Beneath the Hawthorn Tree: A Stitcher's Blog: bullfinch

Showing posts with label bullfinch. Show all posts

Thursday, 14 January 2016

New Beginnings

Is it me or did Christmas just fly by? It felt that one moment we were settling down to watch A Christmas Carol on Christmas Eve, the next we were opening presents and before long we were welcoming in 2016.

January usually gives me a dose of the post-Christmas blues but this year is probably the first time I haven't felt it. I was actually really excited to open my online shops again and get started on new projects. I'm using this pretty notebook to jot down or sketch all my new ideas.

One plan for this year is to add more patterns inspired by nature. I was so pleased to see how popular my little bird patterns became last year, especially with my personal favourite the Bullfinch Pair becoming my best-seller. I have three more birds coming to the shop very soon, one of the needs a little bit of tweaking first.

I'm also working on a new Celtic pattern designed to be a wedding sampler.

Something rather exciting is happening next month which I'll tell you more about at the time but it got 2016 off to a great start.

Here's to being happy in January!

Tuesday, 8 September 2015

Robins are for lfe, not just for Christmas!

Here we are in September again. It's almost a whole year since I rescued that poorly hedgehog* (wonder what it's up to now?)

I've been very busy for the last couple of weeks re-formatting all of my patterns and updating my shops with new versions. I've also built a brand new website. You can find links to both my shops and this blog as well as the two free patterns in my Payhip shop.

hawthorntreedesigns.com

So, you're wondering what this all has to do with robins? Well, I've just added a brand new pattern to my collection...

This sweet little robin redbreast compliments my bullfinches. I have several more which will be available in the near future and others in the planning. (Did I mention I love birds?)These bird designs are really easy to stitch and I would have finished the robin in one afternoon had I not decided to change the shade of orange I was using. I was also distracted by Frodo and Sam making their way through the Dead Marshes in The Two Towers so you may well finish it sooner than I did!

Like the bullfinches, this robin has been designed to fit into a 4-inch hoop but he also makes a great motif for Christmas cards, should you want to get a head-start on making some of your own before things start to get really busy.

However, as the title of this post implies, robins can be seen all year round so he is definitely not just for Christmas! To stitch him for yourself click here.

*To read about my hedgehog rescue, click here.

Thursday, 23 July 2015

Making Plans

My floss box

It's that time of year - the Summer Slump, but that doesn't mean I'm not capable of creating heaps of work for myself. I've been really busy making plans for what I want to do over the coming months.

You may have seen my Leopold B design. Since I first stitched it, I've been planning to create a whole alphabet but until now I haven't got around to it. I've decided to shrink the letters so they each fit into a 6-inch hoop. It's going to take a while before they're ready to go on sale but I'm very excited about how they're going to look.

I'm also creating a series of bird designs to go with the bullfinches which are already on sale. Here's a sneak-peek at some of them. There's also a robin which will be ready later this year.

I'm also giving my Festive Bauble design a makeover: I'm changing the colours and resizing it as I wasn't completely happy with the original. That will also be available later this year.

I've been commissioned to make a wedding sampler which I have to keep secret for now but I'll show you how it turns out once it's been delivered to the happy couple. The wedding is in October so you'll have to wait a bit longer to see it!

I also have plans to give my online shops a new look. It all needs freshening up a little bit so this is another ongoing project for the next few weeks. I can't wait to put all the pieces together and when it's ready I'll tell you all about it here on Beneath the Hawthorn Tree.

As far as the blog itself is concerned, I want to add more tutorials and hints and tips etc so I'll be making a list of ideas for that. I'm also planning on launching a new personal blog for nature notes and musings as I want this blog to be focused on embroidery and crafts.

This is only part of my to-do list so as you can see I have plenty to keep myself occupied! I'll keep you posted on everything. In the meantime, you can follow me on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook as well as popping into my Etsy and Payhip shops.

Make the most of the long days while they last!

Happy crafting!

Thursday, 19 February 2015

New Bullfinches Pattern and a Payhip Shop Sale

The days are getting longer and lighter, the snowdrops are opening and that means the birds are starting to think about nesting.

I've been fascinated by birds since I was a young child and I love all birds but most of all I love the birds of woodland habitat and those that come into my garden. My favourite bird of all is the bullfinch and I remember the first time I saw one in my garden. It perched briefly on top of the brick archway over the gate before flying away. On another occasion, during a snowy day one winter, a male landed on the fence and his pink breast looked like a rose that had suddenly blossomed in the white landscape.

Bullfinches are believed to pair for life as males and females are often seen together in winter. I have been lucky enough to see a pair in my garden a couple of times feeding on the berries of a Himalayan honeysuckle plant (also known as pheasant berry). This being so, you really shouldn't stitch one without the other, even if you choose to frame them separately.