Today, I have to do a little shameless self-promotion. But it’s to your benefit, so I don’t feel too guilty about it!
With the end of October looming, and with November close upon us, it’s time to start thinking seriously about Christmas stitching.
Many stitchers start embroidering for Christmas way back in summer. And I even know some who start next year’s Christmas projects as early as January!
But me – I’m a seasonal stitcher. I like embroidering for Christmas as the holidays approach. It adds to the festive atmosphere and keeps me in good cheer!
To prod you along in your determination to whip up some stitchy Christmas gifts ahead of time, I’ve put my most popular e-book, Twelve Trees for Christmas, on sale through this weekend, at 15% off!
If you’re not familiar with Twelve Trees, this is what it’s all about…
Twelve Trees for Christmas is an instructional and project e-book that takes you step-by-step through embroidering twelve different 3-inch Christmas trees, using simple stitches and, here and there, a little bit of bead-bling (if you want!).
The trees are presented in a variety of styles – some are modern, some are vintage, some are holiday bright, while some are more cozy-subdued.
But all twelve are super fun to stitch!
When I initially worked up the twelve trees (I actually stitched some 16 trees, but a few didn’t make the cut), they were, as a whole, my all-time favorite embroidery project.
Each tree is small and manageable as a project. Once you’re ready to stitch it, most of the trees can be worked easily in an evening of stitching.
If you’re a binge stitcher who likes to spend the weekend curled up with your needle and thread, they are ideal for that!
One of my favorite winter weekend memories of last year was when I took a few flour sack towels, each with one little tree situated in a corner, and spent the weekend embroidering them for Christmas gifts. I admit it – I binge stitched, accompanied by really cheesy Christmas movies.
It was so much fun!
And by the end of the weekend, I had a small pile of little Christmas towels, ready to include as hostess gifts for holiday get-togethers.
Embroidered flour sack towels are perfect for wrapping around a bottle of wine or favorite spirits, for gift-giving.
They’re also a perfect lining for small cookie baskets or trays. And you can use them instead of tissue paper in a gift bag.
I’ve done all of the above with embroidered flour sack towels, and they always go over great!
You can also use the trees as larger ornaments. They fit perfectly in 4″ hoops.
I hung a few in the middle of small wreaths, for holiday accents.
If you want to get more meticulous and go smaller, you can reduce the size of the patterns slightly on your home printer so that they fit into 3″ hoops. You may have to adjust your thread weights when stitching. Some patterns, if reduced in size, would look better stitched with one strand, for example, instead of two.
There’s a lot that you can do, gift-wise and finishing wise, with these trees!
I’ve had readers send in photos of quilted Christmas wallhangings featuring all twelve trees, of Christmas table runners, of cloth napkins for the holiday table, of hoop ornaments hanging on trees, of greeting cards sporting individual trees – so many possibilities!
And because they’re small, manageable projects, you still have plenty of time to work a few into your gift-giving or decorating schemes for 2018!
You’ll find my e-book Twelve Trees for Christmas available here, marked at 15% off through the end of October.
Go ahead! Indulge! Before you know it, you’ll be cozied up, stitching and binge watching cheesy Christmas movies, too… but don’t worry! I won’t tell anyone!
Twelve Trees for Christmas is an e-book, which means it is delivered to you via download link in your email after completing your purchase. This means you can get stitching right away!
You can print the whole e-book or just the parts you need, or you can load it on a mobile device and view it that way. It’s always best to download the e-book directly to your computer first, so that you have a copy on your computer. From there, you can put a copy of the PDF on your mobile device. If you have any difficulties with your download links, just drop me a line and I’ll take care of you!
Does the Christmas tree e-book also include supply lists and stitch instructions? Would be a fun project to kit up and carry around for small bits of stitch time like in a waiting room.
Yes, it does – Supply list, step by step instructions for each tree, along with step-by-step photo instructions for every stitch. Clear photos of each finished tree – everything you need to know, to stitch your own! You can also substitute threads from your own stash. You don’t have to use the colors or threads I used. They are great “small” projects for toting here and there.
Thank you again, Mary!
Oh, Mary, I remember last Christmas well. You saved my day with the Twelve Trees for Christmas e-book! I stitched five of them on homemade Christmas stockings for my children and my grandson within two weeks. It was a tour de force, I just can’t imagine how you manage to stitch one tree in one evening! I told and showed the whole story on my website http://www.nowickipage.de/christmastrees.html, because the trees went with a little Christmas miracle. 🙂
Thank you again for this wonderful designs and instructions – I recommend the e-book to everybody, stitching the trees is real fun!
That’s exactly what I’ve been up to: your Christmas trees. I bought the e-pub a year or two ago, and I love it because the designs look stunning, and the instructions are clear. They look like a lot more work than they are, and I am a glutton for compliments! This years lot is tree #9 that I’ve printed onto some leftover silk from a ribbon embroidery project. I love the idea of binge stitching: perfect for the icy Saturday we’ve woken to here.
Hi Mary!
I’m a little behind on my email, as you can see! I’m curious as to where you purchase your flour sack towels.
Thanks~
Diane
I made all of the trees, mounted them in “photo insert” cards, and sent them out as Christmas cards to my favorite folks. Cannot tell you how much I enjoyed making these and how much my recipients loved them.
Yay, Debra!! That sounds like a great way to use the designs – I’m so glad you enjoyed making them!