GAYLE'S GARDEN

For many years, I had the pleasure of filling my mother-in-law's small backyard with flowers. However, that eventually gave way to my painting - allowing less time (and interest) for landscaping.

I think that it's easier to paint a flower than to dig a hole in our hard packed, clay soil, plant the flower, and then have to fight off the rabbits and deer and slugs and bugs during our hot, humid summers.

This year, my mother-in-law moved from her home of 50 years, but she's still enjoying this painting that I did several years ago for her. She misses her garden, though.

These iris are painted on a full sheet of Fabriano Artistico, a paper that allows the paint to be lifted and blended more easily after it's dry. Fabriano is slightly softer than Arches, and works well for portraits, too.

Mother-in-law's are a lot like flowers - some more beautiful and special than others - which perfectly describes mine. When our older son was about 3, he wanted to help me plant some bulbs for his grandma. Each variety was packaged in its own bag, so he 'helped' by dumping them all out . . . in one big pile . . . over 300 assorted bulbs! I was mortified, thinking that now there was no way I could follow my carefully planned, color coordinated landscape design." My mother-in-law laughed and said it would be beautiful. The next spring, it was.

"MUMSY'S GARDEN" Transparent Watercolor on 140#CP Fabriano Artistico, COLLECTED