Entries for the "Bring on Spring" accessories challenge

Thanks to the 6 women who sent photos for our eighth challenge! The theme of this challenge is "Bring on Spring," and I asked participants to send a photo of a bow, hair flower, or tote that fits the theme!

There will be two awards! The first winner will be chosen by me! I will critique the entries and make a decision about who should win (though, it looks like this will be a difficult task)! The winner will receive a $15 gift certificate generously provided by The Ribbon Retreat.

But there's another prize! The second way to win is to have your friends, family, Facebook friends, etc., vote for you! There's a poll in the upper right corner of my blog (in the sidebar). Voting will continue until 10:30 a.m. Eastern time on Saturday, March 31. The winner will receive her choice of a free tutorial from Birdsong Patterns! :)

Enjoy the entries! And thanks again for participating. I will post the winner here on Monday, April 2! Please check back here and on the Birdsong Facebook page for an announcement of the winners.

From LaToya:



From Kylie:



From Kat:



From Debi:



From Ashley:



From Lora:

Birthday bash winners!

Thanks to all who entered the Birthday Bash contest through Facebook, which, by the way, did not sponsor nor endorse any contest by Birdsong. :) I used Random.org to make the selection of TWO winners - you may choose either a free e-book OR a $10 gift certificate from The Ribbon Retreat! The winners are Donna Lumpkin Miller and Courtney Beth. Please contact me at birdsongbows (at) gmail (dot) com with your selection! :) Congratulations!

Accessories Challenge 8: Bring on Spring!

Photo from PhotographyDream on Etsy

The theme for our eigth challenge is one of my favorites: Bring on Spring! You may make a boutique bow or bow set, a headband, a bowband, a funky loopy bow, a fascinator, a hair flower, or basket/tote-- basically, anything you've fashioned using a Birdsong pattern or tutorial -- following the them of "spring." The design must be made from a Birdsong tutorial or pattern. You can focus on making your accessory to match Easter, spring, or any combination of ideas that reminds you of spring.

There will be two prizes again. The first will be the Judge's Choice award, chosen by me! And, I'll describe in detail why the winner "won" during a later post. The winner of this award will receive a $15 gift certificate generously donated by The Ribbon Retreat!

The second way to win a prize is through "Voter's Choice." I'll put all the submissions on the blog and will host a poll in the sidebar beginning Saturday, March 31. Invite your friends and relatives to vote for your photo! The winner of the Voter's Choice Award will receive a FREE e-book from Birdsong Bows and Patterns.

To enter, E-mail your best photograph of your finished product (either on a model or not) to me at deanna [at] birdsongbows.com by 2:59 a.m Pacific time (11:59 p.m. Eastern) on Saturday, March 24 (so, basically before you go to bed Friday night). Please keep your photos around 600 pixels wide, so that they're neither too big nor too small. And remember: They must be recognizably made using at least one Birdsong tutorial or pattern. No more than one entry/photo per contestant, please. If you're on Flickr, feel free to post a photo to the Birdsong Flickr Photo Group as well, for all to see!

Good luck! I can't wait to see your entries. :)

Two new patterns from Birdsong!

As the year progresses, you'll be seeing more diversity from Birdsong! My second release of the year, in February, was a pattern for the fun and frilly basket that I've named The Barbie Tote. I was working on a basket pattern when I noticed my daughter's Barbie dolls (and their clothes) strewn all over the floor...so I designed the tote to handle them! The tote fits up to 5 dolls and their clothes comfortably.

But there are so many more uses for the tote! With a roomy interior and pockets, you can also use it for diapers for the nursery, for yarn, or even for magazines and patterns for your sewing room.

But I still love designing flower patterns, so in the past two weeks I've introduced two beginner ebooks for felt enthusiasts: The Cora Rose and The Diana Flower. They both require just a couple of squares of felt (I recommend having felt with some wool content) and are a lot of fun to make!