finished

sutton hoo mini-sock from needlepoint expert janet m. perry

Many people wonder how to turn your stitched needlepoint into a mini-sock. It’s not that hard if you have a sewing machine.

One of the first tutorials The Caron Collection put on their website is this one on making an open and lined mini-sock. Your finished sock will be just like a regular-sized stocking (you can use these same instructions to make those too).

One of the great things about finishing mini-socks is that they don’t take much material, so you can go crazy with finding luxurious fabrics for them. One of the best sources is to use fabric samples from interior designers or high-end fabric shops. Often they sell them cheap or even give them away when the fabric is discontinued. I have a whole bag of these in my closet.

If you have any true factory outlets or fabric mills in your area they might have sales of scraps, I used one bag of these for my linings for years. Also look at fat quarters (they’ll line several socks) and remnants.

Your lining fabric should be thin and soft. Your backing fabric should be firm and, if possible, non-ravelling.

If you want trim on your mini-sock, look for remnants of trim and stock up when you find it in colors you like. You can also make your own twisted cord following the linked instructions. You can even make tassels to add.

Finishing mini-socks isn’t hard and you’ll love the happy feeling you get when you see them all lined up.

See the original post:
Finishing a Mini-sock

How to Make a Coaster

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Marlene assked earlier this week about how to finish a coaster. It’s not hard to do, so let’s talk about how to do it.

Begin by selecting the size for the coasters. Square coasters are vastly easier to make than round coasters (I’ll put some notes about that in a bit). Coasters generally are 3 or 4 inches square, so plan on that for the finished size of the stitching.

Stitches, Threads, & Coasters

Because coasters get sone wear, you will want to use stitches that won’t snag. Because you will be putting something directly on the stitches, you will also want stitches that are flat and not bumpy. This is not the place for smyrna crosses, padding, or exposed canvas.

Every thread you use MUST be colorfast. Glasses are often wet on the bottom or sweat and this moisture will cause non-colorfast threads to bleed.

It’s better if threads are absorbent and somewhat water resistant. This makes wool a fantastic choice for coasters.

I had been thinking that all the ready-made needlepoint coasters I had seen were wool in Tent Stitch because it was cheap to make. That is why, but it turns out, it’s also a good choice.

The Innards & Back of the Coaster

You will need something inside your coaster to give it some strength. The best thing for this is 14 count plastic canvas. It’s strong and flexible. You can cut it to the size you need.

If you want your coaster to be thicker, buy some thing sheets of cork and add them to the inside.

Cut both the plastic canvas and the cork to be 1/4″ smaller than the finished needlepoint.

For a backing you will want something like Ultrasuede, that is rough enough to keep the coaster in place. I like Ultrasuede because you can often find small pieces, it comes in lots of colors, and you can cut it to fit. To begin, cut it slightly large than the finished needlepoint. You’ll trim it later.

Round Coasters

If you want to make round coasters begin by finding plastic canvas rounds that are the size you want. Use one of them as the template for your needlepoint, but stitch about three stitches beyond the outline from the plastic canvas.

The other important difference is in finishing, you will need to clip the unstitched margin of the canvas in order to make the edge smooth. You can find directions in clipping seams in many sewing books and on sewing sites.

Making the Coaster

Assemble the sandwich so that you have the needlepoint on top, then the cork (if you are using it), then the plastic canvas. Make sure the innards are centered on the needlepoint.

Make diagonal cuts at each corner of the needlepoint to reduce bulk. Turn the edges of the needlepoint t the back and temporarily secure with clothespins.

Look at the edges to make sure no canvas shows. If it does, trim your innards a bit to make them smaller then repeat the steps above.

Once you are happy with the edges, lash the needlepoint to the plastic canvas using perle cotton or linen (perle cotton and linen are very strong). Do this one side at a time by removing the clothespin, pulling the needlepoint taut, and then sewing through the margin and the plastic canvas many times to secure it.

Now your coaster needs a backing. Trim your backing to be slightly smaller than the coaster top. With two strands of matching floss, sew the back to the coaster using blind hemstitch or another binding stitch.

YOur coaster is ready to go!

Continue reading here:
How to Make a Coaster

Little Amish Quilt Freebie – Sneak Peek

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2008-10-29 04:44:53. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

I’m working on a little eProject book of six tiny Amish quilts which you self-finish and then use on various items like this bookmark.

You can get this as a free project, including finishing instructions, on Whip Up, a delightful craft blog.

The cool thing about the eProject book is that it will include not only the charts and instructions for the six little quilts, but complete instructions for six different projects.

On Sunday I had a ton of fun at Michael’s buying goodies to try. The list includes, gift tags, cards, notebooks for Post-its, boxes, and lots more.

I’m stitching the last quilt, and I’ll be doing the finished next week, so look for the book in about a week’s time, I’l post a notice when it’s ready.

Link:
Little Amish Quilt Freebie – Sneak Peek

Trimming the Tree – Background Choice

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

As you can see by the picture, I’ve gotten the tree and the background done, so I’m ready to start trimming.

Background choice can make a big difference in the finished look of a design. Pick a stitch that fights with the focal point and you can distract your eyes from it or make the needlepoint look confused overall.

Pick the right stitch and it will emphasize the focal point, the way a good setting can make a jewel look better, or the way the perfect accessory can set off an outfit.

One of the things that struck me about the tree once it was stitched is how tall it is. I decided, based on that, that I needed a background stitch with a vertical direction.

Pattern direction is not the only factor in considering stitches, you must also think about the scale of the stitch. This has two aspects.

First you need to think about the overall size of the area you are stitching. There should always be at least three repeats of the stitch in your area. That’s enough for your eye to establish a pattern. Having a pattern is important for a background — it serves to bring the design together as a whole. If my finished size had been bigger, I could have picked a larger stitch. As it is there are few parts of this design that have fewer than three repeats.

The other aspect of scale has to do with compensation. Does your design have smooth edges, or does it move in and out alot, as my tree does? The rougher the edges are, the easier it will be to compensate if the stitch or stitch pattern is small.

Taking all these factors into account. I picked Diagonal Cashmere, giving me a vertical direction. This stitch can be made in many sizes. I made it as small as possible. The longest stitches go over two threads and there are three of them.

The result?

A background that enhances the height of the tree (which will help after it’s trimmed) but which was easy to compensate.

Now on to garlands and brads.

See the rest here:
Trimming the Tree – Background Choice

Stitch, Slip & Go – 12 Days of Needlepoint Gifts

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in accessories,Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2008-12-17 18:37:25. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Less than 10 days until Christmas and you still need to make some gifts. You don’t want to give an unfinished canvas, you want something you can stitch and finish quickly.

All about Stitching has a series of delightful projects you can stitch and finish in plenty of time. They’re called Stitch, Slip & Go. They consist of a hand-painted canvas, done on 12 mesh canvas, so it’s quick to stitch and a tote bag. Stitch the needlepoint, slip it into the pocket in the bag and sew the pocket shut.

And, instantly, you have a wonderful project.

Besides these canvases, you can make something even more quickly by using one of their 7 mesh canvases for the bag insert. These come packaged in kits with their own project bag.

Great stuff, great gift.

Go here to read the rest:
Stitch, Slip & Go – 12 Days of Needlepoint Gifts

Stitch, Slip & Go – 12 Days of Needlepoint Gifts

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in accessories,Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2008-12-17 18:37:25. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Less than 10 days until Christmas and you still need to make some gifts. You don’t want to give an unfinished canvas, you want something you can stitch and finish quickly.

And, instantly, you have a wonderful project.

Besides these canvases, you can make something even more quickly by using one of their 7 mesh canvases for the bag insert. These come packaged in kits with their own project bag.

Great stuff, great gift.

More here:
Stitch, Slip & Go – 12 Days of Needlepoint Gifts

Designer Profile: Carrie Wolf

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in accessories,Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2008-02-27 07:30:24. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

I have been struck again and again by the lovely needlepoint done by Carrie Wolf. ou can see it on her blog, Needlepoint for the Modern Home, you can see it on her Etsy store, where she sells her finished needlepoint pieces. I love her clean graphic style and so I asked her to be the subject of this month’s Designer Profile.

Nuts: I love your approach to needlepoint, making it modern and hip. Can you tell me something about your philosophy?
Carrie: My philosophy on needlepoint is a very basic one. I look at needlepoint as fabric. A textile from which I can make virtually anything, any color, any style to fit any taste or aesthetic. With that much possibility, there are really no limits to what I can create. Part of my philosophy is that since needlepoint is so versatile, it can be cool and modern and hip! I am a little surprised that knitting and crochet have made such a huge come-back, while needlepoint has not caught back on with the mainstream public.

So part of my mission is to let people know that needlepoint is very modern and that it is a medium that is evolved and can be in tune with modern design.

Nuts: Your needlepoint cuff bracelets are amazing. Where do you get your ideas for designs?
Carrie:I have been having a lot of fun designing my cuff bracelets. The great thing about these is that they are relatively small pieces that I can stitch up in a reasonable amount of time and use to test out new patterns. My patterns tend to be geometric in nature and how I create them is to sit down with a piece of graph paper and pencil and just start filling in squares (and erasing and filling and erasing) until I come up with something that I like. I was fortunate enough to be able to buy out a needlepoint shop’s inventory of Paternayan wool yarn about 15 years ago, and having all of those colors right in front of me has been the most important design tool for me. I am a very visual person and in order to feel inspired and creative I need those colors right there in front of me so I can play with them and put them together to see what it is I want to create. For me, the creative flow can be such a tenuous thing, that any barrier to it can be hugely detrimental. If I had to go to a store every time I wanted to play with wool colors as I was coming up with ideas, I would be completely stifled. So I am a firm believer that the greater the “stash”, the more unlimited the possibilities are for my creativity.

Nuts: I noticed in looking at the bracelets, you are using many different kinds of closures like lacing, buttons, jeans snaps, I’ve always found it really difficult to attach things to needlepoint canvas, how do you get around that problem?
Carrie:) The snaps, grommets, and studs are something that took me quite a long time to work up the courage to try. Since needlepoint takes so long to create, the last thing I wanted to do was have a great piece that I ruined with a snap gone wrong. So I took the leap with a small test piece and realized that since the structure of needlepoint canvas is so sturdy, I am able to cut the canvas within one strand of the actual needlepoint, so I can create holes in my needlepoint that do not lessen the integrity of the piece in any way. This opened up a whole new realm of possibilities in design and wearable art that I am continuing to explore.

Nuts: The pincushion blocks are also charming. How do you decide what to put on a side?
Carrie:The pincushions have been fun to design and great to use as well.
I like designs that repeat and wrap around the sides of the cube so when it is turns it is one continuous pattern. The pincushion cube was my first 3D needlepoint creation and helped my get out of the “flat” mindset that I had previously had for needlepoint.

Needlepoint can be any shape that you want!

Nuts: Of everything you’ve done, I’m most blown away by the 3-D monarch butterfly. What challenges did this piece have for you?
Carrie:The Monarch butterfly was a design that I had been stewing on for about 5 years before I finally figured it out. I had created the basic flat Monarch pattern and stitched that multiple times, one as a whole Monarch life cycle and another in cross-stitch in beautiful greens and black on green fabric. But I knew what I really wanted to create was a life-sized fully adjustable butterfly that was completely 3D. There is actually a wire armature inside the butterfly that I slipped the individual wings and body over so I could get that real 3D adjustable effect. They really look like they could fly! The part that held me up the longest was figuring out how to create perfectly double-sided wings and body without it looking too bulky and the edges from looking weird. Again, it is the fact that the canvas holds up so well that I was able to clip each wing side close up to the edge of the needlepoint and then whipstitch the two sides together to create the wing pocket that went over the armature. So from this experiment, I have learned that I can make almost any double-sided shape (I have not yet tried convex curves) out of needlepoint with a nice finished edge. I would love to create a dragonfly or even a little bird out of needlepoint.

Nuts: I’m sure many of our readers will want to try their hands at your designs, both small and large, where can people find them? What about your finished pieces?
Carrie: I currently sell my finished products in my Etsy shop:
Modernneedlepoint.etsy.com. I am also working on patterns for sale so people that are interested can check there and contact me if they are interested in a custom pattern.

Nuts: What inspires you?
Carrie:I am most inspired by color, pattern and nature. I live and work in a very natural setting and getting up each morning and watching the birds and walking around looking at the beauty that surrounds me is what inspires me most. The fashion industry is also very inspiring. All that color and pattern and how it relates to the body is amazing and talk about an industry that is ever-changing!
Interior design magazines are also a good source of pattern and color.

Nuts: What’s next?
Carrie:I want to delve further into wearable needlepoint art. The cuffs are a good start, but I would love to use needlepoint in couture clothing, to accent with needlepoint pockets, insets, etc. I also want to delve further into bags and purses. Any other ways that I can create 3D needlepoint is also high on my list of to-do’s. So much stitching, so little time…

Link:
Designer Profile: Carrie Wolf

HaViNG FuN WiTH CuSToM NeeDLePoiNT CaNVaSeS – Ideas for Great Projects

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Here are some more great ideas for your custom canvas.

Little Me Dolls

A favorite little ballerina: Get down on your knees, take a full front shot with her legs slightly apart, arms out slightly, also. Then, have her carefully turn around and take a back shot, with her in the same stance, or have her stand still and you go around to her back. Get as close as you can, without cropping her head or feet. Take one more photo, a closeup of the face, including the hair. A photo without the tutu, is best, as a tutu can easily be added to the finished needlepointed doll.

This can be done with any child, not just a ballerina, how about a t-ball or soccer player? Think about the choice of clothing and how you would want to stitch it, choose good lighting, and don’t worry about any background as that can be removed. I have 2 suggestions for these dolls:

Shelf Sitters: I “remove” the legs and arms. The body/head is one piece and a flat gusset is added by the finisher so that the doll “sits”. The arms are sewn into the side seams and the legs are stitched into the front seam so they dangle from the shelf.
Rag Doll Style. Again, I “remove” the arms and legs, and they are inserted into side and lower seams of the body. (Think Raggedy Ann)

With each of these styles of doll, I place the components on the canvas, allowing plenty of seam allowance for the finisher. Wearing pants or shorts is better than a dress, although, I can work around that also. . . but we need to communicate!

Family Portrait

Children create the most wonderful family portraits. Put onto canvas, stitched and prominently displayed in a beautiful frame, it will become a family heirloom that will be cherished by many generations. Are there “extras” in the drawing that you want removed? No problem!

Silhouette

Send me a side shot(s) and I’ll create a silhouette for you. May I suggest adding a silk flower or piece of jewelry to your finished piece? You can showcase one or more people on your canvas, horizontally or vertically.

Frame it!

How about taking a child’s drawing and making it into a photo frame? I can take various parts of the artwork, move them around and create a frame, unlike no other.

A LiTTLe MoRe FuN! – an ornament

An endless number of items can be placed on canvas to make an ornament: front or side view of a beloved car or truck, and ice or roller skate or a favorite shoe or boot, a favorite toy (from today or yesteryear), a flower (from a treasured person’s garden?) a pet’s face, a ballet slipper, a section from a child’s drawing, or someone’s signature.

These are just a few more of my ideas that can be put to canvas. I would like to create that special custom Canvas for you. too! Please contact your favorite Needlepoint Shop, ask them to contact me, and between the 3 of us, you’ll be stitching on your canvas in no time at all. I can discuss your project with you, but please understand, that I can only work with you through a shop. If you do not have a favorite shop, check out the “SHOPS” section on my website. Any one of them will be able to assist you in contacting me with your project. Still having difficulties? email me at sandy @ sandygrossman-morris . com (leave out spaces) and I’ll help you to locate a shop willing to assist you as I cannot take orders directly from non-shop owners.

Something Worth Repeating: Artwork that is copied at 100% or Digital Photos in JPEG, TIFF or PDF Formats, saved on a CD, DVD, Flash Drive or sent via e-mail work well. Many copy shops (FedEx Kinkos, for instance) will copy your artwork and save it to your own flash drive at no cost. I return all media with the order. You can submit original artwork, also. PLEASE NOTE: I can only take orders from Needle Art Shops, however, I am happy to work with you during the process of creating your Custom Needlepoint Canvas. Be sure to give your contact information to the shop when you discuss the ideas for your order.

While you are on my website, please sign up for my online newsletter! It’s free and you’ll get lots of new and exciting ideas, plus see my newest designs & much more.

From my little Corner of the World,
Sandy

Needledeeva Nativity Shepherd – sneak peek

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2008-02-06 08:01:48. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Needledeeva Nativity Shepherd with Geese

I promised you yesterday that I’d show you the finished Needledeeva Nativity (they are about halfway down the page) figure. Here she is, the first of three shepherds. This one has geese, the one I’m working on now has a rooster, and the third has a lamb. They are some of the figures which complete this charming Nativity.

I’ve done the stitch guide for them all and now I’m stitching the last figures to complete the set. As I’ve said in the past, I love Nativities and I’m so glad to add this one to my collection. I had it up with my Christmas decorations and folks just loved it.

At TNNA we showed the first set of figures in a wooden creche, it was just too cute. We’ll be showing it that way at Dallas as well, so I’ll try to take a picture.

One thing which I have tried to do in the set is make a distinction between the three kings and their animals and the more humble Holy Family and shepherds. The main way I have done this is through my choice of threads. For the most part, the humble folk use cotton threads and simple stitches. The kings and their animals use silks, metallics, real tassels and more complex stitches. It is a subtle difference but, because threads like Vineyards Silk Shimmer are both luxurious and sparkly, it really shows in the finished pieces.

The stitch guide is unusual for a set in that it is completely integrated. The backgrounds and borders are coordinated, similar threads are used throughout, but there are lots of great stitching effects as well. These ideas, because they give life to these small figures (under 2.5″) are things you will be able to use in lots of different canvases.

The guide is available now from Needledeeva. If you are a shopowner coming to the Dallas Market (in early April) stop by and see the finished figures and the ones I’m working on.

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Needledeeva Nativity Shepherd – sneak peek

Pod Post Twinchy

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2009-01-17 18:36:05. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

John Young created this Pod Post Twinchy himself, using what he calls the “bottom up” method of turning pictures into needlepoint.

Here’s how he describes the process: ” I prefer going the “bottom up” way, using a pixel-art program like Pixen (for the mac) or GraphicsGale (for windows). I like to start with a document that’s the same number of pixels wide as the thread count of the finished canvas, then build up the design using a pencil tool, zoomed WAY in.”

The design has four layers in the program, one for each color. While you visit this picture, take a look at the finished stitching.

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