From the backyard feeder to faraway lagoons, birds bring color and song wherever they land. This collection gathers Limoges boxes for everyone who keeps binoculars by the window: cardinals and bluebirds, wise little owls, devoted doves, wading flamingos, a penguin with her chick, and a hummingbird caught in mid-hover.
Limoges boxes are small porcelain boxes with hinged lids, hand-painted in and around Limoges, France. Feathers are a lovely subject for that kind of brushwork, and each bird has its own bright eye and personality.
A bird box makes a cheerful gift for a gardener, a birdwatcher, a teacher with an owl on every shelf, or a couple who think of themselves as two lovebirds. Doves and nesting birds are a sweet choice for weddings and new homes, while a cardinal often carries a special meaning for someone remembering a loved one. Whatever the occasion, these little birds are happy to perch anywhere.
Doves on a Woven Basket Limoges Porcelain Box
The market basket was meant for apples, but two doves found it first. They settled on the rim one bright Saturday morning and simply refused to leave. The farmer's wife sighed, bought her apples in a paper bag instead, and carried the basket home very slowly so as not to disturb her new guests.
Lutyens Garden Bench Limoges Box Figurine, Pink Hat with Bird
Someone left her pink sun hat on the garden bench and wandered off to cut roses. In the few minutes she was gone, a small bird hopped onto the slats to inspect the ribbon. Was it a nest? A flower? A very large and fashionable worm? He is still thinking it over when the gate creaks open again.
Rochard Garden Sundial and Cardinal Limoges Box
The sundial in the corner of the garden has kept time faithfully for as long as anyone can remember. Every afternoon at the same hour, the cardinal arrives to check its work. He tilts his head, studies the shadow, and sings one sharp note of approval. Then he is off again, right on schedule.
Pelican Catching a Fish Porcelain Limoges Box
The fishermen on the harbor wall have been casting since dawn without a single bite. Then the pelican glides in, folds his wings, and splashes down with a splendid gulp. Out comes a silver fish, bright as a coin. The fishermen applaud, a little grudgingly. He bows, in his way, and sails off toward lunch.
Colorful Toucan in Jungle Foliage Limoges Box
Deep in the green of the rainforest, a toucan pokes his famous bill through the leaves to see who is making all that noise. It is only the parrots again, arguing about mangoes. He rolls his eyes, adjusts his very large nose, and decides that today he will simply eat the mango himself.
Mother Penguin and Chick Limoges Box by Rochard
The wind howls across the ice, but the little chick barely notices. He is tucked close to his mother, watching the world with round, curious eyes. Tomorrow he may try his first wobbly slide down the snowbank. Tonight, though, there is nothing better than staying exactly where he is, warm and safe.
Rochard Hummingbird Porcelain Limoges Box
Blink and you will miss her. The hummingbird visits the honeysuckle by the kitchen door exactly three times each summer morning, a green flash and a whir of wings. The grandmother who lives there keeps her coffee cup very still and holds her breath. Some guests, she says, you simply do not interrupt.
Pair of Flamingos Rochard Porcelain Limoges Box
Every evening the two flamingos meet in the shallows for what they call their promenade. They stand side by side, one leg tucked up, discussing the sunset in the low, important voices of old friends. Neither has ever admitted that standing on one leg is tiring. That would spoil the elegance entirely.
Rochard Blue Birds and Eggs Porcelain Limoges Box
It is the first warm week of April, and the blue birds have been very busy. Twigs, a scrap of yarn, a bit of moss from the stone wall: the nest is finally perfect. Now they take turns keeping watch over their eggs, chirping softly to them as if to say, hurry up, little ones, spring is waiting.
Owl on Book Porcelain Limoges Box
When the last reader leaves the village library and the lamps go dark, the owl takes up his post on the thickest book on the desk. He has read it cover to cover more times than he can count. Tonight he is thinking of starting over from the beginning, just to see whether the ending has changed.
Owl and the Pussycat Rhyme Rochard Limoges Box
They went to sea, of course, in a beautiful pea-green boat, with honey and plenty of money wrapped up in a five-pound note. What the poem does not tell you is that the Owl got a little seasick and the Pussy Cat held his wing the whole way. That, she says, is how you know it is true love.
Rochard Christmas Owls Limoges Box with Snow Mouse
Snow fell all through Christmas Eve, and the two owls fluffed their feathers against the cold. Just before midnight, a small snow mouse knocked politely and asked if there might be room for one more. There was. Owls, it turns out, are very generous on Christmas, and the mouse never forgot it.
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