My Current Fall Project

After finishing Sandra Gilmore's OLIVER last month, I was eager to get back to work on this very large piece (another Sandra Gilmore beauty) called FALL SPLENDOR.  It is such an elegant piece that I have been enjoying working on it every night while I watch (ahem, listen) to tv....

Whew!  It's a large piece - 15" x 15" with my added border work - but the sandstone background isn't solidly stitched, so only the gold floral work needs to be done, which I'm doing in plain old Tent Stitch with a Kreinik #8 Braid. I'm making progress, one leaf at a time...

It's rather restful, doing lots of tent stitching with metallic thread; then switching over to long Straight Stitches for the leaves. I've never done any of those old "longpoint" kits that Dimensions used to sell, but I've certainly enjoyed creating my long-stitched leaves, using 5 ply of Splendor silks. It's a simple but effective way to showcase all the luscious fall colors in this piece.

I've already padded the acorns, but still have to finish the red berries at the bottom -- they'll be padded too, with a shiny rayon ribbon, I think.

Anyway, I'm hoping to have this finished shortly (one leaf and five berries to go, woo hoo!), and then I should have the FALL SPLENDOR stitch guide done and mailed off to Fleur de Paris in the next week or so.  Stay tuned for further stitching adventures!
HAPPY FALL FRIDAY!!

Meanwhile, Back at the Beach...

Now that I've finished the PATRIOTIC canvas and stitch guide, I can go back to working on Sandra Gilmore's SHELLSCAPE canvas, which is a new design in her line this year.  I always start a new canvas by staring at it for quiet some time, decided where I want to start stitching.  It seemed easiest for me to start at the top (and begin a driftwood-looking border using a variegated #8 pearl from ThreadworX) and work downwards, to all the items in the foreground.

This canvas has lots of areas for tranquil "filling in" that don't require complex stitches -- or complex thinking -- which is perfect for nighttime stitching while watching tv, or afternoon stitching, when you don't want to do anything too taxing!  Because I wanted to add many soft, subtle colors, this piece has lots of "blended" threads -- where I mix a solid thread with a variegated thread for more visual interest.  As I began stitching I decided instead of working the sky, water, and beach all in tent stitch, I would use three different small scale stitches, to break up the canvas, and also to make it more interesting to stitch.

I've done the sky in a simple 4-way stitch, using 2 ply of a Splendor silk, so the aqua canvas shows through.  The clouds are diagonal satin stitches, broken up in cloud shapes, with the smaller colored sections done in a pale variegated ThreadworX in creams, apricots and lavenders. (I decided to let the variegated thread create the color changes, instead of stopping and starting several different solid colors.) 
 

The sea is done in rows of elongated tent stitches (to mimic the horizontal lines of an ocean view), using shimmery Ribbon Floss and a variegated blue ThreadworX cotton blended with 1 strand of a sparkly blending filament  - to add some subtle color changes and create a metallic sparkle over the whole sea:

The beach/dune area is done in plain old tent/basketweave stitch, again using a subtle variegated ThreadworX color.  But instead of doing ALL basketweave, I alternated my stitching directions randomly: doing rows of horizontal tent stitches, then switching to a patch of vertical tent stitches, then doing chunks of diagonal basketweave -- all to avoid creating those dreaded diagonal stripes that happen when you do a strict basketweave stitch with a variegated thread.  Below you can see how the patches of colors look very much like shadows on the beach dunes:

When I moved down to the lower level of the canvas, in the table/ledge area I chose a large blackwork pattern, using the same #8 pearl cotton variegated ThreadworX I used for the outer border and window sashes:

Again, there's more tent stitching (or basketweave) to be done on the RELAX sign and the terra cotta pot; lots more areas to fill up before moving on to the textural items: the shells, starfish, coral and flowers.  Bit by bit, this canvas is filling up... and I must say, I'm enjoying working on every part of this piece.  It's been very relaxing stitching.  I hope to get the rest of this piece done over the weekend, so I'll share the rest of my beachy adventure with you next week!

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.

Luscious Canvases

Recently, I had the nicest talk with Marti from NATURE'S PALETTE in Houston, TX. Marti called me to tell me about her canvas painting business. After years of being a needlepoint canvas painter, Marti and her partner Nancy decided to create a line of colored canvases that provide the most unbelievably luscious backgrounds for all sorts of counted canvaswork.

They graciously sent me a ring of her colored canvas samples and I've been oogling them ever since. They are all so lovely I'm having a hard time deciding which ones I like the very best (all of them are terrific, by the way). The colors are grouped in the following categories: SOLIDS, with colors like "Grape Juice" and "Lemonade"; PREMIUM, which are vibrant solid colors with opalescent glitter (great for holiday ornaments) and some are mottled like "Silver Flash" and "Gold Flash"; and CUSTOM colors, which are softly variegated like "Flamingo Bay" or "Caribbean Waters" and others are speckled like "Pumpkin Patch" or "Latte" (both perfect for Halloween ormaments).

Here's another peek at some of the samples that I had to smush onto my scanner bed so I could show you these great canvas colors:


Frankly, all I can say is: "Yum, Yum, Yum..."

Marti and her partner Nancy hand-paint all the canvas pieces themselves, which they cut in standard sizes of 10"x10" or 20"x20" before painting. Marti says the canvas colors are totally permanent and perfect for showcasing a spectacular counted canvas design. They are also available to paint your own custom color requests, in whatever size you need.

If these gorgeous hand-painted canvases intrigue you and get you excited/drooling about all the infinite possibilities of working on painted backgrounds... or if you have a special project that needs a really unique canvas, you can email Marti and Nancy directly for more information on their exciting canvas line of NATURE'S PALETTE. their email address is: GIMMIES@comcast.net.

Prairie Song

When I posted my last Friday Flowers showing bright pink and orange flowers, it reminded me of a canvas I bought on ebay a few years ago. So I pulled it out of the closet and made a color copy of it for future reference (following my own good advice). It's an older Charley Harper design that I had never seen before:


Frankly, it knocked my socks off. I don't know what it was... the pink and orange cone flowers, the hidden bird's nest, the praying mantis, or just the combination of all those things that created a lovely slice of the prairie... regardless, I was totally smitten and had to get it.

It's a really long piece - 7.5" by 25" - and I have JUST the spot for it on one of my living room walls. I've collected bits and pieces of materials for it - the long stretcher bars, just the right color of pink and orange ribbon for the flowers.... but I still can't decide if the cone flowers should have french knots in their centers or beads - the jury is out on that decision....

I won't be stitching it any time soon (it feels like a summertime project to me and I'm deep into Christmas stuff these days) but it's fun to pull out and look at from time to time. Just a tantalizing reminder of all sorts of fun projects still waiting to be stitched....

(Do you have a few of those types of projects hidden back in your closet? Why not dig them out and look them over... It's a good way to put a smile on your face, whet your stitching appetite, and remind you again why you love this stuff!!)

Anatomy of a Project: Preparing the Canvas

I told you earlier about the Mt. Tam Canvas Workers auction I attended. Well, here's one of the canvases I impulsively bid on and won. It came with thread, stretcher bars, and a zippered pouch to stash everything in. And all for under $40 - WHAT A DEAL!

This little 6" x 6" canvas is so cute, I want to start stitching on it PRONTO. But first, I have to do some canvas prep work. And I thought I'd share a few of my techniques with you.

[ASIDE: I know most of you already use these same techniques, but recently I answered an email from a stitcher who was attempting her first needlepoint canvas and had some very basic questions about starting out. So I thought this would be a good project to prepare using some basic tips.]

FIRST: If you're working on a painted canvas, here's a really good tip before you start stitching: MAKE A COLOR COPY OF YOUR CANVAS. Why bother? Well, it may save you some headaches down the road. Take this hotel canvas, for instance.


I've made a color copy that I can use to write my notes - showing what threads and stitches I'm going to use on my canvas. This creates a really good road map for your work in progress. (This can be especially valuable if you set the project aside and forget about it for a few months or so. When you pick it up again, you'll remember what you were going to do.) And as you're stitching, it reminds you what the canvas looked like before you started.

But the more important reason to have a copy of the canvas to refer to happens when you layer stitches. Look at those flower boxes on the canvas above. I'm planning to do some irregular stitches (lazy daisies, maybe?) for all the leaves. After I'm done with all the greenery, how will I remember where to put the flowers on top??Well, with my color copy to refer to, I can place the red flowers on top to match the original design of the canvas.

Okay, now you're ready to mount your canvas to stretcher bars. First, I recommend putting the bars together in L-shaped pairs, then put the two L-shapes together to form a square frame. (This is the way I learned to put stretcher bars together in art classes, and it's always worked better than assembling the frame one piece at a time and getting a wobbly shape instead of a true square.) Then make sure your bars ARE square (I test it against the square edge of a table and push it into a true square if I need to.)


NEXT, attach the canvas to the squared-up frame. Most stitchers use tacks (although I've also used a staple gun) so we'll use tacks here, too. Tacks are very handy: they are reusable, which is great AND you can take them out and reposition them if/when your canvas gets a bit loose.

As the above photo shows, start on one side first (I did the bottom edge first - putting my first tack in the CENTER of the canvas edge. Then I placed the remaining tacks first along the left side (pulling the canvas a bit to make it taut), then along the right side (pulling it a bit to make it taut). [ASIDE: You can use as many tack as makes you happy. I usually put a tack every 2-3 inches, depending on the canvas size, but I've seen stitchers put tacks every 1/2 inch... just depends on your personal preference.]

Then, I move to the edge OPPOSITE the first side, placing the first tack in the center (as shown above) and then continue tacking one side down, then moving over to the other side. I repeat this process with the two remaining canvas edges. I test to see if the canvas is taut enough for my stitching. If it isn't, I remove a few tacks and replace them so the canvas is taut enough. When I'm sure the tacks are properly placed, I'll push them further into the wooden bars.

Okay...now I'm ready to stitch!

A Few Impulse Buys...ahem

Last weekend I attended a needlework auction put on by the Mt. Tam Canvas Workers ANG group. They hold this fun event every two years (which gives them time to accumulate lots of yummy stuff). Anyway, the ANG ladies spend lots of time gathering, sorting, and pricing all the items - some go into the "live auction" event, and others go onto the "silent auction" table.

When I arrived, I checked out the silent auction items. There is an assortment of projects, some just canvases, some with threads, and some already started but donated by their owners. On each item there's a minimum bid, and then space for any interested stitcher to write their bid and their name. Not until the end of the meeting, when bidding is closed, do you know if you've won the item/s you bidded on. Anyway, I always enjoy finding an unexpected canvas or two, so it's very fun to splurge with a bid or two! (The Home on the Range canvas above just made me grin - but apparently no one else, so I won it with a very low bid.)

The MAIN EVENT is the live auction, where all sorts of canvases are held up for stitchers to vie for in a lively bidding war. There were so many lovely canvases (some complete with stretcher bars, threads and stitch guides) that it was hard to decide what to bid on. Each canvas has a minimum bid on it, so the bidder has some idea of the retail cost. There were several fantastic Pat Thode Santa canvases (but the bidding went beyond my budget, so I didn't win any of those)... But I did bid on and win a couple of interesting canvases that were total impulse buys. And I'm tickled pink with them! (One of them is a Sandra Gilmore canvas of pink hydrangeas in a watering can; you can just see a peek of the pink checked background in the photo above.)

They also had a few piles of assorted threads - and silk ribbons, as shown above. I bought some (not knowing what I'd use them for), but after I won the pink hydrangea canvas, I got to thinking maybe I'll try some silk ribbon flowers on top of the tent-stitched canvas....who knows! We'll just have to see how playful I get with that canvas...

By the end of the meeting, practically every stitcher had bid on something, and as they were leaving, everyone was pleased as punch to have snagged a bargain or two.I think I can safely say that a fun time was had by ALL the stitchers in attendance!

Deck The Halls!

Is your house decorated for the holidays?

What's the first thing you do to get your decorating started?

With me, it's putting up all the Christmas stitchery that I've done over the years.

Here's last year's addition to the collection: Pat Thode's 2006 Christmas Chalet.
It's a painted canvas, but I couldn't resist it, because....I LOVE HOUSES!! And I'm a sucker for any type of stitched house.

Here's a few of the other Christmas houses that I bring out for the season.

This is a really old (well, I did it in the 70's) counted canvaswork piece my sister and I call "THE CHRISTMAS HOUSE" because she first saw and stitched it when she was going to college in Southern California.

It's a design by Carol Costello, one of my all-time favorite designers. It's supposed to have tiny little dollhouse rooms stitched in each window, but by the time I got the house stitched, I was so eager to get it finished, I quickly stitched some Christmas motifs in each window, just to get it DONE. I love pulling it out every year; it's become an old favorite of mine.

And then here's another Pat Thode Christmas house...
I fell in love with this canvas a few years ago, and it was definitely a fun piece to stitch up. (It's sort of a companion piece to her Halloween House, if you're familiar with that canvas). If you ever want to try a painted canvas, just look for a Pat Thode canvas. Her Santas are wonderful (more on THEM later) and all her canvases come with a stitch guide to help you place all the stitches in just the right way.
My stitching friends urged me to try Pat Thode canvases....and they were right! They are lots of fun to stitch, and when you're done, you can enjoy looking at them for years to come.

Have fun decking your halls for the holidays, everyone!

It's Been Crazy Here!

I HAD intended to get more blogging done this fall, but ...OOPS, here it is the end of October and I'm still working at a hand gallop to get lots of other stuff done.

Over the past few weeks I've had to pack up and mail trunk shows to two different needlework shops - at totally different sides of the country. One trunk show is currently displayed at Ladybug Stitches in Bohemia, New York and the other is at Quail Run Needlework in Scottsdale, Arizona. Both shops are primarily painted canvas stores, yet they both requested my designs to show stitchers the fun of doing counted canvaswork.

And I'm pleased to report that the stitchers seem to be enjoying the change of stitching scenery! I've had excited phone calls from both stores saying the patterns are flying out the door. Well, THAT'S what I like to hear....It certainly gives me plenty of satisfaction to know that stitchers are eager to try my designs and maybe find a new needlework passion - in COUNTED CANVASWORK!
I always tell people that counted canvaswork is EASY...I mean, come on, who doesn't know how to count? And that's really all you need to do -- thread your needle, count (carefully!) and then stitch it on your canvas...It's not so scary -- REALLY!

And just to show you I'm not a TOTAL counted-canvaswork-a-holic, I'm showing you a few of the (ahem, many) painted canvases I have hidden away in my personal stash. (Like I have time to stitch these in addition to my own designs...but that's another story....) The top little canvas was a gift from a stitching friend...who surprised a bunch of her stitching friends with a little Halloween treat like this one! Boy, were we all delighted! Alas, I haven't stitched it up in time for this Halloween...but I'm hoping by NEXT year.....


And when I went into my local stitchery store (The Regal Rabbit in Windsor, CA) I fell in love with this gothicly cute Halloween house. I LOVE HOUSES, and this one sorta reminded me of a mini House of Seven Gables...but at first, I couldn't figure out what the gold curvy thing next to the broomstick was.It looked like the Cheshire Cat's smile to me. But then a friend looked at it and said it might be the handle of a garage door. AHA! Now I see it - it's a two-door garage for the witch's broomsticks. Pretty clever, huh? I've only done a bit of stitching on it - just the black crows (in a sparkly black Ribbon Floss) and the house siding (in a suitably gothic Needle Necessities overdyed floss) but I'm hoping I can get more of this stitched in the next few days....(dream on, Laura...)

And isn't that Halloweeny needle holder CUTE??
I love it - it's just perfect for all those Halloween projects. And it's another gift from a stitching buddy. We stitchers do love our stitching goodies, don't we?

Okay...gotta fly!
(Where's that broomstick when you need it?!?)