It's getting to be that time again

 

Thanksgiving Point started their tulip festival in 2005, and I was elated. 

Later that year, they heard that I love tulips, and they invited my to come and paint.  I have spent as much of my time as I could every spring in their gardens painting.  I have lent them my art, and they have lent me their tulips.  Each year since then, we have made a poster featuring some of my art.  I have also had many media opportunities, news paper, live television, and even a mini documentary(you can see links to some of these on the sidebar).  It has been so much fun.  I have been pregnant or had a baby strapped to me most of the time these past few years, and I cherish the memories of being in the gardens with my daughters and with the tulips.  I love getting to visit with everyone who comes to the festival.  I am excited that it is almost that time again.

Each year has been a little different- it is hard to predict when the tulips will start blooming ahead of time, because there are so many factors that go into that.  I painted this little watercolor above one year when the tulips bloomed a little later than the scheduled festival dates... and these were some of the most opened ones at that point.  However, this year, I do mot think that will be the case- I think the gardens will be filled with tulips in bloom for this year's festival, 

April 13 - 28, 2012

(closed Sundays)

10 am - 8 pm

and there are so many different tulips, the gardens change so much- there are early, middle and late tulips, so there are new tulips coming up all through the spring.  The gardeners do such a wonderful job planting the flower beds so that as some tulips fade, new blooms replace them.  Thousands of people will gather to see them because tulips make people happy.

one pink tulip

This is a little watercolor I did a couple of years ago at the Thanksgiving Point Tulip Festival.

I am getting so excited that it is getting to be that time of year again.  Our tulips are already poking through the ground, and these warm days we are getting will make them come even faster.  I have a "Tulip" board on pinterest and I have been having so much fun adding tulips to my collection.
I am so excited for spring!

Free passes to The Thanksgiving Point Tulip Festival

This week would be the perfect time to go!

The tulips are all blooming, the weather is warm, and you can even go for free!

My good friends at Thanksgiving Point gave me 2 passes to give away! To enter the giveaway just leave a comment here or on facebook, you can also add a link on your blog, share this post, follow my blog, blog about my blog... just leave a comment so I can enter you in the drawing for each thing you do.

The contest ends Thursday at midnight.

2011 Tulip Festival Poster

This is the poster for The 2011 Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point. (available in the garden gift shop)

I painted it last year in the children's garden.

I brought it back into my studio recently and made a couple of changes. I added the rainbow.

I think I'm calling it "Symbols of Promise" or " Symbols of Hope"

For the past several I have spent my spring days in the gardens at Thanksgiving Point enveloped in the beauty of the tulip festival painting and talking with the others who have also come to enjoy the beauty. Thousands upon thousands are drawn to the gardens to see the tulips.

Just as the rainbow is a symbol of promise, a symbol of hope, so are the tulips. People come because the hope and happiness that the tulips symbolize. The tulips awaken and bloom and beckon the rest of nature to dawn her colors. They symbolize hope and rebirth, an end of cold and beginning of warmth, an invitation to grow.

When will the tulips bloom?

There are many factors that contribute to when tulips bloom, like the weather, how much sun they get, how deep they are planted and what type of tulips they are.

There are actually thousands of different types of tulips, and they are broken down into 15 specific classifications. I am focusing on 3 basic variations for this post: early, middle, and late.

Early tulips generally bloom in late March to early April. They tend to be about 8 to 15 inches in height. Early tulips begin blooming while daffodils and crocus are still in bloom.

Middle tulips bloom 5 to 10 days after the early tulips and tend to be a little taller than the early ones, and a little hardier and more suited to cutting and bringing inside to enjoy.

Late tulips are truly elegant, they tend to have long sturdy stems and large blooms and include the parrot varieties. Many tulip festival patrons miss out on these beauties because they bloom so much later- 5 to 10 days more after the middle tulips, often blooming well into June and the crowds at the gardens tend to dramatically taper after the advertised days of the Tulip Festival have passed. The tulips are still there, just not the venders live music and such.

I hope this information is helpful in getting the most enjoyment out of tulip season this year, I still think a membership to the gardens is a great way to go and then go a few times so you get to see more varieties of tulips.

how to know when to go to the tulip festival

I am frequently asked when is the best time to go to the tulip festival.

I think the best thing to do is go as many days as you can, but I realize that I may be a bit more fanatic about tulips than the average person, so here are some more practical tips:

First of all, I think you should plant some tulips in your own yard, then you will see them growing and have an idea of what to expect (and if you don't have any tulips in your yard, check out the tulips in your neighborhood and around town, and that will give you some idea) This photo is of tulips in our yard tonight. Things are looking good- lots of green, some tulips are in bloom, but the majority are not there yet.

Another great way to know what to expect at the gardens is to use this link and go to the live web cam at The Thanksgiving Point Gardens. Look at each of the individual gardens, and you will begin to see more and more color. This is also a great way to check the weather before you go.

By the way, I will be on the KUTV channel 2 news on Monday morning (April 18th) around 6:30 a.m. for a live broadcast at The Tulip Festival.

Only one month away from this!

This is what I love.

I love getting to be surrounded by tulips, painting tulips. I love getting to meet and talk to so many people who have come to see the tulips. Most encounters are brief, we talk about tulips (I know a thing or two about tulips), we talk about the gardens at Thanksgiving Point (I can point out things you won't want to miss- for example: I can tell you where the owl nest is-- and by the way-the owl is back in her nest again-, or where the most tulips are currently in bloom, or I can tell you about the benefits of having a membership), and then we almost always talk about art.

People ask what kind of paint I am using, how long did it take to paint (this depends on how much I talk while I paint- but I love getting to talk to people while I paint), how did I learn to paint, where did I study, and then they often tell me about a family member or friend that is also artistic and ask for any advice for nurturing their artist. I have lots of ideas and suggestions about that, so I am going to start a series here on my blog that will include my advice, so check back. (I will also label these posts so you will be able to access all these posts at once on the sidebar.)

Getting excited for spring

I am getting so excited for the spring, for the tulips to bloom, for the tulip festival, for the new life and hope the spring brings.

I got this painting out that I had been painting last spring in the Children's Garden... I think I want to put a rainbow in on the left side.

This year, The Thanksgiving Point Tulip Festival is April 15-30th. I really believe the best way to enjoy the Tulip Festival is to get a membership and come a few times. Many people do not realize there are early, middle and late tulips, so the gardens are constantly changing. Many people also do not realize that they can come before and after the Tulip Festival and still enjoy the tulips. The gardens open on March 26th, and there are always many of the late tulips that do not get seen by many visitors and they are so beautiful- many of the late tulips grow so tall- up to your waist and the colors are really quite elegant. The late ones also have some sophisticated colors. The very earliest ones are so pretty too, they are typically very bright orange-red and yellow. And the darling crocus make early visits so pleasant.

Mother Nature is definitely in charge, there will be rainy days, probably even some snow, but if you have a membership you can bundle up and enjoy these beautifully serene days as well. The colors seem more intense, and it is so quiet, you can almost hear the tulips growing.

Anyway, I am excited.

pink and white tulips

I had an exhibit of paintings I have done over the years at The Thanksgiving Point Tulip Festival this year. This is one of the paintings from that exhibit. I love looking at the paintings I have done there and remembering painting each one, I love to remember just being there surrounded by tulips, and all the kind people who have stopped to admire my paintings and ask questions. People sometimes apologize for interrupting me when I am painting, but I honestly love it, it doesn't interrupt me, it enriches my painting experience.

Red tulips under Timp

There is this spot, at the bottom of Shepherd's Path, where you can see Timpanogos perfectly. They have flower beds that are always planted and if you lay down on the grass, you can see the flowers and the mountain getting closer together. I don't know if I have ever passed this spot with out laying down just to enjoy this great view. I don't lay down when I paint there, but I paint it as if I were ... and I paint there often.

enjoy your new home little painting

People often ask me if it is hard to let a painting go, and to be completely honest, it is.

But I really enjoy getting to share something so personal, and I love that others feel joy when they look at my paintings, I am grateful to have my paintings invited into homes, I think that is very personal too... and I am honored.

Here I am painting this painting last year at the Tulip Festival (pregnant :)

Painting in The Parterre Garden

The Parterre Garden is so beautiful right now! I started this painting last night- I was hoping to finish today- but it has gotten chilly all of a sudden! Such is the life of the tulip painter!

The 2010 Tulip Festival poster

This is the 2010 Thansgiving Point Tulip Festival poster, for sale at the garden gift shop. It is 11 X 17 on card stock. I think it turned out really cute... and you can't beat the price! Come find me at the gardens and I will be happy to sign yours.

I painted this in the Secret Garden, it is called "Cherub's Secrets"

click here to see me painting it

Painting in The Children's Garden

On Tuesday, I found myself in the Children's Garden painting, it is such a wonderful place. The gardens are beautiful, there are mazes made of shrubs, a pond, a bear cave, dozens of bronze animals and they all have footprints in the concrete that lead back to an incredible sculpture of Noah's Ark. (As it gets warmer, there are fun water features in the garden for children to play in) I found the perfect place to sit, so that there are tulips in the foreground, and Noah and his Ark in the background- I am really excited about this painting!

My daughter stopped by for a minute to offer her help with my painting- then quickly went back to play in the big sandbox in the garden.

Yellow, Purple and Ruby

Another great day at the Tulip Festival. A man asked me, "Which do you love more, the thing you are looking at or the thing you are holding?" I replied, "The one in my arms, but how lovely it is to have both."

Painting at the Tulip Festival last Saturday

The above photo ran in the Salt Lake Tribune (photo by Jim Urquhart)

The Tulip Festival started last Friday. It is truly beautiful out there. Saturday was a wonderful day, the weather was great and there are so many tulips. I made it into yesterday's Daily Herald and The Salt Lake Tribune. I had a great time painting, and I am so excited to get out there and paint today.

A closer look at my painting process

I don't always use the same approach when I paint, I like to experiment, but here is a closer look at one of the variations I love to use. First, I apply paint in a bold and fairly abstract manner... (my subject: the patch of tulips in the distance, just to the left of my easel)

... next, I'll get out a piece of vine charcoal and draw on my painting, tightening it up a bit. I fix that drawing on (with fixative or hair spray) then I continue with oil paint, but still allow the process to come through (I let some of that first more abstract paint to show through as well as the charcoal drawing)

and here is the finished painting.

In a couple of weeks, scenes like this will be plenty!

The Thanksgiving Point Tulip Festival begins April 16th and goes through May 1st.

I will have an exhibit there of paintings I have produced in the gardens during the festival over the past 5 years.

People always ask me when the best time would be to come, I recommend getting a membership and coming as many times as you can.

The tulips are coming up!

Yesterday we went out to Thanksgiving Point, and the tulips will definitely be in full bloom for the Tulip Festival this year. I am definitely getting excited!

(This is the finished painting of The Italian Garden from a couple posts ago.)

Chad Hedrick

Back in 2007, I was pregnant with my first daughter, painting at The Thanksgiving Point Tulip Festival when along came Chad Hedrick! I was a volunteer during the 2002 Olympics and I was able to watch some of the speed skating. Chad said he spends a lot of time in the Netherlands skating, so he loves tulips too. It was so fun to watch him get a bronze medal last night.

These pictures are getting me excited for the tulip festival!

Painting in The Secret Garden at The Tulip Festival

The Tulip Festival at Thanksgiving Point was amazing this year, here is one of the paintings I did during the festival. It is oil on panel, I like to start out with a sketch (using vine charcoal) on the gessoed panel, then I fix the drawing and begin the painting. I had to paint in shorter installments this year because I have a busy toddler and I am pregnant, but I was still able to get a few paintings done. This is one of my favorites this year.

If you want to have your own little tulip festival next year, Thanksgiving Point sells the bulbs from this years' festival $3 a dozen beginning on May 30th at the Garden Greenhouse. (If you get them, you can either plant them right back in the ground as soon as you get them, or you can hang them up in a pair of panty hose and leave them in a cool dark place until fall and plant them)