Good morning everyone

There is a definite chill in the air this morning, a lot colder than yesterday. My cup of hot coffee feels good this morning warming my hands. Looks like cold weather for the next few days and then maybe a warming trend again.

I've been painting quite a bit this week and wanted to show you what I've been working on. I finished my birdhouse and it's now hanging in the tree outback. I added jasmine vine to give it some interest and a rustic look.


I've also been painting some "open" signs for Galen. He puts them on a pole and adds a whirligig making it stand about waist high, self standing in concrete. He's making these for some of the downtown shops for out front on the sidewalks.


We got a special order for a whirligig for Christmas. This will be a jackrabbit and ham radio theme. The request is for a father-in-law that did short wave radio years ago and his "handle" was jackrabbit. This will be a Christmas gift for him. Here is the jackrabbit so far...Galen carved it out of wood and I painted it.

It will be very similar to the fox and the lazy dog when it's finished.

Pick a theme and Galen will figure out how to do it!

Colorful and unique, one-of-a-kind heirlooms!

If you are interested in one for the holidays, it's not too late to get your order in. We have a few listed in our shop right now.

Enjoy your weekend!

A purple bird house

I love this shade of purple

so.......I decided to paint this wooden bird house (one that hubby made with a tin roof)....purple ~ the same color that I painted our side garage door, if you remember here.

I'm lovin this color!

Then, I used an old cabinet door knob in the shape of a flower for the perch, a big rosy pink flower.

My purple bird house. Isn't it cute?

Garden Decor

Spring time and gardening is the perfect time to think about some whimsical garden decor for your garden.

Little porcelain teapots on metal stakes adorned with ribbon.

The one (below) is a Distlefink teapot. The birds symbolize good luck and the heart, love.

Strawberries on this fancy one,

and flowers on the other side.

And how about a two-story bird house painted with flowers?

You can find these and a lot more whimsical garden things in my whimsy two shop.

A pink house.....

decorated with crystal.

Very elegant, don't you think?

(Made by hubby and painted and decorated by me!)

Just another place to nest....

Oh, yes, the birds have plenty of places to nest here at Mourning Dove Cottage, and now there is one more new place. Yesterday I hung this terra cotta Williamsburg Bottle Birdhouse on the front wall by the jasmine and hopefully some little bird will be happy to call it home (by the way, I found this bird house at Goodwill for $2.00).

Let me show you some of the other bird houses we have for the birdies.

This blue victorian bird house hangs by the back screened in porch.

The little wooden round bird house, on the right, is one that Galen made ~ very unique, don't you think?

He also make the white one with the tin roof below. I added a crystal dangly for decoration.

The two-story red house hangs in the flower garden,

and the yellow carved bird house (another one Galen made) hangs along with a few others in the sycamore tree in the front yard.

In the spring time the mourning dove will usually build a cozy nest in the jasmine above the front door ~ just another place to roost.

(notice my little weiner baby below looking out the front door) He says, Hello.

Enjoy your day everyone!

700th Post Giveaway

I'm having a giveaway!

It's hard to believe this is my 700th post.
Who knew I'd still be here blogging after all this time, still having something to say and still having something to show you, and still enjoying every minute of it.

And blogging wouldn't be any fun if it weren't for you.
I appreciate your coming by and poking your head in to see what's going on here at Mourning Dove Cottage. All of your sweet and kind comments make me happy and inspire me to do more.

Sooooooo............here is what I'm giving away ~

One of my paintings. A small painting of wildflowers on canvas (4x5).

It can be framed or displayed on an easel.



I'm also giving away one of our handmade wooden birdhouses on a stake to put in a flower pot.
It's painted a soft yellow with a polka-dot roof.




Since we're on a flower and garden theme, I thought you might like a vintage flower pin.




And last but not least, three little pocket charms (painted pebbles) to let you know how happy you make me and what a joy it is just knowing you.





All you have to do is leave a comment on this post and you will be entered in the giveaway. (If you don't have a blog, please leave an email where you can be reached).

Deadline will be August 1.
I will be picking a winner on August 2.

Thank you, and enjoy your day!

Donna

The finished mosaic

........a yellow birdhouse.

I used some yellow dessert plates that I saved. They were chipped and too pretty to throw away.

I started with one of those small wooden birdhouses you can buy almost anywhere,

and decided,.....rather than paint it,

why not mosaic it.

Voila!


It's amazing what you can do with bits of broken glass.

I'm happy to have another birdhouse, a little yellow birdhouse, to add to my collection here at Mourning Dove Cottage.

Enjoy your day!

Donna

Something new

Something new in the shop.

Fun little birdhouses for your flower pots.

Whimsical and fun!

Find them here.

Birds and bird houses

This morning I awoke to a bird singing outside the bedroom window. He was singing to his hearts content, loud and clear, and a beautiful song.

What a perfect way to wake up and start the day.

A few days ago I asked hubby to make a bird house for me, and of course you know he'll make anything I ask him to make. So this one came out of the shop yesterday. I painted it in a wash of blue and added a tiny grapevine wreath around the door.

It has a cedar shake roof and is made from yellow pine. Sturdy little house.

It should make the birds happy.

My hubby gets very creative in his shop. He's made a blue jay house, a little red hen house, and a cardinal bird house.

Birds are always welcome at here at Mourning Dove Cottage.

If I were a bird, I'd sing a song,

and fly about the whole day long,

and when the night comes, go to rest,

up in my cozy little nest.

~Jackie Silberg

Enjoy the birds today.