Sunday, December 21, 2008

Cinnamon Bird Ornaments - Part II


I recently posted a link to Martha Stewart's cinnamon bird ornaments, but I decided to design my own! Follow the instructions on the Martha Stewart website and download my bird ornament sheet for additional designs.

Christmas is approaching fast, but for those of you with some free time, this is a great holiday craft and they smell delicious!


Free Downloadable Bird Ornament Template Here (For personal non-comercial use only.) © CG Arts 2008

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

Shop Update

Three new mini paintings have been added to my shop, including this one, "Vegetable Garden."

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

Some More Lovely Wreaths

Pretty Swank has this Turquoise Green and Gold Yarn Wreath available in their shop, along with other yarn wreaths. I love the colors in this one.

© Pretty Swank 2008

Owl and Yarn Wreath


Owl and Yarn Wreath
Originally uploaded by Katie Runnels
What a lovely alternative to the evergreen wreath for your door. No pine needles to clean up! This is one of my favorites from the Constant Gatherer (Katie Runnels). See her Etsy shop, for other great wreaths!

Friday, December 5, 2008

PikaPackage

I was a participant in the October PikaPackage, a collection of artists' goodies put together by Amy Ng over at the Pikaland blog. (Great blog, by the way). A perk of being a participant is receiving your very own PikaPackage. Here are the goodies included in mine. You can buy your own and receive 3, 5 or 10 -item goodie bags.


1. Sarah Harvey - Rose 3 & Gnome Badges
2. The Lapwing Printworks - Letterpress Pemberly Card
3. Oh Bara - Hive Etching
4. Cori Dantini - Rx flyer Aceo
5. Cate Anevski - Strawberry Panda Hat

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

DIY Cinnamon Bird Ornaments

Take a look over at Martha Stewart.com, for instructions on how to make your own cinnamon bird ornaments, from 3 simple ingredients - cinnamon, applesauce, and glue! They smell delicious. I made cinnamon gift tags last year. I will be sure to make some of these ornaments.

Image © 2008 Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, Inc

Sunday, November 30, 2008

O Christmas Tree, O Birds!

I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend, but now with Christmas less than 4 weeks away, it is time to start shopping for gifts and decorations! Here are some fun bird ornaments to decorate the tree.


1. Painted Glass Santa Claus Tropical Birds available at Laraine's.
2. Hand Knit Alpaca Penguin Ornaments available at Crate and Barrrel.
3. Textured Glass Bird Ornaments at Gifts.com.
4. Porcelain Bird Ornaments available at the Smithsonian Store.


1. Birds N Birdcages by Olive.

Monday, November 24, 2008

Birdy Suds


These bird soaps are almost too cute to use.

1. Renbird soap by Renbird
2. Sweet Tweet Bird Soaps by LoveLeeSoaps
3. Anne's Sophisticated Egg Soap by Annie's Powder Room
4. Sparrow Goat's Milk Soap by Crazy K Bath and Body

Sunday, November 16, 2008

Ceramic Bird Vases

These cute little ceramic bird vases are a stylish addition to any room. Toss in a poinsettia stem or some holly and you have a holiday centerpiece. Available at Lavish.

Image © Lavish 2008

Saturday, November 15, 2008

Yummy Bird Cookies!

Eleni's New York sells sweets, cupcakes, and adorable frosted cookies for all occasions. I love their "Bird Sanctuary" collection, and they have a variety of great thanksgiving themed cookies, including turkeys, pilgrims, squirrels, and fall foliage. If you can't bake, bring some of these to your Thanksgiving gathering to be the talk of the dessert table!


Images © Eleni's New York 2008

Sunday, November 9, 2008

Excuse me - Is that a bird on your head?


Although I am normally shy and like to blend into the crowd, I would love to be the attention grabber with this fabulous bird headband. Charm School Design consists of three artists, Alita, Dana, and Benjamin, living in Brooklyn and making jewelry and accessories. Their top-selling designs are feathered headbands. I love the peacock ones!


Check out their etsy shop and their blog!

Images © Charm School Design 2008

Wednesday, October 29, 2008

Birdhouse Gourds

Many of you are visiting local pumpkin patches for decorative mini gourds, jack o'lanterns, and cider doughnuts. Make sure to pick up some larger gourds (Ornamental or hard-shell) to get an early start on making gourd birdhouses for next spring. They take about 4-6 months to fully dry and harden. Here is a full set of instructions for making Birdhouse Gourds.

Image © Colin Purrington 2008

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Flock Boxed Notecards - Eleanor Grosch


These gorgeous bird notecards are created by designer Eleanor Grosch of Pushmepullyou Design. The set includes vibrant, stylized designs of a snowy egret, peacock, california quail, bird of paradise, pheasant, and crowned pigeon. You can find them here at Bas Blue.


Image © Bas Blue

Friday, October 24, 2008

Biscuits and tea?


This cute serving tray is by the french design studio ibride, and available at Kir DeVires. Hang it on the wall or use it to serve tea or breakfast in bed.

Image © Kir Devires LLC

Wednesday, October 15, 2008

Wowwee - Zazzle Shoes!


I have been very intrigued and impressed with www.zazzle.com that I decided I would customize some of my own products! I made some keds shoes featuring my bird illustrations and I already won a "Today's Best" Award for Oct 15, 2008 for my goldfinch shoe! I am so pleased and excited! It makes me want to make more! My store's name is Birdique (A Bird Boutique). Hmm, maybe I should switch my etsy shop name to Birdique too.

Sunday, October 12, 2008

Birdmail!

Want to make mail more fun? Buy some bird stamps! Zazzle.com is a great site to upload your own photos and designs or choose from thousands of sellers' designs. You can even sell yours! They have a wide assortment of products from t-shirts, buttons, mousepads, mugs, hats, the list goes on and on! I am loving the postage category! You can make custom stamps for weddings, announcements, or holidays. Create postcards of your new pet bird, using sites like overnightprints.com or gotprint.net, and send them with $.27 stamps, featuring your pet bird!

Here are some designs I like,
Birds in Love by MarbiaStudios
Peep by HeatherReMix
I Love You by Brooklyn parrots

Wednesday, October 8, 2008

Relax with Bird Pillows

Kick up your feet and relax with these cute bird pillows.


1. Areaware Mini Chat Pillow at Velocity
2. Clacket Lane Cushion by Mibo at Hiddent Art
3. Cardinal on Agapanthus Rectangle Pillow by Joom
4. Alone With My Thoughts Bird Pillow by Olive

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

New Prints Available!

I have two new prints available in my store, Wren's Song and Downright Downy! I am also working out the production details for making 8 x 8" (1 1/2" thick!) gallery wrapped canvas prints. Coming soon!

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Bird Fashion Finds


Here are some great fashion finds to display your love of birds.

1. Fauna Magpie Necklace from Paraphernalia.
2. Museum of Modern Birds Dress from Anthropologie.
3. Colbalt blue pelican dress from the Full Spectrum.

Sunday, September 28, 2008

Poor Dog Farm - Birds and Shoes

Sam Georgieff, of Poor Dog Farm, is the illustrator behind this lovely print, Songbirds and Shoes No. 1. I am also excited to see more of his new series of birds in hats! Birds are so fashionable!

See more of Sam's work at his website,
www.sgeorgieff.com

Image © Sam Georgieff

Sunday, September 21, 2008

Birds and Merlot?

What do birds have in common with wine? I have noticed many Illinois wineries chose to brand themselves with their prairie state avian friends. Some wineries include,
•Cooper's Hawk Winery
•Pheasant Hollow Winery
•Owl Creek Vineyard
•White Owl Winery - they have an unbelievable Spiced Pear wine with hints of cloves and cinnamon! AND they are located on Birds Rd. in Birds, IL!

I went to the Vintage Illinois Wine Festival at Starved Rock in Utica this weekend. I had a lovely hike through the Starved Rock trails in the morning and enjoyed some wine tasting in the afternoon. I love going to this wine fest because of the unique flavors offered! Where else can you sample pumpkin wine or chocolate-infused raspberry port? And of course, many award winning wines were available to sample.

I bought some delicious wines,
•River Road Red from Piasa Winery - awarded Best Red at the 2007 Illinois State Fair
•Almond Champagne from The Village Vintner - some sparkling wine with a hint of amaretto
•Hallowine from Illinois River Winery - a spiced apple wine
•Honey Raspberry from Von Jakob Vineyard - a Honey mead wine!

Wednesday, September 17, 2008

World Market - Bird Cage Decor


I hope you have a World Market near your home. I usually go there to buy chocolate and wine. I like my chocolate 90% dark and World Market has a great international selection! Look at these adorable decorative bird cages too!

Image © World Market

Sunday, September 14, 2008

PaPaYa! - Birdie Art Panel Print


This mother and daughter team have some amazing paper goods over in their shop, PaPaYa! They work primarily with mixed media and collage. Their work is brilliantly colored, eye-catching, and full of global influence. They even hold mixed media workshops in exotic places like Bali. Forget vacations where you sit on the beach, let the creativity flow and learn how to make wallpaper panels!
Woodland Forest - Wrapping paper

Images © PaPaYa! 2008

Saturday, September 13, 2008

Renegade Craft Fair Chicago

The Renegade Craft Fair is this weekend Sept 13-14. Unfortunately, it's been raining non stop. I really hope it clears up for them. I stilll hope to make it out there, maybe tomorrow. At least most vendors have an online shop. But it's definitely not the same. Walking through rows of craft booths is a fun way to discover something you may have not found online.

Image © Renegade Craft Fair 2008 (I added the blue clouds)

Monday, September 8, 2008

Snow & Graham - Wrapping Paper

I am loving this wrapping paper from Snow & Graham, and you can find it locally here in Chicago at a store Virtu: A Curious Collection of Fine Craft on Damen Ave. You can always order online too. They have a great Snow & Graham collection of gift wrap, notebooks, calenders, and cards. Here are some of the fabulous bird designs, perfect for wrapping my (upcoming) birthday present in.

Image © Virtu 2004 (of Snow & Graham)

Friday, September 5, 2008

Yellow Monday - Bird Sampler

Here is a print of fun, whimsical, colorful birds, "bird sampler", by yellow monday. She is a video producer and artist living in Sydney, Australia. This color palette is great, it will be easy to match up with other decor.

Check out her blog, as well.

Image © yellow monday 2008

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Block print towels from artgoodies

Imagine smiling while doing dirty dishes. I would if I had these birdy kitchen towels from artgoodies! She offers block printed towels, aprons, totes, and pillows. And although there are also squirrel, deer, and other cute forrest friend designs, I love the bird set. She will also be in the upcoming Renegade Craft Fair in Chicago on Sept 13-14.

I am so excited about the Craft Fair! I am just shopping this year, hopefully I will get a booth next time around. To get a complete list of crafters go here and click on vendors in the top navigation.

Image © Lisa Price - artgoodies 2008

Monday, September 1, 2008

Threadless Back to School Sale!


Threadless is having a back to school sale! All tees are either $9 or $12! Go check it out before your size is gone!

Here are some birdy tees I have selected for you!
Top - Patchwork
Bottom Left - Byebi
Bottom Right - Field Study 01

All designs © by owner

Thursday, August 28, 2008

Anna Ruby King - ACEO The Bleeding Hearts


Anna Ruby King has great birdy illustrations in her etsy shop. She lives in Athens, Greece and draws birds. What a wonderful life! I studied abroad in Athens during undergrad and I absolutely fell in love with the city, and the souvlaki.

Anna is a participant in the August Pika Package. I have lately been loving the Pikaland blog and reading the pika zine that features mini interviews with all the great artists.

Image © Lila Ruby King 2008

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

New - Sour Bird


"Sour Bird" is my newest mini 3 x 3 painting, another addition to the fruity birds series.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Cabbages and Kings - Ostrich Notecards

My prize has arrived! Hooray for me, I won second place on a Cabbages and Kings blog birthday giveaway, and I received these two ostrich notecards. Thank you Stephanie, and Happy Birthday! See more of her artwork at her etsy shop, Cabbages and Kings and get your very own ostrich notecards here.

Check out her blog too!

Photograph (mine) of © Cabbages and Kings

Friday, August 22, 2008

Birdcage Bedding - Urban Outfitters


I have seen this adorable birdcage fabric in many etsy shops as either totes or pillows. And I LOVE this fabric. I came across it on Urbanoutfitters.com as a bedspread. I don't know if people buy this bedsheet and cut it up into their various craft projects, or if this fabric exists somewhere mysterious and is available by the yard. All I know is that I love it, and I will check out the UO in Woodfield Shopping center close by to me. I am not sure if my boyfriend will go for this bedspread though. I am officially becoming a bird nerd and I don't know if he wants to express that in every decorative aspect of every room.

If anyone knows where else to find this fabric, please leave a comment!

Image © Urban Outfitters Direct 2008

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Thailand Handicraft


Look at these cute artificial birds for crafting! You can find them at Clickhandicrafts.com, a crafting shopping site based in Thailand. Their bird collections are currently 20% off and range in sized from 2 " - 13". Check them out, they are cute!

Image © Clickhandcrafts.com 2008

Monday, August 18, 2008

Little Sheep Felt - Tea Birds


I have been getting into needle-felting recently and it gives me more appreciation for the art. I found this cute little tea bird at the LittleSheepFelt etsy shop. This one is called "Olive Visits for Tea," the tea cup is included. Amy Plew, the person behind LittleSheepFelt, also makes cute owls with a barn gift box.

But what makes these gifts truly unique is that they are made from wool from her very own sheep farm. Now that's cute. Check out her site as well, www.littlesheepfelt.com

Image © Little Sheep Felt Company 2008

Friday, August 15, 2008

New - Red Makes Me Happy


Finally, the top requested bird at the craft fair, the cardinal. It is the state bird (here in Illinois) and so easily recognizable. When I look out in the backyard in the dead of winter at a sheet of white snow, I smile when I see this little guy at my feeder. So appropriately, I named this piece, "Red Makes Me Happy." He is not shy at all, how can he be with his bright red plumage. I will look out through the snowflakes and count as many little red poofs throughout the trees as I can. And he patiently waits in a nearby branch while his girlfriend visits the seed, such a good guy.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008

New - Pingy on Ice


Here's another new painting. A baby penguin keeping cool on a block of ice. I call him "Pingy."

Sunday, August 10, 2008

New - An Owl a Day


An Owl a Day! I have various "fruity birds" paintings, and at the last craft fair someone asked "Do you have one with apples?" Well I do now! His white face is supposed to resemble the shape of an apple. It's not as obvious as some of my other fruity bird paintings, but I love him anyway. He is a smart (and sleepy) little owl. Literally, the teacher's pet.

Friday, August 8, 2008

Porridge Papers


These cards are gorgeous, handmade, affordable, and... plantable?! Yes, Porridge Papers sells plantable seed cards. There are wildflower seeds embedded in the handmade paper. So the person reads their greeting, admires the beautiful artwork, then recycles the card by planting it in the ground! Such an eco-friendly card for your plant and bird lover. Check out their website too, www.porridgepapers.com , they feature more than just plantable papers; they have glitter paper and food-based paper. Coffee-grind or parsley paper? I don't think it is meant to be eaten but I am sure it smells wonderful!

Image © Porridge Papers Inc 2008

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

New - Chickie Dees

New Print! "Chickie Dees" is now available in my etsy shop. I am very excited because I am now printing with my new Epson R1900 printer using Ultra Chrome Inks, which are archival quality and shown to withstand fading for up to 100 years! It looks so beautiful printed out, these online images don't do it justice. The green is a beautiful pale yellow-green. The birds were easy to draw, it's always the design elements and colors that take the longest to get just right.

Tuesday, August 5, 2008

Bird Villas

These are cute birdhouses for the birdie divas out there, whom refuse to live in a gourd. Actually, these are so gorgeous I cannot imagine leaving it outside to become weathered down.

These cute little villas can be bought online at
http://www.birdvillas.com. They have beach houses, diners, chapels, lodges, cabins, just to name a few.

I have an uninhabited bird house this year. I heard the male house wren singing his song up until a few weeks ago. I guess he couldn't find a girlfriend to accept his plain cedar house.

© Bird Villas.com

Sunday, August 3, 2008

Tabitha Emma

This ACEO, "Caged Bird," is the lovely work of Tabitha Emma, a designer living in Sydney Australia. This is a small ACEO piece, meaning it is 2.5 x 3.5 ", like a mini artwork trading card. ACEOs are great for collecting art from different designers without needing to dedicate much wallspace or cash to establish your collection.

Tabitha has a cute blog, tabithaemma.blogspot.com, with cute sketches, fashion finds and birdie products. She also has a website, www.tabithaemma.com

© Image Tabitha Emma Patterson 2008