I learned to embroider when I was a kid, when everyone was really into cross stitch (remember the '80s?). Eventually, I migrated to surface embroidery, teaching myself with whatever I could get my hands on...read more
Contact Mary
I learned to embroider when I was a kid, when everyone was really into cross stitch (remember the '80s?). Eventually, I migrated to surface embroidery, teaching myself with whatever I could get my hands on...read more
Contact Mary
June 11, 2013
I’ve had a couple queries lately about Madeira silk embroidery floss – apparently, someone out there is using it in a class, kit, or chart. I can always tell when “something’s up” with a needlework product, based on the number of questions coming in!
And so, today, we’ll have a little Thread Chat about Madeira silk floss.
June 10, 2013
‘Tis Monday, and a good day to announce the winners to last week’s give-away of little needle tins and needle ID cards. It is also a good day to pass on my thanks for lots of things!
I had fun with this give-away, I admit! The answers to the give-away question were quite diverse and interesting – it’s always fun to see where people’s interests lie in the whole wide world of embroidery.
But what I enjoyed most? The fact that so many of us have the same difficulty in narrowing down a choice of “favorite” when it comes to embroidery! Not that I was trying to make the question difficult on purpose, or anything…
June 7, 2013
The Lattice Jumble Sampler is completely finished – and the Jumble Sampler Layout Guide is now available!
What can you find in the guide? All kinds of stuff! Read on, and I’ll tell you about it and show you the finished sampler…
June 6, 2013
Remember the Lattice Jumble Sampler that somehow morphed out of the Stitch Fun series? It’s been a little while since we visited it, but I thought I should let you know that it’s finished.
But…. there’s more….
June 5, 2013
Just a brief update on the Mission Rose embroidery project – enough of an update to change perspectives on proportions.
See, the embroidery on the rose so far has been a little deceptive. The long & short stitch shaded center and inner petals, now that they’re finished, give the rose a rather compact look. The central flower that’s supposed to be the focal point seems like it’s rather small and lost in the middle of those big leaves down below and that the looming bud above.
But now that the outer petal “turn overs” are underway, the perspective changes a bit. For example, the lower shaded leaves seemed to dwarf the rose before, but now, we can see that they won’t look quite as large when the whole rose is complete.
June 4, 2013
Remember these darling needle tins from a couple weeks ago?
June 3, 2013
Sometimes, when choosing ground fabrics for different types of embroidery, working up small samples to compare results is a good way to discern better from good. Often, once I work up a sample, choosing the better ground fabric for an intended project is much easier. But sometimes, I found out that either fabric will do fine – which is the case here.
To decide between two different types of linen for embroidering monograms, and especially for shadow work monograms, I worked up two samples, one of which (monogram M in shadow work) I’ve already shown you.
Today, let’s look at a different monogram worked on a different linen, but with the same threads and stitches.
