Archive for February, 2007

There Is A Contest Going On …

Wednesday, February 28th, 2007

… to guess the name of a soon-to-open online needlework store. The winner of the contest will receive a chart from a new designer and three fibers chosen by that designer! For the contest rules and hints, check here, there, and elsewhere.

And I’m going to make things just a bit more interesting: If you contact me privately, I will tell you one of the remaining secret words!

GOOD LUCK!

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A Feast for the Eyes

Wednesday, February 28th, 2007

If you haven’t already heard about Take a Stitch Tuesday (TAST), then I have a treat for you!

First, to get a feel for TAST, check out Sharon B’s In a Minute Ago. You can explore from there to see what people have done with the stitches, and you can also get a good review in pictures with the TAST Flickr group. The third way you can see what stitchers are doing is by traveling along with the TAST Ringsurf webring.

There are some amazingly creative and innovative things that can be done with a needle and various types of threads and fabrics, and the variety of expertise the stitchers involved in TAST have is certainly serving up a delectable smorgasbord for the eyes and mind. Crazy quilting and freestyle embroidery are avidly represented, but you’ll find inspiration from all different areas of needlework.

The stitches already experimented with are Algerian eye, buttonhole, chevron, cretan, detached chain, eyelet, feather, fly, and herringbone stitches. The current week’s stitch is the cross stitch.

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Ooooooh! Goldwork Made the OSCARS!!!

Sunday, February 25th, 2007

In the presentation for the award for Achievement in Costume Design, a woman representing a character from the category nominee Curse of the Golden Flower was shown, hoop and all, working on needlework — it was a stunning piece of goldwork!

Don’t worry if you missed it, though — I know it was because you didn’t look up from your own stitching!

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New: Pixie Couture Collection from Mirabilia

Sunday, February 25th, 2007

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I spied these two brand new and gorgeous fairies from Mirabilia tonight on Wichelt’s website (under New Products, then Books). “Fern” is above; “Ivy” is below, and I love them both. How about you?

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Freebie Resource to Disappear

Sunday, February 25th, 2007

Kirsten Edwards has announced the impending closure of The Free Cross Stitch Patterns Newsletter and website. The website will remain up through the first week of March, so hurry to make sure you don’t miss anything before it’s too late.

Kirsten will continue her very successful venture publishing The Gift of Stitching.

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Spunky and Sublime Stitching

Friday, February 23rd, 2007

Have a look at this interesting interview with Jenny Hart, who is the designer behind Sublime Stitching. She discusses her first exposure to needlework, how she got into needlework as a business, and what it’s like to make a career out of her passion for stitching. It’s an inspiring read about the empowerment of making your dreams come true — and being (or at least looking like you’re) in control the whole time.

Sublime Stitching’s motto is, “This ain’t your gramma’s embroidery!”, and that’s certainly true. At first glance, it may remind you of embroidery done on pillowcases imprinted with a transfer pattern, but the subject matter is decidedly adventurous and brings transfer embroidery straight from the 1950s into 2007. My grandmother was not nearly this cool — and yet I know she would have admired Jenny Hart.

Patterns are available for such wide-ranging subjects as wrestling, mermaids, cats, dogs, sushi, the Hindu god Ganesh, space, pirates, scooters, monkeys, underwear, and more. However, words cannot convey the innovation you will find in these patterns, so here is a picture of Sublime Stitching’s Day of the Dead .

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It’s Friday

Friday, February 23rd, 2007

… and that means this week’s new cross stitch releases are up at Hoffman Distributing!

Does anything make your wish list?

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Special Offer from Cross Stitch Wonders

Wednesday, February 21st, 2007

Marcia Manning of Cross Stitch Wonders is going to retire fifty (50 !!! That’s a lot!) of her designs shortly. All of her Jon Van Zyle designs will be retiring this month, and the rest will retire in June. As a result, Marcia is making a special sale offer for US customers:

Shipping charges will be waived on all orders placed on or before March 10th and shipped to a US address which total $25 or more !!!

All you have to do to get free shipping on your order is:

Place your order prior to March 10th, 2007;

Order $25 or more in merchandise;

Have your order shipped to a US address; and

Be sure to write in the comments section: “Free Shipping offer per CSW-Marcia 2/18/07.”

This is your last chance to get any of her retiring designs before they go out of print forever! However, this offer applies to any order meeting the above requirements, even if you don’t order a design which is retiring.

Please note: Marcia will be traveling quite a bit between now and March 10th, so she will fill all orders at that time (and sooner, whenever she can).

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Celebration of Needlework Nashua, NH, 2007 - Register Now!

Wednesday, February 21st, 2007

Registration for the Nashua, New Hampshire Celebration of Needlework 2007 is now open. This year’s Celebrations will be held first in Nashua, NH from May 2nd to May 6th, and then in Louisville, KY from September 12th to September 16th. Registration for the Louisville, Kentucky Celebration will open in May — and I’ll post here as soon as I hear about it, so watch this space!

New Hampshire has no sales tax, so shopping at the needlework market at the Nashua Celebration will cost you less money — in theory, anyway!

This is a great way to spend a weekend taking time for yourself and your favorite hobby, meeting other stitchers, shopping, and attending classes with world-famous needlework designers.

This year’s teachers are an exceptional list:

Susan Greening Davis of Still Stitching with Susan,

Charlotte Dudney of Designs from the Pep’r Pot (punchneedle),

Jackie du Plessis of It’s Fineally Finished,

Teresa Layman of Teresa Layman Designs,

Robin Laukhuf of Olde Willow Stitchery,

Barbara Jackson of Tristan Brooks Designs,

Sherri Jones of Patrick’s Woods,

Tricia Wilson Nguyen of Thistle Threads,

Julie Norton of J. Designs (hardanger),

Pam Reed of Olde Colonial Designs,

Lauren Sauer of Forget-Me-Nots-in-Stitches,

Marcia Brown Smith of The Binding Stitch,

Betsy Stinner of Earth Threads,

Catherine Strickler of Indigo Rose,

Elizabeth Talledo of Fingerwork,

Cindy Valentine of Cindy Valentine Designs, and

Wendy White of Wee Works.

The amazing selection of vendors you’ll be able to meet and purchase from in the Celebration market include:

Britstitch,

Cedar Hill Designs,

Chris’s Collection,

Cindy Valentine Designs,

Counted Stitches,

Cross Stitch Corner,

Cross Stitch Wonders,

Crossed Wing Collection,

Dimple Designs,

The Finishing Touch,

The Heart’s Content,

Images Stitchery Designs,

J. Designs,

Mimi’s Attic,

The Needle’s Work Antiques,

Olde Colonial Designs,

Olde Willow Stitchery Threads,

Scandinavian Stitches,

Simply Old Fashioned,

Stencil N Stitch,

Sunflower Samplings,

Tokens & Trifles,

Tristan Brooks Designs, and

Yankee Cross Stitch.

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One Idea for When You’re Short on Fabric

Saturday, February 17th, 2007

I suppose the subtitle could be: Embroidery in a Man’s World

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Or perhaps: Wouldn’t You Like to be My Neighbor?

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