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
December 13, 2012
At the beginning of this month, I showed you some progress on my “secret” embroidery project that’s being worked in silk, with lots of satin stitch and stem stitch. I pointed out an element on the project that was really bugging me, and that I knew I would eventually have to fix.
I’ll show you, close up and personal, how I went about The Fix. Today, we’ll look at removal, and tomorrow, we’ll look at replacement.
December 12, 2012
It looks like lots and lots of us love the new Trish Burr miniature embroidery kits! The response to last week’s give-away was really wonderful – thank you so much for participating!
I really enjoyed reading all your answers as they came in. The responses to the “embroidery environment” question illustrate quite well how different we are, but at the same time, how similar – we all love to stitch, no matter our environment!
December 11, 2012
This book deserves a better introduction than I am going to give it!
I can’t think of butterflies anymore without thinking of my two-year-old niece, Mary. Mary is a bit of a clod, in a cute, bumbling two-year-old way. She has a lisp. And she’s just getting prolific when it comes to words, even if we can’t quite understand them all. She and her four-year-old sister Adele have lately taken a liking to the movie Bug’s Life. Heimlich the caterpillar is the Pixar version of Mary. Pudgy, optimistic, a bit unrealistic (“I’m a beautiful butterfly!“), and gurglingly funny – that’s Mary!
Unfortunately, Mary’s going through this phase where she asks everyone who walks in the door, “Do you have Bug’s Life?” Only she has that lisp thing going on, and it comes out more like this: “Do you have Butth Lithe?” If you don’t know the kid, the question can be a bit disconcerting!
Well, today I’m going to show you a book that’s full of embroidered butterflies, each of which is truly a “beautiful butterfly.” The book is a little different from the types of embroidery books I normally review. The Art of Embroidered Butterflies is a book of Pure Inspiration. It’s packed with artistic inspiration, and though light on the technical how-to instruction that we are used to from project books, it still instructs.
If you are enchanted by the butterfly (whether embroidered or not), this book will delight you!
December 10, 2012
Just a little project update today, to prove that I really do embroider now and then!
Here’s my update on the Hungarian Redwork Runner, which is coming along slowly… but at least it’s coming along.
December 8, 2012
Every time I turn the lights on in my workroom, my internal vocalist starts belting out that song. Yooooouuuuu light up myyyyy liiiife!
I love my workroom lights!
Good lighting is essential for embroidery and for any art or craft. And among the more frequently asked questions here on Needle ‘n Thread, lighting is a prevalent topic.
So today I’m going to introduce you to the lights that I use in my workroom and tell you what I like about them. I’m not trying to sell you on them, and I’ve got absolutely no affiliation with the company. But if you’re hemming and hawing over the question of lighting, this information may help you.
And a good light may be Just the Thing to put on your Christmas wish list. You might end up with one in your stocking!
December 7, 2012
Just in time to tuck one of these lovely miniature needlepainting kits into your own Christmas stocking – or to give it to your stitching pal, who will undoubtedly think it The Best Gift Ever – I’m giving away one of each of Trish Burr’s miniature kits.
December 6, 2012
Don’t you just love embroidery projects that allow you to stitch seemingly endless lines of design, without having to start and end your threads often?
In Stitching Heaven, we’ll be able to stitch indefinitely, with miraculously never-ending threads that don’t fray, that don’t tangle. When we want to change colors or thread types, we will merely think it, and it will be done. We won’t have knots on the back of our fabric and every stitch will cooperate. We won’t make mistakes, but we might change our minds. And when we change our minds, previous stitches will disappear as quickly as we can breathe the wish.
Sounds nice, doesn’t it?
After a while, though, I’d get bored. The challenges of stitchery – and overcoming the challenges – may not be half the fun of embroidery, but they are almost all the satisfaction. If you didn’t have to overcome any challenge at all when stitching, would you be nearly as satisfied with your finished project?
One challenge that we have all faced at some point is that of starting and ending threads in a way that is secure, that makes sense for the particular project, and that won’t impair the finished design.
Today, I’ll show you how I’m starting and ending stitches on the Hungarian Redwork Runner. These are methods we’ve discussed before, but here, you’ll see them in action on a real project. I’ve made one alteration in the ending of my threads, though, for this particular project, so we’ll look at that up close and I’ll tell you why I’m doing it.
