At every art show, we hear three questions over and over.

First, Do birds really use these houses?

Yes. We build these to house a variety of small nesting songbirds. Which birds you get depends upon where you live and where you hang the house. Here's a momma feeding her chicks in one of the many shots customers have sent us.

Second, How do these last outside?

Just fine. For years, in fact. In all types of weather, in all parts of the country. This birdhouse has been up now for over decade. That's a chickadee peeking out of the hole.

Third, how do you cut the shapes?

Well, that's the hard part...the art in what we do. Using a handheld torch called a plasma cutter, Ginger draws across sheets of roofing copper for a few hours each day. Though she outlines some of the shapes first with chalk, most of the cuts are done freehand.

Because of the high temperature, she's got to move quickly, keeping the tip at an even height as she does. Picture drawing an entire sketch without stopping and without lifting the pen...that's the challenge of each motif she makes. The moose in the picture was drawn in one fluid motion.

Our workshop is in a barn, but because of the heat and fumes, Ginger's cutting station is outside, under a shed roof looking out at a pasture full of horses. The video below shows Ginger at work cutting -- which she is doing a lot of these days as we prepare for the heavy fall show season.

Stay tuned for more blog posts about the how's and why's of Fly Home Birdhouses!