The Tower on the Guest House at the Clay Estate, Greenbank

The Guest House on the Clay Estate in Greenbank (on Whidbey Island) sits high up on a bluff looking west over Saratoga Passage. I did not go up there but my guess is that the Tower room has a panoramic view of the water of Straits and of the main body of Whidbey Island beyond (and from that height probably Camano Island and the Cascades, too!)
We Sketchers met there today to enjoy the landscaping on the beautifully groomed grounds. It only took me moments when I arrived to decide that this view, from the circle drive approach to the building, was the perfect drawing site for me.  It was a "big bite", but I went ahead and dove in anyway. Many thanks to our hosts for the day.

Grapes for the Birds

Never Have I Ever had a bad day with the Whidbey Island Sketchers. Today was just absolutely wonderful. The weather was perfect under another popcorn sky, almost everyone turned out, we were at the Whidbey Winery so there were grapes bursting and ready to be picked, “fake birds of terror” (to another bird) were singing (electronically), the “groaning board” was heaped with good food and WINE, and we were sketching up a storm. It simply doesn’t get better than this. And we marveled yet again at how this large a group consistently gets along and supports each other so well!
When we asked what kind of grapes the ones on the fence were, the ones I was sketching, our hostess informed us they were just decorative grapes, not for wine, and they were there stricly as "sacrificial fruit", for the benefit of the birds - to keep them distracted from eating the grapes on the "money vines"! 

RED HAT BUBBLE BEARS AND A BUDDHA

At the beautiful log home in the deep woods of our hostess, artist and collector of eccentrics, Janet Ross, a kitchen window full of delightful etceteras - including a row of brightly colored bottles, empty now of their soap bubble solutions, but still possessed of jaunty red hats. And a Buddha with a red glass ball. And an orange glass pumpkin. And a flying red heart. JOY on a windowsill.