• How-To
    Videos

    Over 75 Embroidery Stitch Videos to Help You Learn

  • Embroidery Tips & Techniques

    A Collection of Instructional Articles

 
Uncategorized

September 23, 2013

Silk Gimp – Give-Away!

 

Amazon Books

Why do Monday’s always get a bad rap? I love Mondays! They’re the start of a whole brand-spankin’ new week – hopefully, a week in which I can correct all the mistakes I made last week, and get all the things done I didn’t get done last week. I always view them as a mini-start-over.

So, to celebrate another glorious Monday, let’s have a give-away, shall we?

Following up on Friday’s review of the green color assortment collection of Silk Gimp, today, I’m giving away a green assortment pack to two lucky winners, courtesy of Access Commodities.

Silk Gimp Green Assortment
Continue reading “Silk Gimp – Give-Away!”

Uncategorized

September 20, 2013

Silk Gimp: New Thread Color Pack

 

Ahhhhh – I love this thread! Silk Gimp is unlike any other thread on the market.

Really. I mean that! It’s absolutely unique.

It’s not like other threads called gimp (here’s a comparison of different threads called silk gimp); it’s not like DMC memory thread (some folks have substituted memory thread for it, but there’s no real similarity between the two threads, so the embroidered outcome is completely different); it’s not like normal silk embroidery thread.

It’s a bit difficult to explain exactly what it’s like, and if you’ve stitched with it, you know what I mean!

If you haven’t stitched with it, I’ll describe it as a tiny, shiny, wormy-like thread, soft and supple, with incredible sheen, very manipulative, producing an absolutely unique result in the finished embroidery.

Silk Gimp Embroidery Thread
Continue reading “Silk Gimp: New Thread Color Pack”

Uncategorized

September 18, 2013

A Needlework Tool That Baffled Me…Until…

 

There are some needlework & embroidery tools that are A Must. Good scissors, good needles, good hoops and frames fall under this category in my mind.

Then there are those embroidery tools (I sometimes call them “accessories”) that aren’t quite essential, but that are nice to have and useful. A pretty needlebook or needle case, a nice scissor fob that helps you easily locate your scissors, an extra-special, funky or fun pin cushion – these are the types of tools and accessories that fit in this category.

And then there are those needlework tools on the market that baffle me. Why do we need them? What’s the point? And really, why should I spend money on that?

Today, I’m going to show you a tool that fits in this latter category, that had me baffled at first (why would anyone buy this?), but once I started playing with it, I saw that it has its merits and is kind of fun!

Puffin & Co Thread Separator
Continue reading “A Needlework Tool That Baffled Me…Until…”

Uncategorized

September 17, 2013

The Craft of Embroidery – Book Review

 

The Craft of Embroidery by Alison Liley is not a new book. It’s not a fancy book – in fact, it’s just the opposite. It’s a pretty unassuming book, by today’s standards of needlework and craft books.

First published in Great Britain in 1961 and reprinted into the 1970’s, the book is a practical study of the craft of embroidery, intended particularly for the student pursuing the City & Guilds courses and qualifications for hand embroidery, but it also works well for a more general audience – anyone who wants to learn the craft of embroidery.

The Craft of Embroidery by Alison Liley
Continue reading “The Craft of Embroidery – Book Review”

Uncategorized

September 16, 2013

Needlepainting Class Winner Announced!

 

Good morning, world! Today’s the day we announce the winner of last week’s give-away for a spot in Tanja Berlin’s online needlepainting class, and the kit and tools that go along with it.

You can read all about the online needlepainting class here, on Tanja’s website. If you didn’t win and you still want to participate in the class – an excellent opportunity for learning the basics of needlepainting with a master embroiderer from the comfort of your own home and according to your own time table – you might check that out. Her enrollment is limited in number and once all the spots are filled, registration will be closed.

Tanja Berlin Needlepainting class
Continue reading “Needlepainting Class Winner Announced!”