the years, as has she! It's always been known as 'Carenza's Oak'. It's far bigger than she is these days and hopefully will continue to get much bigger! I mentioned in my last post that I've started to make paintings outside my art journal. All three of these are now available in my Etsy shop . So here's the first one I finished.  It's called ' The Wishing Tree ' and is a mix of acrylic paint, pens, inks and some lovely iridescent paint. If you wish, click here to see more details. The Wishing Tree The next one is a small painting called ' Cottage in the Forest '. While I was painting this I'm sure I must have been thinking about Eldest Son's recent...

It's soon time to take down my exhibition in Dartmouth. I was very happy to sell one of my big paintings! 2015 ended with a fantastic family christmas. It was a crazy few days, noisy, busy but so lovely having everyone together! After everyone had returned home, we spent a couple of days of quietness in a beautiful place. I enjoyed the view while Middle Daughter looked for kelp to use in a recipe. New year's Eve was my birthday and we had a day out at Lyme Regis. It had rained most of the day but just before sunset the sky cleared and I was rewarded with a beautiful sky.  What a lovely end to the year. Happy new year to you! Thankyou for visiting my blog. ♥  I wish you the very best for 2016, may it bring you everything you hope and dream. xx

Happy new year to you! The Christmas holidays have whizzed but so quickly in the frenzied way they always do but each day filling with the future's happy memories.  Brixham looked particularly beautiful in the days between Christmas and new year, soft afternoon sunshine lighting up the harbour. Then came my birthday on new year's eve! A day out in Cornwall was the plan and the first stop was the river Fowey on Bodmin Moor. The riverside trees wore their magical coat of glowing moss, so beautiful. Just along the road from there is the place called Jamaica Inn . It's just as I imagined it would look from reading the novel of the same name by Daphne Du Maurier. After a hearty meal the coast was calling me so we headed out towards Padstow. I hadn't been there for years so the Rick Stein 'takeover' came as a surprise! I'm sure he only had one restaurant when I was last there. :) I love that blue woodwork on the...

My birthday, new year's eve, at Hope Cove Hello there! Have you have a lovely christmas time and new year? I did, although it's all a bit of a blur because I've had a horrible virus over the holidays and I'm only just emerging from it now. My head's still spinning but I don't want to delay this post because talk of new year gets old very quickly doesn't it, once the usual routine begins again. :) My days after christmas have been filled with lovely quiet walks and time with family. Here are Youngest and Eldest sons at Broadsands in Devon. With their busy lives it's a rare treat to get these two together and to go for a walk with them on a beautiful wintery day! Broadsands, South Devon and it was indeed beautiful as you can see. :)  The next day we walked along the river Dart in Totnes. It was the last few minutes before the sun started to go down over the horizon. So peaceful and calm. My birthday is on new yea...

A lovely weekend was had spent at the home of middle daughter in pretty Newquay. It's her birthday on Wednesday and so this was a kind of birthday celebration too. We'd planned this weekend day for ages and had no idea that the Olympic torch would be going right past her balcony within an hour of arriving there! Not only that, the exchange of torches happened right in front of us. An unexpected start to our visit! I've been to Newquay before and remember the crowds and the shops which didn't make this my favourite part of Cornwall BUT this weekend I discovered another side to it.  One where the hedgerows were filled with pretty colours. A place where the sights amaze and delight. Evenings that belong to a dream. Days spent walking  for miles along stunning coastlines and finding a secluded spot for a delicious barbecue. But not quite as secluded as we hoped..  because someone else had their beady eye on our food! Newquay...

I had a lovely birthday yesterday and returning home to read your lovely messages made it even better! :) Thankyou so much for each of your sweet comments, you are all amazing people. xx The photo above is the view down the street in Moretonhampstead . I love how the little villages around Dartmoor are so close to nature, just look what's at the end of the street! The next village for my birthday outing was the village of Chagford. I love it here and it was made even more special when I sat amongst the beautiful paintings of Rima Staines while drinking my delicious mug of tea in the Courtyard cafe .  Her paintings are even more beautiful in real life! I had to cut the bottom part of these photos because there were people sitting at the table right by them.  And if you haven't already discovered her wonderful blog, click here to experience her magical world!  :) ~~~~ After having the big christmas binge and then my birthday on new years eve, ea...