© Nita Joy Designs

Father’s Day cards – Nita Joy Designs

Images © Nita Joy Designs

© Nita Joy Designs
Images available through Photobox Gallery

© Nita Joy Designs

© Nita Joy Designs

Squirrel dedicated to the memory of Angelika’s Granddad.

It’s that time again to find and dust off your binoculars!

To fill up the seed trays and bird tables with a variety of goodies that your feathered friends will enjoy, and take part in the Big Garden Birdwatch this weekend.

You know you will probably attract Mr Nutkins, but his cheeky ways always makes me smile

Image via Wikipedia

There is something about birdwatching that brings me a sense of calm.

I delight in the beauty of the birds that decide to visit my garden banquet.

I get outraged when the title -’ little brown jobs’ get thrown their way!

I love the design of each bird, whether they are brown or multi-coloured.

I have had debates with my husband’s gran about who the nice birds are, and the ones who need a wake up call; apparently the robin and jay are on her naughty list.

I grew up on Beatrix Potter stories, so I can’t help but imagine what the birds story may be as they feast, chatter, play and fight…

Perhaps that’s why I wrote a children’s story involving a runaway pigeon – called Percy.

When I was at school, I started a new family tradition that if I saw a kestral or a buzzard on the way to school – it would be a good day!

I love the robins, blue tits, great tits, long tailed tits, doves, pigeons, starlings, woodpeckers …that regulary visit my garden. I find peace at night listening to the call of the barn and tawney owls, in the woods opposite me … on my wish list I still have to see the amazing starling displays!

Will you be taking part in the Big Garden Birdwatch?

Take part with thousands of people across the county and discover the birds that visit your garden, to help research into how best we can help them.

For more details please visit the Big Garden Birdwatch to register and download a recording sheet. It’s only for one hour during the weekend of the 28th-29th January 2012.

I would love to know what birds visit your garden, so please leave a comment and share with me

Related articles

• RSPB Big Garden Birdwatch 2012 (thegardensmallholder.wordpress.com)
• Take Part In The Big Garden Birdwatch 28th or 29th January 2012 (femaleimagination.wordpress.com)

Just for a giggle, hope you enjoy the below video

Over at Birds on the Blog, I have been encouraging a handmade Christmas with decoration and gift suggestions.

For my last post in my mini-series, I have put together some ideas to decorate your dinner table for Christmas day.

I thought I would put together a free pdf for my lovely blog readers as a little Christmas gift; for printable star and bauble napkin rings.

I hope you like  them.

To recieve your free pdf download, please add to cart.

Instructions are included.

When you add your details (name and email address) to your shopping cart and proceed to make your order, you will then receive an order confirmation. Within your order confirmation email, you will receive a link to go through to my Handmade Greeting Cards blog, and a code that you will need to input on a special page with your email address, in order to gain access to the free download.

Anita

Related articles

• Make Your Own Handmade Christmas Decorations And Gifts 2011 – Part One (birdsontheblog.co.uk)
• Last Minute Easy Handmade Gifts You Can Make! (birdsontheblog.co.uk)

I thought I would do a roundup post looking at some of my nature blogs that I have posted at my other blogging home – Birds on the Blog.

This year some of the things we have looked at are -

• One of my favourite things?

All about my love of the snowdrop and where to see this beauty.

• What would your life look like without our forests?

Well that was a heart wrenching time, when there was the heated debate about our precious woodland. With rumblings still going on in the background, it’s important for us to keep an eye on new policies being lined up for our forests.

• A perfect day out

I  had the privillege of seeing a carpet of thousands of crocuses at Forde Abbey and gardens – I will be definitely be going there again next spring!

• Wow, wow, wow wow …

Blessed by a sea of blue in a gorgeous woodland, enjoyed and treasured by many! Can’t wait to visit again next year!

• How a nosey neighbour can make you bloom

The joys of the National Garden Scheme – the NGS

• A crowd pleaser that causes a real stink

A bizarre plant that doesn’t flower often and smells horrible, but still ends up being a popular plant to see.

• Top ten nature activities to do this summer

Getting out there in the summer and enjoying what nature has in store for us.

• Celebrating a wedding anniversary?

Along the theme of my love of flowers is the language of flowers. This post looks at some suggestions for wedding anniversary ideas!

• The Dazzling delights of hydrangeas

Who knew that hydrangeas were so popular. So many joined in enthusing about their love for the hydrangea

• Feed the Birds – looking after our feathered friends

We look at suggestions of what food we can give to our feathered friends, with a couple of recipes of seed cake and fat balls thrown into the mix.

• Ivy – Friend or Foe

A controversial one … looking at the many benefits of Ivy for wildlife.

I hope you will enjoy the posts

Let me know which posts you particularly enjoyed!

Anita

Related articles

• The Dazzling Delights Of Hydrangeas (birdsontheblog.co.uk)
• Perfect Snowdrop Comes With A High Price Tag (handmadegreetingcards.info)

This year we have a special collection of individual Christmas cards that can be personalised with your loved one’s names, as well as our usual botanical Christmas card packs.

They are available individually or as a pack for £11.00 ( a saving of £2.20)

In the collection we have -

For more information and to buy – Nita Joy Designs Christmas cards

Looking for another special offer?

Readers of Small Business Training receive a special offer on our Christmas card packs

I hope you like the collection. If you do, please share

Related articles

• Mixed Pack of special individual Christmas cards (nitajoydesigns.co.uk)
• Botanical Personalised Christmas cards (sendaflowercard.com)
• Printable Christmas card and tags (nitajoydesigns.co.uk)

As a contributor over at Birds On The Blog, I am running a mini series, encouraging us to make handmade Christmas decorations and gifts this year.

Last week we looked at some suggestions to make Christmas tree decorations.

For my second part of my series, we will be looking at general Christmas decorations for the home, including a Rachel de Thame Christmas wreath, using material gathered from around your garden, and a cute Christmas garland (will be published 10.00am 10th December).

As well as making personalised greeting cards from my botanical photography I also enjoy a range of crafts such as paper crafts.

Earlier this year, I picked up some blank candles which were on special offer and wondered how I could add a decoration to them.

Through various designs such as using dried flowers, and adding transfers that I made with my flower images, I also came up with an easy project to share, using stamps and ink.

To make this decoration you will need:

• Plain candle – You can pick one up for a couple of pounds at a variety of shops
• Stamp ( if you have a local Hobbycraft, or independent craft shop near by)
• Pigment Ink (as in below image)

As you can see I used a pretty dragonfly stamp, but you can use any stamp.

My recommendation would be to either use very small ones dotted all over the candle or long stamps.

Here is how I decorated the blank candle:

Directions:

• Put stamp on table with the stamp facing up
• Dot the ink pad over the stamp image until the raised section is covered evenly with ink
• Place candle carefully from the right hand side and roll gently and firmly over the image carefully so as not to smudge the image
• If you do accidently smudge the image, take some tissue and wipe it off gently and try again
• Leave to dry.

Finished candle:

For a gift suggestion you could wrap in tissue paper and finish with some festive ribbon (once it has dried)

I hope you will enjoy making some decorations this Christmas

What have you been making?

Related articles

• Make Your Own Handmade Christmas Decorations And Gifts 2011 – Part One (birdsontheblog.co.uk)