Oriental Magpie-Robin -Birds in Thailand

After sewing pillow cases for the last 1,5 weeks I have finally found some time to look at my pictures of Thailand. This is the first one that I wanted to look at. It was a little birdie that joined us by the pool of our hotel in Bangkok. I said: "Hey, that looks like a magpie and moves like a robin!" I looked it up in the guide I had with me at-all-times. And whatdoyouknow... and it's called an Oriental Magpie-Robin! How original, but then again, why think of a difficult name when this says it all. It is like a miniature magpie.

Na anderhalve week kussenhoezen naaien heb ik eindelijk tijd gevonden om naar mijn foto's van Thailand te kijken. Dit is de eerste waar ik naar wilde kijken. Het was een klein vogeltje dat bij ons zat aan het zwembad van ons hotel in Bangkok. Ik riep uit: "Heee dat lijkt wel een ekster en hij beweegt als een roodborstje!"Ik zocht het gelijk op in mijn vogelgidsje dat ik -heel-de-tijd bij me had. En wat denk je? Het heet een Orientel Magpie-Robin (orientaalse ekster-roodborst) maar Dayallijster in het Nederlands. Erg origineel de Magpie-robin, maar ja, waarom zou je een moeilijke naam bedenken als deze alles zegt? Het is net een mini ekstertje.

Breakfast with Tiffany

It's been almost a week that I am back and the jetlag made me a little drowsy during the day. I am still on Thailand-time. I am really happy to be back home, and I actually missed interacting with clients, and just generally everything about my work (although I am glad most hotels have wifi these days to keep me busy).

One of the things I love about talking with my customers is when they share how they enjoy the birds around them, and how they admire nature.

So when I got home I loved reading this lovely message from Tiffany and I received a photo of her backyard birds. They're not quite your average sparrow or blackbird.

Tiffany lives in Australia and she and her husband are huge bird fans.

And while I am looking at a grey white sky here in the Netherlands, Tiffany woke up to find

these wild cockatoos dropping in for breakfast with her yesterday morning. They can feed out of her hand but she tries not to encourage that too much to keep them wild and wonderful as they are.

But everyone can use a little help sometimes so on hot days they come to her balcony to be sprayed with water to cool down a bit in the hot Aussie summer.

Thanks so much Tiffany, a great photo with a wonderful story!!

Libelle!!!!

Holland's largest women's magazine Libelle has published my black bird pillow in this week's issue!

I am so thrilled! It is keeping me busy alright! I love how they say that this is their selection of things that make them happy.

Het grootste vrouwen tijdschrift van Nederland, de Libelle heeft deze week in een artikel mijn merel kussen geplaatst!! Geweldig dat erbij staat dat dit de dingen zijn waar ze vrolijk van worden!

Ik ben door het dolle heen!!!

Stork Sign // geboortebord Ooievaar.

You could read about my Stork project here. Je kon hier lezen over mijn plan een ooievaar geboorte bord te maken.

The first Stork banner for indoors is done! This beautiful banner is a new way to announce the birth of your baby. It is easy to make and it will stand out stylishly!

De Ooievaar banner voor binnen ik klaar! Deze mooie banner is een nieuwe manier om de je kindje aan de wereld voor te stellen. De banner is makkelijk te maken en valt op door zijn stijlvolle uiterlijk!
All you need is some ribbon or thread, 2 screw eyes, 2 small wooden sticks, and a sewing machine!

Alles wat je nodig hebt is wat lint of visdraad, 2 schroefoogjes, 2 houten latjes, en een naaimachine!

You can write the name of your baby on it with felt letters, or a marker. //Je kunt er zelf met vilten letters of stift de naam van je kindje op maken.

The Stork //De Ooievaar

In The Netherlands there is practically no baby born and welcomed into a new home without a wooden Stork or other type of announcement, sign or figure in the front yard.

People have been looking for creative alternatives. We've seen the Disney look-a-likes, and now we see the more showy inflatable babies you can rent and place in the front yard. Personally I like the tradition of the stork. But I have never seen an actual realistic looking stork anywhere. Of course I see why. Not everyone can draw one on a wooden panel and paint it. You usually see abstract versions of the stork. I think the stork can be stylish too!

I would like to make one everyone can use! I asked my sister-in-law who is expecting her first child in December if she and her husband had plans to make a sign.

If grandpa was already in the shed painting and sawing a sign that would be wonderful and I would leave it at that. I have seen gardens stuffed with signs of all of Disney's characters and it didn't look swell I can tell you that. You can see the creative wars of family members making the biggest & bestest. "But," my sister-in-law continued, "we don't have a front yard, so I don't know where to place it anyway." Ahah! I'd like to solve that problem too.

I first thought I was going to make some sort of window sticker. But then challenges arose on how to print such a large white bird and I saw limitations to cut the sticker smoothly.Hmmm. Then the charm of making something yourself by your family members or by the future dad came back to mind. That is lovely.

So it had to become a DIY kit. My love for textiles combined with this idea lead to me making the stork into a banner you can hang in front of your window. I love the idea of the mom-to-be or grandma-to-be sewing this banner, and making it with some basic materials. You can hang it in front of the window when the baby is just born or even outside. You will be able to write the name on the banner or sew it on the banner with felt letters or something.

I am thinking about an alternative that is more suitable for grandfathers perhaps, or just people with front yards. I want to have a stork image you can paste on a piece of wood and place in your front yard. Or you can secure it on the wall. It has to be big, but classy, and new!

So now I had to draw the bird! I first drew a sketch; I know, this always looks a bit daft.

Then some basic shadows and the eye...

Then some feathers....

And then I got feedback from Martijn that the eye was a bit scary, and I softened it a bit as you can see in the final version above. And you can see the legs are now straight. It has to be cut out later, and if that becomes too difficult, the grandparents will go crazy.

The first samples for the DIY kits are being printed as we speak!

MirthQuake turns into MYRTE

I've redesigned & rearranged my blog a little bit in preparation of the big name change that will come about in not too long a time.

Because of several different reasons I got a little detached from my first name MirthQuake. I used it way back in 2005 when I hadn't drawn a single bird and I only made clothes. It grew with me but I think right now it doesn't cover what I am about. My illustrations and my story are personal, and my name wasn't personal anymore- I thought. So what would be more personal than using my own name for my label? The name in the Netherlands wasn't as common when I was born as it is now. But now it is usually spelled differently. So it is very personal for me.

Soon my new website http://www.LoveMyrte.com will be up and running in English and in Dutch. It will feature ways to follow me, buy my home decor items as well as my clothes and handbags.

How to pronounce my name? It is not like Myrtle- I am sorry that would be too easy. The Y is like the i in 'mitt'. and the TE is like a sigh. Put a feather on the table and try to move it my saying TE to it. Then you have it. The R is another story. It is a french R. But I will accept alternatives as it is pretty difficult. My Last name. Duh, but without Homer Simpson's surprised twist to it. And then the difficult part ZEEUW. It looks harder than it is: Zayw. Forget the U. That's it; Mirtteh Duh Zayw. You got it!

Ik heb mijn blog vernieuwd en een beetje herschikt in afwachting van van de grote naamsverandering die in niet al te lange tijd definitief zal zijn. Vanwegeverschillende redenen raakte ik een beetje los van de naam MirthQuake. Ik gebruikte 'm al in 2005, toen ik nog geen enkele vogel had getekend en ik alleen kleding maakte. MirthQuake groeide met mij, maar ik denk nu dat het steeds minder van toepassing is op wat ik nu maak. Mijn werk en mijn verhaal zijn persoonlijk, en mijn naam voelde niet persoonlijk. Dus wat is er meer persoonlijk dan het gebruik van mijn eigen naam voor mijn label? Nu worden er Myrthe's geboren ipv Myrte, en dat maakt Myrte nog meer van mij.

Binnenkort is mijn nieuwe website http://www.LoveMyrte.com klaar, in het Engels en in het Nederlands. Je vindt er nieuws en kunt er dan mijn items kopen zoals mijn kussens, handtassen en kleding.

Bedding for Galerie Tydeman

It feels a little bit like New Year's. The parties were great, but now all is over, and we have to wait for another year to have such a great week again. The Dutch Design Week is over, and I have enjoyed as many locations and galleries as I could squeeze in my own busy schedule of sewing and delivering pillow cases to my stockists and being present for talks and meetings.

Below you see a snapshot impression of the duvet cover I made for Galerie Tydeman. The response was great and it has inspired me to continue on this path and design more compositions for bedding. The Duvet cover is sold exclusively through Galerie Tydeman. You can contact them here: http://www.tydeman.nl/ It will also be available as a single duvet cover, and special requests can be done as well.
The throw pillows & cases are also for sale through my own website and by special order via my stockists.
And of course I have written a story about the cedar waxwings. It is printed on the cover for you to enjoy

The Cedar Waxwing is a beautiful bird. I met him when I was staring at a waterfall in Canada. Suddenly he was sitting on a branch next to me. They hear the sound of water and it draws them to it. I am sure he is enjoying the look of the water gushing into the river just as much as I am. They look pretty tough with that mask and the mohawk. But they are very social birds, living in large groups. They are able to pass berries over to each other and feed each other. Next to that they enjoy the fine things in life. They like their berries and are not very picky when it comes to quality. Sometimes they raid a tree with berries that are already fermenting. The berries make them drunk. For a while they just tumble over the ground and flap their wings with no effect. Until they are sobered up and then it is on to the next meal.

The duvet cover is made of 100% organic cotton and full color printed on the loveliest sateen. The covers are handmade with love.

If you would like more information contact me through mirthquake [at] gmail [dot] com.