Friday, January 7, 2011

Redbirds in the Snow


My husband is a man of simple wants and needs. He needs his family, he needs me, and he needs his birds. The man loves birds! A day does not go by that he doesn't call me to our kitchen window to admire our cardinal couple that has to come rest on the branches of our sheltering oak. A fun project easy as can be, Valentine Cardinals. nopin = "nopin"


In my craft room "must have" supplies I have added Styrofoam shapes that are used when making Paper Clay projects. White plastic pearls are used in so many projects. Crepe paper, well you know how I feel about crepe paper!


On paper toweling roll the Styrofoam shapes under the palm of your hand to flatten the porous surface. It will make a distinctive noise until flattened. Also give a firm push to create a flat spot on head and body shape.


Hot glue head in place.


A stiff brush works well to scrub in your paint color. I have to make pink birds to send to Diane, Saturday Finds, as promised but need to get more pink crepe. I never thought I would be a person who would need to replenish her streamer supply!


Twenty pleats each are made to create wings and tail pieces. The tail is the full width of crepe pinked at one edge, the wings are cut a quarter down. Hot glue one wing pinks facing tail.


A bead of hot glue towards head.


Fan wing towards head, and hold in place until glue sets.


Holding pleats together hot glue in place. When set slightly spread pleats.


Roses: Seven scallops are cut with slight space in between, finger roll first petal, place in center of second petal, crimp, repeat with each petal. Hot glue in place. Pastel shades make these little birds wonderful for spring holidays.






33 comments:

Jane said...

Elizabeth,
Your birds are so cute! Thanks for sharing all the tips for making them. I wondered about hot glue & paint too, so now I know!
My husband loves to feed the birds here too, and we especially love those cardinals. Even without snow they are just so beautiful, but the contrast in a snowy place would be delightful.
Looking forward to your tag tutorial.
Jane-Jacksonville

Anita Kehn said...

The birds are darling! And I am really looking forward to the tutorial. I also love your style and wanting tips. Do you do something to the vintage cards before you print them? Doctor them up in Photoshop or anything? When I print them out just like they are, they are not the quality I would like.

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

This makes me want to go buy all the supplies to MAKE them! They are just SO precious, E! You come up with the cutest things to make! How does your mind work? So many cute things in your head! ♥♥♥

Mrs Twins said...

Hi Elizabeth,
OOh your birdies are wonderful. Your header is too!
Valentines Day! I do love so much.
Thanks for sharing this with us, a pleasure to visit you! 'as always!'.
Hugs suex

★Carol★ said...

I love to watch the birds outside my window too, but there seems to always be some cute birds on your blog to watch too! Love your redbirds, but I'm most excited to hear that you will be doing a tutorial on paper crafting. This birdie would love to learn all your crafting secrets!

sassypackrat said...

Your birds are wonderful! I love to stop by to see what new creative thing you are doing next. ;0)

GARAGE SALE GAL said...

When I visit your blog...it's just a ray of sunshine and love! You cotinue to make the sweetest animals, like the puppy in the last post! Your new banner almost looks like my Jackson Brown!
Thank you for sharing your love of crafts with me/us!!!
Warmly,
deb :)

Cindy said...

So cute! We are bird lovers too. We've lived in our home for 35 years and have had bluebirds for only about 5 years. I love them and cardinals so much!
I'm looking forward to your tutorial. I have been making calendar pages using vintage greeting card images, trying to duplicate your style and not having much luck. Help!

ImagiMeri said...

Hey sweet lady,

There you are making cutie pie birdies again. I, like your husband, adore birds and try to work them into my crafting sometimes. Mostly I try to find unique ones to decorate my house instead. I really like yours in the pink and blue colors best.

Love ya
Meri

Debby said...

Love your sweet birdies in the basket with the ceramic dog.
Also loved your pink puppy from yesterday's post. You make things look easy. Your mind must never stop.
Stay safe on those roads. Last night was a nightmare. (((((HUGS)))))

Kathy @ Creative Home Expressions said...

I love these, Elizabeth! I have to say I'm with your husband, I love watching the cardinals out the window, especially in the winter. The males red color just pops in the snow and they always catch my eye when I happen to look out.

C'est moi Claudette said...

I've been admiring your blog since my friend Betty has been showing us all her pretties from your most excellent craft table.
I just wrote my list of supplies for these precious little birdies. We are also bird lovers. I'm not crafty like most of you, but these I can handle.
My home is pink, blue and mint green, so pastel birds are a must.
Thank you Elizabeth for a breath of fresh air every time I open your blog page in the morning.
SWEET SWEET SWEET...all your creations are TWEET SWEET.
Love Claudie from Canada
xoxoxoxoo

Lisa said...

How cute!!! I've got to get some styrofoam eggs...
Thanks for the tutorial - so precious!

Jenny Holiday & Aaron said...

E!!!!
Ohhh my word!! These are increddddibly adorable!! Love love love!! :) I am grinning ear to ear!! So happy and sweet!! LOOVE them!!

Thanks so much for sharing!! I'll have to share this post on facebook for sure!! :)

And...I will be emailing you today!!! hooray hooray!!!!! :)

xoxo Jenny

methartzielvansil said...

Hello Elizabeth,
I love you're "Red Valentine Birds". Thanks for sharing all the making-details. So we can learn the beautiful proces. You're work is very properly. I love IT. Have a very nice weekend and have fun with the birds.Dutch greetings with love, Sil

Mary said...

Elizabeth, those birds are just adorable. You have so many talents. I see so many things on your blog I would love to try. I am crocheting now but want to do more felt hearts and little cottages. Darling granddaughter needs little shoes for her dollie, so Grandma will be felting those. Your blog posts are always a delight!

Linda said...

Your birds are too cute!

NanE said...

Oh my gosh, you have to stop! Every time I come here I go into immediate cute overload! These birds are so cute! Mr Bubble is like your hubby, he loves his birds and almost panics if he runs out of bird food. Have a wonderful weekend, xxoo Nan

Hearts Turned said...

What cheerful, beautiful birds, Elizabeth--so perfect to brighten up a snowy day!

I miss seeing cardinals out on the snowy branches--certainly none to be seen here in California!

Wishing you a beautiful day of crafting & bird-watching, dear friend! We're off to Monterey for a day by the sea...

Julie

Reality Jayne said...

Crafty as always....Wish you would come back for a visit with us creeps on my Blog....lol

Pieceful Bits said...

The birds are so cute. Cardinals are so pretty in the snow.
Gray and snowy here too this afternoon. Staying in!
Happy Friday
Julie

Suz said...

Dear E.
I love those birds and, as usual, I am so delighted that you teach us how to make them. You actually make it look doable and after reading your directions, I am so anxious to play with this. Unfortunately the people we are staying with in California do not do crafts in their house! She paints beautifully but only at class!
Corn Palace Girls always have a craft room in the house ;-)
Love,
Suz

Jane's Designs said...

So sweet! Thank you for sharing the tutorial. I am new to paper crafting so all the help I can get is greatly appreciated. Love your blog and am a big fan of yours on flickr.

manda said...

Oh wow! How beautiful!

Anonymous said...

Oh my gosh - so cute! We don't have cardinals here - but we have blue jays in the mountains - so I might have to make them in blue! I just love everything you do, E - thank you so much for sharing with us - we just LOVE YOU!

Nan said...

Your birds are my favorites and the little felt red bird too which I have made. I love my little blue birds I made in the past from your lessons and I have one left as I gave them as gifts they are just so darn cute.

ArtzeeChris said...

Elizabeth!

You always have the cutest ideas and projects. I just love these little birdies! They are precious. I'm always so inspired everytime I visit you blog. It's such a happy place and your home looks so wonderful. Someday I keep hoping to get my house in shape but adventures in autism seem to keep that from happening! LOL oh well...at least I can come to your site to enjoy pretty things!

Have a great weekend!

Chris
Artzee Chris' Cool Clipart and Graphics

Val said...

Mike is the same with birds, not that I don't love them, as well. Your red birds are adorable, Elizabeth. :)

C'est moi Claudette said...

Hi E
It's me again Claudie
I worked all day on my little birdies. I have one done, wow, tough, but oh so cute. Like I said I'm not crafty and need those tutorials lol
I wanted to send you a picture, but I cannot find your email address anywhere.
Mine is claudie@frid.com
FB Claudette Charlebois Frid
Thanks again.
Love Claudie
xoxo

Laura said...

Hello,
We just wanted to stop by and let you know we love your blog. The birds are adorable! We also love birds and yor blog is an inspiration.
Thank you for sharing,
Laura and Michele

Robin Sanchez said...

I just love your blog.

You always have the cutest little creations to look at. Thanks for sharing them and the tutorial so we can make our own. Im going to try these cute little birds.

Robin

SHAYARI PAGE said...

nice

Anonymous said...

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