Friday, August 27, 2010

Castaway Colors

Last Thanksgiving we visited Castaway Cay -- the island privately owned by Disney.


Disney uses it as a port-of-call for their cruise ships and, we arrived on a such a windy day, that our ship wasn't able to dock until the afternoon.

That meant that they canceled most of the excursions and activities for the day. When we disembarked, Jim and I headed to the far side of the island for some treasure hunting on the "adult" beach, far away from many of the "attractions" and people...

Along the beach, there were piles and piles of "seaweed"...


On closer inspection, I saw all kinds of flora that looked to me like it belonged in an underwater garden. And I longed to see what it looked like under the sea...


The colors (or lack thereof) struck me the most. From far away, it looks like piles and piles of brown stuff...


But up-close I could see the variation and shades of color...



And I was surprised that so many of the plants were ochre and yellow-greens and yellow-browns...


Why these colors? Because the plants are dead? Or do they naturally occur like that under the sea?

Is there a garden encyclopedia for underwater flora? hmmm...


And why do these plants have "bubbles"? Or are they underwater versions of berries and fruit? And which animals are fond of which ones?


I don't know the answer to any of these questions, but I am itching to stitch all of these plants on a crazy quilt block.

So this morning, I played around with the pictures and created this starting palette to begin.


Interestingly enough, I don't believe I have many threads in these embellishment colors. I'm starting a collection box for this project which will give me a place to compile the supplies I'll need to get started.

And I think I'll plan to stitch it in January when the snow is on the ground.

Can't you just see the Tahitian gray pearls that will become this fruit de la mer?


And you probably thought I was water-skiing with Mickey Mouse?

Ha! I do have my priorities...

19 comments:

Kathy said...

http://tinyurl.com/2eybykl

Try that. It's a Google image search for "intertidal plant life".
I think you'll get lots of inspiration from the photos.

Castaway Cay looks like a pretty neat place to wander around for a while.

Unknown said...

I'd love to own an island like that all to myself! Wouldn't that be grand?!

Your photos are beautiful and so much inspiration to be found just looking closer at nature. That colorway just grabbed me... I can't wait to see what you create from it! And oh yes, I can definitely see the Tahitian gray pearls there... how rich and varied it will be!

Judy S. said...

Wonderful photos, Susan. They make me want to hop in the car and head to the beach. What fun you'll have trying to recreate what you saw! I'm not sure, but I think the "bubbles" help the plants to float. At least kelp on our beaches has them too, for that purpose. That must have been a fun getaway!

Jennifer Vance said...

I love the colors of the sea..mmm.I went to the beach a few days ago,and loved picking up the different kinds of seaweed.I'm kinda known as the seaweed girl in my youth group,lol.

shirley bligh said...

What a wonderful eye for detail you have. Just love the photos. I can see so many stitch possibilities in the flotsam and jetsam particularly the little green cuppy things for making an underwater garden. Nature is a really amazing thing.

Elizabeth said...

Love your photos!!! the little bubbles on the plants are Air bladders that keep the plants afloat. Many of the plant materials that you came across are indeed floating plants that travel with the currents and provide shelter for all sorts of critters. Baby fish hide from predators in the floating plant masses and eggs of all sorts are laid amoung the matts of plants.
Your stitched piece will be stunning!! WHat ever are you going to do between now and january???????

Marty52 said...

Thanks for the vicarious beach visit! It's been a LONG time since I saw a beach and now I can almost smell the sea. This will be a beautiful piece, I'm sure.

Lisa Boni said...

Oh! What a lovely project to be dreaming about! Can't wait to see it come to life!

Carol- Beads and Birds said...

And I was wondering what a Disney Adult Beach would be like.

Cathy said...

What lovely photographs, Susan; I can see why you’d be so inspired!! I can’t wait to see what you conjure up for this piece. And BTW, with those big feet, I bet ol’ Mickey Mouse is a fantastic water skiier! Hugs, Cathy

Ati said...

Thank you for the beautiful photos Susan. We have a lot of seaweed here around but I never have looked at it thát close.It is fantastic, indeed!

Rachel said...

That's a gorgeous colour scheme - I'm looking forward to seeing it come to life!

allie aller said...

This will be such a lovely project...and so good to work on in the wintertime.
Wonderful, wonderful photos as always...did you get all sandy taking them? ;-)

MeganH said...

How did you come up with the palette?

Dees said...

You have such a keen eye for the wonders in small things! Really a gift for all of us followers, and then you also are able to picture these things...
Really enjoyed your post and the wonders of nature.

FredaB said...

Your pictures are so beautiful I can'tbelieve they are not professional - well they really are.

I love the browns and greens. The 2 shells looked light green. I have never seen a green shell.

This will be a great winter project for you.

Hugs

FredaB

Loralynn said...

Stunning photos! I can see why you want to stitch this so much!

Radka said...

What fantastic pictures! Love all the colours. Thank you for sharing!

Honoré said...

My friend Kathy sent me sea glass in your color palette and I so like that I've decided to use in an art journal as well as a Christmas holiday album and several quilt pieces.
I really enjoyed reading your post and viewing the photos---they are superb and as one reader said, makes you want to go to the beach and look at treasures, too.
Thx for sharing.
Cheers~

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