As I mentioned in my last post, my Birds and Blooms book won 3rd prize at Otley Show, last time I wrote about it was at the end of April, I had just begun constructing it…

All the pages are backed with iron-on buckram, this is double sided which makes it slightly tricky to use but it does mean once the pages are slip-stitched together and I iron them, they stick together and make a nice crisp page.

I added another page at the last minute as I found a cross-stitch which I’d done when I was in my teens, it was a wren bell pull to go with the bluetit chick bell pull, I’d been looking for it since I started this book, finally saw it in plain view…hanging behind my quilting rulers on my sewing room peg board! Anyway, I trimmed it down and added a side border. I used a pretty floral quilting cotton for the facing page.

Another cross-stitch I don’t think I’ve shared yet is a song thrush, this is another kit by Fido Stitch Studio on Ebay. These kits take me about a week if I concentrate so I think I did three new ones for this book. We get song thrushes very occasionally in the back garden but there are lots singing their heaerts out on the back lane. I’ve recently discovered the Merlin app, it identifies bird song, so I can walk up the back lane and it tells me which birds are singing. I can now recognise several birds by their song and I never knew there were so many chiff-chaffs along the lane!!

I stitched a contents page for the front page and then started on the cover. I initially tried to use a lovely Laura Ashley curtain fabric which has lots of birds sitting on a long branch – I’ve used a part of it for the facing page of the kingfisher. I just couldn’t get it neat enough, I think it was just a kittle too heavy. I decided instead to use a glorious quilting cotton covered in colourful flowers in a watercolour style. I love it, in fact if ever I see it again I’ll buy enough for a dress, it’s gorgeous! I stitched a title and initially I tried to pin and then machine stitch it on but it looked a right dogs dinner as it obviously moved a little. I carefully unpicked it and restitched it, I used the machine again but this time I drew a line with a Frixion pen to follow. It looks much better.

I stitched my initials and the date for the back page. I used a Lynette Anderson print which I picked up in a sale at a recent quilt show. I used the selvege in the design as I liked the words. I had a spare title stitched so I added it to the inside front cover.

I added a button and ribbon closure and a bookmark which has a little bird charm on the end. I’m well chuffed with it, especially as it has reused so many cross-stitch pieces.

I’ve made a video of my book and uploaded it to Youtube, here’s the link;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VTK6MPE9CmE