About

Mary Corbet

writer and founder

 

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

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Stumpwork Embroidery & Thread Painting – Book Review

 

Amazon Books

Good morning and welcome to a Jolly Wednesday! It’s a little rainy, a little gloomy, but the perfect studio weather. I plan to get a lot of stitching done today.

But before hunkering down to that, I want to share with you a serendipitous find – a new-to-me book published back in January of 2024, called Stumpwork Embroidery and Thread Painting by Megan Zaniewski.

From instructions to projects, this book is a keeper! I’ll tell you how I discovered it (as late to the party as I am) and show you what it’s all about.

Stumpwork Embroidery and Thread Painting by Megan Zaniewski
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A is for Ampersand

 

Recently, I was working up a list of social media posts for my Needle ‘n Thread Facebook page.

I was putting together a “revitalization” series on Facebook for older content, when it struck me that it might be a good idea to do that here on the website, too. There are about 20 years of content here, and I figure newcomers and old friends alike might appreciate a reminder about some of the tutorials, tools, designs, projects and more that they kind find tucked away in the archives.

Every series needs a theme. I decided my revitalization theme would be the alphabet, in the old “A is for Apple” format. With each letter of the alphabet, I’ll find some corresponding tidbit of content to revitalize for you. I won’t do one every day. This will just be a running series that I’ll include here and there.

And while I’m doing something similar on Facebook, the content here will be slightly different and explored a little more deeply.

Ready?

Let’s kick off the series with A is for… Ampersand! Here are a couple examples of embroidered ampersands that are accompanied by tutorials that you might find helpful in your stitching and creative journey.

A is for Ampersand Embroidery
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Treasure Hunting, Silk, Embroidery, and The Back Burner

 

I’m afraid the title of this article might be promising you too much.

This is really just an article about a piece of fabric, a book, and an idea – and not necessarily in that order.

It’s an idea that’s percolated on The Back Burner for a long time. I’ve never done anything with it, though I have collected little bits and bobs related to it – a piece of fabric, some fonts and glyphs, some ideas here and there, hither and yon.

I must say hither and yon, because aye, matey, I’m talking about a map.

I’ll warn you in advance that this might take you down a Rabbit Hole if you’re an explorer.

Robert Louis Stevenson's Treasure Island - and Embroidered Maps
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Handpicked Collection Vol 5 – Up Close! (and more…)

 

Hurray! Volume 5 of Inspirations Studios The Handpicked Collection series is here at Last!

I love this series of books from Inspirations Studios. The projects in each book are exquisite, they cover a wide array of needlework techniques, they range from simpler to more complex, they’re beautifully photographed, the instructions are clear and precise, and there’s something in them for everyone.

If you started collecting these volumes from the beginning of their publication, then you’ll want to add Volume 5 to your library. There are some really fun and beautiful projects in here!

Let’s take a look at the book up close, shall we? And then, at the end of this article, there’s some exciting news about needlework stands!

Handpicked Collection vol 5 from Inspirations Studios
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Casual Stitching Time and Tea for 2.5

 

We haven’t had a lot of time in the studio lately for “casual” stitching, where we meander more slowly through projects that don’t have a definite deadline.

Occasionally, on afternoons when we’re caught up with work-work, though, we can take a couple hours just to stitch quietly and move some of our slower developing projects ahead.

This type of break is good for the project, but it’s also good for me and Anna. It gives us time to think; it gives us time to relax while we’re still working; and it helps us both to remember that stitching is meant to be enjoyable.

And if it happens to be a rainy afternoon to boot, gosh! Studio Life could hardly get better than that!

Ready to stitch tea towels
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