Flutter and Fern

Recent Projects

This summer has been all about butterflies for me this year, unintentionally really, I’ve just been following whatever captures my eye now that my project has finished. It was nice to have a little rest I’ll admit, but now my creativity is gradually waking back up again!

First I came across these tiny Brown Argus butterflies in a local meadow, they really are so pretty. About the size of your thumbnail, and so beautifully patterned that their name doesn’t really do them justice.

They flick through the long grass stems with a silvery glint, but when perched are tricky to spot. They favour grassland habitats, and are widespread in southern and central England. We often focus on the more visible adult form, but the caterpillars are of course an important life stage. They need native rock-rose and cranesbills to feed on. If you’re planning a butterfly garden, it’s important to think about food plants for the caterpillars as well as nectar rich flowers for the butterflies.

In late evening the butterflies settled down to roost, resting on the grass tops and wafting gently in the breeze like tiny little flags. Descending into their macro world I wait for stillness, watching the ants roaming and a ladybird pirouette as it decides which route through the grassy forest to take. Up close the wide dark eyes fringed with pastel lashes, and velvet wings of these butterflies makes them undeniably cute.

From little to large, and a new species to me, the Silver-washed Fritillary. What a stunning creature, big and bold and fast flying, a real contrast to the dainty wee Brown Argus!

They power along the ride, soaring down to nectar on the purple thistle flowers. These large butterflies are found in broadleaved woodland, their caterpillars feeding on dog-violet on the shady woodland floor.

Their rich russet colouring seems to glow in the dim light of the woodland, but with wings folded you can see a splash of silver and green on their underside.

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Also this month I’ve been playing with art and creativity, I’ve always loved making and it has become a bit of a stress reliever for me. I really wanted some natural art for the house, and after a lot of research and searching, I decided to make my own. I really love the elegance of ferns and wanted to capture that on paper. First I tried drawing, but soon got frustrated at all the fiddly bits! So I tried printing, a real fern frond from the garden, carefully inked and pressed onto natural Lokta paper, to leave a fascinating impression which captures the texture and form of each fern. It comes out slightly differently every time, so I just carried on making them. Then I raided Mum’s garden for more fronds (thanks Mum!) and made some more!

In the end I made so many that I have popped the extras into my old Etsy Shop, so if you’d like a piece of unique art for your home, please do take a look. I’ll probably make some more in the future as it’s so much fun (and a great excuse to get more ferns for the garden!)

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Thanks so much for reading, please do like, share and leave a comment, I’d love to hear from you!

Until next time,

Dawn.