Christmas Bird with Santa Hat Embroidery Design, Instant Download

Round-bodied bird, the kind of silhouette that sits heavy and comfortable on a branch. The feathers on the upper body and wings are a warm tawny brown with directional fills layered to show the individual feather groupings. Those breast feathers transition to russet and amber running down toward the belly, which is cream-white. Small white snow dots scatter across the outer wing edge and the branch surface. The santa hat is red with a white satin trim band and a round pom-pom at the tip that droops slightly to one side. The holly branch carries two deep green leaves and three bright red berries and has a snow dusting on the upper surface.

Eleven colours and a density of 1,117. The large 7.5-inch version reaches 53,040 stitches, the smallest at 3.5 inches sits at 22,728. Use a cutaway stabiliser for anything at or above the 5-inch mark, the feather density on the torso section is substantial and wont sit flat on a light tearaway. The directional satin on the wing coverts runs at alternating angles to build that layered feather look, which is why the stitch count climbs. Add a topping on any napped or textured fabric to keep the hat satin outline and the berry fills crisp. Stitch the branch and body base fills first at medium speed, then slow the machine down slightly for the directional feather work where the most thread packs in.

I get a steady stream of orders for this one from october onwards. Wildlife embroidery customers find it because its not a cartoon, and christmas shoppers find it because the hat signals the season immediately. Last december a boutique seller stitched a run of these on oatmeal linen zip pouches and said they moved faster than anything else she had that year. The bird holds its own as a centrepiece without needing anything else around it.

Oatmeal or natural linen lets both the warm brown feathers and the christmas red hat read properly. White cotton canvas works well aswell. Deep forest green backgrounds emphasise the lighter belly and hat but the branch detail can read dark against dark so test a swatch first. Avoid very dark navy, the warm tawny body tones get muddy against cool dark backgrounds.