Tag: dandelion

Photo Challenges – Lens-Artists Challenge – Five Elements

On By TimelessladyIn photo challenges8 Comments

Now and then, I am quick enough to prepare a post for the Lens-Artists Challenge. This week, the challenge is to use photographs that portray five elements that make up the world around us. The elements are fire, water, wood, earth, and metal.

My first photo portrays fire. The fire of the sun is an element in all of my photos. The view is what I see as I stand in my front yard and attempt to watch the setting sun through the trees.

Dandelions conquer whatever earth their seeds land upon. I love the way the clocks of the plant let loose their seeds in puffs of wind or are blown into the breezes by a wish-filled child. If I look closely at a dandelion in the fire of the sun’s rays, each small piece of fluff seems to mirror the sun’s light.

The sun’s rays seemed to deepen the shadows of the heart carved into the tree’s wood.

The last photograph combines the elements of water and metal. It is a bit blurry, but it was taken with my phone through a plate glass window as we finished Thanksgiving dinner in a favorite restaurant. The ship is sailing down the Delaware River near Philadelphia, and we are on the other side of the river in New Jersey. The light illuminated the metal ship with fire and reflected in the water.

Thanks to the hosts of the Lens-Artist Challenge.

Phlowers & Perspective & Project – The Year of the Dandelion

On By TimelessladyIn Perspective, Phlowers, Projects5 Comments


I enjoyed a quick walk on this second morning in January. The air, crisp with cold, was stimulating, waking me up and opening my eyes to the beauty in the winter landscape. The limbs and twigs of the trees against the chilly sky are God’s sculptures raising their arms toward the heavens. I could almost imagine them beginning to sing.

I searched for dandelion cones with fluff emerging from their tips. I am partial to dandelions; in fact, I have named 2024 my year of the dandelion. I want to be as productive and as resilient as this beautiful plant.

What do I love about dandelions? Perhaps it’s the color and shape. The flower reflects the Sun. I admire the resilience of dandelions. They will bloom wherever they can and grow lushly, even within the cracks of the street and sidewalks. Just today, I photographed this determined plant thriving in the smallest of spaces between the curb and the blacktop. I have read recently that one dandelion plant can produce up to 2,000 seeds. I hope to be as productive as the dandelion and spread as much GOOD NEWS as possible.

Here’s a fun project to do with children. You can string the unopened pods of dandelion seeds onto a piece of thread, and within 24 hours, they change and open up into perfect spheres. It’s so easy, and if you choose the right place, they will reflect the sunshine and glow and bring a touch of magic into the room. The photos below show the process. So much fun!

The candy is light enough not to break the string but heavy enough to give it a bit of weight. I love bringing a touch of whimsy to winter days.

Photo Challenges – Bright Dandelion and a Wildflower Walk

On By TimelessladyIn photo challenges13 Comments

I love dandelion puffs. Backlit by the morning sun, the photo becomes naturally monochromatic. There are some interesting sparkles shining in the fluffy parachutes. The correct name for the fluff is pappus. You can find more dandelion information on Quora.

Today, I came upon a great blog called Good One God Challenge. My entry for the challenge is this beautiful dandelion. The dandelion against the sky is part of Skywatch. The square shape and the bright sunshine makes it perfect for today’s Life of B – April Squares Bright challenge entry. While not bright in color, the photo conveys a sense of brightness in the contrast.

I found the beautiful puff of dandelion on this week’s wildflower walk. These bright and beautiful wildflowers are blooming now in my Mid-Atlantic state of New Jersey. (Do squares in a square count as a bright square? I’ll have to ask Becky.)

Top to bottom, left to right, the wildflower names are:

1. Ground Ivy (Glechoma hederacea) – An invasive groundcover in the mint family.

2. Speedwell Persian (Veronica-persicaiolet) – Very small flowers, but they capture the color of the sky. It’s everywhere at this time of year in NJ, but soon disappears when hot weather arrives.

3. Lesser Celandine (Ranunculus ficaria) – This plant is invasive, but it also has the beautiful yellow petals of buttercups, and is in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae.

4 Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) – Nutritious, the plant has many benefits.

5. Purple Deadnettle (Lamium purpureum) – Although it can be invasive, it is an important wildflower for early pollinators. In this photograph you can see a Cabbage White Butterfly feeding on the small flowers.

6 White Violets (Viola blanda) – These are lovely, but like many wildflowers, can become invasive and take over your garden beds and lawn.

7. Garlic Mustard (Alliaria petiolata) – I learned this wildflower is a wild edible, but also can be invasive.

8. Periwinkle (Myrtle vinca) – Not just a wildflower, this plant is sometimes sold in garden nurseries as an evergreen groundcover.

9. Indian Strawberry (Duchesnea indica) – The small strawberries are not edible. The leaves can be used to treat eczema.

Quote & Photograph – A Wish, A Prayer and Two Shoes

On By TimelessladyIn Photographs, Quote4 Comments

wish, prayer & Shoes jpg

“The greatest form of praise is the sound of consecrated feet seeking out the lost and helpless.” ~ Billy Graham

One Wish & One Prayer to spread the GOOD NEWS  = Two Shoes

How long has it been since you dusted off your witnessing shoes?

“Last of all I want to remind you that your strength must come from the Lord’s mighty power within you. Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand safe against all strategies and tricks of Satan. For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against persons without bodies—the evil rulers of the unseen world, those mighty satanic beings and great evil princes of darkness who rule this world; and against huge numbers of wicked spirits in the spirit world.
So use every piece of God’s armor to resist the enemy whenever he attacks, and when it is all over, you will still be standing up. But to do this, you will need the strong belt of truth and the breastplate of God’s approval. Wear shoes that are able to speed you on as you preach the Good News of peace with God. In every battle you will need faith as your shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan. And you will need the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit—which is the Word of God. Pray all the time. Ask God for anything in line with the Holy Spirit’s wishes. Plead with him, reminding him of your needs, and keep praying earnestly for all Christians everywhere.” Ephesians 6:10-18

Phun – Dandelion Curlicues

On By TimelessladyIn Phun4 Comments

dandelion puff

I love dandelions and enjoy behaving like a child again when I blow the fuzzy seeds into the wind while “wishing.” Dandelions can also amuse and entertain children by magically morphing into curlicues. Strip the top off of a dandelion stem, split the stem into several pieces, drop into a basin of shallow water, and you will witness an odd occurrence; the dandelions will twist and curl into the most interesting shapes.

water and dandelion stems

dandelion curls

dandelion curls on slate

Try this with a child, or shhhhhh….I won’t tell if you try it on your own when no one is looking. 😀

Project – Greeting Cards/Black and White Photo with Glitter

On By TimelessladyIn Projects8 Comments

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I enjoy taking photographs to use as greeting cards. In the Autumn I was able to capture this photograph of a dandelion. I was so pleased when I downloaded it onto my computer and saw that I had also captured rays of light. I loved the photo and decided to have it developed in many ways, full color, black and white, sepia tones, etc. Each one turned out well.

I had a birthday gift to give last week and wanted to enclose it in a photo card. The recipient loves pink, so I glammed up the plain photo with a little bit of glitz. Glitter doesn’t photograph well, but you can see a bit of the sparkle I achieved in the photo above.

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I brushed a bit of iridescent medium on the photograph. The iridescence did not show up as much as I had hoped. Since the medium, when it dries, will also glue anything on it in place, I also added some ultra-fine glitter. It did the trick. The dandelion glimmered. Double-mounted on plain white and black card stock, the card had a bit of pizazz. I plan to try adding a bit of glimmer to more of my photographic cards. Happy Glimmering!

*Note: You don’t have to exclusively use acrylic medium. Try watered down white glue, mod podge, or anything else that will dry crystal clear. I also need to add that the medium you use as a “glue” might not cover well. Mine wafted about and made little rivulets, but in my opinion, this tendency to separate created a better, more ethereal look on the card front.