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Spice of life

Having the joys of a summer cold over the last couple of days I’ve not felt like doing much painting. You can’t paint when you’re not fully on form. So, I’ve being doing other things in the meantime, mostly computer related.

I don’t know how it started, but yesterday when I went into the kitchen to make a cup of tea, I opened my spice cupboard. Now, I know most people have a spice rack, but I have a whole cupboard of spices. And whilst looking for whatever it was that caught my attention (and I think that might have been oxo related) I decided that I could top up some of my spice jars from the refills that were on the top shelf. And more than an hour later was still busily occupied with them. I don’t know what it is about spices but I find them fascinating. It may be the pretty colours that remind me of pots of pigment, it may be that I find cooking a delightful creative experience, it may be just the smell of them, or, perhaps its the whole package of them since they are so evocative. I’d love to paint a picture with them all, maybe an Italian or southern French landscape of rolling hills and fields with dark trees, particularly using fragrant and evocative Herbs de Provence, and cadmium yellow of Turmeric, deep reds of Paprika and Chilli, the warm browns of Nutmeg and Cinnamon, and yellow ochres of Coriander and Cumin,  the dull greens of Rosemary and Sage, Oregano and Basil, Taragon and Dill. I’d use rock salt for texture, and black peppercorns for the darks, ginger for the pale creams, and crushed garlic for the details. And the sky? That would be Lavender salt, the pale lavender colour being ideal for a Mediteranean sky. The picture would look like the landscape, but it would also smell like it, how good would that be?

JoyeuseMMm….. I’m tempted to do it!!! 🙂

I don’t know if it cleared my nose, but I couldn’t stop sneezing after I’d done the spice tidying, but I think that might have been the black pepper!

 I love my spices, and I”ve even got herbs that I’ve never heard of – now, what on earth do you do with Zahter?