This project is for the birds!!!!

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This project is for the birds!! 

 Just kidding, I have actually had a really great time creating these Christmas bird ornaments.  

    Recently, I had a great response to a post I had shared on Facebook about my latest crafts.  From that Facebook share I got a few orders and my first order was for Christmas bird ornaments.  I am loving that I get to create these cute little things.  Partly, because it is exciting to find out that someone is interested enough in my creativity to place an order.  But even more importantly, I was able to spend some quality time with my family, getting the order put together.  

 See, the birds were a hit, but I had only made about ten for the booth.  A friend of mine saw them and thought they would be perfect for her staff at Christmas.  She needed 25, so the "special order" got underway.  After a quick shopping trip, for scrapbook paper, trinkets and do-dads, we called in reinforcements and got busy in the shop.  

      Everything, I make is handmade. I paint, decoupage, sand, glue, and hand letter...once it gets in the craft room. All of this is great therapy and I enjoy every minute I get to spend in the craft room.  However, before I get to play in there, I have to create patterns and pieces, cut, saw, sand and prepare the base of my project.  It's alot!  It can be done, but for the sake of time, I recruited my family. I had one daughter tracing out patterns of birds on birch wood.  
 

Another one of my girls,  was working on the bandsaw cutting out the bird shapes.  


My husband and son-in-law took turns on the spindle sander making those little birdies smooth and sweet.




And of course, I had my hands in the middle of all of it.  I would trace a few bird patterns out; go take a turn on the ban saw; and then find my way to the sander. We worked those poor kids to exhaustion and sent them all home. 


My husband and I finished up the evening drilling holes and attaching eye screws so they could hang on the tree. 


 Once, I got the bird shapes ready, I put them in the craft room so they would be ready for me after a good nights sleep.  

 I spent some time picking out pretty paper and accents to complete the look of each little birdie.  I decoupaged the paper on them.  I glued on the accents and tied some twine onto the screw eyes so they could hang out in the Christmas trees.  Aren't they sweet?

Now it's time to send them to their new homes, so I wrapped them up in pretty paper and put them in a Truthfully Tracelaine box for safe shipping.  I can't wait to get them on their way.
  I am so thankful for the time I got to spend with my family creating these little cuties.  I love making those kinds of memories.

 Here's to your memories of thankfulness on your path to happy, healthy and whole.
~Tracelaine

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