Design This – Snowy Owl, Crystal n Pearl Jewelry Set

At a recent trade show I purchased some pretty pearls from one vendor and a fabulous collection of nature themed hand painted porcelain beads from another. At the time I didn’t know some components from each purchase were destined to become part of the same jewelry set even though both the pearls and the porcelain beads were by far my favorite finds from that show. I did know that I liked the snowy owl porcelain beads so much that I wanted to make a necklace and earring set for myself, so I bought extras of those beads. (Click on the images if you want to see a larger view.)

As I was unpacking and putting away all of my purchases I noticed that the colors in the freshwater pearls perfectly complemented the lighter colors in the snowy owl beads. This gave me the inspiration I needed to start pulling together other beads with colors that might also work into my project. From this large grouping I picked out a subset of pearls, crystal and coated glass beads that looked like they would play off each other well. Then I set about designing my necklace. After trying a few different designs, I hit on one I really liked and strung it up. Then I paired a couple of the smaller components with the small snowy owl beads to complete the matching earrings.

If any of the nature themed porcelain beads in the link above speak to you in such a way that you want to inquire about a custom piece for yourself, please contact me and I’d be happy to discuss your options.

Celebrate the Spring Equinox

It is almost officially springtime. The long awaited for Spring Equinox is almost here. (It has been a long, roller coaster of a winter this year. I can’t wait for spring to come to stay.) Spring officially arrives just before noon, March 20, 2014 in the DFW Metroplex (CDT). When I think of spring I think of returning flowers and butterflies. The Fort Worth Botanic Garden offers plenty of opportunities to see flowers and bountiful butterflies.

The grounds of the Botanic Gardens has plenty of fabulous flowers. In addition, this year the “Butterflies in the Garden” exhibit has returned. This exhibit is currently open daily from 10am to 4pm through April 6th. Many tropical butterfly species fill the conservatory. You will find them flitting through the air, perching on flowers or just hanging out on the greenery. I have included a couple of the many photos that I took during my visit last week.

If you don’t live close enough to take advantage of this wonderful exhibit, check with your local arboretum or natural history museum to see if they know if and when a similar exhibit is scheduled to come to your area. Many different opportunities may await you in your community. In addition, if you plant and create other habitat for butterflies in your garden you can enjoy your local butterfly community throughout the growing season.

So, take a moment and check out your local butterfly watching prospects. You’ll be glad you took the time to view these jewels of the air.

Gardening for Wildlife – Monarch Butterfly Update

In October of 2010 I saw a large number of monarch butterflies grace my garden and was inspired to write a blog post encouraging my readers to add a couple of plants to their gardens to support their fall migration. This past fall I saw very few monarchs and have been hearing similar reports from a variety of sources all along their migration route. It seems the monarch butterfly population is in a steep decline. I hope the monarch does not go the way of the passenger pigeon and want to encourage you to do your small part to help this amazing butterfly survive.

In addition to the plants mentioned in my 2010 blog post, milkweed is an important addition to plantings for monarchs. There are many flowers that provide nectar for adults and garden features that you can add so that the monarch has safe roosting spaces, warm spots to get them going in the mornings and water and minerals for nourishment. Gardener’s Supply Company has a recent, detailed post that will give you more specifics on what you can do to boost the survival chances of the monarch butterfly. Please check it out and add what you can in your garden to support this beautiful butterfly.

Thanks for the Treasuries - February 2014

Eight different Etsians and one Etsy team let me know that they had featured one or more of my items in a treasury during February. Eleven February Etsy treasuries, that treasury makers let me know about, included one of my creations. You can see a collage below of my items from EDCCollective and EclecticSkeptic that were featured during February. (Click on the collage to see a larger view.)

I really appreciate being featured by the treasury makers. To thank them, I have listed below (in alphabetical order) links to the 8 Etsy sellers that let me know that they featured one of my items, as well as an item from their shop that I like. You will also see information about the TexasFriendsTeam that also featured items of mine.

Enjoy window shopping and please click on the shop links of anything that catches your eye.

Alenahandmade
Find great decoupaged home decor items created by this artisan in her home studio.

Carnivalamigo
This shop carries a variety of items from jewelry and accessories to photography and art to home decor.

CorkyCrafts
If you or someone you know is a wine connoisseur who appreciates hand made items, check out this shop.

GirlieGals
Girlie Gals offers you jewelry that sparkles and shines at affordable prices.

HotdogCrafts
Put some fun in your life with pocket mirrors, earrings, bookmarks and Scrabble Tile necklaces.

KimsTexasCreations
Embroidery, fabric postcards, quilts, jewelry, baskets and more are created by Kim.

MarcellasMoments
Here you will find unique & one of a kind jewelry made in the USA.

SpecialtyShoppe
This shop specializes in original crochet patterns and creations in addition to vintage items.

TXFriendsTeam
Past, present and future Texans are welcome and encouraged to join this team. The only real rules of the group are to promote friendly, The TX Way, and be respectful to all who participate.

Artist Spotlight - Selkie Masks

With Mardi Gras just around the corner (Tuesday, March 4, 2014), I felt it was time to introduce you to Selkie Masks. Forget the plain, black half face masks that most everyone wore when I was of trick or treating age. Selkie Masks are wearable pieces of art. They are perfect for Mardi Gras parades and celebrations as well as masquerade balls, Halloween, costume parties and more.

I first met Connie, owner and artist behind Selkie Masks, at a Dallas Handmade Arts Market that I was also showing at in 2012 and loved the creativity and artistry of her masks. I was pleased when she took me up on my invitation to be a part of last year's Happy Holidays Gift Store at the Arlington Museum of Art. I was blown away by the variety and artistry of the masks that she stocked in the store. They were even more elaborate than what I remembered. Not only were they great finds for being the focal point of a fabulous costume, they were art pieces in their own right that would be perfect home decor accents hanging from an ornament stand or framed in a shadow box.

It was difficult to choose a favorite, however the floral design and colors of one of the masks kept drawing me back to it. I had a grouping of items on a bookshelf that the mask's colors would complement beautifully so I finally decided to take it home. It is a beautiful addition to that eclectic group of decor pieces that I had been thinking of. (Yes that is my flying pig and geek earring gazelle model in that grouping.)

You will find photos of other fabulous masks on the Selkie Masks website as well as where to find them in person or how to contact Connie to purchase one if you are not located near one of those locations. Celebrate Mardi Gras in style.

Great Backyard Bird Count Montage

This year during the Great Backyard Bird Count I realized that I have never shared any of my results with my readers and decided I needed to change that. Below you will see a montage of some of the birds that I saw during this year's count. A few of the photos were taken during the count but most of them were taken previously. Click on the montage to enlarge it.

(birds in the montage - center: immature Red-tailed Hawk; clockwise from top left: Dark-eyed Junco, Mourning Dove, White-winged Dove, baby Eastern Bluebird, female Northern Cardinal, male Northern Cardinal, Blue Jay, Carolina Wren, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Field Sparrow and House Finch)

Following is a list of all of the birds that I was able to identify during this year's count: Black Vulture, Turkey Vulture, Red-tailed Hawk, American Kestrel, American Crow, Northern Mockingbird, Northern Cardinal, Blue Jay, European Starling, House Sparrow, Field Sparrow, House Finch, Dark-eyed Junco, Mourning Dove, White-winged Dove, Eurasian Collared Dove, Eastern Bluebird, Carolina Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Red-bellied Woodpecker and Cedar Waxwing.

If you participated this year, I hope you had fun. If not I hope this post is inspiration for you to do so next year. If you have been hesitant to count because you are unsure you can identify enough species of birds, I have a great new, free app for you from Cornell Labs, Merlin. It is different than flipping through pages and pages of a field guide and I found it to be very easy to use.

Waterlily Wave Pattern in AVAA 2014 Regional Show

My waterlily image “Blue Reflections” was my first photographic art image that I had printed on metal. It was well received (and purchased, yay!) at the 2013 Happy Holidays Gift Store. I made an abstract image, “Waterlily Wave Pattern”, from “Blue Reflections” and decided to have it printed on a slightly smaller, 11x14, piece of metal. I liked how the surface of the metal gave a clean, contemporary look to the abstract and decided to enter it in the 2014 AVAA Regional Juried Show.

I should mention here that in the first AVAA show that I entered, in 2012, my Gulf Fritillary entry received a merit award but my entry in 2013 was not hung in the show, so I was hoping this year’s entry would make it in. I went to the reception and awards ceremony last night for the 2014 show. I was pleased to see my “Waterlily Wave Pattern” hanging on the wall.

If you are in the area and would like to see some great artwork from artists from around the region in a variety of media, stop by the Bob Duncan Center in Vandergriff Park in Arlington, TX. The artwork is hung in the north/south hall on the west side of the Center and in the large room on the west side of that hall. My entry is in the large room at the north end of the west wall. The show will be up through March 28, 2014 and then the winners will be moved to the Arlington Museum of Art to be displayed during April and May.