bird song art event – Page 8

A fairy tea party for grandma

bird song art event, cottage, fairies, family, Food and Drink, We're having a party

By Karla Nathan / June 21, 2014

The day after Birdsong ended, my week was just gearing up! We had family in town visiting, and a new kitten joined our family. His name is Terrance Snow Bell Song Bird Nathan. (Terrance was in the Tinkerbell movie)

The monsoons resumed, and the girls made use of the piles of umbrellas we'd had out on the porch earlier.

Guncle Randy, Karen Hillman, and Crafting Queen Regina were in charge of dinner, while my husband grilled chicken. He had rigged up multiple umbrellas and tarps to grill under, and didn't give up, no matter how soggy the day got.

After a quiet-ish day of hanging in the studio and running people to the airport, we had a big family feast. And the next morning, the grand fairies threw a tea party for Great Grandma Joan who had come to visit them.

They had been talking about her visit for months. And had big plans for the tea party. I'm so glad that I didn't listen to my tired body, and that I rallied for this. It meant a lot to the little ones and a person like Joan deserves being the guest of honor at a fairy feast.

She is a dear lady.

Karen and Randy had whipped up a baked squash dish and a pan of roasted potatoes for our dinner the night before. I remade the leftovers into an egg casserole, made home made cinnamon rolls, asparagus wrapped in ham, and fruit salad (left overs too). Just about everything was a reconfigured dish.

The cinnamon rolls were even topped with extra raspberry icing I'd made for the cake I served for dessert on Sunday.

Did I mention that I bought WAY too much food for Birdsong? Luckily, I had a hoard of hungry nephews drop by to visit me on their way to a white water rafting trip. I filled their cooler with cookies and picnic food.

The little girls set the table for me, tea parties are a great learning experience for tiny fairies. Between their enthusiasm (and the smell of fresh baking bread) we had a table full of guests for our party. At first, it was just going to be a handful of us, no one else could make it.

Festivity can be contaigious, and even my Handsome Husband got into the feel of the event. He went and put on a jacket and tie for the party.

With his cargo shorts.

Regina, Guncle Randy, and Karen all delayed thier trip to Kansas City to stay and toast Great Grandma Joan with herbal tea.

I think this photo is hilarious. The breezeway was pretty much trashed, from Birdsong, a big dinner the night before, and the box of empties from the parties hadn't gone out yet. But it just goes to show that you don't have to make everything perfect to have a good time.

If I'd had to completley clean up from the previous parties, I doubt if I'd been able to squeeze one more occasion out of my hospitality drained soul. So, I just ignored the remnants of it all and partied-on.

From the look on this little fairy's face, a bit of mess wasn't even noticeable to her.

Sugarwings took this photo of us saying goodbye.

It was a fun way to see eveyone off and say thanks to the family and friends who had helped me so much all weekend.

And yes, there are more Birdsong pictures, I warned you, didn’t I?!

bird song art event

By Karla Nathan / June 19, 2014

Our first class was Lori Oles' shadow box.

Her kits were beautifully wrapped up, huh?

And lucky me, she gifted me with the finished example!

My class the first day was a little fairy in a swing. ( I think this is Tamantha's)

If I were to award prizes for the fairy who looked the most like her maker, who do you think would win?

(yes, I know the planter behind Linda makes it look like she is wearing a floral hat. I had to line myself up to get the photo that way, how could I not give her a rainbow flower top hat when it was right there behind her just taunting me with the possibility?)

Lisa is probably tied for first place with Linda.

Tami's favors her too.

Some crafters combined my class with Lori's class and added the fairy to the shadowbox.

The wool roving we worked with looked so much like cotton candy, that I heard more than one table mention that they had a craving for it.

So, I fetched the cotton candy machine!

Sugarwings dropped by to visit just in time to be my cotton candy making assistant.

And to sample the sparkling pink lemonade. She now thinks that Birdsong is all about the treats. Well, it kind of is, I bake and bake to prepare for it.

Andrea Singarella was the first teacher of the day on Sunday.

While the morning teacher does her class, I am busy prepping for lunch. This year I was smart enough to get most of it done way ahead of time so I could pop in the room to visit. Still, it all went by so fast for me, it was kind of a blur. I really wish I could visit with everyone even more.

Andrea had us making bracelets. Once again, beautiful kits, huh?

Even her tools were pretty.

My Sissy's were too. Hers had some sparkle going on.

My second class was this mobile. Which is hard to photograph.

This photo is from the night before it all began, after getting the studio ready for company.

Maybe by the end of the weekend, we were all a bit slap happy with the last class?

Possibly so. When Suzanne told me that her mobile was going to be bridal themed for her upcoming wedding, I got this veil out for her and Guncle Randy had to model it for us.

As did the beautiful bride.

She hung her tags from the vintage veil after everyone got a chance to play dress up in it.

This was a great class to end with, because it was pretty laid back. Everyone made the tags and crystals that they wanted, and we added them to a simple wreath with lace and ribbon.

It was kind of relaxing to make tags and pretty things. I tried to make sure there were plenty of goodies in each kit, plus extras for them to play with. I like it when no two projects turn out the exact same way. And we are a big believer in extras here. After Andrea's bracelet was finished, those with extra time could make earrings too.

I have a few more pics of the weekend coming up. I am really enjoying looking through them all and reliving the great time I had. Thanks again to everyone who came to see me!

Birdsong 4 Peeps

bird song art event

By Karla Nathan / June 17, 2014

Since our party is called Birdsong, I began calling my friends who attend, "my Peeps".

And what a fun bunch of chicks they are!

Well, not all are chicks.

And some literally are chickens.

The event is a success because of the nice people who attend.

I love my Peeps!

This year's party got off to a soggy start. There was a monsoon as everyone was arriving, so the guests and the room were soaked. I'm afraid that the temperature in the room was hard to manage as the heat rose outdoors and the sogginess turned into humidity.

But it takes more than bad weather to knock the smiles of these guests. Everyone was kind and understanding about the problems. And the next day, with more normal (what exactly is normal for Kansas, anyway???) weather, we were fine.

We were able to put the new patio to good use.

I'm thrilled with the way the cement turned out. No more chair legs sinking a foot into the mud and gravel when someone sat down! That is a plus when you are entertaining.

Not only were the Peeps fun to be around, they were generous. Thoughtful sponsors sent us gifts to put in the "tweet" bags, and attendees also brought tons of presents to share with each other.

We were able to have not just a goodie bag and one drawing item per person, but were able to put all the names back in the hat after everyone got a prize and draw again for a few more.

Tami won Beth's annual Birdsong Embroidered Apron for the second year in a row. And the fact that she wasn't beaten up by the envious non-winners is even more proof that extremely nice people attend our party!

Angie’s Birdsong Eve Birthday Bash

bird song art event, wallpaper, We're having a party

By Karla Nathan / June 15, 2014

Some of the nicest ladies came to see me last weekend for Birdsong.

Many come from out of town, and my buddy, Angie, was kind to invite them all to her shop for a birthday celebration the night before our event began.

She invited us to her elegant antique store, and served up pizza with style while we chatted, caught up with each other's news, did some shopping, and a little project with Beth.

Beth packed up her legendary vintage supplies and set the group up with a fun project.

To celebrate Angie's birthday, my family and I made some cupcakes. Lavender is her fave, so we picked some fresh blooms from the garden, made an oil infusion with them, strained it and added that to the white cup cake mix.

yum

Now this is my fave too. It was subtle, not a strong lavender. And when we saw how easy it was to do, I decided I want to harvest all my plants to do this with, and freeze the herb infusion to use year round.

My sister-in-law, Terry, and my son both spent Friday baking and chopping with me. I couldn't have got it all done without them, or without Sissy who stayed up till midnight peeling apples for the carmel apple cobbler.

(Sissy had some advice too, too bad I didn't listen. She kept telling me, "Karkie, those are plenty, you don't need that many apples." But I just kept peeling away. I had WAY too many.)

Birdsong itself is very laid back and casual. It was nice to have a reason to spiff up a bit and have a night out before it all began. And what a pretty atmosphere to have a party in! Her shop is so nice. (so is she)

And she set out a donation box for the Ballard Center and raised $300 for families in need.

While this evening is not an official part of the event, it was a welcome addition and I was so pleased that Angie offered to have us all over for her special night.

And it was soooo fun for Beth to share her stash of goodness for everyone to play with and warm up for the weekend's crafting.

It was kind of her to share her collage skills and time with our Peeps.

And it was extra nice for me, because I was "off the clock." I could relax, visit, and enjoy the evening before we got started on Saturday. I am lucky to have friends who pitch in and do such thoughtful things, aren't I?

I loved having a party to attend!

The Early Bird Gets the Earworm, Birdsong recap #1, of about a gazillion, there were a LOT of pictures and fun things to tell about!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

bird song art event, studio tour, Workshops

By Karla Nathan / June 13, 2014

I don't even know where to start. I had the BEST week! Birdsong itself was only a couple of days, but with all the pre and post activities and visitors, it was a week for me.

I guess the place to start is at the prep and set up?

I love decorating and getting ready for the guests.

Making name tags, hanging banners, covering the tables.

In the past, I've used white plastic table cloths, or white craft paper to cover the tables. This year, I bought rolls of white gift wrap at the dollar store, and have to say, it was not only the cheapest way to hide my marred up, marked up, messed up tables, it was the best way to do it.

The gift wrap was heavier duty, and lower cost than any other cover I have used. I always draw on my table covers, and previously, used quotes about birds. This time I used song lyrics. Which was pretty, but oh my goodness, those were whirling through my head non stop.

When I get an "ear worm" song stuck in my head, I tend to just go with it and sing along. But this was a cacophony of tunes, from the Beatles' "Blackbird" to Stevie Nicks' "Rhiannon". I also used "I'm Like a Bird," and a couple others that are still humming along in my brain.

I also spruced up my folding chairs a little better. Before, I slipped a pillow case over each one. This made the room look more uniform, but it was a bit sloppy. I always thought I'd cut them off and stitch them up to fit, and finally, for the 4th Birdsong, I finally did.

It was such a quick project, I don't know why I waited so long to do it. All I did was cut off the bottoms and the corners, turn them inside out and do a fast zig zag around them. They remind me of tea cozies, so I call them my chair cozies.

I also wrapped some drop cloth fabric around some of the other chair seats. That was pretty quick too, instead of stapling, I just wrapped the seats like little presents and finished them off with Sealah tape.

Last year, I'd hung some branches from the ceiling, and liked them so much, I think they just might be permanent. I've changed what I dangle from them throughout the year. For this gathering, I hung some birds and the cages we made from this class.

On one wall, I have a grouping of framed wallpapers. It's a perfect spot to switch up for occasions too. For this one, I added vintage bird pictures, some things I'd made or gotten in swaps.

And this party was the perfect excuse to redo my table top display. I took all the clutter from the top of this one, and redid it with fresh clutter. It's now home to all the examples from our fairy class.

PS- If you'd like a fairy kit, I made a few extra.

Please email me at: karlanathan@sbcglobal.net

to order one for $40 plus postage. They come with illustrated instructions and plenty of supplies for foofing the girls up.

My decorating time was also deep cleaning time. Throughout my whole house, as I spiffed up a room, I delved into refolding linens, cleaning out closets, filling boxes of things to send to Goodwill or to add to the sale in the garage. I even sorted through every single tool in the garage and redid that area too.

Most of my decor was using what I already had. These angel wings got a spritz of blue Glimmer Mist, and I wrapped lace around the dress form and added some birdie brooches from my jewelry box.

That keeps costs down for the event. I don't spend more than a few bucks on things like the table covers, all of my decor is done with clutter and crap I have lying around pretties from my studio.

Another new idea for this year, was to add seating in the living room for meals.

There isn't enough space in the dining room for those who didn't want to eat outside.

Although, we got pretty lucky with the weather. We had a miserable, drenching start to the weekend, with a monsoon as everyone got out of their cars. But after that, the clouds cooperated and we were able to make use of the new patios.

I'm so in love with the new backyard! Even after all the stress and hard work of getting them done in time for Birdsong. I think that the remodeling was so hard that all the other work felt like a breeze. After all of that, I was thrilled to just be rearranging things in the studio and sprucing up for the guests. That patio about did me in.

I'll leave you with some more pre-Birdsong pics and will be back with more photos of the weekend in a couple days.

And I miss them already!

bird song art event

By Karla Nathan / June 9, 2014

What a fun weekend we had! The nicest people come to Birdsong. I already miss them. Luckily, I had some extra time with a few of them last night and this morning, and now I have my Sissy and Randy for a bit too, along with a couple of other Peeps. It's shaping up to be a GREAT week.

More gifties!

bird song art event

By Karla Nathan / June 4, 2014

Mitzi is someone I met online, and whose blog I really enjoy. She knows her antiques and is interesting to read. I've not met her in person yet, but I hope to. I already know she is a generous person, each year she has donated to the "tweet" bags for Birdsong.

Darling Linda, also sent some goodies. Each is wrapped with this cute tag she made from her photo taken last year at Birdsong 3.

Her gifts are hand made tussie mussies each filled with a sweet bird. Dozens of them! That is devotion, isn't it?

Kim has put together these caged beauties for us too. I can't wait to peek inside to see all the goodies.

Marriane sent these wonderfully wrapped bundles. I have no idea what is in them, but the packaging itself will make fun crafting supplies.

Aren't these old butter boxes cool? Pam Perilla sent these.

Tami dropped by to visit and dropped off her gifts. It made me even more anticipatory for our party to begin, after having a visit with one of our "Peeps".

She made these switch covers from decopaged napkins! I don't think I'd be able to get so many so perfect, those flimsy napkins are hard to work with, she did an admirable job with them.

Very pretty!

She also made this pretty teacup nest for me!

And brought dress up clothes for the grand fairies.

I've already mentioned that Gwen has gifted the "Birdsong Ladies" (as Sugarwings calls them) with $50 worth of gift certificates at Bottom's Up antique mall. To draw the names, I thought I'd Wonka it up. I made of list of how many were going to attend that day, then posted the list a few times to make sure no one was left off.

Then, wrapped up 25 mini candy bars (if the ladies wonder why there were no Krackle bars in with the others, it is because they were quite delicious.) Inside the wrappers of 3 of them, I wrote notes in gold ink to create the Golden Tickets to use as prizes, then mailed them all to Gwen. When the Birdsong Ladies arrive to shop, each gets a sweet treat and 3 of them will get gift certificates.

Thanks to everyone who contributed to the bags and the drawings. Their generosity and kindness makes the party even more special for our guests.

Embellished bottles and tins

bird song art event, swaps

By Karla Nathan / May 30, 2014

We have a small group at Birdsong, so I thought that just a few swaps would do. We are swapping banners, Altoid tins, and embellished bottles.

Swaps are a blast to watch. The ladies come up with such spectacular gifts for each other. I rarely have time to join in at most events I go to, but love watching them.

This year, one swap was not partnered up. Instead, participants bring an embellished bottle, and draw names to trade. Since it was open ended, I figured I'd be able to join in if time allowed. And it did. Or I forced it to, by making time to do it.

I had this cool, old bottle, with kind of wavy glass and decided to fill it with a bird and nest. I used a picture of a meadowlark on the inside, since that is the state bird of Kansas. First, I drizzled glue down into the bottle, then with a narrow dowel rod, I arranged moss and turquoise eggs to make a nest. After that, I added the bird picture and a twig.

While the glue was wet, I dropped in a few little millinery blooms and sprinkled glitter over the nest. I drizzled more glue over it all to hold it in place, then left the lid off for a week or so, till it all dried.

I decided that I needed a little meadowlark info from a vintage birding book, and glued that to the inside of the bottle too.

Which was dumb. It was so hard to do, trying to get it straight with the stick. Like building a ship in a bottle.

Trouble is, after all that effort, it could have just as easily been glued to the outside of the bottle for the same effect. Oh well. You don't learn if you don't try.

I had to add some paper to the back of the bottle anyway. So, should have just glued the meadowlark paper there in the first place.

The bottle is further decked out in aqua velvet ribbon, and a pink velvet flower, plus some other tidbits.

While I was at it, I did a couple more bottles.

And tried my hand at an Altoid tin. I'd never decorated one before and soon realized that with the moving lid and hinges, paper wasn't the best choice for it all. So, I spray painted the box, inside and out first, and then distressed the paint with sandpaper.

I was able to use ribbon, paper, flowers, and other embellishments on the non moving parts.

Doing something out of my normal type of colors and materials was a challenge that I enjoyed, I'd been so busy with cleaning, entertaining, getting ready for Birdsong, that my soul needed a little creative break.

As much as I love doing this event, it does take a lot out of me, and I miss my time just to sit and make stuff.

But- soon, I'll be sitting with my Peeps, and crafting away. Can't wait!

Sweet Gifties

bird song art event

By Karla Nathan / May 23, 2014

The sponsor gifts for Birdsong are making me giddy with anticipation. I love filling the bags up with goodies while oohing and ahhing over all the thoughtfulness that came in the mail. These hand made birdie soaps are from Karen Hillman.

She has also sent this delightful birdcage! I don't know what treasures it holds, and I can't wait to see the winner open it so I can find out!

Very sweet!

Laurie has sent us this beautiful wreath inspired by Lori Oles' class last year.

Filled with wonderful and colorful Birdie tags.

And, Hope, journal-er extraordinaire, has gifted a journaling supply kit along with an online class. I have to admit that I did peek in at some of the vintage pieces packed inside. Yep, this is going to a lucky winner too.

Heather has sent not just a kit to make your own coffee filter flowers, but also a Pinkly Perfect and Pretty, completed flower for each guest!

A huge gift is coming from Angie, my shabby chic friend. Her birthday is June 6th and she is throwing a party and inviting all the Birdsong ladies for pizza, wine, and celebration in her shop the night before our arty weekend begins.

Beth will do a make and take at the party of a vintage collage piece, and Sugarwings' Hippy Chick Mommy is making her gourmet cupcakes for us.

Not only that, but Beth has also donated a hand stitched apron as a drawing gift for our weekend.

She has made a tradition of crafting the cutest apron around, every year for Birdsong to give as a gift.

I hope that the wisteria is still in bloom when everyone arrives. The garden is producing and I should have plenty of greens to fix salads, but it would be so nice if the flowers are still here too.

Spring painted right over Winter

bird song art event, paintings

By Karla Nathan / May 6, 2014

Way back when I used to have an antique booth, I used to sell a ton of Xmas ornaments. And I came up with an idea to display them, by cutting a 4×8' sheet of plywood into an arch, and painting a Christmas tree in the snow onto it, and adding hooks to hang the vintage Shiny Brites right on the tree. It was cute, and I used that plywood board for years as a holiday decoration.

It was nice to have kids pose in front of for pictures too.

But I was ready for a new look, something that I could use more than a few weeks a year, and leave in the studio year round. That thing is too heavy to haul out to the shed in the cold after Christmas is over!

I painted over the winter scene, leaving the rock arch around it. (and the holes from the hooks still there, guess I should have patched those)

With Birdsong on my mind, I added a couple of bluebirds. Doves might have been a better match for the soft colors of the piece, but I just love bluebirds. And I know that a male and female pair are different colors, the lady is a more muted color. Still, I painted what I liked instead of what is accurate, and have two vivid birds that really stand out against the pastel shades of the landscape.

In the distance, there is a pink tree blooming, with a nest in its branches.

Speaking of Birdsong, I got another box with sponsor gifts for the drawing. These are from the Guncles. Kevin is an avid antiquer and has a great booth down in Jacksonville. He also sells on Ebay. While out scouring the city's estate sales for his business, he found these old bird prints. He and Randy were kind enough to send them here to share with my Birdsong Peeps.

Thanks, Guncles!

My friend, Laurie Jackson along with her pal, Kathy Bremer, sent these beautiful, old prize ribbons. Won't everyone attending feel like a winner when they open these?

Terri Wilkerson made up these cute little packs of goodies for our group.

If you'd like to be a sponsor too, please email me at:

karlanathan@sbcglobal.net