NEW Freebie for Mother’s Day

In case you did not see the NEW Freebie design on our Newsletter, here is it for you.  May 8th is Mother’s Day so there is not a lot of time to make something for your Mom.  Don’t forget your Grandma and other family members too.  Many of them are lovely Moms themselves!

Take an evening or an afternoon and relax and embroider our “Feathered Family” on a tea towel.  I selected a fresh spring green DMC #8 Perle Cotton and stitched the birds on our Sage Green Tea Towel.  The design will look great in any Perle Cotton color to coordinate with one of our 9 color stripes on the Dunroven House towels. 

Have some fun and enjoy some quality stitching time!

A Job Opportunity!

We are very sad to announce that our Kendall is heading back to Sonoma, California to take a very interesting NEW job with a large winery.  Her very charming manner will be wonderful in her new job! 

BUT, now we won’t have her smiling personality here at the studio!  We now have a job opening for another very charming person to be our customer service champ.  Formerly, Gail did a bang up job and then we had Kendall.  I know everyone is not available to work here in the Kelseyville studio, but there may be someone we are not aware of close to us!

The studio is a very busy place and the job has become a full time position.  If there is someone out there in BlogLand who is interested, please email your resume to us! Info@birdbraindesign.net  Let’s hear from you.  We can tell you lots more about us and the job if you are interested.

HAPPY EASTER TO EVERYONE

Signs of Spring – and Easter Too

A nest of “cute” baby birds just watching for Mom and another snack. ..a sure sign of spring! 

Have a lovely day with friends and family.

Happy Easter

March for the Animals

Last Sunday many people, dogs, a pig, a tortoise and a goat marched through Druid Park in Baltimore, Maryland on the 16th annual March for the Animals.  They raised an amazing $358,000 for homeless animals!  Robin’s daughter was part of a “pack” of people and pooches walking for the animals.  You can still make a donation to help them beat last years money total – they are getting close!

Check out the photos of the march including the funny animals on the flickr photos below.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mdspca/sets/72157626524786810/show/

Hug a dog and a cat today!

Campbell Was a Little Under the Weather

Tina’s Campbell the dog did not feel well yesterday or the day before.  Here she is in her sick bed feeling quite sorry for herself.

She didn’t want to eat or walk or do anything but tremble and look really pitiful.  Sometimes she would yelp if you touched one of her front paws.  Tina took her to the vet’s office and, of course, she pranced right in wagging her tail (good grief!).  Turns out she was in pain and feeling bad because she had mud between her toes!!  She does like to play down at the pond but mud on her paws is quite the new wrinkle in dog drama.

Remember all the dogs that have REAL problems because they are hungry and homeless.  Probably sick too.  Help donate to care for animals who need assistance when you buy our Dog’s Perfect World pattern.  We are donating money to the ASPCA with sales.

Campbell and Mackenzie plus all of us will thank you for helping us support animals who need our help.

New Embroidered Tea Towel Design

Time to think about yummy fruits and veggies.  Our new Fresh Picked Tea Towel designs show off 6 oversized fruits and veggies in fun “containers” .  These colorful towels are sure to add some amusement to the drying of your dishes!

The Dunroven House cotton tea towels with colorful stripes will complement the design illustrations and are great to stitch on.   Of course, I printed each of the designs on Fabri-Solvy to make life QUICK & EASY.  Using the wonderful printable water soluble film makes you so “clever” as you get ready to stitch in a flash.  Your embroidery pattern is also accurate and on the towel right away.

Because toweling is a heavier fabric, it is not easy to trace designs directly onto it with a Pigma Marker.   Fabri-Solvy gives you your design ready “in an instant” and makes a nice smooth surface to embroider on.  What’s not to like?  Give it a try.

Scroll down to the April 6 Blog post below to see more about Fabri-Solvy and Transfer-Eze….both products super to use.  They are each from a different manufacturer.  We have both for you to buy and use. 

I Think It Really Is Spring

When out on the road to the grocery today (here it is a 30 minute trip along the lake shore) I saw lots of our pretty Redbud trees in bloom.  Such a beautiful fuchsia shade of pink actually.  Stopped to snap a few pictures to share.  Our Redbuds grow wild all over Lake County, a sure sign Spring has arrived – here anyway!

This one has a buzzing bee landing on the buds…nifty!

I have plenty of bulbs blooming on the  terrace garden in the front of my house and one lonely tulip.  I snapped a picture quickly before the deer find it and it becomes a spring snack!   We have been enjoying vases full of these pretty daffodils in my stitching area and in the studio too.  They smell so sweet and nice besides being so cheerful to look at.  Our pretty flowers should get us inspired to design some new designs and patterns for you right away.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hope the weather at your house is cooperating too and lifting your spirits.  We are just happy the winds, rain and hail of 4 days ago have gone away.  Warm sun is so welcome!

Fabri-Solvy and Transfer-Eze

We have been getting lots of emails about the difference between Fabri-Solvy and Transfer-Eze.  Both of these great products are printable water soluble film on a paper backing.  You can quickly and easily get your embroidery designs ready to stitch in just seconds with either of them!

The difference between the two name brands is the size of the sheet you print on.  Fabri-Solvy is a FULL 8 1/2” x 11” just like your regular paper.  Transfer-Eze is 8” x 11”, 1/2” smaller than regular paper. 

With either paper, just print your design using your copier putting the Fabri-Solvy or Transfer-Eze in the paper try.  Pull the printed film off the backing paper and finger press onto your fabric.  Add your hoop and embroider right through the film.  You will always have a perfectly accurate design illustration the designer wants you to stitch!  QUICK & EASY.  If you don’t stitch over all the printed lines perfectly – no problem.  When you have finished your stitching, ALL the lines will dissolve leaving only your lovely embroidery!

Dissolve the film in your sink with a generous amount of warm water.  It is fun to watch the film dissolve in just a few minutes.  I usually can’t be patient so I swish the water around to see the film dissolve.  Having  plenty of water helps everything dissolve.  Rinse the fabric under fresh warm water when you are finished.

Lay your design flat on a bath towel to soak up the water.  I iron  my embroidery wrong side up on the bath towel using a steam iron.  If you want, you can use a little spray starch too to crisp up your design. 

Give Fabri-Solvy or Transfer-Eze a try.  You will be so happy to have a perfect design to stitch in just a very short time….no more using the light box to trace your designs!

A Very Special Sister’s Embroidery

One of our lovely needle work friends adapted one of our Kitchen Helper Tea Towel designs for a family reunion creating a very special surprise gift for the entire family.

DeAnn’s mother is the youngest of 7 sisters ages 73 – 97!  The gang gathered together for a well deserved reunion last month.  As you can imagine, everyone attending was touched and very impressed with DeAnn’s contribution to her Mom and Aunts.  What a wonderful treat for all!  DeAnn’s Aunt Dorothy organized the fun party and now proudly displays the wall hanging in her home. 

Thanks so much for sharing, DeAnn, we LOVE your unique adaptation – who knows what can be done with tea towels!

NEW Free Design for Easter

We have just posted our latest Freebie design to stitch up and enjoy for Easter.  A fun decorated egg hanging from a violet ribbon on a tree branch.

Lots of color and texture in the Easter design embroidered on a Dunroven House Yellow Stripe tea towel.  Easy and quick to stitch with #8 Perle Cotton threads.  Just click to go to the design and print out the pattern. 

Getting ready to do the embroidery was QUICK & EASY too.  If course I keep telling you about using our fabulous printable films on paper you can print on your copier….but they work so well!  Just print your embroidery design onto Transfer-Eze or Fabri-Solvy, pull the printed film off the paper backing and finger press onto your towel.  Voila!  You can stitch in just seconds.

If you haven’t tried the new printable film, order a single trial sheet to stitch your Easter Egg tea towel and give it a try.  You will become hooked!!

When you complete you embroidery, just put the towel into the sink with a generous amount of warm water.  The film will dissolve in just minutes.  I like to swish the towel around while in the water to see the film dissolve!  Rinse in warm water under the faucet and dry flat.

Enjoy getting ready for Easter – remember the bunny is coming!