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

New - Sour Bird

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

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

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

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

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

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.

New - Pingy on Ice

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

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.

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

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.

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

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