A Full Nest

I
just finished this custom handmade nest for a woman with eight
grandchildren who wanted one felted egg to represent each. I was just so
tickled by this, I had to share it.

Every
Spring I make these nests out of European beach grass roots, an
invasive species that is causing our local sand dune ecosystem to
disappear. Habitat restoration was my main focus in college, and I still
can’t help taking out these problematic plants when I see them. I love
hearing about folks making invasive plant species into art! My friend
Jeff over at Mystic Orb makes these great wooden buttons out of Scotch broom stalks!

So, I
take these unwanted plants, make them into a nest, add a few bits of
moss and lichens I find on the ground under our ancient oak tree, and
wet felt some little wool eggs, and…Voila! We have eco-friendly art.

You can read more about my handmade birds’ nests on a blog post I wrote last Spring called:

Building a Nest.

And find them on my Etsy shop at: http://mountainhearth.etsy.com/