This has been the first winter that I've let the plants into my studio. I thought they would get in the way and I could just carry on making them up if I wanted a plant in a design. However it has been great watching the daily changes and working out how to keep them happy. I've even bought a new one whose flowers match my current window display - a yellow and maroon auricula.
The purple plant climbing up the window has flowered in a way that frames the star on one of my grey glass samples. I thought I'd add the plant to another of the grey samples, really enjoying using two of the best glass colours, yellow and pink and the red that results where they overlap, after a long period figuring out how to work in neutral tones.
Plants doing their thing Painted plant on grey glass sample
Meanwhile, I came across a lovely neutral plant form window in a local church, St. Mary's in Great Shefford, Berkshire. It shows a stencilled vine on an opaque but very pale background, with scratches (looks like cleaning damage) that only add to the peaceful, textured atmosphere. These type of windows often have yellow silverstain details - you can imagine the dots being coloured in for example. This one looks great in its simplicity.
Vine window and detail - St. Mary's, Great Shefford