Flowers – Page 13 – Ritva Sillanmäki Photography

Bouquet of flowers

A new week ahead and we are supposed to get summer temperatures, so looking forward to that.

The weekend went by quickly. Saturday we had -Talkoot- it is a word that english, german or swedish has a equivalent to. We we enjoying sausages, beer, cider and for kids juice by the grill taking after hard work of cleaning the common areas for summer. Raking, cleaning the playground area, washing the flagpole. Sometimes cutting down trees.

Well anyways, I asked our neighbours, a brit, Peter, Harald from germany and a swede if they had a word for this event that we all are participating in at the moment. Talkoo. No. Voluntary work? Dictionary had this to offer: bee, voluntary work, work party . The activities of the association are entirely based on volunteer work. I did find a work for german – Gemeinwerk.

Sunday, Mother’s Day we spent tidying up our own backyard enjoying the rather nice sunny day by being outside. I got a flower bouquet and mudcake with ice cream that we enjoyed with our son and grandkids as they popped by for a quick visit. Nothing fancy, but a nice day.

I obviously took photos of the flowers. I am sharing them with you now.

Tiny forest finds

Flowers, Nature

Weekend came and went so quickly, Saturday as cool so I spent most of the day in side by the fireplace with a magazine or watching tv. I was so brave that I left my laptop home 🙂

Saturday was warmer, the most significant change was that we had less wind. I walked on our plot, looking for something to take photos of as the green nature is still keeping us waiting. But it can be found in the details. Here are my small finds.

Evergreen

Flowers

We are of to celebrate May 1st to our summer house. It is supposed to be sunny, but cold, well colder than usual at this time of the year. At least it won’t be raining. Wishing all a great weekend and the the beginning of May…

I love moss, it is so pretty, green and soft.

Good signs

Flowers

Today I am getting my first covid shot, they are being done like clockwork, the times were 5 minutes apart and then you stay there for 15 minutes so it can be monitored if you get some compilations.

My husband had his a week ago, only thing he experienced was a slightly sore arm. All good.

Good news all around. I got an interview for a HR job for monday – it would last 6 months. My oldest son got a new job yesterday with a nice raise. Middle on got a new job today and starts on Monday. Now I hope that the restaurants will be able to open soon so my youngest boy would also be able to return to work. So lots of positives fibes going on at the moment.

It has been cold, it still is but I did spot some spring flowers. Here they are for your joy too.

Vintage Rose

Flowers, Interiors

If you had not already guessed this was a theme in my FB photography group in April. Topic was Vintage rose, here are some of my efforts to capture the theme.

Small joys

Flowers, Photography

the weather has sent us backwards, the lovely spring days are gone and we are back to less nice temperatures and cloudy skies with rain, slush and winds. Still the early spring flowers pop up and bring color and joy to the brown tones of spring.

This was good in away, my husband painted my office and I arranged the furniture slightly differently. Looks nice and clean. Now I have to figure what to hang on the wall and where? I don’t’ have a clear vision as yet. One thing has come with growing older, I do not need to have everything ready right away as I did when younger.

Snowdrops

Flowers

My first flowers in my garden / backyard have bloomed. These are the only photos I have taken in many days. I have tried to stay of the computer and camera… will just post these and continue to rest my arm. There was few days between the shots with snow around the flowers and when it had melted.

Taking it easy

Flowers, Still life

I have tried my best to stay away from the computer these past days. I think I have done pretty well, but just to keep the momentum going here I am again.

I did not take any photos of the food I made. But this is a chicken dish from a previous meal 🙂

Easter came and went, mainly at home. We saw our sons and grandkids. I tried couple new recipes. I am getting rather good at picking them and always slightly altering them. As all the restaurants are only doing take-away food, me trying new things gives our menus some variation. Teriyaki salmon and chicken lasagne tasted so good. I am rather proud of myself as I am not into cooking all that much – I mainly make good tasty homemade food, I have not been a recipe reader, I’ve stuck what I know. That is not to say my food isn’t tasty. It is 😀 LOL. Desperate times has made me an explorer. Making it easy for myself I am posting an old photo of a chicken meal we had.

I also have been working on an art project. I have been asked to do a Triptych to be placed in a master bedroom – not a church as first comes to mind when you hear that term. A trio of contemporary art, that I do. So all three pieces are different but go well together. It is always harder to do something specific to someone’s taste and colors. Even if the origin is one of my original art.

Flower shop

Flowers

Today feels like spring, we on the plus side in temperature, the sky is blue. You can hear the snow melting.

I went to a local flower shop to make a request for a flower bouquet for my uncles funeral.

I want to it to represent a him, I do not wish it to be so traditional more personal. So I requested that it would have materials from the forest on it pine tree branches, tree cones, different greens and season appropriate flowers as he was a outdoor kind of man.

I do not know what it will look like in when done, but something like this is what I have in mind.

Well I could not coe home without buying something to take home so I had this small bouquet made for me with blues and pinks. I rather like it, something different.

Looking at these photos on the monitor they don’t look so great, but I will let that pass. I am just sharing the everyday little joys of life.

The hydrangea in snow

Flowers

Symbolism. The hydrangea represents gratitude, grace and beauty. It also radiates abundance because of the lavish number of flowers and the generous round shape. Its colours symbolise love, harmony and peace. Even in the winter when they are brown?

Sad; simplicity and elegance

Flowers

So simplicity and elegance, was my aim as I once again took the task of taking photos of them.

The soft tilting of their heads and elegant lines inspires to try create a mood. Here are my attempt to capture sad, peaceful, or just resting mood. How do you see them, or are they just other pictures of tulips and my trying to capture some mood was in vain 🙂

But I took photos also of the ones that bowed their heads, looking lovely and a little sad.

simplicity and elegance

Flowers

I love the simplicity and elegance of tulips. I usually not able to keep them looking good for many days. This time I am trying a new trick, I’ve been adding ice cubes into the water and other trick is to have them in snow…

So simplicity and elegance, was my aim as I once again took the task of taking photos of them.

I love tulips better than any other spring flower; they are the embodiment of alert cheerfulness and tidy grace. Their faint, delicate scent is refinement itself; and is there anything in the world more charming than the sprightly way they hold up their little faces to the sun, wrote Elizabeth von Arnim and I could not say it any better.

But I took photos also of the ones that bowed their heads, looking lovely and a little sad. I will post them in my next post

Just because…

Flowers

Today feels like spring when you look out of the window, blue skies, melting snow showing grass on shovelled paths. You can feel it. Spring in will be here moths to come. It is wonderful to wake up in the morning and it is bright outside, it makes is so much easier. All these changes are welcome as we are brasing to more tighter restrictions as the british variant is taking hold and spreading fast.

The Government proposes closing food and beverage service businesses during the emergency conditions from 8 to 28 March 2021, except for in areas where the epidemic is at a stable level. However, meals may be sold to customers for takeaway.

In addition, with effect from 8 March 2021, the upper grades of comprehensive school will be instructed to switch to temporary distance learning in areas where the epidemic is in the community transmission or acceleration phase. Group hobbies for young people over 12 years of age may be suspended.

Apathy is slowly taking hold, as I am sure everyone is feeling the tiredness to this situation. I’m so bored. I have actively trying to do my art projects so I have something going on in my life other than watching TV. The ice will melt, flowers and nature will bloom… this too will pass.

Keeping it simple

Flowers, Photography

Frosty flowers shimmering beautifully in the February morning light

Cold day finds

Flowers, Photography

Frosty flowers shimmering beautifully in the February morning light

Taking a close look

Flowers, Photography

Frosty flowers shimmering beautifully in the February morning light

Brown tones

Flowers, Landscapes

Brown the color that has grown on me over the years, from boring to cosy and warm. Homey( is this a word? )

Frosty rose hips

Flowers, Photography

Touch of red on the few remaining rose hips that the birds have left for our enjoyment in the autumn.

Close up look at winter

Captures from Finland, Flowers, Landscapes

For the first time this winter, I was about to write year, which is also true when I went out to take close ups the day was not a sunny day, cloudy I would say. The color tone of the shots from that day is totally different than the ones I took yesterday, when it was rather nippy (-18C). Yesterday the macro shots of frost, snow and the few pops of color I found more blue toned.

After this long introduction, these photos are from the cloudy day, not macros, but close ups, the last one just showing the tone of the day.

Still Life – Time

Flowers

Time, clock, lavender are the inspirations for these still life photos.

Frozen RED berries

Flowers

I found some color amongst the snow.

it’s the that time of the year…

Flowers

…to buy some tulips to brighten the day.

Countdown to 2021-21

Flowers, Photography

Today: Sunrise at 9:26- Sunset 15:16- Length of day 5:50 hours – time of dusk 0:58 minutes .Two minute less of daylight than yesterday. Today is winter solstice, the shortest day of the year. It is nothing to celebrate, but it marks the end this years voyage to darkness.

Now towards the next goal counting days until Christmas eve. Today I am meeting one of my friends for lunch. She kindly invited me to meet at out local restaurant for lunch and I was not going to say no, we both have been basically staying home all the time and neither on is having any symptoms. It is so sad where we are with this pandemic. I am in a nice situation regarding this illness, that no one I know has had it, sadly this is not the case with many people, but I am lucky that way. This bubble I am in is small, I have not met many people since March when this really hit us.

Today is also the day we are going to decorate the tree. I will have to take a snap of it, even though it will look the same as it has so many years previously as I have not brought any new decorations for years. Traditionally safe look. There is something to say about traditions, this one is OK 🙂

I am really trying to come up with something to photograph, I had no inspiration. Here is slightly frost covered plants from 2013.

I will be posting new and old photos somehow related to winter, Christmas and eventually anticipation of new year. My aim is to take one new photo a day, but not going to stress over it, if I don’t come up with anything.

Would you like to join us? Join in with this title and link it to my page.

How to survive November 2020-21

Black and White photos, Flowers

Frozen flowers is one of my ideas to create a monotype

If you wish to participate in this survival of the darkest month challenge, use this link to add your post to it. PARALLEL LINES

How to survive November 2020-18

Black and White photos, Flowers

Sleep is so precious thing and I have a problem with it, but his morning I slept late until 9 am, and the best part was the night before It did not take me hours to fall a sleep. the bliss for not having to wait and wait for it to come. So today I am in much better spirits and today we have blue skies again. The joy of that is great.

I had neglected my orchid, I had forgotten to water it, today I did and also got my camera ready. These are my todays shots.

If you wish to participate in this survival of the darkest month challenge, use this link to add your post to it. PARALLEL LINES

How to survive November 2020-15

Black and White photos, Flowers

It’s two pm on a Sunday, and it seem that I am doing my post about the same time everyday. This November has been so much better than few of the resent ones, even today, there has been a glimpse of blue skies, it has not rained all that much either. So, not at all as gray of a month, that I was dreading. Such a small joy, I am very happy about this.

Went out to try find something to take photo of, macro photography, is great as you do not have to go far to find something lovely to capture. This time it was a brown hydrangea at the end of its life span. Still pretty.

If you wish to participate in this survival of the darkest month challenge, use this link to add your post to it. PARALLEL LINES

Today I am not posting old comparison, but other takes of todays topic. I always have such had time choosing what is my favorite as there are different moods and things that make them stand out as choices. I ended up with the above because it turned out nicely as black and white.