The two most recent tutorials in Mary Corbet’s outstanding tutorial cover two kinds of items that often stump stitchers — flowers and leave which have turned tips. I probably get more questions about how to stitch flowers than any other type of item in needlepoint. And for myself, leaves with turned tips make me nuts, so I’m delighted with these two posts. Even if you are not making the sampler, go look at them, they will help your stitching greatly. Flowers Lesson 8 covers flowers. It’s a simple five petalled flower such as an apple or cherry blossom. While done in Long & Short Stitch, it also gives up some good principles for stitching flowers that we can apply to them whenever we stitch. First, it there are leaves of sepals peeking out from behind the flower petals, stitch them first. Why? There is a slight height difference between what’s
Monthly Archive:: September 2009
To learn the complete results of my testing of pens, get the current issue of Needlepoint Now at your local LNS. I tested three types of pens by marking them on canvas, wetting them, rubbing the wet canvas, blotting it and then repeating the whole process 24 hours later, after the pens had dried. The first round of testing is the method recommended for needlepointers for years. I added the second round because in my research about pens and their inks I discovered that many pens are made to be blendable, drying more slowly, so that you can mix colors. This got me thinking about what would make these dyes fast and I tried heat setting, waiting 24 hours, and both. Waiting did the trick. Heat setting didn’t make a difference if done either immediately or after waiting, so I discarded it as unnecessary. The pens I tried fell into
Isn’t that name just too cute? It was my first needlepoint shop and I started going there in 1980. The shop was in Wexford, PA (Pine Township), right next to Wexford Antiques. Looking like a little 40′s cottage on the outside, it had 4 rooms and was, I think, the Wexford Post Office. The front room had kits on tables. The room behind it had the best display/storage for threads EVER! The other two rooms had books, canvas and probably things I couldn’t afford in high school and college, like painted canvases. I bought my first kit there. They taught me how to make my first textured stitch (Encroached Gobelin) and encouraged my designing efforts. I also bought my first Bargello book there. Long after I left Pittsburgh, I would visit the shop whenever I went home. It’s long gone, but it will always be dear to me. But, oh,
The winner of August’s contest is Melissa. Congratulations to her, she’ll be getting five skeins of thread. The theme for September’s contest will be “My Favorite Needlepoint Shop.” Needlepoint shops are often the unsung heroes of the stitching world. You visit them when you have run out of thread. I’m spending time in one near my doctor’s office between treatments. Not every day, but hanging out there is relaxing and fun. I also used to visit one regularly in the town where I worked when I needed a “pick me up.” I’d go there and buy thread, the way another person might buy lipstick. This month I want you to share your favorite needlepoint shop with me. Be sure to include the name of the shop, the town where it is (closest city if that will help), and why you like it. One lucky person, with a US address, will