Who Loves Owls?

I woke up about 4 am yesterday. At first I wondered what had woken me up, then I heard something outside -- an owl hooting!  It was quickly answered by another and so the conversation went back and forth between them.

I love owls, there's something so mysterious about them, and I especially love that we can hear them here at night sometimes.  I peeked through the window but couldn't see anything in the dark, so then I crept out on the patio.  Straining my eyes in the direction of the sounds (they sounded quite close) I was finally able to make out dark shapes on the top of electric poles along the street behind our house.

They were probably scanning the fields on the other side of the road for mice and other prey.  I listened to them for several minutes and then their hoots started getting further away as they flew silently across the fields.

Did I mention I love owls?  Check out this macrame owl I made for our patio earlier this year. Remember these from the 70's?  My mum in England still had one I made for her and after a visit to England in spring, I decided I needed to make my own.

 Not bad, if I say so myself! Especially considering I did it without a pattern, just sort of designing as I went. :-)

Anyway, I thought I'd indulge my love of owls and see what designs and products my fellow Zazzle artists have created.  Here are just a few, then you'll have a chance to add your own.

I like to think the owls we hear are Great Horned Owls. To me, they are the quintessential owl with their big eyes and those ear tufts.

This postcard from Critterpainter shows a Great Horned Owl sitting on a branch - check out those talons!

Great Horned Owl Post Card by Critterpainter
Browse Owl Postcards

This pen and ink drawing by Wildlife Inc. really captures the essence of the Great Horned Owl. He looks as if he might be sizing me up for dinner!

Horned Owl Post Card by WildlifeInk
Browse Owl Postcards

So, too, does the owl in this poster from PhotographieBy Pixie.  What an incredible shot!

Owl Eyes Poster by PhotographyByPixie
Browse Owl Posters

There are many different species of owl and I love this card with John Audobon's illustration of a Great Gray Owl, from VintagePets. I've always admired the stunning detail in Audobon's work.

Great Gray Owl Card by VintagePets
More Illustration Cards 

At the other end of the size spectrum from the Great Grey Owl is the Northern Saw-Whet Owl. This postcard features a beautiful watercolor painting of an adorable little Saw-Whet owl by Renee Fukumoto.

Sawhet Owl Watercolour Postcard by ReneeFukumoto
Browse other Owl Postcards

Stylized owls have always been popular in art and for home accents - like the macrame owl I showed at the beginning of my post.

Here are some more examples of stylized owls from the Zazzle community.

Owls seem to fit quite nicely on iPhone cases, as seen in the examples below:

Cute Owl iPhone 4 Case by Second_Skin

Owl iPhone 4 Case - CUSTOMIZE with your NAME! by thaneeyamcardle

Owls are popular on cards and invitations, as you can see from the selection below.

Owl Nest in a Spring Tree Custom Invitations by amykaren
Browse other custom printed invites on zazzle

Twins Owl Baby Shower Invitations by celebrateitinvites
More Multiple baby shower Invitations

I thought I'd finish up with another of my favorite owls - the Barn Owl, this time on a stamp.

owl stamp by WorldDesign
Browse other Animal lover Stamps

Now it's your turn. If you are a Zazzle designer, you are invited to link to your owl themed designs in the Linky tool below. Use Option 1 in the Link Widget on the page of the Zazzle product/design you'd like to add. It will show up below as a small thumbnail and when clicked on, will link directly to your product.

Raindrops are falling....

We've been getting a LOT of rain this week.  After the Texas drought last year, we needed all the rain we could get, so even though it caused some local flooding, the rain was appreciated.

So all this rain got me thinking about creating a rainy scene in Vue d'Esprit and I'm quite happy with the way it came out.

There were a couple of challenges in the piece -- how to create the actual rain drops and how to make the water surface look like raindrops were hitting it, all inside Vue and without the need for post work in Photoshop.  But I found the tools I needed and was able to pull it together (well, I think so anyway, I hope others like it too).

Rainy Day at the Lake Poster by 3DDesignsByJayne

I'm in the process now of creating some other products with it -- a mousepad, iPad sleeve, laptop sleeve etc.  I'm also going to create some cards with it, and maybe some postage.

So now it's raining again outside, I decided to have a look around Zazzle, and see what other rain-inspired designs I could find.

Here are just a few that caught my eye:

I love the inspirational quote on this fridge magnet from CookingandMe at Zazzle

Rain Magnet by CookingandMe

This adorable poster is from an original painting by Gordon Bruce.

RAINY DAY KISSING COUPLE TRAM UMBRELLA POSTERS by gordonbruce

I've always admired the paintings by Gustave Caillebotte, depicting a rainy Paris in the late 1800's such as this one from VintageGftStore at Zazzle.

Paris, on a Rainy Day Poster by VintageGiftStore

I love the simplicity of this pink umbrella poster by Tasha at Zazzle. It's such a cheery poster.

Happy When it Rains Poster by tashatzazzle

I'm going to have to post this fridge magnet with a gardening quote on my gardening blog - Green and Serene - Jayne's Country Garden. It's so true!

Magnets with Garden Quotes by sherry_2007

One of the joys of rainy days is being able to sit warm and dry inside and watch the magical rainy, misty world outside through the raindrops on the windows.

This is captured beautifully in this postcard by Susan Savad.

Rainy Day Postcards by SusanSavad

Finally, this rain-spattered iPhone case looks very realistic.

Rain on my Window Tough Iphone 4 Case by artberry

I could go on and on... but now it's your turn.
If you are a Zazzle artist or designer, you're invited to link to your rainy day themed designs in the Linky tool below. Use Option 1 in the Link Widget on the page of the Zazzle product/design you'd like to add. It will show up below as a small thumbnail and when clicked on, will link directly to your product.

Tick Tock - it's Time for Clocks

I've fallen in love with one of  Zazzle's newest products -- their clocks! Available either round or square and in two sizes, they will look good in any decor.

I made some this week using the patterns I've recently created in Pixelmator.  These will coordinate with the plates, mugs, teapots and pitchers and will look nice on the kitchen wall.

Green and Blue Leafy Pattern Clock by 3DDesignsByJayne

Blue and Gold Tiled Pattern Clock by 3DDesignsByJayne

I also created some using my equine artwork, created in DAZ 3D.

Buckskin Horse in the Forest Clock by 3DDesignsByJayne
See additional Clocks

Run Like the Wind - Galloping Paint Horses Clock by 3DDesignsByJayne
Shop for more Clocks at Zazzle

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Other artists at Zazzle are doing some wonderful things with the clocks.

For example - I love the way the thick black numbers complement the black hands on this clock by Anderson Designs. I love the soft green too - one of my favorite colors :-)

Abstract Floral Stripe Light Colors Clock by Anderson_Designs
See other Stripe Wall Clocks

Ready for a little Christmas in July? (I can't believe it's July already!) This clock by cutechristmas  has some cute snowmen on it, with a dark red border.

Happy Holidays Snowmen Round Clock by cutechristmas
Shop for other Clocks online at Zazzle

I think it was a stroke of genius to put Da Vinci's Vitruvian Man on a clock -- I wish I had thought of it!

da vinci vitruvian man clock by funny_tshirt
Create a clock at Zazzle

When creating my clocks, often the hardest part was deciding whether or not to put numbers on them. As you can see from my clocks above, some I added all the numbers, and others had no numbers or just four numbers.

This clock,  by SuevianArts, is perfect just as it is and doesn't need numbers.

Purple butterflower clock by SuevianArts
Shop for additional Clocks at Zazzle

Here's another stroke of genius. This clock looks like a golf ball. What golfer wouldn't love this on the wall of their Man Cave?

Golf Ball Wall Clock by dgpaulart
More Golf Wall Clocks

As you can see - the possibilities are endless. Now it's your turn. If you are a Zazzle artist or designer, you're invited to link to your clocks in the Linky tool below. Use Option 1 in the Link Widget on the page of the Zazzle product/design you'd like to add. It will show up below as a small thumbnail and when clicked on, will link directly to your product.