stash-busting

Needlepoint a Jack o’Lantern Face – Quick Project

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Halloween,Nuts About Needlepoint

You can start today and have a fantastic Halloween decoration done in time for trick or treaters.

We’ll go through, step by step, everything you need to make your own delightful Halloween picture.

You can make this project inexpensively by using canvas and threads from your stash. A dollar store frame finishes it up.

You’ll need:

  • 46 dark or black frame from dollar store
  • 86 square of 13 or 14 mesh mono needlepoint canvas
  • black metallic thread (model uses Krienik braid)
  • two shades of orange thread in contrasting textures (model uses Silk & Ivory and Frosty Rays from Rainbow Gallery)
  • black extra fine Pigma micron
  • black or gray fabric marker
  • orange fabric marker
  • stretcher bars to fit canvas

Begin by using the paper that comes with the frame to trace a template for the picture. Place the paper on your canvas and draw along a canvas line two threads outside the paper using the extra fine marker. Needlepoint takes up some of the canvas, so you need the extra so no canvas will show.

The next step is the fun part. Right now, the Web is full or spooky, charming, cute, and even elegant templates for carving pumpkins. Martha Stewart has tons of ideas, many inspired by vintage designs and some kids designs that would be lovely needlepoint. A Google image search for pumpkin carving templates yielded lots of designs in all kinds of styles. Another Google search on Jack o’Lantern face gave lots of more traditional looks.

Once you have found your face, use a photocopier or image-editing software to make the design about 3″ by 5″ so it will fit nicely into your frame. Place this under your needlepoint canvas and use your black marker to trace the design. Remove the paper and color the face in using the wider black or gray marker. You can see my colored canvas below.

jack o'lantern needlepoint picture from janet perry

Now mark the background for stripes. Find the middle of the canvas and draw a line four threads to either side of it. Now mark every ninth thread to the sides.

Let dry overnight.

To prevent canvas show through, use the orange marker to color the canvas. Let dry over night.

Mount the needlepoint onto stretcher bars.

Now you are ready to begin stitching. Stitch the face in Basketweave using the black thread.


Once the face (or other “carved” design is stitched, stitch the background, alternating stitches and threads. I used Bernadette, pictured above, a Diagonal Cashmere variation, and Reverse Vertical Triple Diagonal Brick (pictured below).

When it’s stitched and blocked if you didn’t use stretcher bars, trim to 4 threads beyond the stitching, Cut the corners diagonally to reduce bulk. Fold needlepoint over cardboard that came with frame. Fit into frame. If it is too bulky to close, remove the glass and close the frame.

This project is part of FaveCrafts October bloghop. Click on the link to learn about the other participating projects and tutorials.

A delightful Halloween decoration is yours! Watch for posts updating my progress on this project!

Related posts:

  1. Stash Busting Project from Create Needlepoint
  2. The Surprise Project
  3. Stitching on Vacation
  4. Stitch your Stash around the World — Project Update
  5. Needlepoint and Fatigue

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Needlepoint a Jack o’Lantern Face – Quick Project

Stitch your Stash Around the World Update

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2008-09-14 05:35:10. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Barbara has posted the eighth block on this sampler. It’s Interlocking Gobelin, one of my favorite stitches.

If you want to see the entire series of posts together, check here.

I’m also happy to report that even though I didn’t cut my canvas big enough to do her entire plan (it’s pictured in this post). With some fudging, I’m only going to be one set of blocks short, so this is good.

A second post, has information about when you can use these stitches in your own needlepoint.

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  1. Stitch your Stash around the World — Project Update
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Stitch your Stash Around the World Update

Stitch your Stash – My Colors

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2008-08-11 18:51:25. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Palette of threads for Stitch your Stash

I finally got around to getting this project in gear. I cut the canvas this morning. Based on Barbara’s block size, it’s about 9″ square on 18 mesh and a little over 11″ square on 14 mesh.

I’m using 18 mesh.

I was going to use Silk & Ivory, but decided on using Gloriana’s Lorikeet,a simply stunning wool, because it’s hand-dyed, so has a lovely variation in color. Because it has nine strands in a bundle, it’s versatile as well.

I want this to work with our beach glass + coral color palette for the new house, so I went with aqua for colors 1 & 2 (they will also be 7 & 8). I picked corals for colors 3-5 and a very dark gray for the neutral.

The colors are:
1 & 7: Jewel Turquoise Pastel (020W1)
2 & 8: Tropical Sea (019W3)
3: Cinnamon Pastel (151W1)
4: Pomegranate (139W3)
5: Cinnamon Light (151W2)
6: Charcoal (001W3)

You can see them spread out in the picture above. Gloriana can be found (with superb on-line color cards) at: http://www.glorianathreads.com/.


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Stitch your Stash – My Colors

Needlepoint Catch Up

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2009-03-15 06:14:12. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Sometimes you realize you have started just too many projects. The lure of the newest challenge, the new color of thread or that great color combination is just too great and so you start another project.

That’s been me lately.

As a result, I haven’t been good about finishing what I’ve begun awhile ago.

So yesterday I decided that this week will be needlepoint catch up week. I’m going to:

I may only finish one or two of these this week, but I am going to feel so good when it’s done.


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Continued here:
Needlepoint Catch Up

Needle Holders

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

cat tin from tinytins on etsy

cat tin from tinytins on etsy


When it comes to needles I have a dilemma. I have lots of them and like to carry them with my projects. But I don’t like round needlecases. For me they either have tops that fall off or are too small. Over the years I have tried many different things to hold my needles, but have mostly been dissatisfied.

One, a recycled mint tin, had a hole in an odd place, so you couldn’t get the needles out. Another, a pill case, is too short for the 22 needles I like. The one I’m using now has top and bottom joined, but not completely, so the needles get stuck in it.

As a result, I’m on the lookout for a new needlecase. So I was delighted when I found these delightful metal tins from tinytins on etsy. Right now there are about 100 tins in the shop. I am in love with this little piece of art for my stitching.

The tins come in several shapes and sizes, suitable for holding lots of things. The one I bought, pictured above, is about the size of a tiny Altoids tin. They also come with a wide variety of designs, including needles, buttons, braces monsters (for rubberbands), guitar picks, and lots more.

The designs are done in vinyl, not inkjet labels, and are on metal tins.

A small, adorable and individual enhancement to your stitching accessories.


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Needle Holders

Needlepoint & Moving

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2008-12-26 19:51:40. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

Probably at some time in your life you will have to move. Both my DH and I have moved rarely in our lives (once for him before we married, twice for me until I moved out here), so doing this is a BIG DEAL.

It’s also a big deal because I have lots of needlepoint stuff. Not only is it my work, it is also my passion and, like most of us, I have lots of stash.

If it were a perfect world, the movers would come and magically pack everything one day and set it up in the new house the next day. But this magic costs big bucks and so we are doing most of the packing ourselves.

Over the summer most of my needlework books got packed, so I only have about two boxes of them left out. I’m going to pack them except for Stitches to Go, since it is pretty small.

The canvases and projects in stash went into a box over the weekend, as did all the finishing supplies, except the one for the project on deadline. That was easy as well.

Now we come to the hard stuff, the thread and the WIPs. I decided the only way I could manage was by making a list of projects to work on until about Jan 9 (I hope I’m at least somewhat set up by then) and they all needed to fit into one box.

Everything else in my pile goes into boxes to be unpacked later.

My list includes the projects on immediate and upcoming deadlines (3 things), some small projects (3 things), some things I’m starting (2 things), and some things I’m working on (2 things). For the last couple of weeks I’ve been trying to finish things up and that’s been successful, so those are out of the way.

Each of these projects is in a project bag (I packed those away over the weekend as well, on stretcher bars and has the thread pulled.

This way I will be able to pack up the threads as soon as I get the deadline projects done this week, my stretcher bars, my tools I’m not using, and most of my thread.

I won’t worry about this, just about the utter chaos my house is in, and can still stitch without problems.

Just in case though, I’m using clear plastic bins for storing the stash and it’s going on the moving truck.

For everything in my pile of projects to work on


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Continued here:
Needlepoint & Moving

The Urban Needlepointer’s Tool Kit

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2008-12-01 09:49:44. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

I’m reading a lovely book, The Gentle Art of Domesticity by Jane Brocket. The last chapter, on Travel, has an article about her Urban Knitters Survival Kit. It occurred to me that needlepointers should have the same.

The best thing would be to tuck all this up into a neat tin, but you could also, as I do, put the bits and pieces into the current project bag. Most of these things I have, but some I need to add to my kit.

  • Needles and storage for same. I used to run out of needles often. Now I carry them all with me, all the time. Protected in a pretty, secure case. My favorite cases are those “silk” lipstick cases. They have hard shells, snap shut and are small.
  • Needle threaders. I find as I get older these are more and more indispensible. I have a little square plastic box which holds three of them, so I won’t run out.
  • Scissors with point protectors. The TSA changes these rules, but currently short blade scissors are allowed on planes. I like one with large finger holes and I use a point protector to keep the blade from sticking me or poking through the bag.
  • Tweezers. You can sometimes find in cosmetic kits, very tiny (less than 2″) tweezers. Put one of these into your kit for pulling out stitches.
  • Note pad and pen. You never know when inspiration will strike and a pretty, thin notebook is perfect for making sketches or taking down notes.
  • Magnet. Two pretty magnets (I decorate them with buttons) attached to each other with a thin ribbon are perfect for holding your needle.

Other nice but not necessary things include a tape measure, stitch counters or markers, and a small size stitch dictionary, like SuZy’s Portable Stitches or Stitches to Go. You might also want, although it’s bigger, a magnifier and/or light.

With this kit and a small, portable project, you can needlepoint anywhere.


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The Urban Needlepointer’s Tool Kit

Pesky Needlepoint Project?

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

Originally posted 2006-11-10 07:13:55. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

This fantastic tip comes from Caela Conn Tyler and was posted by Gini Armstrong on the ANG list. The ANG list is a fantastic resource for discussion and information about needlepoint and is hosted by the American Needlepoint Guild (http://www.needlepoint.org). It’s a must read!

Gini told us that “At a pilot class early this year, Caela Conn Tyler mentioned a great way to get through a long project. She suggested doing 2 stitching lengths each day. That also sounds like a great way to work off UFOs. Two lengths is a manageable amount and by breaking the project into those manageable bites, it doesn’t seem so overwhelming. Caela used that example to share how she’d spent less than a year to stitch a large Christmas stocking that had been in her “collection” for some years.”

Caela added that doing this is part of morning routine. She stitched two lengths after he coffee and before starting the “official” part of the day. Doing this allows her time to work on her personal projects.

Caela is a marvelous stitchers and teacher (I’ve taken some great classes from her). A stocking she stitched took first place in the professional non-original at the AN Exemplary in 2006. You can see it at NAN’s website (http://www.needleart.org). She also received a Lifetime Achievement Award from NAN in March.

I love this idea and am going to put it to use on those UFO’s.


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Pesky Needlepoint Project?

Stash Busting Tool – Hazel Rose Looms

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint

hazel rose looms

Looms in different sizes from Hazel Rose


In my secret life (a one sans cats) I weave, so imagine my delight in the Hazel Rose looms (pictured here). These simple looms come in several different shapes. They are a type of loom called continuous weave and they are one of the simplest looms out there. If you have tried to weave before and been put off by warping, shuttles, weaving diagrams or harnesses, this is a great start. If you have tons of stash, especially in uncut skeins, this is stash busting project perfection.

The loom sent to me for testing was the 4″ square loom in walnut. The looms are made from different hardwoods and come if different shapes and sizes. Looms, accessories, books, and replacement parts can all be ordered through the site.

There is plenty of information and ideas on the site, including instructional videos, PDFs, a gallery of projects from all over, and free project patterns.

While this is a fun idea and a well-made product, for needlepointers it poses some challenges. First off we are used to several things in our stitching: blunt short needles and thread lengths about 18″-24″. Although the needle is blunt, that’s where the similarity ends.

The needle used here is quite long, about 6″. To set up the loom you will need to use a continuous length of thread. To get this kind of length in needlepoint threads you will need to wind them on a spool or bobbin. If you are using knitting yarns look for a center pull skein (often called a doughnut or pancake by knitters).

Once the loom is threaded you will be able to wind off and cut enough yarn to weave. Even so, the lengths are great enough that I felt uncomfortable and awkward pulling the yarn through.

There are several ways to use the Multi-Loom, including weaving diamond patches. I’m going to do some more exploring. It has real potential as a way of busting your stash, but, for needlepointers, will take awhile to learn. This is an interesting product, well worth the effort to learn it.


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Stash Busting Tool – Hazel Rose Looms

Birthday Plaid for Needlepoint or Cross Stitch Cyberclass

by NutsAboutNeedlepoint

in Nuts About Needlepoint


Personal, or birthday, plaids are a unique way to make a needlework accessory for yourself or as a gift. As part of Counted Wishes, beginning Feb. 1 I will be teaching a Cyberclass on making these plaids as a wallet insert.

The class can be done in needlepoint or cross stitch (the cross stitch insert is pictured above). In the three-lesson class you will learn how to create your plaid and arrange colors for it, how to design the plaid, stitching the plaid, and how to finish it easily to fit into a wallet.

This delightful class is only $20. and will include a free ebook copy of my popular project pack, Birthday Plaid Mini-sock (value $10).

You can register for the class via PayPal.

All registrants will be added to a private Yahoo group for the class.


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