International Bird Rescue -- Every Bird Matters

Perhaps you have seen the images from ocean-side communities where people work to clean up a bird that has been damaged by an oil spill? This kind of human intervention due to humankind's mess-making around the world is often covered in the news these days.

My love of birds has been celebrated in my fiber art studio for many years now, so when the folks at International Bird Rescue, an organization dedicated to rescuing birds that have been injured due to a natural disaster or human cruelty, asked me to sponsor a membership drive for their non-profit organization, I was happy to participate! I hope you will enjoy learning more about their fine work.

If you decide to become a member of Bird Rescue this week, with a $25 donation, you will be eligible to win one of the many lovely sponsor-donated items perfect for every bird lover! Learn more here.

Tattoo Sparrow Pillow at Nestle And Soar

The Tattoo Sparrow Pillow from my eco-chic collection, shown at left, has been donated to Bird Rescue (IBR) as a give-away item! Other companies who also love birds, as well as the fans of birds around the world, are joining in to help raise awareness about the work of the Bird Rescue team.

In addition to becoming a IBR member, there are many ways to participate with bird-loving organizations, and often, you can participate from the comfort of your own home. If you enjoy spending time on Facebook, there are many hard-working groups represented there you could follow and help to support. I like to keep up with the I Love Birds page!

Another bird-loving spot I like to visit from home is the blog of the popular 10,000 Birds. Here you will find great information on birding, nature, and conservation as well as fabulous bird photography from around the world. Do you love learning about birds and where they live?

It is tremendous fun to fill my home with art and images that celebrate my love of nature! This is the passion behind my artistic practice and my small business efforts. If you also love to celebrate your love of nature this way, I hope you will join me in helping organizations like International Bird Rescue who work to preserve the health and legacy of birds in their natural environments for everyone's benefit.

Thanks for stopping by,
Georgianne

Creating a Bird Haven at Home

If you are a bird lover, chances are good that your personality is drawn toward bright colors, cheerful flowers, and a wide range of garden and landscape styles. I am the kind of bird lover who is always looking out her windows, at home and in the car, scanning for the flicker of colorful birds! I plant a lot of yellow in my flowerbeds, and I love the counterpoint of purples like hydrangea or climbing clematis. Have you taken the time to create a bird-friendly backyard?

Here are three tips I have found useful for making sure more birds visit my home! In my way of thinking, a landscape filled with beauty is not complete without a bird haven. Do you agree?

Two Major Bird Concerns The two biggest concerns for birds are finding food and being safe. I offer lots of vegetation like trees, shrubs, flowerbeds and vines, and this gives birds choices for safe landing spots. The foods that are most popular in my yard are insects, berries, and fruit. Seeds like no-mess blends are always offered, too, but alone, they are not ideal for attracting birds. 

Watch and Learn My large dining room window is my favorite perch for bird watching, and from there I realized that the neighborhood cat who is left to roam at will has been ruining my bird haven efforts! A friendly call to my neighbor has helped with that issue. The cover of sheltering tree limbs and ornamental grasses has helped birds feel safe in my yard. We often see hawks gliding in the thermals above our home, and a sheltering landscape helps small backyard birds rest easy about predators in the air.  

Stop Tidying Up By nature, I like to put things back into place at the end of each day. I'm a bit of a neat-freak. In my bird-friendly yard, a natural, more wild approach brings better results! Trimming back hedges and flowerbeds every week removes some of the insect-rich oasis for birds. It is good for me to be more casual in my yard work, as it lets me just relax in the lush, colorful space.

I would love to hear about your bird-friendly spaces!

Thanks for stopping by,
Georgianne

P.S. If you would like to see my latest colorful, handmade bird pillows, here is a quick link. Birds look great inside the home, too!

Audubon Bird Photos --- Top 100 Images of 2012

I am a bird lover. As a bird lover, it seems to me that there are many, many people who are also enthralled by birds. What's that saying, "Like Attracts Like"? Have you ever noticed that when you have something special that is brand new -- a pair of sneakers, shiny new car, or even a pregnant belly -- all of a sudden, you see new shoes, cars and big bellies all around you? When I decided to focus my fiber art three years ago on the natural world, especially birds and trees, I suddenly noticed that all around me are folks who completely understand this passion! To help us all enjoy birds in full color today, I want to pass along the online gallery of Audubon Magazine's Top 100 bird photos from 2012. I have had so much fun reviewing these images captured by three categories of photographers: professional, amateur, and youth. Some of the photos made me say "How did they get that shot?!" Others make me laugh out loud at the winsome personality of these divine creatures.

I would truly enjoy hearing which of these 100 photos is your favorite. (Link here) I do believe that I should begin my artistic fiber art exploration of the majestic Egret...the first photo shown above is called Cattle Egret by Troy Lim. The second photo is called Great Egret by Tara Tanaka. These two are my favorites!

Top Ten Tuesday -- February 14, 2012

Last night I typed with great sincerity "Happy Valentine's Day to each of you! I am loving all of these wonderful artists, and hope you will enjoy visiting their individual stores and such." I have to admit that my own Valentine's Day festivities interrupted my fun on this blog post yesterday. I had all my lovely items in hand and had begun the posting process when my dear husband arrived home early from work with a 4-foot tall orchid as my gift! This orchid is the last photo shown below, so you will be able to see that it has 48 flowers in bloom...I'm just in love with this beautiful plant! I also think my husband is darn wonderful. I've let the romance take me away, and now that I've got my head out of the clouds (at least for now!), I'm ready to share this great Top Ten Wednesday. Funny how life works!

#1 Knit Motorcycle-Cozy Sculpture by Theresa Honeywell

Using an actual motorcycle, this artists has knit a cover or cozy for each individual part, turning the motorcycle into a yarn-covered sculpture! I was sad to find out that this motorcycle is no longer one you can ride, as I have a rather vivid fantasy going about how great it would be to snuggle up into a group of Harley-Davidson riders on a sunny summer day on this bike! I think I would be wearing a matching bandanna around my forehead. You gotta keep your long, lustrous hair from whipping into your eyes on the open road, you know. Check out Theresa's other wonderful art from Portland at her Etsy shop.

#2 Too-Tight T-Shirt Re-Do

I came across this clever idea on Craftster and decided I have a few t-shirts that could use this magical treatment. I have over time both enlarged and decreased in size the t-shirts I wear to the gym. I am always trying to duplicate the fit and the "downward-dog appropriateness" of every shirt I wear when I work out. I like this idea and will be adding some fun color to the sides of older t-shirts that are past their prime. Does anyone have a serger I could borrow?

#3 Rustic Embroidered Garden Wall Hanging

This vintage wall hanging looks fresh and young for its age, doesn't it? I like the flower stems each being a different type of embroidery stitch. And the bright colors are right up my alley. You can find lots of great items at this vintage shop on Etsy, Wolf House. I'd love to hear about what makes the cut in your collection.

#4 Bald Eagle Photo

Nancy Harder took this wonderful photo of a Bald Eagle in east-central Minnesota during a weekend drive on February 4th. This extraordinary photo was found on the web at Today Travel. You can learn more about Nancy and her wonderful image here. I just love it!

#5 Go To Your Studio!

I found a clever card made by Stumptown Art Studio, and I found it on the wonderful blog of Jackie K. called Blissfully Imperfect. At first it just sounds like a good suggestion about what could happen next: studio time. Then I had the funny thought that I should "send myself" to my studio, sort of like when my dad would holler, "Go to your room until you can settle down!" I think taking a time out inside of one's creative space is a good idea, especially if you need to settle down. You can read Jackie's wonderful blog here, which will take you all the way to Stumptown, too!

#6 Tree Art Print by Heather Galler Art

I just love Heather's work and always enjoy watching her Etsy shop and her boards on Pinterest. When I found this print, I knew I'd need to share it with all of you you. This is such a friendly world Heather has created...I'd like to go there for a visit! You can visit Heather at her lovely Etsy shop anytime you like!

#7 Sublime Stitching and her Woven Labels

If you haven't heard about Sublime Stitching, I'm doing you a favor today by giving you this link! Anyone who likes to hand stitch or loves the look of hand-stitched items should visit this terrific shop. You will find patterns, kits, books, and textiles, along with these great labels...isn't it true that handmade items do take a long time to make...and that's part of what makes them so special! I hope you'll enjoy learning more about Sublime Stitching here.

#8 Simply Nestings' 3-D Birds for the Wall

If you love birds and you'd love a pop of graphic color on your walls, you may enjoy learning about Simply Nesting on Etsy. This product includes 23 birds that you adhere to your wall in a swirl or in a flight of fancy! This would be nice on a stairwell or above a tall window in a family room!

#9 Personalized Photo Sun Catcher

I love finding new ways to display photos in my home. This clever idea from Woman's Day would be a fun project to make and a real conversation starter in your front entry! The instructions look easy-to-follow and the end result would be a lot of fun. This may make my Christmas in July list of handmade crafts!

#10 Valentine's Flowers for Me!

That is a Frisbee under the plant...a clever way to keep the water off the floor. Thanks Ted!

Thanks for stopping by, Georgianne

Handmade Bird Pillow and the Audubon Society

Western Tanager Hankie Pillow, © 2011 Georgianne Holland

I have on my calendar "Go to movies" almost every month, which hasn't been a date I've kept with myself in a while. I'm excited to say that The Big Year starring Jack Black, Owen Wilson, and my favorite, Steve Martin, is coming to theaters! I will not wait for this movie to come to my pay-per-view. The Big Year is about birding and while thumbing through my beloved Audubon magazine, David Yarnold reminds us that like in the movie, birders (and the Audubon Society) are a very social group. That works for me!

I have been working to make the birds I depict in my handmade bird pillows more easily recognizable, as I know that true birders know their species! Often in the past, the birds I depict are figments of my imagination, and when I see a photo of an unusual bird found in the wild, I think that they are so varied in color and shape, my imaginary bird is like a rare species. Will the Audubon Society let me get away with this? I hope so, because I'm having so much fun!

The Hankie Pillows series that I began in September of this year is a good example of my work to capture well known bird species in a fiber folk art manner. They are called Hankie Pillows because I begin the exercise with a pristine vintage hankie that was created by an unknown woman sometime in the 1940s. Collecting these vintage hankies has been part of the fun of this series! Often these hankies have embroidered flowers stitched as decoration, and I always choose hankies that have tatted lace on the edges...a fine needle art I've never learned to create. I place a vintage hankie on my work table and then decide what species of bird I'd like to needle felt: today's example is the Western Tanager in bright yellow, orange and brown. I'm very fond of creating birds with big, round bellies. I also like creating tree branches for my birds to perch on. Jacques Deval reminds us that "God loved the birds and invented trees. Man loved the birds and invented cages." I love birds in trees and I also love birds recreated onto pillows. Sometime next week, I plan to love birds in funny movies...would you care to join me?

Thanks for stopping by,
Georgianne

You can visit my website to see more of my handmade bird pillows at www.nestleandsoar.com