projects Archive

Recently I bought this glorious canvas from Doolittle Stitchery on Etsy. I fell in love with it and will be doing it as a project to use up my stash. You can, and I often do, stitch projects like this by picking random threads. However the time you spend planning a Scrap Bag Needlepoint, especially if it is large, can result in a better looking project. The most effective planning comes in thread selection. Once you decide some things about threads, many other things fall into place. The goal will be, as always, a balanced needlepoint. To get this the elements of color, thread, and stitch need to be in balance. One has to have lots of variety; it’s your large aspect. One needs to have only a few choices; it’s your small, or unifying aspect. The other needs to be in the middle. Color is clearly the large aspect.

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Originally posted 2004-01-14 14:57:01. Republished by Blog Post PromoterPamela H. Gardner In the more than thirty years I have been doing needlepoint, I have seen few projects which pack as much learning into them as this quilt sampler. And I have seen even fewer books which present materials and options as clearly and completely as this one. “Molehill” is a study in both stitch variation and color. Each of the six blocks covers variations of one or two stitches, with 7 or eight variations used to represent the different fabrics in the block. Each block also uses a different color scheme. By working each of the blocks, the stitcher will not only learn many stitches, but will also cover a complete color course. Three different color options are presented in the book. One is based on a solid color of floss and uses all floss for the design. Helpful charts

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Originally posted 2007-12-10 07:28:17. Republished by Blog Post Promoter I have a new favorite thread, it’s the red in this new Flames Bargello project. The color is Cardinal and it’s a shade of Watercolours from the Caron Collection. I think it just glows and is the best red thread ever. I like it so much I’m going to use the rest of the skein for some Christmas ornaments (not that I have time to work on them. As I did with Tahiti Watercolours (my previous favorite) I may start stockpiling it. * * * But I also want to thank those of you who commented on the original Flames Bargello post asking about my idea for a Scrap Bag Needlepoint version. Here it is (in process). While my original plan was to do all the diamonds in different colors, the red was so striking (which I didn’t expect), that I’m

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Originally posted 2010-01-27 07:01:04. Republished by Blog Post Promoter Did you know that sapphires are just about the only gem that comes in every color of the rainbow? From pink, to violet-blues, my upcoming ebook celebrates my favorite gem. The book uses my poplar patchwork heart and gives you over 60 stitches you can mix and match to make your own unique project. All the stitches in the book are new and can be done using a single color of thread. The pictured hearts add in a few stitches from the first heart sampler ebook for spice. You also got a sneak peek at the orange sapphire in my review of black metallic canvas. Five hearts are included, along with tables showing you the stitches used. In addition the book has detailed information about creating a monochromatic color scheme, more and an expanded description of threads. As a bonus, there

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Originally posted 2007-11-30 09:27:23. Republished by Blog Post PromoterDIAPER PATTERNS, Ann Strite-Kurz, book with CD, self-published I first became acquainted with Ann’s love of diaper patterns in the early 80’s when I did her Group Correspondence Course on the through my local EGA chapter. I still have that pillow in my living room and I love the pretty patterns which developed. Ann later published a book, Potpourri of Pattern, which explores diaper patterns and how to form them in more detail. With Diaper Patterns she has given us an even more comprehensive look at these patterns, packed full of history, design guidelines and examples. Like her other recent books on backgrounds and couching, Diaper Patterns comes with a CD which has larger pictures of all the stitched samples. This is such a wonderful way to expand an enhance what can be shown in the book. The first chapter has an

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Originally posted 2009-09-22 07:43:33. Republished by Blog Post Promoter Looking for a way to learn some new stitches and to use up threads from your stash? My new ebook, Heart Sampler, is now available here and in my ebook store. Throughout the article you will see three of the hearts I’ve stitched using this plan. The book is $3 and can be ordered through PayPal. You will be sent the download link via email. The design is based on a classic quilt block. Working from an overdyed thread (I used silks), pick additional threads in those colors. Then mix and match the stitches for your own unique design. Each stitch is diagrammed and the ones that work best for the triangular blocks are noted. I’m planning some additional books of stitches using the same plan, probably late in

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Originally posted 2006-05-02 17:47:59. Republished by Blog Post PromoterI’m working on a lovely peacock canvas from Bongo (it’s in the current issue of Needlepoint Now (http://www.needlepointnow.com). The model in the issue is worked in beads. I’m doing mine in metallics, including a couple of the new Latin Dance colors from Kreinik. The background is going to be a blackwork pattern in Elegance. I am crazy about the way it looks. The bird just shimmers in all the metallics. And, as my DH said last night, it looks so like a peacock in metallic. I love doing needlepoint pieces in all metallics. The impact of all that shimmery color is magnificent. It’s possible to do this, just as it’s possible to shade with metallics, because there is such a wide variety of colors available. But one danger is that it all will look too much the same. But modern metallics come

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These days, as some have pointed out, the emphasis seems to be on elaborate needlepoint. Stuff that has many stitches, many threads, fancy finishing, and difficult techniques. If you are a beginner you think there isn’t anything out there for you. That no one cares if you want to learn needlepoint. Or if you succeed in doing so. That’s just not true. I’m committed to helping you learn needlepoint with my teaching, ebooks, and this blog. Here’s a summary of what’s available. If You Want to Learn Needlepoint My free email beginners course has been taken by over 2000 people. Sign up for it on the linked page. This course provides an overview of needlepoint, a look at the tools and materials used, instruction of Continental, Basketweave and ten other stitches. Plus two projects are included. It’s a great way to teach yourself or a friend needlepoint. Pick a Project

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Originally posted 2004-07-17 06:00:26. Republished by Blog Post PromoterLike Amy I love quilts and I am particularly fond of Bargello quilts. These pieces capture the look of those quilts so perfectly. I raced through Rhapsody but other deadlines are interfering with getting Romance done. Here are my observations in no particular order. If you are using the colors specified in the chart, be sure to use the Levantine Blue canvas specified. Several of the decorative stitches allow the canvas to show through so the blue is an integral part. You do not use an entire skein of Watercolours for these pieces, so if you have partial skeins start with that. Although sometimes it is difficult to match dyelots with Watercolours I don’t think exact matches are necessary for this piece. If you do not like a particular stitch for an area, substitute it with another stitch of the same size.

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Originally posted 2009-11-17 06:59:08. Republished by Blog Post Promoter Colonial houses, especially the ones of Colonial Williamsburg, are one of my favorite things. I grew up in a neo-colonial house (it looked like Mt. Vernon). I loved Williamsburg when I went there when I was 10. One of the things I love about Annapolis is all the charming colonial houses. I’ve been asked recently about needlepointing houses, which poses some interesting problems. As a result I’m putting together a free project on stitching houses, our new Come Stitch with Me project. Our project will have four houses on it, all colonials. One will be brick, one stone, and two wood. hey can be stitched as a set or individually as ornaments. We’ll got through the process together, talking about threads, stitches, and techniques for stitching windows, paths, grass, and roofs. We’ll even spend a little bit of time “decorating” the

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Originally posted 2010-01-30 07:38:51. Republished by Blog Post Promoter I wanted to share with you the finished abstract cross stitch adaptation. The pattern came from the About.com Cross Stitch site. Since any chart which uses only whole stitches can be done as needlepoint, that’s what I did. The original used a number of different colors. I wanted something more muted, so I chose a color palette based on the Watercolours Amethyst. This meant violets, tending towards blue-violet, pink, gray, brown, and olive green. Mostly one color on the original chart got translated into one thread in my needlepoint. Before I began the project I pulled all my threads in these colors out and into my project bag. This turned out to be a great idea since there was a time lag in finishing the piece. If I couldn’t remember a thread, I could pick another thread in a similar color.

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Originally posted 2008-01-11 08:24:05. Republished by Blog Post Promoter In case you hadn’t noticed, Bargello is back in a big way. You can see it everywhere. Domino magazine showed it last spring on a couch in a hip apartment. Jonathan Adler’s Bargello pillows were named to Real Simple’s list of must haves. Iona Dettelbach’s Bargello book is packed with fantastic ideas and June McKnight has a new Bargello book out. To keep you inspired while I’m at TNNA, I wanted to share with you my latest project, which is in Bargello Revisited (out June 2008). It’s a Bargello checkbook cover. It uses a classic Hungarianpoint pattern in neutral colors with a pop of red. I stitched it in wool, so it will really wear. But what suprises me most is how fast it was to stitch. I worked on it a little but, but last week I was able to

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Originally posted 2009-10-03 07:16:48. Republished by Blog Post Promoter Its no secret that I like black cats. I’ve owned three of them (that’s Dot in the picture above), and I have many black cat canvases stitched and unstitched. The nice thing about black cats and needlepoint is that since they are associated with Halloween, it’s easy to find them. The bad thing is that often you have to change the background. So I thought I’d share with you some black cat canvases to stitch. My friend Marianne has a charming quote from Colette about cats as one of her stitch & Frame pieces. She’s stitched the model (pictured above) as a black cat. Thinking along Art Nouveau lines, Art Stitch has needlepoint version of this elegant cat as well as the famous poster from the Chat Noir in Paris. And what about this charming oriental cat from HP Designs? You’ll

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Originally posted 2006-11-15 07:05:12. Republished by Blog Post PromoterProbably my favorite needlepoint designs of all time, are these hand-painted mini-socks from when In Good Company started. I’ve been addicted to them since the beginning, have stitched dozens of them, and, although they haven’t been made since about 1992, I keep buying them when I can find them. Click on thumbnail to see more detailed picture. When I snagged this one I was thinking it would be all Basketweave, very simple, and all wool. But the more I looked at it the more I saw possibilities. As needlepointers, we often think that tiny spaces can only have Tent Stitch but we’re wrong. If you only have one thread, you could do Victorian Cross Stitch, attach a bead, or make a knot. If you have a two-stitch block, you can do Mosaic, a bigger Cross Stitch, and many more stitches. Recently I

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Jack o’Lanterns, bats, kids in costumes and . . . black cats; all these are things we associate with Halloween. That, I’m afraid can pose a big problem for people like me who own (and love) black cats. If I had a dime for every black cat canvas that has a Halloween theme, I’d be able to buy a great big canvas. If I had a dime for every black cat canvas that had a Christmas theme, I couldn’t even buy a cup of cheap coffee. I’ve done them both. As a result I have to personalize the canvases I find for the ornaments I’d like for our trees. Here are the steps I use Make sure the canvas you pick has a cat that isn’t too scary-looking (screaching and overly arched backs are out) Make sure your canvas has a minimum of other Halloween-themed items. Some of these can

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