markets & exhibits Archive

Originally posted 2004-01-17 08:37:43. Republished by Blog Post PromoterI’ve been home almost a week and my brain is still spinning from all the wonderful things I saw at Market. Your shops are sure to be full of the most fun things to stitch. The vendors I spoke with all agree that this was one of their best markets in years and it was certainly one of the biggest Winter Markets TNNA has had. There were new vendors, with bigger booths and the attendance from shops had grown by over 40%. The space was large so it never seemed crowded and I was excited by what I saw. This issue will talk about painted canvases, threads, accessories, finishing ideas, and finally will have a section on trends. First a very short update on From Mountain to Molehill (last issue). I got a great email from Pamela Gardner, the author of the

Read More...

This year was the 50th Needlework Exhibit at Woodlawn Plantation near Washington, DC. Melita posted a lovely summary of the show on her blog. Since most of us couldn’t visit. Read about her visit & make travel plans for next year

Read More...

Originally posted 2009-08-28 07:39:50. Republished by Blog Post PromoterI’ve come across some delightful new needlepoint products for you to look for at your local shop. Here’s a round-up of some of them. Painted Canvas CBK Needlepoint Collections has added a new artist, Designs by Karen. These designs feature animals against light backgrounds on 18 mesh. Lucinda Gregory Rice is doing custom portraits of your pet in hand-painted canvas. The size of the design is 12″ x 16″. She is also doing a series of monthly Bargello ornament leaflets, printed on cardstock and three-hole punched. Raymond Crawford has a charming set of destinations canvases. They are 9″ x 3″ and spell out the place with reminders of what makes it great. Projects & Kits River Silks has a stunning new Kit to Go featuring a pansies design by Leigh Richardson (Designs by Leigh). The kit has everything you need to stitch

Read More...

Originally posted 2010-06-16 07:35:01. Republished by Blog Post Promoter Finishing Items I am just crazy about this chic self-finishing clutch from Timeless Totes. This is their first self-finished item. It comes in four colors (red, burgundy, blue and black). Lee’s Needle Arts has added leather Kindle covers to their self-finishing line. There are also new photo boxes and albums. I’m excited about the albums, because, although sometimes you can find albums that have openings deep enough to hold needlepoint, most of the time the albums you find won’t work Threads Crescent Colors has added new shades to both their perle cottons and silks. Valdani has added pure silk perle to their line-up of threads. This is great because silk perle is a wonderful thread to use. Rainbow Gallery has new colors in Very Velvet, Silk Lamé, Fuzzy Stuff, and Wispers, along with new colors in some other threads. They have

Read More...

Needlework shows can be few and far between. One, the Albuquerque Fiber Arts Fiesta is held in odd-numbered years in late May. The deadline is approaching for this exhibit. It’s March 1, 2013. There are 16 categories, including embroidery (so it’s not needlepoint specific). Visit their site to get the one-page entry form

Read More...

In the Woods is a charming textured stitch piece that makes a different kind of sampler. It’s available with a stitch guide. I’m very fond of Paisleys in any form, but I just love the cool teals of Amanda Lawford’s new canvas. Speaking of Paisleys, Julie Pischke has some great small ones in bright colors. I’d love these are ornaments. Stitch-its also has a close-up paisley in orange and white. In addition to the lovely black & white stars I wrote about earlier, Kirk & Hamilton has a lovely new series of patterned round ornaments. Although the patterns aren’t sweet florals, the soft pastels remind me of Laura Ashley colors. Associated Talents has large (14″ square) pillow canvases in the same beachy themes and colors as their new ornaments. Shelly Tribbey has a mini sock and square of mid-century modern triangle trees. The colors in both remind me a new

Read More...

Kirk & Hamilton has a bunch of Christmas Puddings in two different sizes. If you aren’t familiar with them, they are traditional for English celebrations. Think of the “figgy pudding” in the carol or the “plum pudding” of Dickens. A delightful idea for ornaments. They also have a fun series of ornaments for Halloween or other occasions. The cartoony Halloween characters (monster, witch, and skull) have so much personality. With similar backgrounds, they have three different New York City ornaments. Add to this a bunch of Scandinavian sweater patterned stars in black and white and you have a lovely series. The absolutely most wonderful idea I saw is from Patti Mann — caterpillars. It’s almost like a letter holder for needlepoint, there are slots for several round ornaments. On the front is a round delightful caterpillar face. Not only is this really fun, it’s a great way to keep your

Read More...

With the show opening yesterday there’s lots of Winter 2013 TNNA News. Lots of shops and designers have been posting updates of the great things they have released or seen, as the case may be, during yesterday’s opening market day. Not at TNNA, but Rogue needlepoint has added cheerleaders and football players to their growing line, available at Amy’s golden Strand. Eye Candy has more black cat canvases, besides the one I mentioned yesterday, these are pairs and trios in silhouette, designed to fit of some of the Lee bags. Associated Talents has new hearts, carrots, and Easter eggs in addition to the beachy and elf items mentioned in earlier posts. Unique New Zealand has two new canvas in the “Keep Calm” series. They also have three new Kirk & Hamilton kits, including a great Bakelite phone. Finally they have lots of new hand-paints including New ornaments, new small designs,

Read More...

There are lots of exciting new needlepoint products at the Winter TNNA sow which opens this morning. In articles over the past couple of weeks (here, here, and here) I’ve told you about many of them. But there are even more I couldn’t tell you about until today. Look for more posts about the show tomorrow and Monday and, if needed, Tuesday. In addition to the beachy micro mini-socks, Associated Talents has a series of elf micro mini-socks with more traditional Christmas themes. Rebecca Wood has added another new basket series, similar to last year’s basket nativity, this time it’s for Halloween with stitch guides by Cynthia Thomas. Danji Designs has many new designs out as well. These include a charming series based on Japanese Kokeshi dolls and a cute series of owls, all done in similar colors. They also have several new Laurel Burch canvases. There are also several

Read More...

Originally posted 2011-01-11 19:52:26. Republished by Blog Post PromoterNeedledeeva has some cute Halloween cupcakes with a stitch guide by Cynthia Thomas. Speaking of Halloween, Once in a Blue Moon has a great silhouette of a haunted house. The great stitcher and designer, dede Ogden is supposed to have a new book coming out in April called, That’s not Needlepoint! I’ll work on getting more details for you. Rebecca Wood has some charming round animal ornaments. I love these because they combine Rebecca’s detailed painting with quirky animals. I really love the snowman and howling wolf on a sled. Very cool! Maggie Co, as always, has some delightfully different canvases. There are some elaborate roosters, a chef and a waiteer, that immediately made me think of the white porcelain rooster at my favorite French restaurant in Napa Valley (Bistro Jeanty). Another great design is Kitty Magrittee, which replaces the man in

Read More...

Raymond Crawford will have many new designs out but one will be a lovely tribute to New York City. You’ll see iconic signs and symbols of New York including the Brooklyn Bridge and a sign for the Apollo Theater all done up in an apple outline.. It’s a clever & different canvas. His other new canvases include more new eggs, a clever gnome, and a great snowman. One of the big hits of TNNA markets is called Sample It! Held on Friday nights, shops can purchase limited amounts of special items and packages, many put together exclusively for this event. It’s also the only place at this market where you can take actual product home, so these items will be showing up in your shops right away. Accoutrement Designs, the makers of those great magnets & fobs has some special collections available at this event. These collections include some new

Read More...

Originally posted 2002-10-12 22:13:46. Republished by Blog Post PromoterI love looking at needlework exhibits and the Exhibit at ANG National Seminar is one of the best. While I worry about judges’ decisions, and generally don’t agree. I love to look at all the inventive needlework people do. ANG divides its submissions into two broad categories, professional (people who get paid for doing something in needlework) and nonprofessional. They also divide pieces into various classes like, painted design with stitch guide, painted design without stitch guide, class project, original, adaptation, etc. When I go through the exhibit I note the numbers of the pieces to discover the stitcher, but I don’t pay attention to the classes. I like it best when I submerge myself into the lovely colors, stitches, and designs. LaMona Brown made one of the most striking pieces, a wall hanging done in all Turkey work, called “Tree of

Read More...

Originally posted 2004-10-15 22:14:51. Republished by Blog Post PromoterBecause of many other obligations, I wasn’t able to spend too much time at the ANG Seminar in Reno. But I did take a morning and spend it in the exhibit and I have some notes to share with you. A trend I am seeing more in needlepoint are the use of solidly stitched beads on canvas. A few years ago beads were mostly used as accents. At ANG I saw several pieces with slid areas of beads. This adds another dimension to needlepoint which is quite welcome. Beaded areas will be the highest texture in your piece unless you have areas of cut stitches, like Turkeywork. Seed beads, which are best for embroidery, come in an enormous range of colors and textures, from extremely shiny to very matte and dull. You can buy small quantities at needlework shops from Mill Hill.

Read More...

The details for the Woodlawn Needlework Exhibit 2013 have recently been announced. The exhibit will be from March 1-31 at Woodlawn Plantation near Mount Vernon. According to the site, it is “held annually to support Woodlawn. Woodlawn was the home of Eleanor Custis Lewis, one of America’s foremost needleworkers. The exhibition honors her legacy by maintaining the tradition of the needle arts and by raising funds to preserve her estate.” The exhibit is open daily except Tuesdays. Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for students (through high school) and children under 5 are free. You don’t have to be local to enter, they accept shipped submissions. If you’d like to enter take a look at the final brochure. Visit Woodlawn’s Exhibit site for more details

Read More...

Originally posted 2008-09-24 23:07:53. Republished by Blog Post PromoterI’ve found out about so many great new things, I wanted to share them all with you. THREAD NEWS: Dinky Dyes now has 4 mm and 7mm silk ribbon available in 20 colors. 4mm has 4 meters per skein and 7mm has 2. Valdani has also introduced 25 new colors available across all their thread lines. The Gentle Art has introduced new colors in the Simply Wool and, I’ve heard, in their Sampler Threads. Dede Ogden distributes several lines of really interesting threads and will soon be distributing the lovely silks from Treenway and some fine silk cord. Gloriana has announced 14 new colors of silk. If you have wanted to try Gloriana, Weeks, On the Surface, and other unusual thread lines, Norden Crafts is now distributing them, so they will be easier for your LNS to buy. If you like to

Read More...