CLARA is Going to TNNA

 

Recently I finished the stitch guide for Sandra Gilmore's lovely canvas called CLARA, a piece I've been in love with for a while now.  This canvas is definitely a stitcher's showcase for all sorts of textures and threads: I used soft Bella Lusso merino wool mixed with fuzzy Wisper for the knit cap, coat and collar; slightly shiny rayon Neon Rays for the hair; #5 pearl cottons for the holly; and Very Velvet for the corsage ribbon.  Here's a detail photo:

CLARA's face was tent stitched in DMC floss colors, specifically chosen by Sandra for her designs. (Did you know your stitchery store can order a set of DMC floss threads called "Sandra's Skin Colors" from FLEUR DE PARIS, Sandra's distributor?  If you have a lot of Sandra's canvases in your stash, you might want to check it out...)

I love, love, love looking at CLARA, and am so glad I finally stitched her up this Christmas, so she matches the other canvas in the series called NUTCRACKER (which I created a stitch guide for a few years ago).  Remember him?

Both use the same colors and stitch patterns in the background and around the borders.

I've sent my CLARA model off to FLEUR DE PARIS, so they can show her off in their booth at the 2017 TNNA show in San Jose, CA next weekend.  If you're going to the show, please stop by and visit with CLARA and the fun folks at FLEUR!

Stitchers:  If you are interested in the stitch guide as well as the canvas, please contact your local stitchery store so they can order them for you.  If you just would like a stitch guide, I have them available on my website.

I Love SNAPDRAGONS!

 

I just finished a new stitch guide this week, called "SNAPDRAGONS", to accompany Sandra Gilmore's painted canvas of the same name.  The minute I saw this smaller canvas (8"x 10" on 18 ct. canvas) I was smitten.  I love snapdragons and this lush bouquet had me grinning with pleasure.  Then there are all the different vases and dishes -- a china lovers delight! 

This was a pretty straight-forward canvas to figure out and stitch: the china is all tent stitched (or basketweave stitched where possible); the blue vase is also tent stitched in sparkly metallic ribbon threads; the cream vase uses shiny ribbon thread as well, but the ribs are slightly padded to create a more realistic raised texture.  For a satin sheen, I used more rayon ribbon thread for the chair fabric, as well as on the gold chair back.  I found a simple blackwork pattern to use on the wallpaper stripes, as well as a simple diagonal blackwork pattern for the table/tablecloth.  Here's look at the canvas up-close:

The last things I stitched were the bouquets of flowers.  The white roses gave me a chance to try a technique I used on the climbing roses on NANTUCKET: I used white Ribbon Floss and instead of laying each stitch flat, I deliberately twisted the thread and laid it with a soft twisting curl on the canvas, then couched the curve in place with a soft stitch of the same ribbon thread.  Working a bunch of those stitches created the effect of tightly furled roses, and overall I'm very pleased with the effect.

 

To tackle the masses of pink snapdragons, I  tent stitched practically the whole bouquet, from the darkest colors to the lightest; then went back around and added irregular diagonal satin stitched petals wherever I could figure out where to put them - concentrating mostly on the lightest pink colors, to give the illusion of depth in this shallow tablescape.

If you're smitten with this wonderful painted canvas by Sandra Gilmore, you might want to order it from your favorite needlepoint store, who can order the canvas and guide from FLEUR DE PARIS (Sandra's distributor).  I have just the stitch guide available on my website, if you already have the canvas and are inspired to start stitching! 

Friday Flowers: Stitched Nasturtiums

One wonderful way to keep summer in your heart all year long is to stitch a bouquet of your favorite flowers.  A Sandra Gilmore canvas I fell in love with last year was the absolutely stunning FLEUR FETE, which features a huge bouquet of spicy nasturtiums.  The canvas celebrates Fleur de Paris' 40th anniversary, with nasturtiums (the 40th flower) and a ruby (the 40th stone)....

 It's a large canvas - 15" x 17" - and ahem, it took awhile to get it completely stitched.  Not that the stitching was hard; the stitches were actually very easy, but there was so much canvas to fill!  Lots of wooden table (done with blended threads), lots of background (done in a large, variegated blackwork pattern), and LOTS of different colored nasturtiums to stitch!  Here's a look at the flowers up close:

I decided to work all the leaves in matte DMC Floche, and all the flowers are done with DMC Floss.  I selectively chose some of the petals to pad, while most of them were done in simple diagonal satin stitch.

The antique vase, shown above, was stitched in simple tent/basketweave stitch, but worked entirely with metallic ribbon threads (Ribbon Floss and Neon Rays+)  to replicate a shimmery antique vase.  Then I went back on top and padded just a few of the vase lines to delineate the sunflower motif.

The last thing I stitched was the big ruby jewel in the lower left corner of the vase.  I debated whether to attempt it in beads, but there were soooo many colors in the ruby I chickened out decided against it, and instead worked it all in plain tent stitch, but using extra sparkly Kreinik 1/16th Ribbons.  And I'm glad I did -- it ended up looking surprisingly sparkly and remarkably like beads, so it turned out great!

So if you love nasturtiums as much as I do, and would like to have a bouquet hanging in your house all year round, please consider Sandra Gilmore's gorgeous FLEUR FETE painted canvas, as well as my new stitch guide (which is now available on my website).  In any event, both of those items can be ordered for you from your local stitchery store, so call them to get more information!

HAPPY FRIDAY!

Shakin' Up a Little Snow

Woo Hoo!!  I've just finished working on a new holiday stitch guide, called SNOWGLOBE 1, by Sandra Gilmore.  After the large FALL SPLENDOR piece I stitched last month, this was very, very fun because it was small (8"x 9") and didn't require any fancy stitches!  Here's a peek up close:

I used a blackwork pattern for the table area, using a subtle variegated Watercolours thread; and I also padded some of the pedestal rows stitched with DMC #8 pearl cotton to add a bit more dimension.  As for everything else, I used lots of metallics for lots of sparkle (which, alas, you can't see in any of the photos).  The snowglobe area was all done in tent stitch, but with a blended needle of floss and opalescent Kreinik blending filament.  The globe really does sparkle like a snowy snowglobe should!  And while my model has a more antique-y gold look, I've also included thread options for a pure snow white effect...

If you love snowglobes (and let's face it, who doesn't?) and want a fun little project to keep you merry and bright throughout the holiday season, this may be the canvas for you.  I left my model flat for framing, but it sure would be cute to have it finished as a standup piece, don't you think?

 Please contact your local stitchery store for ordering the Sandra Gilmore canvas called SNOWGLOBE 1, along with my stitch guide, from our distributor, FLEUR DE PARIS.  And just so you know, the stitch guide is available on my website, too....

Fall Splendor

Well, here it is.... my largest finished painted canvas piece to date, FALL SPLENDOR by Sandra Gilmore.

It's been painted on the darker sandstone canvas, so it has a lovely aged parchment look to it; and with the "zig zag" border I designed for this piece, it measures 15" x 15".  Here's a peek at the variegated outer border:

What the photo doesn't really show you is that the entire floral pattern in the background is worked in simple Tent Stitch, using a glitzy Kreinik #8 Braid (6 spools, to be exact!), while the rest of the sandstone canvas is left unstitched.  Then for the leaves, I wanted something very simple (to show off all the colors) and decided to use long Straight Stitches.  Surprisingly fast, fun and non-stressful (well, if you don't count concentrating on keeping the long stitches flat, smooth and untwisted), it really was a joy to stitch all the different types of leaves in 5 ply of Splendor silks.

As this big leaf photo shows, just by changing the stitch directions in certain areas of the leaves, you can create surprising color changes, because the light hits the stitches in different ways....

Those red berries and fat acorns are padded and stitched with a shiny rayon ribbon, just to provide additional texture and surprise to the piece. (The padded elements are a bit smushed in the photos, since they're smack up against the scanner bed, but trust me, they are nice and poofy in real life.)

This canvas was an absolute joy to stitch, and I plan to enjoy looking at it all autumn long.

If you are hankering for an elegant fall piece, please contact your favorite stitchery store so they can order you both the FALL SPLENDOR painted canvas and stitch guide from my friends at FLEUR DE PARIS.  The stitch guide is also available on my website. 

HAPPY FALL FRIDAY!

WHOOOOO Loves Halloween???

Do you??
Have you been working on any Halloween projects this month?
I've been super busy stitching on several autumn designs and painted canvases this season.  I showed you my new HALLOWEEN RIBBONS in my last post; it was soooo fun to sneak in some counted canvaswork in-between all these delicious new Sandra Gilmore canvases I've been playing with.

And now I'm delighted to share my next stitch guide with you --  he's called OLIVER, by Sandra Gilmore.

What a HOOT!!  And isn't he cute?  I mean, really...  He's a smallish canvas (10" x 10") , with a handful of easy stitches, so it worked up pretty fast.  I really, really wanted a variegated background for Oliver, so I changed the plain green stripes to a woodsy variegated thread with a woven brown border (although the stitch guide also gives solid color options as well).

Oliver's body and feathers are also done in variegated threads, to give him a more realistic look to his feathers. His eyes and beak are padded (although they got a bit smushed in the scanner!).  And the "Happy Halloween" text is tent stitched with one of those yummy variegated Painter's Threads I've been eager to try; here it gives a nice rich shimmer of greens and browns to the sign.

I like OLIVER a lot.... especially because his Halloween message will be nice to display around the house all autumn, and not just for that big purple & orange day!  If you love owls and Halloween, this could be your next fun project...  Please visit my website for more information on this new OLIVER stitch guide!

Back At the Beach (again)...

I promised you a look at my finished new canvas (and the resulting stitch guide)....

          so here it is -- SHELLSCAPE, by Sandra Gilmore:

This was soooo fun to work on; and very different from the stuff I usually stitch!

There are lots of areas that need to be done in Tent/Basketweave Stitch, but I truly

enjoyed the simplicity of those sections.  Although I did jazz it up a bit

by using lots of "blended needle" work -- mixing thread types or colors, to add

subtle depth and texture to the large flat areas like the dunes, sea, and clouds....

And I used a LOT of variegated threads -- for the sea, sand, borders, shells, coral  -- 

well, almost everything!  Even the table ledge with its enlarged blackwork pattern is done 

with a "driftwood" looking variegated #8 pearl cotton by ThreadworX.

And you can see that most of the items are slightly padded as well.  I was surprised how fun 

the conch shell was to pad and stitch; if you look closely you can see that I used 

two variegated peachy threads for the outer conch shell - the lighter one on the top half,

 and the slightly darker one on the lower half:

I left the big white flowers for last, and I'm very glad I did.  Barbara Elmore, a designer 

who I consider to be the Queen of Embellishment, was kind enough to send me a sample

of a new ribbon she is marketing (through Sundance Designs) called RETRO RIBBON.

She suggested I give it a try for my floppy flowers -- and 

she was soooo right -- it was perfect!!

The 5/8" wide couture ribbon really mimicked the crinkly petals of a mantilla poppy; 

and I very carefully flattened, twisted or poofed each petal in place, before tacking them 

down with small couching stitches.  The ribbon also has a slightly transparent texture, 

so the yellow painted canvas showed through enough to create an interesting effect 

as well...  I was so impressed with the finished look of the flowers, that I asked Barbara 

to send me a bit of green RETRO RIBBON to add a few dimensional leaves!

So if you want to celebrate the end of a lovely summer

or perhaps you just love a good beach canvas,

please contact your local stitchery store to get this SHELLSCAPE 

canvas and stitch guide from FLEUR DE PARIS.

You can also order just the stitch guide from my website....

HAPPY END OF SUMMER, STITCHERS!

Celebrate July!

It's time to share my latest and newest stitch guide with you.... 

and it's perfect for a warm day in July:

PATRIOTIC 

by

Sandra Gilmore

This was fun to stitch, with lots of easy areas filled with simple stitches.

I padded the bunting and flag (with Splendor silks over #5 pearl cotton), to enhance the rippling effect:

And the masses of flowers are created by lots of French Knots, and other simple stitch combinations:

All in all, it was the perfect canvas to be stitching in the summer!

If you're interested in this new stitch guide for PATRIOTIC, please visit my website:

www.laurajperindesigns.net

or contact your local stitchery store for ordering the painted canvas and stitch guide together 

from Fleur de Paris in Southern California.

My Newest Stitch Guide

Before winter recedes completely from our memory, I want to share my latest stitch guide with you: HEY YA! by Sandra Gilmore: 
 

  
A while ago, one of the stitchers at Fleur de Paris asked me if I would be interested in doing a stitch guide for this canvas, and when I saw how cute it was, I totally agreed to stitch it up...  This little canvas (only 8.25" x 9.25") was so fun, and the snowman so jolly that I just couldn't resist!

I used lots of the shiny, shimmery Ribbon Floss on this piece -- it's everywhere: the snowman, the hat, the face, the border... plus I used the soft merino wool Bella Lusso for his scarf and mittens; and I couldn't resist sneaking in some boucle thread for the small evergreen tree in his arm.  I used a "swirly sky" background pattern, and had lots of fun coming up with a fun (and easy) border treatment:

So, if you want to get an early start on NEXT WINTER'S projects, this might be a fun one to add to your stash!

If you are interested in getting only the HEY YA! stitch guide, please visit my website: www.laurajperindesigns.net.  If you want to purchase the stitch guide along with the canvas, please contact your local stitchery store so they can order them both for you....

A New Canvas to Play With!

Don't you just LOVE getting a brand-new canvas, 

and then mounting it on stretcher bars,

 pulling threads for it, deciding what color and stitches go where, 

and then jumping head first into a new project?

Yeah, me too.....

Even when I have a half-dozen (or more) projects underway

and needing some much-needed attention:

Still, sometimes you just have to start something new

(and hope it jump-starts your stitching excitement 

back to the other pieces as well; you know what I mean, don't you?):

This is a new Sandra Gilmore piece called "SHELLSCAPE".  When I received it, I was surprised at how small it was, considering all the detailed objects in the scene -- it's actually 10" x 10.5" on 18 ct. canvas, which is not too large and not too small.  Perfect, in fact!

Before I could even consider stitching, I desperately needed some beachy/seashelly colored threads.  So I ordered an assortment of variegated threads from ThreadworX, and they arrived last week.  Because the canvas was smaller than I imagined, I realized #5 pearl cottons would just be too big or too fat for the piece.  So I ordered lots of variegated #8 pearl and floss threads, hoping to mix and match them as I began stitching.

Woo Hoo! Now the fun begins...

I'm looking forward to starting on this canvas.  I'll begin working from the background forward: doing the window frames (in a variegated driftwood color) and then creating a soothing border (also in driftwood colors), and then have lots of serene tent stitching for the water and sand in the background areas (also in soft variegated threads).  So, stay tuned for my SHELLSCAPE stitching adventure....  

...(and yes, I will be doing a stitch guide for this canvas, but no, I have no idea when it will be finished/available...)

A New Floral Stitch Guide

Another model I sent to the TNNA show in San Diego this year was PRETTY (by Sandra Gilmore), done this past autumn...

I absolutely loved all the soft pastel colors in this canvas, and I found myself proceeding very carefully to render all the different shades of pinks and yellows.  Because the background colors were so lovely, I didn't want to cover them up with solid stitching, so I chose some blackwork patterns that provided interesting texture, but didn't hide the painted colors.

I like to think that the large "wall" area could be wallpaper, drapes, or even ironwork.  Then the middle section could be carpeting or the back of a sofa (I was envisioning a chenille sofa!).  Then another blackwork pattern for the white lacy tablecloth.

When I got to the bowl and flowers, I did a LOT of Tent Stitching (or Basketweave, where possible) in a variety of colors.  I added irregular Mosaic stitches over the bowl, to give it a rough-ish texture, hoping to contrast it against the soft petals of the flowers. You can't see it in the photo, but all the bowl stitches have a slight sparkle, since I mixed in some Kreinik Blending Filaments with each stitch...

And then I tackled the flowers. (Are they roses or peonies?  I still can't decide.)  First I Tent Stitched everything, then went back and added Diagonal Satin Stitches on just the petals I wanted to highlight.  I used rayon Ribbon Floss and Neon Rays, since I wanted a soft sheen on my petals.

Slow work, but very, very satisfying when everything is done.  And after all the flowers were stitched, I decided they needed some deliciously full bullioned and beaded centers!  (And I've included a packet of beads with the stitch guide, by the way).

So if these soft pastel flowers appeal to you (deep in the heart of winter) you can check out the stitch guide for PRETTY on my website.... or ask your local stitchery store to order the canvas and stitch guide from Fleur de Paris.  Either way, it's a wonderful project to get you in a flowery spring mood!

To Market, To Market....

Although I'm not traveling to San Diego for the first TNNA show of 2014, I have sent my models for the stitch guides I've created for four Sandra Gilmore canvases. I had a blast working on painted canvases for a change, and I look forward to doing more of them in the coming New Year.

But I wanted to share with you my recent holiday stitch guide, for Sandra Gilmore's NUTCRACKER.

 He's a very handsome fellow, isn't he?  I especially love the raspberry and green colors, and couldn't wait to get stitching on him!
 

Because I was thinking this wooden nutcracker was shiny, I decided to stitch him in the shinier rayon threads of Ribbon Floss and Neon Rays.  Rather slippery threads, those rayons!  But I didn't have any problems with them, and they are so soft, they work nicely for the Elongated Tent Stitches I used for his hat and body.  I used regular Tent Stitches (or Basketweave) for his whole face. I also decided this nutcracker is so regal looking, his crown needed a tiny Swarovski crystal in the gold cross at the top of his hat. That's included with the pattern, by the way...

I padded his nose, and of course, his eyebrows and mustache (with soft Bella Lusso).  I left his fuzzy hair for last, mixing 2 strands of white Wisper with 1 strand of white Bella Lusso.   Personally, I didn't want super fuzzy hair, but if you did, you could always tackle some Turkey Work for those areas.

Since I wanted the nutcracker to be the focal point of the piece, I chose a quiet background, so it receded  behind - but not competed with - the nutcracker. I used a simple but elegant blackwork pattern, but enlarged it to fill the large background space, sorta like wallpaper, I guess...

 And, to tell the truth, I think my favorite part was stitching the ribbon border!  I've slightly padded the pink raised ribbon sections so they look like they're moving in and out of the canvas.  The white scalloped border is done with DMC #8 perle, and the green stripes are 1 strand of DMC Floche.

So if you are a nutcracker collector (and I know there are a lot of you out there!), or just want something fun to stitch for next year's holiday season, please visit my website for the stitch guide.  Or contact your local stitchery store for them to order both the canvas and stitch guide from Fleur de Paris, the distributor of all Sandra Gilmore canvases.

It's Time to Celebrate...

...a new stitch guide, that is!!

I've just finished and printed my next Stitch Guide, and this time it's done for LIBERTY (18-870), by Sandra Gilmore.  Here's how I stitched Miss Liberty:

It's a small canvas (apprx. 7" x 8.5" with the stitched borders), but it's a strong and powerful image of the Statue of Liberty.  I've stitched her in the luscious Bella Lusso merino wool threads, but the pattern offers you a choice of a wool version (like my model) or a silk version (featuring stranded Splendor silks), so you can pick which version YOU prefer to stitch.

LIBERTY is stitched mostly in Tent Stitch, but I've used some Straight Stitches in her hair and crown points, just to add some texture.  The bargello/rippling sky background is meant to suggest flags or banners, and is done with 1 ply of DMC Floche.  The photo makes it look sketchy, but in different angles, the light play off of the rippling sky is really cool and looks embossed, also adding subtle movement to this quiet image.

I created the outer border by blending two #8 pearl cottons together -- to suggest polished metal and architectural accents, which just reinforces LIBERTY's enduring strength and beauty.

If you would like to stitch LIBERTY, please contact your local stitchery store and have them order the canvas and stitch guide from Fleur de Paris (www.fleurdeparis.com).  By the way, I'll also have the stitch guide available on my website, if you already have this canvas in your stash!

And between you and me:  I am absolutely mesmerized by the beauty of this canvas and the way Sandra Gilmore has painted only LIBERTY's head, focusing on her gaze, which is steadfast, unwavering and ever-upwards.  I am fascinated by the way this image is cropped -- with her raised arm and golden torch left outside the frame of the canvas, because we all know it's there and by painting it this way, Sandra allows us to use our imagination to supply the rest of the statue, while staring into LIBERTY's face....I must tell you it was truly a beautiful and serene piece to stitch!