goodbirddesign

I believe that there is good in the world that each of us can do.  Big good, small good, unnoticed good, astounding good.  We are, each of us, God's hands on earth.  

I have been fortunate to become connected with Africa Heartwood Project over the past year, and to work with its director - Andy Jones. I have never met a more selfless person, and his Salt Lake City based charity is a reflection of that selflessness. Africa Heartwood Project is a brilliant, effective charity that supports a Refugee Orphan Home in Ghana, clean water projects in remote villages, and the livelihoods of artisans in the region. It maintains zero overhead and functions completely through volunteer efforts. Every single donated penny is honored, appreciated, and put to its best possible use. The work they have been able to accomplish, particularly the hope and dignity they are restoring in children's lives...well, it's something I believe in my heart is worthy and important to support.

Our goal through this bake/craft sale is to raise funds specifically to help two young people under the care of Africa Heartwood Project's Refugee Orphan Home in Ghana. Their needs are real, their hearts are grateful, and the power is in our hands to help change lives.  

The baked goods and craft items we have made are a small contribution to that collective good.  Everything shown here on the Good Bird Blog will be available for purchase on August 8th.  If you like what you see here, PLEASE stop by and make a contribution.  100% of the proceeds will go toward supporting this charity.
  

I believe that many people giving *just a little* can make the miracle.  So thank you for participating in this service project with us!  Please join us on Monday, August 8th from 5 - 8 p.m. at the Moon Residence.  Bring your family, pick up something delicious for family night, and LET'S MAKE THIS HAPPEN!

ITEMS FOR SALE AT THE BAKE/CRAFT SALE:

READING PILLOWS - $15 each

Everybody needs a comfy pillow for long hours of reading, right?  Our suggestion is pairing up one of these pillows that commands, "Read!" with a good book as a back-to-school gift for your student (or a summer-weary mom who will soon have time for reading again!).  Get one for your student, a reading group buddy, or for yourself to put in your library or favorite reading chair.

Here are some suggestions for how you might present a book with a pillow:

And these are the pillows that we will have for sale on Monday.  On the left is shown the front, and on the right is shown the back of each pillow.  Each pillow has an envelope and button enclosure at the bottom, and the covers are removable.  

CUT PAPER BIRD ART - $8 per set

 These little paper bird collections are all hand-cut paper silhouettes...ready to put into frames.  The pages are 5 X 7 inches each, and as you can see, they go together in a line to create a tree limb, bird, and leaves altogether.   These would be adorable in a nursery or children's bedroom.  Or could even be used to make a card or pinned to a bulletin board.

Our suggestion is to pick up an inexpensive frame like this one (found at IKEA for $9.99!) and hang the pages together as a set:

Following are images of these bird art pages for sale:

FABRIC COVERED NOTEBOOKS - $4 EACH

These are my personal favorite...I'm still a pen-and-paper sort of girl. I have two or three of these that I am using all the time. I keep one in my bag, one on my desk for note-taking, and they make a nice take-along notebook for church or road trips...for me AND the kiddos. Each notebook is covered with a removable fabric cover. This makes them reusable, so when you have filled up your notebook with all sorts of brilliance and fine ideas, just remove the notebook from the cover and slide a new one in. Fits standard-sized composition notebooks. Additionally, it creates two pockets inside the notebook...perfect for keeping together the small bits and pieces of our attempts to be organized!

We've made quite a stack of them for you to choose from!

 

Here's a look inside one of the notebooks:

And, here is a look at the individual covers we will have available:

RIBBON CORSAGES - $5 EACH

These are a bit of an homage to the days when women received/wore beautiful corsages for special occasions.  But hey, life is a special occasion, right?  So why not wear one every day?  Pin one of these on a coat, sweater, jacket, cardigan, hat, scarf, bag...and enjoy a little something pretty any old day!  These would make great additions to back-to-school gift bags...or for those of you who are thinking waaaaaaay ahead: stocking stuffers!  

Here are a few views of how they look worn as an accessory:

And these are the ribbons corsages that will be available.  
Each corsage is unique, and no two are exactly alike.

Wordy Bird Metal Necklaces - $5 to $7 each

We have a variety of necklaces available to purchase. Each is hand-stamped metal on a nickel, black, or copper-colored ball chain. These would make great back-to-school gifts, stocking stuffers (again, for you early birds out there!), or even included in a card for a baptism or birthday gift. Here are just a few examples of what these necklaces look like up close:

Following is the selection of necklaces that are pre-made and available at the bake sale on Monday 
(You're coming to support this awesome charity, right?): 

We will be offering a limited number of custom-made necklaces options.  We will take orders for up to 40 custom necklaces at the bake sale if for some reason we don't have *just the thing* you are looking for.  You can pre-pay on Monday, and we'll mail/deliver it to you within the week.

Here is an example of the blanks we are using for these necklaces:

Thank you for taking the time to learn about our service project.  Please tell your family, friends, and neighbors about this event, and hopefully we'll see you there!