Originally posted 2008-06-26 07:13:17. Republished by Blog Post PromoterI’m nuts about this little widget, Color Jack and you should be too. Using this lovely colored sphere you can create 19 different types of color schemes. You can view them all for normal vision as well as 10 different kinds of color blindness (including a custom one). Then you can look at it in spectrum, web, and web safe versions, and get the RGB or RYB values for everything. TOTALLY COOL! Here it is, play with it! Get the ColorJack: Sphere Widget widget and many other great free widgets at Widgetbox! Now what does this have to do with needlepoint? Let’s say you have a lovely shade of red yarn, you are just dying to use, but you have no ideas for a color scheme. Find the approximate color in the sphere and click on it. ColorJack will immediately show you
Monthly Archive:: July 2010
Tentakulum is a German company hand-dyeing many different threads in colors inspired by different painters. Each is named for the painter (last names for the men, first for the women). The line is distributed in the US by YLI. There is a huge variety of threads in this line. In the small piece pictured above, each patch used a different color of a different thread. These included two different Au Ver A Soie silks, Shimmer Blend Ribbon Floss, and matte cotton. In total in the line there are eight silks (including ribbon), four cottons, crewel wool, two metallics, and two rayon threads. You can see a complete listing on their colours page, near the bottom. Click on any thread name to get the most recent batch of colors for that thread. Each color is named for a painter. Some of then are reflective of colors present in most of their
I’ve been thinking about offering a monthly needlepoint club for 2011 but I’m torn about what to do and I’d like you to help me decide by participating in this poll. My plan is to offer one project per month. The packet will include line-drawn canvas, instructions and, possibly, threads (I’m still debating that one). One aspect of the club will be color, and it’s use in needlepoint. Each of the color schemes I use will be explored in two of the projects. You’ll not only see the scheme in use, you’ll learn about it and get ideas for how to make this type of color scheme on your own. Now to the choices: Little Bargello Treasures – An eclectic mix of Bargello projects, including cupcakes, items for personal accessories, and other shapes filled with Bargello. The emphasis in this will be on different types of Bargello patterns. Exploring Threads
So you’ve decided to stitch a belt. Now you have to make some decisions about finishing it. If you decide to finish it as a needlepoint belt, you have a couple of options, somewhat dependent on the waist size of the person wearing it. Most belt canvases are about 38″ long. If the belt needs to be longer than this, your only option is to make a traditional belt with leather ends. Several companies have information about how to prepare your belt canvas for this, including eHow, Needlepoint Belts, and others. This is a specialized finishing service so you will need to have the leather end belts professionally done. Some companies who do this include Pinnell Custom Leather, Elizabeth Turner Collection, and Voila!. Voila offers many styles of belts beyond the leather tips and buckle. Go to your local shop to work with these companies. If you choose to finish
The style section of the New York Times ran an article this week about needlepoint belts. It begins by talking about the “breakup belt,” a close relative of the “breakup sweater.” You know those items you make for a significant other but you break up before the item is stitched. Their solution is to buy an already-made belt. In the article they show off some charming belts and point you to several companies that make them. But I’d like to suggest something else. Why not stitch a belt for yourself or finish that breakup belt into something else — after all it’s your relationship too. Many fantastic companies make great needlepoint belt canvases. Two of the biggest companies for making belt canvases are Voila! and the Elizabeth Turner Collection. Elizabeth Turner has over 1000 belts in their collection, covering just about every style and subject. Many other needlepoint designers have
Celtic knotwork and interlacing is so lovely and complex. It always makes for lovely designs. But charting it from scratch can be tedious and time-consuming. Trolling around the web Thursday I came upon a totally cool product — a program of knotwork already charted on a grid. That means from your computer you can just type and create the pattern. You can find (and buy) the product, Charted Grid Style Set, just past halfway at Highland Creative Stamps. While there take a look at their other sets which create knotwork in other crafts and media. Right below it there is another charted font, this one for diagonal or rectangular grids. This could be used as well as long as you use rectangular-shaped stitches. If you want to see examples (other than the one at the beginning of the article) made from patterns created from this font, look at their companion
Originally posted 2009-06-25 05:31:28. Republished by Blog Post PromoterI tend to think there is too little beauty in our everyday world. Not in nature, but in the things we uses everyday. Why use a folded up piece of paper, when you could use a bookmark which is letterpressed. Why eat off a paper towel when a plate can be lovely and you have to do dishes anyway? This is part of the philosophy behind Dazzling Ornaments and the wonderful stitcher’s accessories made by Wawanna. I have been trying out three of them, and I just love them. Each is embellished or made from beads and all are both useful and beautiful. I’ll begin with the laying tool. Each is made from tapered wood, painted and varnished. Some of them have faux finishes as well. At the top is an ornament, usually a bead. I just love wooden laying tools. They
Originally posted 2008-10-24 07:07:16. Republished by Blog Post PromoterI began by choosing this rose design from the collection at the V & A. I’m a sucker for this Arts & Crafts style of rose, so it was a no brainer. Using this as an example, we’ll go step-by-step through the process of transferring the design. 1. Begin by printing or copying the design onto a single piece of paper. Even if you are using a design from a book, do this, your life will be so much easier. 2. Trace over all the lines so they are thick and solid, as you can see from the picture above. It’s better to use a thicker pen for this, but I didn’t have one. When tracing, connect or complete all lines, fill in lines which are dotted, and generally make something which will be easy to see through the thicker canvas. 3.
In my book, Needlepoint Trade Secrets, I share hundreds of tips with you about doing needlepoint and other needlework. I like the book so much I keep a copy on my desk as a reference. It’s summer and I have two special offers for you, good through Labor Day (how’s that for a vacation special?) First you can download and read, completely free, the Traveling with Needlepoint chapter. It’s a PDF file, and you get it by clicking the link. Second, I am offering the book at a special price to my readers. The book, including shipping via first class mail in the US is only $16. That’s below retail, even with the shipping! Use the PayPal button below to order. California residents get charged sales tax. If you live outside the US you will be invoiced for additional shipping costs (which ought to be small). Take advantage of this
The knitwear of the Italian fashion house Missoni, is always one that is a wonderful springboard to needlepoint. Because they design knits and are renowned for their zigzag patterns and bold color choices, often you can use high fashion pieces as the starting point for needlepoint, especially for Bargello. My recent free pattern for The Caron Collection is a wallet insert with colors taken from a Missoni pillow that used a similar zigzag pattern. Although I’m too swamped to stitch it now, this Missoni purse from 2004 is a Bargello pattern that is easy to do. It’s a shallow scallop pattern. The purse, a clutch bag, uses many different colors. Instead of trying to reproduce it exactly, I would pick 10-12 solid colors in one thread, I’m thinking Silk & Ivory or wool, and put them into a paper bag. For each new row, pick out a color from the
Originally posted 2006-04-18 06:35:38. Republished by Blog Post PromoterI’m working on two of EGA’s Master Craftsman programs, design and color. I’m on step 2 of color and have a provisional pass on step 2 in design. The Step 2 project with changes goes back to be rejudged next week. But yesterday I spent a fair amount of time laying the groundwork for my next color piece. I really want to recommend both these programs to people wanting to explore the process of designing needlework in more depth. Master Craftsman certifications are not supposed to be easy, they require a strong commitment to time, study and stitching. But I like these two programs as they are not tied to any particular technique but to more basic design issues. For each step there is a theme, something which you need to explore in both research and stitching. A paper is due for
Originally posted 2008-06-11 11:08:04. Republished by Blog Post Promoter Today my book tour stop is at Susan Sorrell’s blog,Creative Chick. Susan is a fiber artist, creating wonderful, inventive quilts, and her blog focuses on creativity. So my article for the blog shows how I came up with the idea for this mini-sock I just finished. It goes from the initial color inspiration to a complimentary chart for the Bargello pattern. Have fun with it!
Originally posted 2009-05-04 10:24:39. Republished by Blog Post PromoterFinishing is often a problem for stitchers. Show me a stitcher and I’ll show you the boxes (yes, usually more than one) of stitched but not finished objects (anyone have a better name for these?). I think I spend much of my life looking for things which can be finished easily. You probably do too. Here’s a round up of what I’ve found so far. Finishing Items Product Reviews Stitch a Gift Project Bags and Totes WhimZi Frames FAS-stitch Pendant Tapis-tree Bags Bizzi Creations Box Patches n’Planks Finishing Ideas Square Pincushion Bookmark (Needlepoint for Fun) Finishing Ideas Ideas to Finish Artists’ Trading Cards or other Small Items Ornament Idea – Flags Ornament or Stand-up Finishing Articles Think Before You Stitch and Stitching with a Mind towards Finishing – why the end result should be thought of early Focus on Finishing – web
Yesterday we learned about some types of images that work for custom needlepoint in Part One of Sandy’s post. Today, we’ll learn about two other types of images. Tomorrow, you’ll see mt choices for this projects. Artwork: Children’s artwork is generally perfect for placing on canvas. Children usually like to use many bright colors and objects are simple (great for fun stitches and fabulous fibers). A family drawn in crayon, placed on canvas and stitched, has more lasting emotional value than a professional portrait any day of the week. Collages, paintings, and other artwork by adults, that is pleasing to the eye will most likely work on canvas. Store Logos, Ranch Brands and Pennsylvania Hex Signs are awesome on canvas. When choosing artwork, look at the original piece and imagine it in needlepoint stitches. Will an overall continental be best or do you see yourself using all sorts of stitches?
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