backgrounds

Originally posted 2009-07-28 07:00:36. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Little Shoppe Canvas Company has come up with a charming notebook to keep track of your project ideas. Unlike many other stitch diaries, this isn’t for the finished piece, but gives you a place to record your ideas for a work in progress or to be stitched.
Two pages are given to each project. The left page has lines for the project name and date, a listing of threads, and some notes. The right page has four areas of grid in two sizes for diagramming stitches. This is a feature not often seen in stitch notebooks and a useful tool. One thing I like to do with new stitches is draw them the way I would stitch them. This feature lets me do that easily.
Great product, available at your local shop.

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Stitch Notebook – Product Review

Backgrounds: The Finishing Touch – book review

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2003-09-19 06:38:51. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

BACKGROUNDS: THE FINISHING TOUCH by Ann Strite-Kurz

The choice of a background which is both appropriate for the design and beautiful is a decision which often perplexes stitchers. But all stitchers agree that the right choice can really make the design.

Ann Strite-Kurz’s teaching projects project packs and stitching are well known for their wonderful open backgrounds. No matter what the design, you will find innovative open backgrounds enhancing her work.

In this book Ann has taken canvases (of her own and by many others) and used them as the basis for a book about open background techniques. It is comprehensive and dense with information.

The first chapter opens with a short history of needlepoint and then has what I think of as the heart of the book. Well over 100 canvases are pictured and the backgrounds are analyzed. Each design is pictured in black and white in the book and then in color on the accompanying CD. A second picture of a detail section of the background is also on the CD. Each canvas is analyzed and information is given about how the background was developed or why it is an appropriate choice. In the section Ann classifies the different types of backgrounds into classes such as mat backgrounds, painted backgrounds or partial backgrounds.

Following this chapter are six chapters of techniques which show you how to do many of the techniques seen in the pictured canvases. The second chapter covers planning and execution of open backgrounds including detailed suggestions for starting and stopping threads so they won’t show and how to plan a background to work with the design.

The remaining chapters are all devoted to specific techniques. In each chapter there is an explanation on how to work the technique (if needed) and then the patterns are discussed. Anyone who has read Ann’s previous books knows how thorough her diagrams and explanations are, and this book is no exception. For example, Pattern 11, Diamond Outlines in Tied Oblong Crosses has a large diagram of the over all pattern, a detailed explanation of the pattern and when to use it (it is a large scale pattern with oblique stitches, so it needs to be planned carefully). then there is another explanation with diagrams of how to stitch the pattern. The section ends with some suggestions (accompanied by diagrams) on how to make the pattern more dense.

Because the book is packed densely with information it is a book to be savored and read over and over again. Pick a canvas, page through the CD to find ideas, then through the book to find a background you like, everything you need to know to make these open patterns an asset to your canvas is there.

We are so lucky to have Ann and her wonderful way of analyzing patterns available to us.

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Backgrounds: The Finishing Touch – book review

Needlepoint Damask – a Great Background Technique

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2009-01-22 10:16:46. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

needlepoint damask on whimsy & grace needlepoint purse

Needlepoint damask, a technique which uses Tent Stitch and contrasting textures of thread, is a marvelous way to make needlepoint backgrounds. You get a subtle pattern, but nothing which overwhelms.

The picture above is a damask pattern based on a Chinese lattice which I used on a lovely purse from Whimsy & grace.

Yesterday I added a page, with samples and patterns, about the technique to All about Needlepoint. But I can’t stop thinking about these delightful patterns. So I’ve come up with some others and I want to share them with you today.

This is another Chinese pattern, but one based on an overall design you will see in fabric and in paintings. I call it Chinese Key. Because it is a small overall pattern, it works particularly well on smaller pieces. I’ve used it as backgrounds for pincushions and boxtops.

Curvy Zig-zag, pictured above, is a stripe pattern, but one which has curves. It works well when you want a vertical background, but not one with a strong pattern. The smaller the contrast in textures between the two threads, the more subtle this pattern will be.

This check is about a simple as you can get. It’s just blocks of nine stitches in two different threads. But it’s very effective. Kelly Clark used it as a background on Mr. Snowman, shown in the bottom picture on this page.

Diamond and cross needlepoint stitch pattern

A more complex pattern, this damask will use three textures. Enhance the crosses in the center of half the diamonds by making them as tiny Cross Stitches in a thread like metallic. The result will be elegant

I’m going to challenge you to make your own needlepoint damask patterns. Email me with your chart as a JPG to napaneedlepoint @ gmail.com (remove the spaces please). with it as an attachment and I’ll do another post with your patterns.

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Needlepoint Damask – a Great Background Technique

Say it with Needlepoint

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Sayings and needlepoint just seem to go together. From a canvas with a complete sayings to one word affirmations and needlepoint names, they remain popular items for hand painted canvas needlepoint.

But what if the thing you want isn’t available?

Then you need to look no further than the three delightful series of letters from Marie Barber at Colors of Praise.

Marie has come up with the best idea. She has three series of letters, the 100 and 200 series are upper case only and the 300 series has both upper and lower case, each with a different background. YOu can see them all on her letters page.

Each letter is different and bold enough to stand out from the colorful patterned backgrounds.

Now the fun begins. You can specify the word or phrase you want and even specify the backgrounds and even the colors. Marie says “[A] customer might like the “M” in the 300 series on a 200 background and that would be indicated
LE313b (letter) on LE213(background) or LE203(lets say they need a capital C) on LE338( wants this look). Size and mesh needs to be specified and if a letter needs to be a different color that also has to be indicated upon the order.”

Because each canvas is a custom order, it can take 1-3 weeks for your LNS to get the piece, more of it’s ordered at a trade show.

Marie goes on to say “There are so many options with these letters and how to arrange the words if that is what’s being used. The words can be in a linear row or stacked upon each other for example. If it is a word, I need to know the spacing in between each letter(I normally leave 1/4″). Same for Initials, the spacing needs to be indicated( I normally leave 1″).”

Sometimes shops call to talk through the plan with Marie, other times they just leave it up to her taste. Marie has a great idea for you to plan out your order: “print out the pages from my website and cut and paste, that would give them a better idea what it might look like if they are trying to create a word.”

The picture here, taken from Marie’s site is a great example of the possibilities. While many of the letters are from the 300 Series, others, the “L” for example, combine the letter from one series with the background pattern from another and put it in a different color scheme.

I love this great idea for making fun custom needlepoint without fuss.

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Say it with Needlepoint

Knots, Fur and Turkeywork – book review

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2006-08-18 08:46:18. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Meredith Barnhill Willett and Beth Robertson, self-
pubished, 2005, ISBN 0-9770592-0-0.

The full-color book covers three important techniques in needlepoint which frustrate
many stitchers, including me.

Many canvases feature hair or fur. There are so many kinds of knots, it’s amazing. But how
often do we avoid doing looped or pile stitches, or settle for the only knot we know how to
do?

Settle no more. There are tons of ideas and each one not only has a diagram, it has
detailed instructions, and a color photograph of the stitch, many in currently available
canvases.

Many stitches also have introductions which discuss ways to vary the stitch or best uses.
Each chapter has a section which introduces the type of stitch. There is also an index.

Finally, this has to be one of the most beautiful self-published needlepoint books around.

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Knots, Fur and Turkeywork – book review

That’s Not Needlepoint — Book Review

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

dede Ogden, self-published 2011

One thing that needlepointers love is to look at each others work and to learn about the choices made in stitching it.

That’s good, but even better is getting a look into the thought processes of a truly remarkable stitcher, such as dede Ogden.

I’ve known dede almost as long as I’ve lived in California and have always marveled at her lovely work and inventive ideas.

Now we are all so lucky because we can get see how she stitched a number of her own pieces in her new book, That’s Not Needlepoint.

I get the same thrill looking at it as I do looking at an artist’s notebook. It’s not a formal book, it is a series of stitch guides in note form for several of hr undersea canvases.

The canvases are complex (many are pictured in the book) with lots of detail and her stitching makes them even more gorgeous (I saw two of the in person and they are amazing).

For each piece she lists an area, then lets you know the threads she used, the stitch, and any special techniques. Some, but by no means all, of the stitches are diagrammed.

dede uses lots of inventive techniques including light stitching, wrapping, blended threads, needleweaving, and tons more. Often her notes are accompanied by line drawings of the canvas.

This is not a book that you could use by itself to stitch any of these canvases; at the very least you will need a good stitch dictionary. Beginners will find many of these techniques and ideas to be confusing.

But if you remember that it’s a notebook in book form, you will find so much to inspire.

My biggest difficulty with the book is the photos. The color photos are grouped into two sections, both near the end of the book. I found it annoying to page back and forth to look at them. A better idea would have been to make a color copy of the page to have right there as I read.

My other difficulty is that often I felt as if the canvases pictured weren’t completely stitched. Usually this was because I couldn’t see the background. dede uses lots of light stitching and an almost transparent sparkly thread for her backgrounds, so it is possible that they did not reproduce well, but I found it frustrating.

All in all though, the more I think about this book, the more I like it. I like that it is so full of ideas that I can use on other canvases. I like that it is going to be a springboard for my imagination on needlepoint for years to come.

Thanks dede!

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That’s Not Needlepoint — Book Review

Fun Ways to Learn New Stitches

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2009-06-04 07:30:07. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

bargello needlepoint easter egg, designed by Janet Perry

This is a picture of my latest Bargello, mostly done at Maker Faire. It shows a great way to try out new stitch or pattern ideas.

Begin by picking out a simple and small shape. I used an egg because I wanted enough space to show off several repeats of the color sequence. Other shapes might be hearts mittens, or circles. Simple shapes of animals, such as a bird or fish also work well.

You want a design which a mainly an outline and one which could be lots of different colors without looking too strange.

Trace the outline onto canvas using a permanent marker made for canvas. I like Pigma Microns or FabricMate.

You can even trace several of the shapes, especially smaller ones, onto a single piece of canvas, making a fun composition. Wouldn’t a basket of smaller eggs overlapping each other be neat?

Pick your pattern or stitch. Since this is a kind of sampler, use more than one thread so that contrasting colors or textures will show the different elements of the stitch. If you have chosen a pattern to stitch, pick several threads to make a pleasing color scheme.

Then start stitching. When the outline is full, you’re done. My plan is to make this egg into an ornament, but it could also be stand-up or a small pouch.

When the outline is filled, you are done.

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Fun Ways to Learn New Stitches

Ruth Schmuff’s Background CD now in Printed Form

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Like many needlepointers I find a plain Tent Stitch background to be rather boring. Since at least 1984 I’ve been punching them up, not by changing the stitch but by adding repeating patterns to them. I usually do them in two contrasting textures of the same color, a technique I call needlepoint damask (the subject of tomorrow’s post) but you can also do them in different colors, subtle or loud.

Ruth Schmuff wrote the book, or rather the CD, on these with her Backgrounds CD (reviewed here), a collection of 481 repeating patterns, organized by size.

It’s a wonderful resource, but many people don’t like to use a CD. Ruth has now made it available as a printed book. Next up, I hope, the iPhone version

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Ruth Schmuff’s Background CD now in Printed Form

Generate Japanese Patterns to Inspire Your Needlepoint

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Design,Nuts About Needlepoint

Today I’m starting a short series (look for the next installment next Wednesday) to help you use Japanese patterns to create exciting backgrounds for your needlepoint.

The first step is to create a pattern. The second step is what patterns work nicely in needlepoint. The final step (in two weeks) is to convert the pattern to needlepoint and stitch it.

One thing about needlepoint patterns that makes many of the cute designs you see around NOT work, is that the pattern needs to be seamless. In other words you shouldn’t be able to see the individual tiles of the pattern and seams where they connect. Think of a fabric. When it’s just an uncut length, the pattern is seamless. But one you sew it into a garment, the pattern may not match at the seams — that’s what you don’t want.

Creating seamless patterns can be hard for you (it is for me) but it’s easy for the computer. And here’s where this handy tool — Japanizer — comes in. Pick a pattern from the 27 choices. Then pick a size from extra small to extra large. Finally pick a color choice.

Click on Japanize.

The pattern, in the colors you chose shows up as a background. YOu can link to it, download it or tweet it.

The pattern I created is pictured here.

Thanks to my DD who pointed this out to me.

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Generate Japanese Patterns to Inspire Your Needlepoint

Great New Book on Blackwork in Needlepoint – Book Review

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Blackwork is used as a background in this canvas from Tink Boord-Dill, with a stitch guide by Janet M. Perry

Everything ‘Blackwork’ is New Again, Julia Key Snyder, self-published, 2011 (available at needlepoint shops)

I love Blackwork and love to do it on my needlepoint, so I was very excited when I read about this book. When it arrived I was a little skeptical because, it’s just pages and pages of patterns with no names and no text. After having looked at it, I am now a fan of this approach.

Each pattern is numbered and the diagrams are large. They are big enough to show several repeats of the pattern. That’s great because you really get a feel for how they will look. For one part of the pattern, the stitches are numbered, but arrows showing the direction to use for each stitch are shown on every single stitch in the diagram.

That is the most incredibly helpful thing!

Blackwork as a technique on needlepoint canvas has two stumbling blocks and Snyder addresses them both beautifully in this book.

First many blackwork patterns look like the diagram above, with the stitches on the lines of the grid. Since in needlepoint the convention is to have the stitches begin and end in the holes of the grid, this can be very confusing. In this book all the diagrams are like good needlepoint diagrams; the stitches have curved ends so you see every stitch and they begin and end in holes.

If Blackwork diagrams have defeated you in the past, this will help you understand the technique.

Second, because canvas is so open, it can be hard to figure out a path to take so that threads don’t show on the back. Snyder acknowledges this as a problem with Blackwork on canvas and in her numbering schemes she has worked out paths for most patterns that aren’t double running (used for Blackwork on cloth) but that don’t leave thread trails.

There is a one-page introduction that talks about some ways to use Blackwork as well as some working notes on the diagrams. Then it’s on to the patterns.

The patterns are wonderfully varied and I can think of tons of projects sitting in my stash where they would work.

Many of the patterns are variations of other patterns and this is the source of a small complaint. I’d love to see related patterns next to each other. Occasion ally this happens, but mostly it does not. Having related patterns next to each other would make it easy for me to decide if I wanted to add more stuff to a simple pattern or not.

There are a few patterns in her that are not strictly Blackwork, I saw a laidwork pattern and some textured stitches, but there aren’t many of these.

All in all it’s a simply fantastic book and I’m so glad I have it.

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