Many people have trouble getting started with using beads. Much of the time, this is due to the simple fact that they can never find the exact kind of beads that they want. The answer to this problem is simply to buy beads online.
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Things to Consider When You Buy Beads Online
Originally posted 2002-12-18 07:25:56. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
Have you ever had this happen to you? The design is lovely, you’ve admired it for years, you pick threads, start stitching and it ends up looking just wrong.
Well it happened to me recently. This design is one I just love and as I stitched it I realized I had made some dreadful mistakes in my choices.
I had picked a stitch (Woven Stitch) and a thread (a metallic) which were not right for the background. The metallic was too close to one of the foreground colors and Woven Stitch is way too hard to compensate with a design which has so many tiny areas and is round. As I worked on it last night, the full impact of my misjudgment came crashing on my head.
First, are you too far along or can the mistakes be ripped out? I once ripped out half of a background (it was a smallish piece) because the dyelots of the thread didn’t match.
If you are too far along to rip out, can some aspects of the piece be done after the problem areas to minimize them or to make them go more into the background. In this piece there is lots of opportunity for backstitching and couching. I’m hoping by doing that OVER my Woven Stitch the mistakes and bad compensation won’t be as obvious. Ditto for the outside edge where I am going to couch a heavy thread to hide the uneven edges.
Could you put another layer of stitching over it? Perhaps stitching over in a much lighter thread, doing a blackwork pattern in backstitch or adding couching would mask a problem with a background color choice which is a bit off. Adding just a single strand of floss or silk over a tent stitch background would change the color slightly. Sometimes it’s only a slight change which is needed, or even a more interesting texture. Adding a strand or so of a different color or texture can be enough to do this. It deepens the layers of texture and color, making them look less flat.
Is there another way you could use the piece? This was going to be a picture inset in a circular mat — not now, I’m making it a Christmas ornament where the glittery background which would be overwhelming in a picture will nicely catch the light on the tree.
Do you have areas of foreground which are too close to the background color?
This causes “holes” in the design, where it looks as if part of the
design is missing and the background is showing through the hole.
The way to solve this problem is to add backstitching around the area so it will stand out. In my case since there is backstitching and couching all over the design, I used one of the colors I will be using for backstitching which isn’t at all close to the color.
But this is a bold method of doing backstitching. A more subtle
approach would be to use a similar color of floss a shade or two
darker. This will hardly be noticed by the eye, but will make the
problem area look more defined. If you are familiar with counted
cross stitch, this technique is used all the time, partly because the stitches seem to “melt” into the fabric. In needlepoint this isn’t needed often because the stitches are more defined. But you can use this technique to add definition to needlepoint.
For a really bold outline, use whipped backstitch where a second thread is wound around the first.
Because needlepoint stitches have a definite slant, making curved lines can be a problem and this design had lots of them, going in all directions. Couching a single line of thread makes these curves look more natural, narrower and solid. When couching, use a slightly thicker thread than you would use for stitching the line and couch with a matching color. I like to use three strands of Pebbly Perle as the thread to be couched and the fourth strand as the couching thread. Loop your thread over the thread to be couched gently, don’t make the thread pucker. Add a stitch wherever you think it needs support, these stitches should be closer together on curves.
There are many threads out there which won’t hold up to going through canvas, but by couching you can use many of them.
Always make couching the last step in the process, because it is more delicate, this way your stitches won’t mess up the couching. And because it will lay on top of the other stitching, you can direct it more easily.
All in all I am delighted with the way this piece turned out.
Related posts:
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Salvaging Stitching Disasters in the Making
Sunset needlepoint kit found on eBay
Back in the 1970′s there were several companies, Jiffy and Sunset most notably but lots of others too, that made delightful small needlepoint kits. You could buy them everywhere from department stores to needlepoint shops. Many people, myself included, learned to stitch on these kits, and they still often show up on eBay. In addition, there are still companies making these small kits today.
They are a fun, retro way to create needlepoint.
But . . .
Although the quality of the thread is good and the designs are great, they often have poor quality canvas with designs that aren’t printed straight. I got a question recently from Jeanne who asked about this problem and how to solve it. She has allowed me to share my answer with you.
Jiffy needlepoint kit found on eBay
These canvases are screen printed, and because canvas is not always straight, especially the inexpensive canvas used in these kits, they usually are off.
But since you are covering the canvas with your stitching you fix this as you stitch.
First look for any straight lines in the design, they should always go on one single thread. Often they do not, so pick one and stitch the line on that thread.
Just doing this will go a long way towards squaring up the design.
But it doesn’t solve the problem of curves, nor of intersections where more than one color is printed on the canvas, for these you need to make some decisions.
With the intersections printed in more than one color, stitch these last in any area and then pick one of the colors based on how you think the line should go. For example with a cat’s stripe, one color would make the stripe wider, the other will make the “background” wider. Pick the one you like better. Unlike with straight lines, rarely is one more correct.
With curves, you just need to put in the stitch, then the next stitch and check it. If it jags out or in when you look at it as you are stitching, it should not be that color. If it looks OK as you stitch
from time to time as you stitch a curve, hold it further away to check. Sometimes, what looks OK as you stitch doesn’t look OK at a viewing distance.
Look at the printed edges and borders. These should always be straight, going along one canvas thread.
Pick one of the threads to be the side and make sure the border or edges run straight along that thread. Uneven edges is something I’ve found even in very expensive kits, so it’s one thing I always check.
I have a friend who collects these charming kits. They are such a fun way to pursue needlepoint.
Related posts:
Read more:
Stitching the Inexpensive Kit
I have had this conversation with others before. As I mostly use my SLR, I don’t think too much about the time delay. But on a recent holiday with my family in Melbourne, I used Teddy’s point and click the entire time, and suddenly realized what the problem was.
View post:
Better Photos With a Point and Click Camera – Time Delay
Originally posted 2007-03-23 06:07:20. Republished by Blog Post Promoter
Every time I need to make a curved line on a needlepoint canvas, this is how I feel.
And of course, since needlepoint canvas is a grid, it’s a very appropriate feeling.
But recently I’ve solved the problem with two easy stitched which make lovely curved lines which stand up prettily from the canvas.
Backstitch is fine enough that you can follow a curve, and whipping the stitch (wrapping it) does several things. It turns the choppy Backstitch line into a smooth on. It creates curves instead of bumps. Finally it tightens the stitch making it stand up some from the canvas.
It’s simple to do. Begin by making a line of Backstitch. All stitches should go over at least two threads. The result will be a bumpy line with the stitches clearly defined. It doesn’t look nice at all.
That’s correct.
The second step is to wrap the line of stitches. I usually use the same thread, although if you want the wrapping to show up, you can use a different thread.
Begin at one end of the line. Bring your needle up just to one side of the first stitch. Without re-entering the canvas bring the needle over the stitch to the other side and then back under the stitch to the first side of the second stitch. This wraps the stitch.
Continue in the way, wrapping each stitch. Bring the needle back into the canvas only at the end of the line. It creates the prettiest seamless line.
It’s also great for adding veins to leaves, outlines, or for turning a bumpy circle of another stitch into a smooth curve
I love doing it because every time I make this stitch it’s a tiny little surprise of loveliness. I was thinking about it yesterday because I’m working on the stitch guide for this canvas from Happy Heart. I’m also stitching the model. The stems of the tulips (and the letters) are in Whipped Backstitch. As I was stitching, I was so happy as I finished each stem, they are so very pretty.
Keep watching, when I get a bit further along I’ll post a picture of the canvas.
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Round Pegs in Square Holes
black & white canvas in action
This canvas is tweeded. One direction has black threads, the other white. While the individual threads are the same as mono canvas, the woven effect is not and therein lies the problem. As you an see from the picture the white threads are more prominent.
While that is not a bad thing for the finished effect it makes stitching and counting extremely difficult. I felt as if the holes in the canvas “melted” into the white threads. And, although I counted threads and the stitches are correct, much of the time I felt as if my stitches were not true.
Add to this the problem that you can’t put a dark cloth or a light cloth under it to see and you have a canvas not for the faint of heart.
Even so, the finished effect is wonderful, so I would seek out painted canvases thaat use it as the background.
Related posts:
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Black and White Canvas – Product Review
sample of handwriting
Begin by enlarging the handwriting or font to the size you want. If you are working with a person’s actual handwriting, you might look for a font which is similar. Enlarging the letters will make it easier to determine if the font or handwriting will actually work. Make your test the actual text you want to use.
Now do a little test by laying over the needlepoint canvas you want to use onto the letters. Look at it and evaluate it as needlepoint. Ask yourself some questions: is each letter you need distinct and different from the other letters? Are the thin strokes too thin to be rendered as stitches? Are there areas that will look like blobs when they are stitched?
If the answer to all of these questions is no, then you can skip immediately to putting the letters on canvas.
If the answer to any of these questions was yes, you need to do some evaluation before continuing. If the letters aren’t distinct or blobby, can you make them larger? Do this and try again? Did that solve the problem? If it did then move forward. If it did not, continue the evaluation.
Do the thin strokes disappear? Think about whether you can make them wider without making thick and thin strokes the same width. If you can’t, you should look for another font or method. A combination of Whipped Backstitch, Whipped Double Backstitch and Whipped Chain Stitch might solve this problem.
Are some of the lines dotted? You can solve this problem by manipulating stitch direction as we discussed last week, but it is good, but not necessary, to know this in advance.
If, in spite of all of this, the font still doesn’t work, you might look around for another font.
You have letters you like, you know how they will work on canvas and you know the size they need to be. Now you are ready to transfer the design to canvas. For this you will need a permanent, waterproof or dye-based marker with a very fine point. I like to use Pigma Microns in brown because they are very fine and the brown will show through thread a little less.
Put your printed lettering under the canvas. Align the canvas so that the base of a line of letters is along one thread of canvas. If it is, tape both to the table. If it is not, you will need to be moving the canvas so that the base line will be straight. You will need to check this after each letter and adjust the canvas. That is important for goo-looking needlepoint.
If a letter is distinct and not blobby, trace it onto canvas as it is. Trace the outline of the letter first, then color in the interior.
If a letter is blobby, look to thin out the blobs by removing some stitches. Make the loop more open, collapse a crossing of lines into a thinner area. You can do this by not tracing the outlines of the blobs and then coloring intersection by intersection.
If letters aren’t distinct, think about both the handwriting and the purpose of the needlepoint. Many people’s handwriting doesn’t have distinguishable letters. If your purpose is to render the handwriting, I wouldn’t worry about this, If the purpose is to make something readable to people who don’t know the hand, then look to making alight changes in shape to make letters distinct.
While this is not the easiest process in the world, go slowly and the end result will be a unique piece of needlepoint you designed yourself.
Related posts:
Read more:
Can You Turn Handwriting into Needlepoint?
I have now completed searching the blog for problems, and none have been found. According to the support people I’ve talked to, it is most likely a problem with IE or Windows. The last tech I talked to said he sees only about 40% compliance with IE being able to view sites properly.
I am going to be restoring the site from last week’s back-up and reposting the article since then.
I’m hoping that will fix the problem.
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Blog Problems Update
Some of you have been having difficulties seeing the blog. I haven’t been able to replicate them, but I’m working to fix the problem.
The difficulties seem to be confined to Explorer 7. They are not appearing in Safari, FireFox or other versions of Explorer.
So my initial advice is to try one of those browsers if you are having problems.
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Blog Problems
Starting sometime yesterday (August 13) afternoon, my blog was hacked. I’m working to get to the bottom of the problem, and think I have found them all.
We have restored the blog framework from as backup and I’m cleaning things out.
I will leave this post up until all is fixed and resume posting Monday.
I will notify subscribers to my newsletter and anyone else who would like to know when all is well, via email. If you do not already subscribe to the newsletter and want to know, please email me at napaneedlepoint @ gmail . com and remember to remove all spaces.
I will be posting updates as I work on this problem.
Thanks for your patience and support.
UPDATE: 2:30 pdt 8/14/09 – I have identified a possible problem post and deleted it. I am requesting Google check the site for problems again shortly (have to go to the other computer to do that).
UPDATE: 210:45 pdt 8/14/09 – Google had retested the site and removed the block, back to normal tomorrow morning.
Continue reading here:
ALERT! This Blog Has Been Hacked!
