permanent-link

Originally posted 2008-06-18 14:36:34. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Social networking seems to be the big new buzzword in internet circles. You may have thought that this was only for younger people, but in fact, social networking is a wonderful idea. It’s a way to communicate with other people who love the same things you do.

Stitching Fingers is a new social network made up of people who love to stitch, no matter what format. Needlepointers, quilters, embroiderers, and fiber artists of all kinds come together there to share.

There are lots of subgroups as well, since this is a portal for all things stitchy.

A new group for needlepoint just started today and I will be starting one for Bargello in a day or two. Consider this your invitation to start socializing.

Read the original:
Needlepoint & Social Networking

Perle Cotton Giveaway

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Thanks to the generosity of a friend who is cleaning up her stash, I have a big bag of perle cotton in full skeins to give away.

There are 32 skeins of #5 in many different colors and three skeins of #3.

In order to win this giveaway, please add a comment to this post, telling me why you like perle cotton.

Entries will stay open until September 9, 2011 at midnight Pacific. I’ll announce the winner on Sunday, September 11.

Good Luck!

Originally posted here:
Perle Cotton Giveaway

International Needlework Competition

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

needlework competition cover

Country Bumpkin, the company that publishes the A-Z series of books and Inspiration magazine has recently announced an International Needlework Competition.

The theme is time and any embroidery technique can be used. The work must be original. There are three categories for embroidery submissions: all white, silk & cotton, or all wool.

There are prizes for every category.

The deadline is in April 2012 so there is plenty of time to get going.

Check out the details and download the entry form in the comptetion announcement.

More here:
International Needlework Competition

PotPourri I – Learn-a-Stitch Mini-sock

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

learn-a-stitch mini-sock needlepoint stitch sampler designed by needlepoint expert janet m. perry

For the next couple of months, the mini-socks are going to be a potpourri of stitches. The colors and threads in each sock are related, but the stitches are not.

crazy patchwork outline for needlepoint mini-sock designed by needlepoint expert janet m. perry

click on picture for full-soze outline

They also use a different outline, the Round Robin outline, pictured above.

This month’s mini-sock uses traditional Christmas colors of red and green and is designed around Caron’s Waterlilies in Holiday.

Patch 1 – Reverse Hesitation Stitch

reverse hesitation stitch a scotch stitch variation diagrammed by needlepoint expert janet m perry
Hesitation Stitch is a variation of Diagonal Scotch. In it, the smallest stitches are replaced with stitches in a different thread. It’s amazing how this little change really changes the look of the stitch. To me Hesitation Stitch always looks like oval-shaped diamonds, but Diagonal Scotch doesn’t look like either diamonds or ovals.

It’s a great stitch for almost any application.

Patch 2 – Triple Rice

triple rice stitch or rice with scotch, diagrammed by needlepoint expert janet m perry
This giant variation of Rice Stitch is so large that a Scotch Stitch (minus the smallest stitches) is used for the ties. Although it is a large stitch in a block, it doesn’t look big, just interestingly textured. The short stitches are always left out.

The left diagram shows the cross only; the right diagram shows the completed stitch.

It is also a fantastic stitch for a border, especially if you do the underlying cross in an attention-grabbing or flashy thread.

Patch 3 – Uneven Byzantine

uneven byzantine stitch variation designed and diagrammed by needlepoint expert janet m perry
Byzantine is one of my favorite stitches and I love to vary it. I’m particularly fond of variations where the steps are uneven. Depending on how different the number of stitches on each step are the look can be dramatic, subtle, or elegant. Here where the vertical step is four stitches and the horizontal is five, with a narrow Byzantine, I think the look is elegant and kind of Mid-Century Modern, looking like those broad shallow steps you find made out of flagstones in gardens.

Patch 4 – Framed Scotch

framed scotch stitch diagrammed by needlepoint expert janet m perry
When you surround a stitch with Tent Stitches, that’s called framing. Box Stitches are among the most popular to frame. Here Scotch is framed in a metallic of a different color. Make the frame in a contrasting color or texture and the frame stands out. Make it in the same thread and it is a textural variation.

This stitch looks best in large areas, but I think it would make a really cool wide border.

Patch 5 – Giant Annapolis Brick

cashmere stitch variation inspired by bricks in annapolis, designed & diagrmmed by needlepoint expert janet m perry
This Cashmere-Scotch variation is named for brickwork you see all over Annapolis, MD. In it bricks are laid so that the long and short sides alternate. It makes a neat pattern that almost looks like columns. Because the units in this variation are large, it works best in bigger areas.

More here:
PotPourri I – Learn-a-Stitch Mini-sock

January Twinchy Challenge – The Great Southwest

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2009-01-01 06:04:10. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

I’m crazy about the American Southwest. The magnificent scenery, the colors, the Native American art of all kinds, the wonderful history of it all.

It continually inspires me in so many ways.

This month it can inspire you as well, with the Twinchy Challenge. Your design could be as simple as the one pictured above, a petrogplyph (rock painting) on a “painted” background, similar to many of the rocks you see in Arizona and New Mexico.

The Twinchy at the top of this post is one from November’s gallery. Check out that post for complete instructions on how to make this Twinchy yourself.

It could be based on a Zuni fetish, Navajo jewelry, those wonderful Native American pots, the Grand Canyon. There’s so much to choose.

Have fun with this one!

Read the original:
January Twinchy Challenge – The Great Southwest

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!

See the rest here:
That’s Not Needlepoint — Book Review

White in Metallics

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Lee Needle Arts needlepoint kimono using City Needlework Silk stitched by needlepoint expert Janet M. Perry

It used to be that if you wanted white in Kreinik metallics you used 032. That color, while white, has lots of translucent threads in it, so it tends to be rather sparkly and has flecks of other colors.

A better, more clear white is 100 or, even better, 100HL. 100 is more sparkly than 100HL which has served me well as a flat white until now.

Earlier this year Kreinik introduced 5760. It is even whiter than 100. It still has some metallic flash, but is a very pure white.

In the kimono pictured here 5760 is used for all the white except for half the stitches in the flower center. The remaining stitches there use 032. The difference is subtle, but there. 5760 is a very bright white with a solid look. It attracts attention. 032 is more subtle and more translucent, probably because it picks up some of the surrounding color.

Nimble Needle in a recent post shows you 032 and 5760 side-by-side so you can see the difference in whites.

If you have been looking for the perfect thread for snow, here it is.

Link:
White in Metallics

Missoni at Target

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in accessories,Nuts About Needlepoint

You have probably seen the ads by now. Missoni, the famed Italian knitwear designer, is going to have a line that debuts at Target September 13.

But if you’re needlepointer, the exciting news is that you can see a preview of the line right now and get tons of inspiration for your needlepoint.

I found a great one at New York magazine, that has a wonderful slide show of the Missoni line in various room settings. And in the September Style Watch there is some nice coverage with some great stand-alone pictures of the products.

I love Missoni because there patterns can be translated so easily to Bargello, almost with no trouble at all. Take the outfit pictured here.

You could use the color scheme on the socks with brown every other row, to create a Bargello in this scheme using your own selection of colors.
You could use the simple zig-zag in the socks to do another Bargello in these colors or in others.
The solid bron stripe flanked by Bargello in the dress is so compelling — why not use the idea of a wide stripe with Bargello as a plan for a contemporary pillow?
You could use the hat for inspiration by flanking a stripe of narrow, colorful Bargello with a light neutral on either side.

And this is from just one of the pictures! Think of the possibilities in the pictures of the whole line.

If you need a Missoni Bargello fix now, I have designed two Missoni-inspired projects that are available free:

Missoni Wallet Insert from The Caron Collection
Missoni pillow

I’m so jazzed by this, I’m going to do some new Missoni-inspired pieces.

Read the original here:
Missoni at Target

Challenge to Finish Small UFO’s

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Come to the Point in San Rafael is having a great contest/event from now until Sept 1. Best of all it’s open to Internet shoppers as well as those who shop in person.

I’ll let the owner, Michelle, explain it to you in her own words:

Small e Project Termination e Month ber!

This new Points Program focuses on completing our stash of small UFOs. Enrollment is free, and you may sign up at any time. In order to earn the most points (and a 50-point Signing Bonus!) please enroll by September first.

Project Guidelines:

Projects must be smaller than 12 x 12

Projects may be any hand or machine sewing technique

Projects must be registered; items may be added at any time

Project themes may be of stitcher’s choice

For completed hand-worked items to receive points, a minimum of one component used in production must have been purchased from Come to the Point.

Projects do not have to be completed in September. You must, however, register for the program by 9/30 to qualify for points.

Maximum Points Possible is 1,000

Each point earns ten cents toward shop merchandise.

Signing Bonus before September first: 50
Post-9/1/2011 signing bonus: 10
Points per stash project completed: 20
Points per completed post 9/1/2011 15
In-stock canvas or kit purchase
Points per project registered: 10
Points Earned When Stitching “In house” 25/visit

The following items earn one point per dollar spent:

Threads

Self-finishing items

Special Orders

Stitching Aids

I will maintain a spreadsheet of all points accumulated.

Points may be earned from September first through December 15, and must be redeemed by 31 March 2012.

Points may not be applied toward finishing costs.

There is no cash value.

In order to receive full points, I need to see a photo of the completed stitching. Pieces do not have to be in their finished format. That applies for every participant.

I look forward to working with all of you!

Happy Stitching!
Michelle

I signed up right away. I’m hoping it’s a kick to get me finishing some stuff (like those Christmas ornaments) I hope you’ll join the fun as well.

Continue reading here:
Challenge to Finish Small UFO’s

It’s Cross Stitch, but . . .

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

You gotta love it.

lolcat cross stitch

This was cited this morning on I Can Haz Cheeseburger, otherwise known as the LOLCat blog. It’s one of my favorites in spite of how it calls black cats basement cats.

My little injured Bingley got his stitches out Monday and is feeling well enough to want to climb, which he shouldn’t do.

See the rest here:
It’s Cross Stitch, but . . .

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