It’s Otley Show soon and I’ve entered several handicraft classes including cross-stitch. I decided to make another fabric book using various cross-stitch birds and flowers I’ve stitched over the years plus a few new ones.
We regularly get long-tail tits on the bird feeders in our garden. They’re cute little birds, very small bodies and long tails, they fly around in gregarious groups, flitting from tree to tree until they reach our feeders. I love watching them so I wanted to include them in my bird and bloom book.
This is another kit from Fido Stitch Studio, I’ve stitched several of their kits, they only do a full kit, not a pdf pattern, and actually when you see how many different shades they use, it’s probably wise! I’ve swopped the aida provided with an even-weave linen from my stash, the charts are nice and clear, my only grump would be that the pattern lines of the back-stitch have to be taken as a approximate position as they’re not necessarily feasible in reality. The detail does ‘make’ the design though.
The kits take me about a week to stitch, here’s my long tailed tit…
I’m aiming for the finished book pages to be about 6″ square, so the bare minimum of stitched piece is 6.5″, I’m therefore adding borders and embellishments to enlarge it a little and make it look pretty! I found some floral cotton which co-ordinated perfectly. I covered one seam with cream ric-rac, I did regret half way through stitching it on with a fly and chain stitch combination, it seemed to take ages! The feather stitch coming down the other seam is in a soft variegated DMC thread. The purple lines (in case you’re wondering!) are just Frixion pen markings of where the edge of the page will be.
I’m also recycling some cross-stitch birds I stitched earlier and turned into mini pillows, I’ve unpicked three sides, added extra fabric where needed and made another page. Here’s the nuthatch one.
I’m thinking of typing (on an old-fashioned typewriter) some information about the bird on some cotton paper which I bought at Sostrene Grene which I can then stitch on the fabric above the bird.
Hopefully I’ll have time to make them into a book for the middle of May…together with all the other entries I need to make!
thecraftycreek 
just precious, so delicate and love your framing additions it’s going to be a stunning book
LeeAnna
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Thanks LeeAnna, I’m pleased with it so far.
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love the birds!
I’ve stitched a couple of Fido kits in the past and totally agree about their backstitch. It does make for a beautiful finish but impossible on aida. A shame they don’t put evenweave in their kits.
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Thanks Claire, I usually swop the aida for even-weave, it doesn’t make it any easier 🙂
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A great idea; you make such lovely books!
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Thank you, I’ve got quite a shelf of them now 🙂
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This is going to be lovely.
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Thank you, it’s coming along.
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I stitched the fox and hedgehog from Fido a while ago. Your birds are gorgeous! I found the best/easiest way to do the backstitching was to use a sharp sewing needle which goes through the aida more easily than a blunt cross stitch needle.
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Thanks, I have been using a sharp needle, but I still think it would be pretty much impossible to stitch the back-stitch lines according to the actual pattern 🙂 The patterns are so lovely though it is worth a bit of free stitching at the end!!
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Oh, I wish they sold the PDF for these. I would love to stitch more than one! These birds are beautiful 🙂
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Love this project, the bird is adorable!
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