It’s been a little too long since we visited the Mission Rose project. Last time we looked at it, we were discussing the question of whether or not it was a mistake to appliqué blue silk into the corners around the central marquise shape.

Opinions were really divided on the addition of the blue! I’m glad, because that means that you feel comfortable expressing your needlework opinions on Needle ‘n Thread, which contributes to that sense of community that a blog is all about – we can discuss needlework things, and we can even have divergent views on this or that approach, but we still go forward.

In the long run, the whole Final Decision thing still falls back on me. Darn! It’s one of those situations where you can please some of the people most of the time, and most of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all the people all the time. Right?

But I am going to ask those who don’t really like the blue – those of you who are scratching your heads, raising your eyebrows, and wondering about my state of mental health – one big favor…

Finally, finally! After over a year of work (albeit intermittent), Lavender Honey & Other Little Things is now available!

It’s a fun “little” book (that isn’t so little…) This is what it’s all about:

Here’s a free little hand embroidery pattern for you that came about in a typical way.

Why “typical”? Because I think a lot of people do this – or they do it more than they realize. I call it phone doodling. And I do it all the time.

While cleaning up my desk the other day, I came across several scraps and notes that were phone doodled. They happen when I’m on the phone. Sometimes, they happen when I’m chatting with a visitor at the kitchen table (isn’t that what paper napkins are for?).

I saw this particular doodle and I thought of two specific things that could happen with it, with embroidery.

Yesterday, when I mentioned the tip on using spray starch when transferring embroidery designs, one thing I didn’t expect was an influx of email asking about the last picture in the article:

Last week when I reviewed the LightPad for transferring embroidery designs, I mentioned that I’ve transferred 52 monograms in the past month-ish. This generated a lot of questions, but the most common one was about the transfer process itself.

What do you use to trace monograms (or any patterns) onto linen, if the monogram is going to be laundered. Should the transfer be permanent? What if you can’t cover it up?…. Lots of questions about tracing designs.

I’m pretty sure I’ve mentioned this tip before on Needle ‘n Thread, but if not, I should have! It deserves its own article, its very own space in cyberspace.

Last week, we delved into the fun of creating fluffy stitches by examining Victorian Tufting, a technique involving layers of herringbone stitch which are cut and then fluffed up to create a dimensional pile on the embroidery surface.

Today, just for the fun of it, let’s look at another fluffy stitch. This one is called velvet stitch, and although it’s more often seen in canvas work, it can also be used in surface embroidery.