June 7, 2019

Sampling Stitches – that is, Doing What I Love!

This week I got started on a couple project samples for kids’ classes this summer. This particular stitched sample that I’m going to show you today is for middle to high school aged kids. It’s a tad complex for little kids!

Before launching into stitches and such, I better get a little business out of the way, though!

For those who have been waiting for them, there’s a limited supply of the pre-transferred towel sets available in my shop – both the Floral Corners and the Holly & Evergreen (if you want to get a jump on Christmas). Purchases made before 10:00 am central time will ship today, and all others will ship Monday.

I’ve also posted a lettering sampler design for my patrons over on Patreon. It’s a spin-off of this Quick Brown Fox lettering sampler from a while ago. I added a lazy dog and a jumping fox and a few lines to turn it into a kind of combo band-sampler-lettering-sample-dog-doodle-thing. So if you’re part of the crowd on Patreon, you can pick that design up now.

And speaking of samplers… this is what I’m working on this week:

Hand Embroidery Books

June 5, 2019

Stunning Stitches for Crazy Quilts – Book Review

Quite a while ago, Kathy Shaw asked me if I would be interested in seeing her new book, Stunning Stitches for Crazy Quilts, when it was published. And of course, I said yes!

For those of you who have been hanging out with me on Needle ‘n Thread for a while, you already know I’m a bit of a book fanatic. I love books, and I really love needlework books.

When it comes to the pleasure of just browsing a book, I really enjoy books that are visually exciting. I’ve noticed that most books on crazy quilting have that element of visual excitement.

Stunning Stitches is one of those visually exciting books, but it is much, much more. It’s a practical guide to traditional crazy quilting, presented in a very organized, accessible way for beginners and beyond. Let’s look at it…

Uncategorized

June 3, 2019

Weekend Stitching: Project Preparation, Color Selection, & Beads

A few months back, earlier this year, I started embroidering this Jacobean whitework project on blue linen.

There were a several reasons I decided to re-start the project, not the least of which was the fact that the blue linen I was using is no longer available.

This past weekend, I put my mind to the new version once again, and I got some preliminaries out of the way by narrowing down supplies and setting up the frame. Now I can start stitching on it! Yay!

Uncategorized

May 30, 2019

Protect Your Magnifier – and Everything Else!

Today, a tip for those who use magnifiers (or might use one some day!) for embroidery and other needlework.

I don’t always use a magnifier, but I have a couple stand magnifier and light combo units that I really like – this one that I reviewed here is working out to be my favorite, because of the strength and clarity of the lens and the easy rotation and placement of the lens.

Now, I’ve always had the idea that every useful thing in my work space would also be beautiful, either embellished in some way with embroidery or beautiful in some other regard – like beautifully made wooden tools or beautifully wrought scissors or what-have-you. In reality, I have to admit, I have many purely functional things that can’t really slide into the Decorative or Beautiful categories. I mean, a screwdriver? A table clamp? A roller for packaging tape? An external hard drive? You get the idea.

Once upon a time, I had the idea I’d hand-make and embroider the thing I’m going to show you today. And some day, I might. Instead, I recently took a purely functional piece of packaging and recycled it for this use. It works well!

Uncategorized

May 28, 2019

Three Favorite Filling Stitches & When to Use Them

Lately, I’ve been having a discussion with some beginning embroiderers about filling stitches that work well on surface embroidery projects, especially where you’re filling small elements here and there in a standard stylized or realistic design.

I thought I would share the results of that discussion here, in a distilled version, in case you struggle with how to fill different elements in your hand embroidery projects and where to use what filling technique.

So, now that the three day weekend is over, let’s get back to some basic embroidery tips by looking at my three favorite standard filling techniques and where and when to use them.

Three Favorite Filling Stitches & When to Use Them

Uncategorized

May 24, 2019

Some Embroidery & a Hodgepodge

I love the word hodgepodge.

Today’s a little hodgepodge of stuff embroidery related. I’m going to show you some small progress on my needlepointed flower and explain why the progress is so small and a dilemma I’m facing with it.

And, because it’s Memorial Day weekend, I’m going to share with you some information about Memorial Day sales that have to do with needlework.

And I’m also going to plug the fact that my Floral Corner flour sack towels with the pre-printed designs are back in (limited) stock. Oh, and all my e-books are on sale briefly this weekend, too! You can check all that out in my shop. Yay! Set yourself up for some summer embroidery projects!

And I’m going to share a fabric find with you.

Ok, back to the needlepainted flower…

Uncategorized

May 22, 2019

Some Good Needlework Tips on Video

Today, I’m going to send you down a sewing rabbit hole!

If you haven’t discovered the goldmine that YouTube is when it comes to looking for how-to information – not just for embroidery, but for just about anything – you might be missing the boat!

With today’s smart TVs, smart phones, smart tablets, wifi connections and everything else, it’s easier than ever to watch how-to videos easily, while you’re actually trying to do whatever they’re trying to show you.

My own YouTube video channel is here. The easiest way to always find the channel is to subscribe to it (it’s free – “subscribe” in this case just means “follow”) while you’re logged in to YouTube. That way, you can come back to it quickly by going to your own subscription list.

If you have a smart TV, you can pull my channel up by accessing it through the YouTube app using your own subscription list or by searching “Mary Corbet” on the app, and you can watch my embroidery stitch videos from the comfort of your stitching chair.

I subscribe to several YouTube channels (or “YouTubers”), covering different topics from needlework to travel to calligraphy to IT to my own family’s channels and more!

Today, I’m going to share with you two YouTubers that I think are handy for needleworkers. They don’t focus specifically on embroidery, but they supply good information that can pertain to embroidery. They are both professional tailors who hand finish the bespoke clothing they make.

Connect with Mary

How-To
Videos

Embroidery Tips & Techniques

Connect with Mary

Sampling Stitches – that is, Doing What I Love!

Stunning Stitches for Crazy Quilts – Book Review

Weekend Stitching: Project Preparation, Color Selection, & Beads

Protect Your Magnifier – and Everything Else!

Three Favorite Filling Stitches & When to Use Them

Some Embroidery & a Hodgepodge

Some Good Needlework Tips on Video

Connect with Mary

How-To Videos

Embroidery Tips & Techniques

Connect with Mary

How-To
Videos